Blue Road: The Edna O’Brien story is the brand new documentary by Irish filmmaker Sinéad O’Shea. It’s a portrait of one of Ireland’s finest writers, featuring extracts from O’Briens journals, contributions from the likes of Gabriel Byrne and Anne Enright and a remarkable final interview with O'Brien shortly before her death aged 93 last year. In this episode, O’Shea tells Kathy Sheridan about the late-writer’s extraordinary life and legacy and how the film came about after a chance encounter at a wedding. 

But first, Irish Times podcast producer Suzanne Brennan is here to discuss some of the biggest stories from the week including a review into maternity services at Portiuncula Hospital in Galway, why Caroline Kennedy made a last minute plea to the US Senate this week and how the gender balance row in government has intensified in recent days.

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Yoga teacher and wellness coach Kerry White was 48 years old when she finally decided to pursue her long-held dream to become a mother. As a single woman, who had just entered perimenopause, White used donor sperm and donor eggs to become pregnant. Then, in 2020, two months shy of her 50th birthday, her baby girl Freya was born. In this episode, White talks to Róisín Ingle about going it alone, the reaction from those closest to her and how she didn’t want to live with the regret of having never tried. She also talks about the process of choosing donors, the options available for solo parents and how her work now focuses on helping other women navigate their path to motherhood. 

But first, Irish Times journalist Bernice Harrison is here to talk through some of the stories making the headlines this week, including Bishop Mariann E. Budde’s brave plea to President Donald Trump, the sexual assault allegations facing author Neil Gaiman and a new archaeological study which shows that in Celtic Britain, women held the power in society.

Kerry White Ted Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQNqIxj8Se4

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These days, we’re hearing a lot more about ultra processed foods and the dangers of over eating these highly industrialised food products. But what exactly are UPFs, how bad are they really and how can you spot them when out doing the grocery shop? In this episode, nutrition consultant Sophie Morris joins Róisín Ingle to answer all these questions and to explain why she’s joined the growing movement away from ultra processed foods.

Morris has amassed more than 300 thousand followers on her Instagram account, where she spreads the word about healthy eating, educates people on ingredient lists and suggests ‘clever supermarket swaps’ to her followers. In this conversation, we hear about her move from finance into food, her concerns about the hot school lunches scheme being rolled out across the country and what’s next for her in 2025.

But first, Irish Times journalist Niamh Towey is here to talk through the stories that caught her eye this week, including the disappointing results of a national childcare survey, why Nikita Hand has brought Conor McGregor back to court and how Mark Zuckerberg’s is bringing a new “masculine” energy to Meta.

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It’s a brand new year and to celebrate we’ve got a brand new segment to kick off the podcast each week. It’s our weekly news wrap covering the stories that affect women in Ireland and around the world. This week, Róisín Ingle is joined by Irish Times podcast producer Aideen Finnegan to talk about some of the stories that caught her eye this week and what she's been watching and listening to. They'll be discussing Meghan Markle’s new lifestyle series for Netflix (With Love, Meghan), the choice words that Pope Francis used to describe an order of nuns and why Elon Musk has been spewing hate and vitriol towards Britain’s safeguarding Minister Jess Philips over an historic grooming scandal in the UK. 

Later on, Ingle is joined by pharmacist and presenter of the Wonder Care podcast Sheena Mitchell to talk about the “frustrating” delay in the Government’s roll-out of free HRT. Despite the scheme being labeled as “free”, Mitchell says women will still face many other associated costs when it finally launches. 

Finally, Irish Times columnist Brianna Parkins fills us in on what’s hot and not for 2025 and shares how life has been since moving back to Australia last summer.

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2024 was the year Americans chose a convicted felon as their next president, Afghanistan banned women from speaking or singing in public, and the slaughter of innocent women and children continued in Gaza.

In Ireland, a record number of female candidates stood in November’s general election, but only seven additional women were elected to the next Dáil.

A brave young woman called Natasha O’Brien, used her voice to condemn the leniency of her attacker’s suspended sentence, while a jury in a civil court found Conor McGregor guilty of raping Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel in 2018.

Irish boxer Kellie Harrington brought home gold from the Paris Olympics, Taylor Swift finally returned to Ireland, and we bade farewell to some exceptional Irish women, including Nell McCafferty and Enda O’Brien.

To discuss some of these pivotal moments from the year and their impact on women in Ireland and around the world, Kathy Sheridan is joined by journalists Niamh Towey and Alison O’Connor.

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Each week on The Women’s Podcast, we hear from women from all walks of life who come on to talk about their lived experiences, their life stories, their passions and their challenges. This week, it’s the turn of podcast presenter Róisín Ingle, who in October 2023 received a life-changing breast cancer diagnosis. This is the first time she has spoken about it on the podcast.

In this conversation with co-presenter Kathy Sheridan, Ingle talks about the shock of the diagnosis and how the subsequent weeks and months unfolded. We also hear about the joyful parts of her year, including a proposal and a wedding with a very striking pink dress, a summer holiday that her daughters described as the best of their lives and a glorious few hours spent dancing to Taylor Swift at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

For more information about breast cancer visit materfoundation.ie, cancer.ie, mariekeating.ie, breastcancerireland.com, breastcancerresearch.ie

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If you’re looking for a new book to curl up with over the festive period or to give as a Christmas gift, The Irish Times Women’s Podcast is here to help.

We’ve gathered our book clubbers Niamh Towey, Bernice Harrison, Róisín and Ann Ingle in studio to share their favourite reads of 2024.

Their recommendations include a comedy-crime novel, a “surprisingly good” western and a book for the people in our lives that are impossible to buy for. Whether it’s a gift for family, friends or even for yourself, we hope there’s something for everyone here.

You can find the full list of recommendations here.

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When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, following the withdrawal of US troops, the lives of women and girls across the country changed almost overnight. Under Taliban rule, women and girls are removed from almost every aspect of daily life, are denied access to education and even face restrictions going out alone, speaking or singing in public.

Not long after the takeover, Arezo Rahimi, a 21 year-old journalist and photographer, arrived in Ireland with her mother, leaving behind the life she once knew in Kabul. She joins Róisín Ingle today to talk about what life was like for women in Afghanistan before the Taliban seized power, how that’s changed and why she ultimately made the journey to Ireland.

We also hear about her involvement with Daricha School, an organisation which runs an underground network of schools for girls who are denied education. The classes take place either online or in secret locations across Afghanistan. Rahimi explains how this movement forms one part of the resistance against the Taliban, but that the international community needs to do so much more.

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