Ciara Kelly co-presents the Newstalk breakfast show with Shane Coleman and it is her job to have a clear and comprehensive opinion on pretty much anything that can crop up in the news, and she certainly does that job very well.

In this no holds barred conversation, we get stuck right into so many topics from women in media and twitter users versus radio show texters, to pronouns, gender identity, and the right to hold an opinion that may not be too popular. I also learn about what Ciara was like in school and how she ended up as a GP. This episode, if I say so myself, is podcast gold!

COMEDY

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast hotline has been buzzing this week when we announced that Ciara was to be my special guest. Press play to hear the messages.

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast is produced by Patrick Haughey, AudioBrand

Are all calories created equal? Why is that last half stone so hard to lose? What’s the healthiest evening snack you can eat? These are just some of the questions that Karl Henry, he of Operation Transformation fame, has the answer to in this episode.

Karl and I also tackle a couple of trickier subjects, like should we really be telling people its ok to be obese if that’s what they want to be, or is it now taboo to call someone fat, and should the word be banned? The callers were lining up to chat to Karl, he hears from Dr Eva Orsmond, Keith Duffy, Miriam O’Callaghan, and even George Hook.

You can watch Karl on Operation Transformation every Wednesday at 21:30 on RTÉ One and on the RTÉ Player.

COMEDY:

The phone line of The Oscars’ judging committee has been hopping this week, we got exclusive access to the voice messages…

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast is produced by Patrick Haughey of AudioBrand.

If you’re looking for behind-the-scenes, no holds barred stories of how Ireland’s original boyband got started, what it was like in very early days playing in tiny venues to hostile crowds, and the role Louis Walsh played in it all, then you’ve come to the right podcast.

Keith Duffy of Boyzone fame joins me on this episode and reveals all. We also chat about the new band he has formed with Brian McFadden of Westlife, called Boyzlife, and what he thinks of my Gift Grub character of him!

COMEDY

Poor Paschal Donohoe – will this story about his election expenses ever end? We got exclusive access to his voicemails – jump in and take a listen.

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast is produced by Patrick Haughey of AudioBrand.

Jarlath Regan, comedian and host of the highly successful Irishman Abroad podcast has spent the last 10 year living in London – he has raised a family and built his career there but his goal from day one was always to get back home again. And that’s exactly what he did just a couple of months ago.

I think if you’ve ever lived abroad for a period of time, you’re really going to connect with Jarlath’s story – he talks about why he moved away in the first place, , the difficulties of settling into a new culture, and how it feels to return to a very different Ireland than the one he left. Jarlath also has a lot to say about Irish culture, British culture, comedy, podcasting, and even how running has transformed his life and saved him a fortune in therapy bills!

To keep up with Jarlath's gigs and projects visit https://www.jigser.com/

COMEDY

It's all about Prince Harry’s explosive new book this week. Eamon Dunphy and John Giles have been analysing the fallout on The Stand, and Vogue and Joanne also give their own unique take on Harry in My Therapist Ghosted Me.

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast is produced by Patrick Haughey of AudioBrand.

We had another fantastic line up of guests in 2022 – we shared funny moments, deep and meaningful conversations, and just downright mad times too. When it comes to picking the best bits of the year, there is simply too much to choose from. But we gave it a shot, so press play to hear just a few of the guests and moments we enjoyed the most. They include:

• Daithi O’Se – RTE TV

• Mairead Ronan - TV presenter & entrepreneur

• David McWilliams – Economist

• Glenda Gilson – TV presenter & entrepreneur

• Roddy Collins – Football manager, author

• Muireann O’Connell – Virgin Media TV

• Rory Hearne – author of Gaffs

• Dave Moore – Dermot and Davie, Today FM

• Lynn Ruane – Senator & Podcaster.

Produced by Patrick Haughey, AudioBrand.

Here's a little comedy selection box for you, packed full of my favourite comedy sketches from over the last few months of The Mario Rosenstock Podcast. I hope you enjoy – and if you do, subscribe, follow and tell a friend!

One of my big highlights of 2022 was winning the award for Best Comedy Podcast at the Irish Podcast Awards. When we set out to make this show one of the things we wanted to do was have brand new and exclusive comedy sketches in every episode and also to weave in little bits of ad-lib comedy into every interview on the show to make it different and to surprise you and my guest. We want this show to be unique, to offer you something that you’re not going to get on any other podcast, and that’s what we’re trying to do every week through comedy. So we were delighted that the judges at the Irish Podcast Awards recognised this and awarded us the gold gong!

In order to enter the awards, we had to submit a short selection of some of our favourite bits of comedy from the previous year. Hit that play button if you'd like to hear it!

Produced by Patrick Haughey of www.audiobrand.ie

So have you ever fretted about using your diesel car to get closer to nature, eating your ethical food off a plastic plate, or just simply existing on the earth!

Then my guest on this episode has the very book for you. Colm O’Regan is a stand up comedian, broadcaster, podcaster, and best-selling author – his new book is called Climate Worrier: a hypocrite’s guide to saving the planet.

This is a great book for people who aren’t hardcore environmentalists but at the same time really do care about the environment and who would like to do what they can, in the time they have. Which is probably most people really. In my chat with Colm he tells me all about it, why he wrote it, and we get through a lot more besides..

Comedy - a classic Gift Grub from during the week, a parody on the old classic Barry's Tea advert.

Produced by Patrick Haughey of www.audiobrand.ie

Its fair to say that Lynn Ruane not your “typical” Irish politician – she’s from a very working class background in Dublin, developed a drug addiction in her teens, became a mother at 15, and has generally had a life that might be called ‘unconventional’ in the context of politics in Ireland.

And yet that’s what makes Lynn such an interesting and effective politician – she represents a huge yet traditionally under-represented part of Ireland, shakes things up in government building and shines a light on some long-standing and accepted injustices that have arguably have been allowed to last for far too long.

Lynn is also so much fun; she’s insightful, open and honest and we chat about all sorts of interesting stuff, including how her passion can be judged as aggression, the classist politician that inspired the title of her book ‘People Like Me’, and why Ireland’s drug laws are now so outdated and in need of reform.

We also had a lot of the regulars phoning in to speak to Senator Ruane, including ‘Ballymun Paschal’, The Two Norries, and her fellow Senator, David Norris.

COMEDY:

In the week that Leo Varadkar becomes Taoiseach once again, we get exclusive access to his voicemails…drop in for a listen

GET IN TOUCH:

https://www.instagram.com/mariorosenstockofficial/

https://twitter.com/giftgrubmario

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast is produced by Patrick Haughey of AudioBrand

As presenter of TV shows such as Home of the Year, The Great House Revival and My Bungalow Bliss, architect Hugh Wallace has become a regular fixture on our TV screens. He has also been very outspoken about the housing crisis and the need for more creativity on the part of the government when it comes to address it. And yes we do touch on this topic in our chat, but I actually wanted to spend most of my time with Hugh getting to know him better – how he got in to architecture, what it was like growing up as a gay man in a very conservative Ireland, his struggles with alcohol, his dyslexia and even the time he got to dance with Freddy Mercury in Studio 54!

COMEDY:

Michael O’Leary is set to hold the reins of Ryanair for a further six years – the media and other world leaders are all about the story!

GET IN TOUCH:

https://www.instagram.com/mariorosenstockofficial/

https://twitter.com/giftgrubmario

The Mario Rosenstock Podcast is produced by Patrick Haughey of www.AudioBrand.ie