Newstalk Daily

For decades, the identity of Banksy has been one of the art world’s great unsolved riddles. His stencilled images — a girl reaching for a red balloon, chimps in the House of Commons, riot police with smiley faces — have appeared overnight on walls from Bristol to Bethlehem. They’ve mocked politicians, skewered the art market and, occasionally, sold for tens of millions. But the man behind the mask has always stayed hidden. 

Now a detailed investigation by Reuters claims to finally put a real name to the most famous anonymous artist on the planet. So how did a street artist with a spray can become a global cultural phenomenon? Why did Banksy’s graffiti start getting preserved instead of painted over? And if the mystery really has been solved… does knowing the name change anything? 

Ciara Doherty is joined by broadcaster and producer Eoin Sweeney to talk about the legend of Banksy, the investigation that may have unmasked him, and why the world has been so fascinated by the artist who refused to show his face. 

📖 Read the Reuters investigation here:  
https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/global-art-banksy/ 

Every St Patrick’s Day, Ireland’s Taoiseach travels to Washington to present a bowl of shamrocks to the US president, a diplomatic tradition that dates back to the 1950s. For decades it was a gentle ritual of Irish-American friendship. But in the era of Donald Trump, Oval Office meetings with foreign leaders have become far less predictable. 

Last year, Micheál Martin avoided the kind of public clash that had erupted days earlier between Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy. This year’s visit comes at another tense international moment — and with criticism from Ireland’s president Catherine Connolly over US-Israeli strikes on Iran. So what kind of reception might the Taoiseach face this time? 

Ciara Doherty is joined by Newstalk’s political correspondent Seán Defoe, who has been inside those Oval Office encounters, to explain how the shamrock ceremony works, why the stakes feel higher now, and what Micheál Martin could be walking into this St Patrick’s Day.

For decades, one question has hovered over the history of the Troubles: what role - if any - did Gerry Adams play inside the IRA? Now that question is before an English court. 

A civil case in London’s High Court has been brought by three victims of IRA bombings in Britain. The plaintiffs argue that Gerry Adams, as a senior figure within the republican movement, bore responsibility for decisions that led to those bombings. Adams rejects that claim. He has repeatedly and consistently said he was never a member of the IRA. 

This is not a criminal trial. No one faces prison. The case is about civil liability, and the damages being sought amount to just £1 — a symbolic sum intended to establish responsibility. So, what exactly is being argued in court? And why has this case been brought now? 

Ciara Doherty speaks to Mark Hennessy, Ireland and Britain Editor of The Irish Times, who has been inside the Royal Courts of Justice in London covering the case.

This week much of Ireland is glued to the racing. But while punters here are betting on horses, across the Atlantic people are wagering on something far darker. Welcome to the strange world of prediction markets - online platforms where users gamble on real-world events like elections, wars, and even assassinations.

Critics warn these markets could create perverse incentives, where insiders with privileged information about wars, diplomacy or political decisions might quietly profit before the rest of the world knows what’s coming. As billions of dollars flow through platforms like Polymarket and Kalshi, their influence is becoming harder to ignore.

On today’s Newstalk Daily, Ciara Doherty speaks to Declan Lynch, columnist with the Sunday Independent and author of Tony 10, and Marshall Cohen, senior reporter with CNN.

Tony 10: The Astonishing Story of the Postman who Gambled €10,000,000 … and lost it all, written by Declan Lynch and Tony O’Reilly, is published by Gill Books.

Follow Marshall’s reporting on X @MarshallCohen

Fuel prices are climbing again, with motorists once more staring down the barrel of €2 per litre at Irish pumps. Heating oil has jumped even more dramatically, surgingby around 60 per cent in just a week, as markets react to escalating conflict involving Iran and fears about global oil supplies. 

For many households, it feels like a familiar story. A war breaks out, markets panic, and prices here in Ireland shoot up overnight. Petrol, energy, transport and, before long, the weekly grocery shop. But once prices go up… they rarely seem to come back down. So, what’s really going on? 

Why do global shocks hit Irish consumers so quickly? Are companies simply passing on higher costs — or are some taking advantage of the moment? And when governments promise to investigate possible price gouging, how easy is it to prove? 

On today’s podcast Ciara Doherty speaks to Dr Oliver Browne of Cork University Business School about why prices spike so fast — and why they can be so stubborn about falling again. 

For four days every March, the quiet English town of Cheltenham transforms into something that feels strangely familiar to Irish racing fans. The Cheltenham Festival has become one of the biggest moments in the Irish sporting calendar — drawing thousands of fans across the Irish Sea and millions more to televisions and betting apps. 

