The Coronavirus Ireland Podcast

Professor Kingston Mills of the School of Biochemistry and Immunology at Trinity College Dublin joins Nadine O'Regan on the podcast to discuss the latest Covid-19 regulations, the reopening of schools and the ongoing efforts to develop a vaccine.

With Ireland's movement into Phase Four delayed due to rising Covid-19 numbers, Ian Guider, Markets Editor of the Business Post, tells Nadine O'Regan the latest in relation to the banks, business, house prices and uncertain times for pub-owners. Plus, Jack O'Kennedy reports from the Light House Cinema in Smithfield, which has reopened for business.

Is the government's green list a good idea? Dr Cillian De Gascun, director of UCD’s National Virus Reference Laboratory, joins Nadine O'Regan to discuss Irish travel restrictions. Later in the podcast, which comes to you in association with Springboard, Nadine is joined by Dr Ann Devitt, director of research at the School of Education in Trinity College and one of the academics behind an interesting new survey into the effectiveness of home-schooling in Ireland.

What's life like now for 2FM presenter Eoghan McDermott? Ahead of his role on RTÉ's Songs from an Empty Room, Eoghan McDermott talks frankly about life amidst Covid restrictions, describing his approach to his mental health, taking inspiration from James Corden, his attitude to controversy and social media, his work with RTÉ Does Comic Relief, and his fears for a new generation, who will lose opportunities as a consequence of Covid-19.

Andrea Horan, owner of Tropical Popical nail salon in Dublin and Bob Johnston, owner of The Gutter Bookshop in Temple Bar and Dalkey, join Nadine O’Regan to report back on their businesses reopening and reveal how they have fared since lockdown.

With visas suspended, green cards paused and the coronavirus surging in numerous US states, Bruce Morrison, former Democratic Congressman and Irish immigration expert, and Marion McKeone, US correspondent for the Business Post, join Nadine O'Regan to discuss the harsh realities at play in America, and Donald Trump's prospects as a November election looms.

As the Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Green Party programme for government is unveiled, paving the way towards a historic coalition. Michael Brennan, political editor with the Business Post, and Aidan Regan, UCD associate professor and Business Post columnist, join Nadine O'Regan to discuss the programme, while later in the podcast author Debra MacKenzie discusses her new book Covid-19: the Pandemic that Never Should Have Happened and How to Stop the Next One.

As Ireland enters Phase 2, with businesses opening and restrictions easing, Nadine O'Regan is joined by immunologist Prof. Luke O'Neill of Trinity College Dublin and Ian Guider, Markets Editor of the Business Post, to discuss the hazards and hopes around Phase 2. Also, with many reporting that Covid-19 lingers for a very long time, and has very peculiar, ongoing symptoms, writer and editor John Walshe and lecturer Caroline West offer up their personal experiences of Covid-19.

Marie Culliton, medical scientist and Laboratory Manager at the National Maternity Hospital joins Susan Mitchell on the podcast to explain the differences between the various types of Covid-19 tests that are currently being deployed as well as the sensitivity and specificity of those tests. They also discuss the issue of false negatives and whether people who suspect that they’ve had the virus but showed low level symptoms or were asymptomatic will be able to purchase a test privately at some point.

Dr Robert O’Connor, head of research for the Irish Cancer Society, discusses the HSE’s decision to pause cancer screening due to coronavirus and what this means for patients both now and in the long term.