Highlights From Moncrieff

The Moncrieff Show is live from Killaloe River Cruises on the River Shannon, as part of Newstalk’s Summer Tour with thanks to ESB!Seán’s first guest hails from Nenagh, just up the lake from where the show is taking place. His books have won several awards, and his most recent novel is ‘Heart, Be at Peace’. Donal Ryan joins to discuss!

Host of the COYGIG podcast on Off The Ball, Kathleen McNamee, joins Moncrieff to discuss the explosive growth of women’s football in Ireland and abroad.Listen here

Helen Vaughan, psychotherapist, joins Moncrieff to share tips on navigating the emotional minefield of holidays with a partner — from managing expectations to avoiding rows in the sun.Listen here

Dr Amalia Scannell, microbiologist and food biotechnologist in the UCD Institute of Food and Health, joins Moncrieff to explain why sharing towels can spread bacteria, fungi, and viruses — and what science says about how often we should be washing them.Listen here

Raph O’Connor, Chief Training Officer with the Search and Rescue Dog Association Ireland North, joins Moncrieff to explain how dogs are trained to detect human remains in missing persons cases, disaster zones and forensic investigations, and what it takes to work in such intense conditions with an animal.Get all the conversation here.

Greg Dickinson, Senior Travel Writer with The Telegraph, joins Moncrieff to explain the story behind the world’s shortest commercial flight — a 1.7-mile hop between two Orkney Islands in Scotland — and what it reveals about the people there, and the connections between the islands.Listen here.

Kate Wilson, author of Disclosure: Unravelling the Spycops Files, joins Moncrieff to discuss how she discovered her long-term boyfriend was, in fact, an undercover police officer tasked with infiltrating activist groups, and how she fought a decade-long legal battle against the British state.Listen here

An Irish rugby club the Emerald Warriors have won an international rugby tournament in Oslo.Hosted by international Gay Rugby, the Union Cup is Europe’s largest inclusive rugby tournament, featuring 45 teams from 10 countries.Club President of the Emerald Warriors, Richie Fagan, joins Seán to discuss the win!Image: @ewrfc on Twitter

If you have been to the shop recently and used a self-service checkout, you may have noticed that you are on camera!Retailers have in recent times been installing CCTV at checkouts to combat rampant retail theft.But, do these cameras raise concerns over data protection? And would it be better to go back to the conveyor and the cash register?Caitríona Redmond, Consumer Journalist with the Irish Examiner has been writing about this, and joins Seán to discuss.

We use these roads, paths, and railways to make human connections every day. Bus routes are the heart of Ireland’s connections, and along the way we have the opportunity to connect with strangers in a variety of ways.Henry McKean joins Seán to tell more, and share what conversations he had with strangers.(In partnership with Vodafone)

Sally Challen killed her husband after four decades of coercive control, and spent eight years in prison before her conviction was quashed following decided campaigning from her family who produced evidence of years of gaslighting and manipulation at the hands of her husband.The high profile case put a spotlight on coercive control and how insidious it is.Her son, domestic abuse campaigner and author of ‘The Unthinkable: A Story of Control, Violence and My Mother’, David Challen, joins Seán to discuss.Image: Hachette UK

Have you ever been certain you’re one size in clothing, only to find yourself in the fitting room later with four pairs of jeans in the same size, and they all seem to fit differently? You’d probably expect a size 12 is the same in every shop, but if you’ve ever shopped around to update your wardrobe, you’ll probably know by now, that’s not the case. So why do sizes vary so much? And is there a standard guide shops and brands should be following? Newstalk Reporter Emily Keegan has been looking into it, and brings us this report.

A probe developed by the European Space Agency has taken the first images of the Sun’s south pole. How big of an achievement is this, and what can we learn from it?Joining Seán to discuss this is Dr. Peter Gallagher, Director of the DIAS (Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies) Dunsink Observatory.Image: European Space Agency

Who are your really good friends, and could you list them?And, more importantly, should you list them?Keeping in touch can be hard, especially with busy lives and family responsibilities and all the rest of it, so is a list of prioritised people the way to go?Niamh Ennis, Coach and Mentor, joins Seán to discuss.

A new documentary looking into the stories behind songs, is focusing on Spandau Ballet’s song ‘Through the Barricades’ and we are delighted to be joined now by singer and songwriter Gary Kemp…Image: RTÉ

Death Cafes are now popping up all over the world. Seán’s guest went along and found it a transformative experience, but what exactly are they?Elizabeth McCafferty, Journalist and Broadcaster, joins to discuss.

There are large concerns around the use of AI in education, but could it be used for good?Dr Cillian Ó Fathaigh, Assistant Professor in Philosophy at the Jagiellonian  University Kraków, joins Seán to discuss.

Seán’s guest has been collecting chewing gum wrappers for decades. In fact, he has turned them into paper chains stretching a length of 37,000 metres, but why?Joining to discuss is American collector, Gary Duschl...

Children in Gaza have been deprived of the very basics of life and living, and that includes less tangible things like fun.Haneen Koraz is an acclaimed Palestinian Animation Director who has been trying to help displaced children to reclaim these things in some way by teaching them to create and animate their own stories.A selection of these children’s short films will be screened on Monday in The Stella Cinema, Rathmines at 6pm, who set up the event.Shauna Cullen, Producer with Jam Media, joins Seán to discuss.Image: @animator_haneen on Instagram

A few months ago, Seán’s guest decided to draw an enormous digital penis across the English landscape, using GPS art, in order to raise awareness of men’s health. Now, he is calling on penis enthusiasts across the world to join him this year and draw as many dick pics as possible!Terry Rosoman, Men's Health Campaigner, joins to discuss.