Everyone says they don't judge people... but we all do.

In this episode, we're confessing the harmless, petty and occasionally completely irrational things that make us quietly judge other people.

Talking on speakerphone in public. Not returning the shopping trolley. Being constantly late. Oversharing on social media. Filming concerts. Bad driving. Dressing up your pets. Where do you draw the line?

We play "Petty or Fair?", before asking whether we've actually become more judgemental as we've got older—or whether we've just become less tolerant of nonsense.

Then we turn the tables with "Judge or Be Judged", putting our own questionable habits up for judgement by the other lads.

We also look at the things we judged people for when we were younger that we now completely understand. Early nights, comfort over fashion, saying no to nights out... apparently becoming the people we used to slag off was part of the deal.

And finally: what's the one thing someone can do that instantly makes you think, "I'm not sure we'd get on"?

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Twenty years ago, we somehow survived without smartphones, Google Maps, WhatsApp, contactless payments and high-speed broadband... How did we manage?

In this episode, we look at the modern conveniences that have quietly become essential to everyday life and ask whether they've actually made things easier—or just made us completely dependent on them.

What do younger people completely take for granted? What modern habit would have sounded ridiculous 20 years ago? And what old-school ways of doing things were actually better?

We play "Bring It Back or Leave It There?" — Sat Nav or paper maps? Spotify or CDs? WhatsApp or phone calls? Streaming or live TV?

Then we attempt to agree on the FILP Top 10 Things We'd Keep If Everything Reset Tomorrow. Some choices are obvious. Others... not so much.

Finally, we look ahead to 2046 and ask: what are we doing today that people will think is completely ridiculous in 20 years?

What modern convenience could you genuinely not live without?

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Twenty episodes ago, four middle-aged Irish friends decided the world needed another podcast...Were we right?

In this episode, we look back at what we've learned, not just about podcasting, but about each other, friendship, and navigating middle age.

What have we learned about podcasting and each other? Who prepares the most?

Who's most likely to get us cancelled accidentally?

What have we learned about being middle-aged that genuinely surprised us?

We play "Guess What She Said", where we have to work out what our partners really think of us.

We also hand out the FILP First 20 Awards, revisit our favourite episodes and moments, and put ourselves to the test with a quiz based on things we've actually said over the last 20 episodes.

If you've been with us since Episode 1, thank you. If you're new here, this is a great place to jump in.

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Chapters:

(00:00) Intro & GAA Chat

(02:15) 20 Episodes Later… Are We Any Wiser?

(07:35) What We've Learned About Each Other

(15:09) What We've Learned About Middle Age

(22:38) Guess What She Said? (Partners Quiz 😂)

(31:40) FILP First 20 Podcasts Awards

(39:54) Know Your Podcast Quiz

When did you realise adults don't actually have everything figured out?

In Episode 20 of Friends in Low Places (FILP), the lads compare the lives they imagined they'd have with the ones they actually ended up living and discover that most of us are still winging it.

From careers, parenting and relationships to money, DIY, pensions and all those "grown-up" life skills we thought we'd have mastered by now, they ask a simple question: Are we all just bluffing our way through adulthood?

There's also the FILP Top 10 Things Adults Should Have Sorted By Now, plenty of honest admissions, a few uncomfortable truths, and proof that experience doesn't always come with confidence.

Maybe none of us ever really grows up... we just get better at looking like we know what we're doing.

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(00:00) The World Cup Is on Too Late

(02:40) Surely We’d Have It Sorted by 50?

(07:29) The Adults We Thought We’d Become

(17:08) Parenting, Relationships & Bluffing Calmness

(27:11) Ten Things Adults Should Have Sorted

(37:51) The Few Things We’ve Actually Figured Out

Why will men tolerate a problem for six months rather than make one ten-minute appointment?

In Episode 19, the lads compete in The Great Irish Male Check-Up Avoidance Championship, comparing the excuses men use to avoid the doctor, the unofficial Irish male health system, and the medical issues we'll happily ignore while constantly complaining about them.

There's a FILP Top 10 of Things Men Avoid, an attempt to build the perfect Midlife Man NCT, and the usual quiz.

No medical advice here. Clearly.

Just four men in their late 40s/early 50s asking why we'll Google a pain for six months before actually getting it checked.

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(00:00) Why Do Men Avoid Going to the Doctor?

