Una and Andrea's United Ireland

Our recent HORSE POWER episode looked at horse culture in Dublin's Liberties, and now the filmmaker Marion Bergin has a new short film called Saoirse, premiering now on Nowness.com - watch it here! We spoke to Marion about the story she was telling, returning to Dublin, and what making art in a new era of Eire is like.

Normal can only be what you decide it is - so we're going back to our normal and breaking the counties back out again and boy, does it feel good! This week's county is Wicklow and this week's question is: What happened to the people who lived in the trees? As tempting as it is to be always looking at the current news cycle and what might happen, sometimes it's good to go back and look at change with perspective. So for this episode, we're talking to Daithi O’Reilly who was one of the environmental activists who lived in the trees and occupied a section of the Glen of the Downs in Wicklow to protest the widening of the roads along the N11 that would see the felling of 1,700 mature broadleaf trees between Kilmacanogue and Kilpedder. We also see the return of Andrea's legendary County Facts and for the County Rep, Simon Harris is taking the Wicklow mantle. PLUS Get In The Sea, It's Bananas and all of our Fave Bits. It's good to be back to normal.

As Facebook finally takes action to combat the QAnon conspiracy theory on its platform, Institute for Strategic Dialogue analyst and friend of the pod, Aoife Gallagher, joins us to discuss if the horse has already bolted, whether this action will make a difference, and what the impact on the Irish conspiracy theory ecosystem will be.

EPISODE 69: The US Presidential Campaign with Katherine Zappone by Una & Andrea's United Ireland

The Irish Times features writer is known for his hilarious, absurd takes on TV and pop culture, along with a reporting style that is loaded with humanity and kindness. His new collection of personal essays, Ok Let's Do Your Stupid Idea, reveals more about a journalist whose formative years were rooted in a hard-working band, before committing to life on the page.

Horses have been part of Dublin's culture for generations, but in the inner city, that culture is being sidelined and in some cases erased by development. At Molyneux Yard in the Liberties, horse yards are now under serious threat from yet another hotel being built. On this episode, we speak with Norwegian artist, Kristin Vollset who found herself embedded in this community and is now fighting for it to be sustained, alongside horse-owners, and other locals. Also, Owen Keegan is Una's new pen-pal, clampers are up to some wily tricks, and one meat plant was charging its workers for PPE.

Yes we know things are crap, we know people are stressed and on edge and beginning to crack. We know Dublin at least is on the verge of more restrictions. We know the government and its comms strategy is clown car levels of YA WHA. And yet, there's always hope. In this episode, we flip the script, and instead of getting bogged down, ask some beacons of hope to give us just that. What positive things can emerge from this harsh moment? Mary Lou McDonald, Ailbhe Smyth, Maser, Philip King, Conner Habib, Gary Gannon, Elaine Feeney, and more join us to offer hope - it's a thing with feathers, so let's fly.

Manchán Magan's book 32 Words for Field, Lost Words of the Irish Landscape has sold out in most places. When you read the blurb accompanying his book, you can see why. "The richness of a language closely tied to the natural landscape offered our ancestors a more magical way of seeing the world. Before we cast old words aside, let us consider the sublime beauty and profound oddness of the ancient tongue that has been spoken on this island for almost 3,000 years. In Thirty-Two Words for Field, Manchan Magan meditates on these words - and the nuances of a way of life that is disappearing with them." As our COVID lives continue on, and we try to connect with simpler and more magical times, this book is perfectly timed to enhance our thoughts and minds. AND, finding out the 32 words for sesh in Irish makes it feel more uplifted. As is right. Less enhancing of our minds is what can Get In The Sea this week, some It's Bananas thoughts and of course the Tuna Chicken Roll. There's 2 this week and they are TUN

Robert Burns is a council director who oversaw pandemic-era design and infrastructure changes that are transforming public space in coastal villages in south Dublin. In this episode we talk to him about what the public wants and needs and what councils everywhere can learn from moving so quickly to change the layout of where we live. Also, Una is not spoilering Tenet, the Dublin Fringe begins, and David Blaine is being a balloon bore.

On this episode of BYLINE, we’re speaking with Aoife Grace Moore about her career, and of course the story she and Paul Hosford broke at the Irish Examiner, now known as Golfgate. It's a story that shook the Irish nation, its government, and the EU Commission, and led to the resignation and disciplining of multiple political figures, including the EU Trade Commissioner, Phil Hogan, and the second Minister for Agriculture of this administration, Dara Calleary. Aoife is a journalist with the Irish Examiner working the political beat, who got the scoop of the year, instigating conversations about accountability in public life, and bruising a government that has a habit of denting itself. In this episode, she discusses breaking Golfgate, her eclectic start in journalism from Scotland to Melbourne, and more. BYLINE is our companion series where we speak to brilliant journalists about the stories that matter. Thanks to our Patreon supports for helping us make our podcasts.

