The State of Us

By BBC Sounds

Tara Mills and Declan Harvey react and reflect on news stories in a BBC NI podcast.

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FAQs about The State of Us:

How many episodes does The State of Us have?

The podcast currently has 165 episodes available.

The State of Us episodes:

May 18, 2026 57. Tunnel area used as ‘playground’
A special series from The State of Us podcast.
In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. Whether the public could easily access the storm drain area was debated in evidence today.
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10min
May 15, 2026 56. Jury sees body in tunnel
A special series from The State of Us podcast. In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. The court was silent as bodycam footage taken by the police officer who found Noah's body was shown to the jury. The officer also described what he thought were finger marks inside the tunnel.
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16min
May 14, 2026 55. Mystery call to Noah
A special series from The State of Us podcast. In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. A mystery call was made to Noah’s phone from his own number on the night before he went missing. A digital forensics expert told the inquest he couldn’t explain it.
Guidance: References in this episode to the ‘Holiday Inn Express’ relate solely to a mobile phone cell mast which is on top of the hotel. There is no suggestion that a call was made from within the hotel. This episode has been edited for accuracy.
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17min
May 13, 2026 54. Fireworks in court
A special series from The State of Us podcast. In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. A witness who said he phoned police after seeing Noah on the night he disappeared came back to give evidence. He said he was sick of being harassed by the legal teams.
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14min
May 12, 2026 53. Escaping the tunnel
A special series from The State of Us podcast.
In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. A Department for Infrastructure official explains why he crawled through the storm drain in preparation for the inquest.
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11min
May 11, 2026 52. The steep drop
A special series from The State of Us podcast.
In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. An expert says the steep gradient of part of the storm drain added to its danger.
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11min
May 08, 2026 51. Panicked Government WhatsApps
A special series from The State of Us podcast.
In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. WhatsApp messages between Department of Infrastructure staff in the wake of Noah’s death were shared with the jury today.
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15min
May 07, 2026 50. Copycat fears
A special series from The State of Us podcast.
In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. The bars on the storm drain that Noah entered are now closer together. But the most senior government official to speak at the inquest says that change wasn’t in response to his death.
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14min
April 29, 2026 49. Other culvert deaths
A special series from The State of Us podcast. In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. The jury hears of the tragic death of a man trapped in a culvert during flooding in Yorkshire in 2007. A warning some of the details may be upsetting.
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16min
April 28, 2026 48. ‘Sensitive’ legal issue
A special series from The State of Us podcast.
In the summer of 2020, 14-year-old Noah Donohoe went missing in Belfast. Six days later his body was found in a storm drain. His disappearance and death have dominated headlines for five and a half years. The inquest into his death will, for the first time, lay out the facts and evidence in this case. In this special series from The State of Us podcast, Tara Mills and Declan Harvey take you inside the courtroom, bringing you the evidence as it unfolds each day. Evidence was delayed today while lawyers dealt with a sensitive matter away from the jury.
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3min

FAQs about The State of Us:

How many episodes does The State of Us have?

The podcast currently has 165 episodes available.