(08:38) The Great Excuse Championship

(12:57) FILP Top 10 Medical Things Men Avoid

(29:30) The Unofficial Irish Male Health System

(37:09) Building the Midlife Man NCT

(40:10) The Good, The Bad & The Ugly Quiz

For FILP Episode 18, the lads are joined by Philip Briscoe from The Mid-Life Men Podcast for a conversation we never thought we'd have via a podcast.

Together, we discuss getting older, mental well-being, resilience, strength, and the pressures many men carry through life. We also explore why men often find it difficult to talk about these issues and why they should.

For the Mid-Life Men Podcast, Philip interviews mid-life men about their lived experiences; the struggles, the turning points, and the assistance they received to help them find their way.

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Chapters:

(00:00) The Conversation We Never Thought We'd Have

(03:11) Loneliness, Grief & Getting Older

(09:06) Why Men Don't Talk

(10:56) Mental Health, Exercise & Coping Mechanisms

(15:46) The Moments That Changed Us

(25:23) What Real Strength Looks Like

(29:04) What Does It Mean To Be A Man Today?

In Episode 17, Sean, Mike & Niall are asking a very important midlife question: What disappeared from everyday life… and should we bring it back or bin it forever?

From being told to “be home before dark”, knocking for friends, landlines in the hall and video shops, to proper lunch breaks, no emails after work, one TV in the house and the lost art of just waiting for things - this one is full of memories and a dangerous amount of nostalgia.

But this isn’t just “wasn’t everything better back then?” The lads build the FILP Top 10 Things That Have Disappeared But We Want Back - picking their favourites from childhood, social life, technology, work and the random stuff we somehow still miss.

Expect memories of growing up in Ireland, old-school social lives, dodgy technology, things we miss more than we should and a few things that can stay exactly where they are.

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(00:00) Things That Have Disappeared… Bring It Back or Bin?

(03:00) Childhood Was Better?

(09:00) Life Before Mobile Phones

(17:00) Technology We Miss (And Don't Miss)

(25:45) When Work Had Boundaries

(45:00) FILP Top 10 + What Future Generations Will Miss

Episode 16 of Friends in Low Places is all about the music of the 80s and 90s. This episode looks at international music as we covered Irish music during episode 10. The songs, bands, videos, guilty pleasures and questionable taste that shaped us, whether we like it or not.

This week, Sean, Arron and Niall are joined by DJ Handsome Pat Collins to talk music that felt massive growing up, build the FILP Top 10 international playlist and Handsome Pat’s Music Hall of Fame.

There’s also a one-hit wonder showdown, where the lads decide whether some huge 80s and 90s tracks still hold up, belong in the bin, or live forever as guilty pleasures. Expect nostalgia, bad memories (and singing), strong opinions and at least one song nobody wants to admit they still like.

Subscribe to ⁠⁠FILP Podcast⁠⁠ to join the conversation.

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(00:00) Intro & Welcome
(01:55) Handsome Pat Collins Joins the Podcast
(03:00) Foreign Invasion – The Music That Shaped Us
(10:40) FILP Top 10 International Songs Debate & Handsome Pat’s Hall of Fame
(26:30) One-Hit Wonders 1980 to 1999 – Still Holds Up, Bin It or GuiltyPleasure?
(43:10) 80s & 90s Music Quiz Hosted

For Episode 15, the lads dive into the sporting memories that still stick with us years later — matches, moments, victories, heartbreaks and the near misses we still talk about.

From school sports and local heroes to iconic Irish moments, it’s a mix of nostalgia, glory, sporting trauma and things we probably took far too seriously.

There’s also a FILP Top 10 Sporting Moments, an Italia ’90 quiz, and the usual disagreements over what should and shouldn’t make the list.

Some memories fade. Sporting ones somehow don’t.

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(00:32) Opening: Sporting Memories
(02:30) First Sporting Memories
(07:15) Sporting Heartbreaks
(09:12) Niall’s Italia ’90 Quiz
(15:41) The FILP Top 10 Sporting Moments
(44:21) Overrated Sporting Moments

We’ve all heard them, the big life regrets people have at the end. Not spending enough time with people, working too much, losing touch with friends… nothing shocking, which is probably the problem.

In Episode 14, the lads (minus Aaron) look at a few of these and ask the uncomfortable question: Are we already heading in the same direction? There’s a bit of honesty, a few admissions… including who sold a motorbike they probably shouldn’t have.

Sure, we might have a few regrets - but we’ll be grand.

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