32 Questions is back. In this episode, we speak to former Fine Gael TD Kate O'Connell. Kate is a rare Fine Gael voice on our podcast, but much like Fine Gael itself, United Ireland is a broad church. In this episode, Kate discusses losing her seat in the 2020 general election, her constituency relationship with Eoghan Murphy, her assessment of Fine Gael's direction under the leadership of Leo Varadkar, the Golfgate saga, as well as vodka tonics, how her upbringing formed her outlook, her experience of sexism in Irish electoral politics, her role in the Repeal movement, that infamous "choir boys singing for their supper" comment, her fearlessness, and whether or not she'll contest another election in the future.

Paradox: A seeming contradiction. A FF led press conference? Look, we know decisions are being made in the best interests of public health but how the hell did they end up being so confusing, contradictory and so god damn frustrating. We're having a delve into last night's presser and have many questions for the comms team behind it all. Also, social media pile ons can Get in the Sea and we find a state funded agency with a board of nuns telling sex workers what’s best for them to be more than a bit Bananas

In recent years, urban development in Ireland has seen a massive increase in hotels being built, purpose built student accommodation, and so called “co-living” developments. But what’s behind this drive in the midst of a housing crisis? Who is planning our cities, and how does that process work? We’re joined by architect and lecturer Orla Hegarty of UCD to demystify the planning process and see what other forces are contributing to development in Irish cities that are displacing communities, and creating a culture of transient living in small spaces. Also on the pod, Andrea recovers from a drag blowout, the Tánaiste takes to Twitter(!), and Una is playing frisbee.

WIth the announcement that we wouldn't be proceeding to Phase 4 this week, a can of worms was opened filled with frustration, fatigue and an overwhelming feeling that an element of sense was missing in some of the propositions and plans being put forward by Government to combat COVID-19. It almost feels like the young and the entertainment industry are being thrown under the bus to distract from the shortcomings in dealing with the pandemic in the areas that we've seen outbreaks in - direct provision centres; processing plants and care homes. We're taking a read on the state of the nation's mood right now and how that will impact people's adherence to guidelines and we're also talking to psychotherapist Sarah Gilligan about how to manage our collective frustrations.

On our third episode of byline, we speak with journalist Peter Geoghegan, author of the new book Democracy for Sale: Dark Money and Dirty Politics, tracking the money that flows through British politics. We talk to Peter about Brexit, the DUP, Arron Banks, as well as Peter's career, his work with openDemocracy, and his encounters with Steve Bannon. Byline is made possible by our Patreon supporters. Thank you, and sign up if you can!

This week, we're talking to Brett Scott about the future of cash. The pandemic has accelerated the idea of a "cashless society", but is that a good thing, or even the right term we should be using? Also, the clown car government continues, Una is back from west Cork to share her love of camping with Andrea, and we introduce a new segment: IT'S BANANAS.

Many of us bought the Tiocfaidh Ár Sesh jumpers filled with hope and optimism during lockdown and this week, the first hint of the (official) night time industry peeped its head out as a club was reformatted in Dublin to make way for a new way to party. There were temperature checks on arrival, socially distanced tables, substantial glam bites to nibble on, table service and a show provided Dublin Drag Diva, Davina Devine. We're catching up with Davina to see how lockdown impacted the entertainment industry, bringing drag online, how it feels to be back IRL and what the future holds for the night time economy (and the sesh).

In this bonus episode, we talk to Gary Grant of the Irish company Imbibe, which sells high-end coffee, yet also returns 3% of its turnover to Women’s Aid, its own staff, and projects in countries where it sources coffee. How has this small company designed itself with ethics and decency in mind, and how can more people do this?

One of the recurring conversations we have off mic over the past couple of years is around how the internet radicalises people, how people become indoctrinated by their own particular echo chambers - from men’s rights red pill stuff to conspiracy - and how it’s so hard to engage with people on this because it’s like their minds are made up, they’re totally closed off. The growth in visibility of the far-right in Ireland, some of it rooted in outright conspiracy, and the spread of QAnon-related conspiracy and conspirituality online has brought this to the fore again. People have even started listing it as a hobby on Tinder. So we wanted to talk to someone who can tell us what to do if someone we know starts falling down the rabbit hole. We're talking to Rick Alan Ross, who is a specialist in cults, and deprogramming. He has handled hundreds of deprogramming cases around the world, he was consulted by the FBI during the infamous Waco siege in 1987, he is the author of Cults: Inside And Out, and is the direct

This week, we've not only given up our counties format but we're eschewing many of our regular features for a very special 'The 8th' film special. The 8th opened this year's Galway Film Fleadh on Tuesday, albeit in a digital capacity, but has still managed to excite both feminists and film lovers alike with both subject and style. We're joined by the 3 co-directors Aideen Kane, Lucy Kennedy and Maeve O'Boyle to talk about the making of the film, releasing it in a COVID world and the films onwards journey.