Irish horses and trainers have dominated the meeting in recent years, with powerful yards run by the likes of Willie Mullins and Gordon Elliott turning the festival into a showcase for the strength of Ireland’s National Hunt racing industry. But Cheltenham is about far more than what happens on the track. 

For many, it’s a cultural event as much as a sporting one — four days of trackside banter, socialising, style, betting, and the kind of atmosphere that keeps punters coming back year after year. Employers even speak of a “Cheltenham Effect,” with Irish businesses estimating millions of euros in lost productivity as workers quietly follow the races during the week. 

Ciara Doherty is joined by Newstalk broadcaster Meghann Scully and Off The Ball’s John Duggan to talk about the sport, the spectacle, and the unique place Cheltenham holds in Irish culture. 

For all the latest from Off The Ball at Cheltenham, check out: https://www.offtheball.com/racing

It’s more than 30 years since homosexuality was decriminalised in Ireland, yet almost 1,000 men still carry convictions for simply loving who they loved. On today's podcast, Ciara Doherty speaks to Kieran Rose, co-founder of the LGBT Restorative Justice Campaign, about the decades of surveillance, public shaming, and imprisonment men faced under “gross indecency” laws. 

They explore the human cost of criminalisation, the forgotten cases like John Roche, and the long shadow of stigma that followed men well into later life. With legislation now being prepared to formally disregard these convictions, Kieran explains what meaningful justice could look like and why this is more than just a symbolic gesture. 

It’s a reminder that equality is hard-won, fragile, and worth fighting for—past, present, and future. Email your thoughts to [email protected]. 

As Britain watches a deeply volatile conflict between Israel, the United States, Iran and other parts of the Middle East, Keir Starmer finds himself in a major foreign policy test, and his instincts are as closely scrutinized as his domestic polling.

Starmer has taken a quite cautious legal approach, refusing to commit the UK to offensive strikes on Iran and insisting that British military action must be lawful and clearly in the national interest. That stance has drawn sharp rebukes from US President Donald Trump, and critics at home who argue he's wobbling under pressure.

But behind this modern dilemma is a long shadow, the legacy of Tony Blair and the Iraq War, whose legal and strategic controversies still shape how Labour approaches military intervention.

So today, we're asking, is Starmer's stance in Iran defined by principle or just by a fear of repeating the mistakes of Blairism

Joining Ciara to discuss this is Glen O’Hara - Professor of Modern and Contemporary History at Oxford Brookes University and author of New Labour, New Britain?: How the Blair Governments Reshaped the Country

A Midlands garda detective’s simple act of kindness during the first Covid lockdown spiralled into a national story. He loaned a dusty, unclaimed bike to a local farmer with a knee injury, and ended up suspended for more than several years, investigated by the NBCI, and facing a disciplinary board.

The farmer told of feeling “like a criminal” as officers searched his home and retrieved the €50 bicycle, leaving him stressed and traumatised. The detective was eventually cleared of all charges, but the saga didn’t end there. Now, the State has agreed to a confidential High Court settlement worth around €275,000. A judicial review over sick pay remains ongoing.

Journalist and author Paul Williams, whose latest book is Crooks 2: More Stories Behind the Headlines, joins Ciara Doherty to trace the full story behind “Bikegate,” from the spring of 2020 to today’s settlement, exploring the lessons — and lingering questions — about compassion, discretion, and disciplinary systems inside An Garda Síochána.

It was meant to be private. Instead, it’s all over YouTube. Newly released recordings of depositions given by Bill and Hillary Clinton to the House Oversight Committee have thrown fresh political fuel onto the long-burning fire of the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. 

What was supposed to be a closed-door hearing quickly turned combative. A photo from inside the room was leaked online. Lawmakers veered into questions about conspiracy theories like “Pizzagate.” Republicans pressed both Clintons about Bill’s documented flights on Epstein’s private jet in the early 2000s. Hillary repeatedly distanced herself from Epstein and redirected questions toward her husband. 

Bill Clinton has acknowledged taking several trips on Epstein’s plane in 2002 and 2003 but has denied any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal activity. Hillary Clinton has long insisted she had no relationship with Epstein. 

So, what do these tapes tell us? Former RTÉ Washington Correspondent and University of Galway journalism lecturer Carole Coleman joins Ciara Doherty to assess what’s new, what’s theatre, and where the Epstein investigation goes next.