Highlights From Moncrieff

Writer and podcaster Sophie White joined Sean on the show today to recap the stories making the headlines this past week.

Country singer Garth Brooks has expressed his delight at ticket demand for his five nights at Croke Park next September. Irish fans have spent over €30 million on Brooks’ concert tickets, it will be the first time he has played in Ireland since 1997. Garth joined Sean to discuss his excitement at the upcoming tour and the latest announcement that it is set to be filmed.

Sean spoke to Ian Ryan the founder of the famous Shit Pint of Guinness twitter and Instagram page

Sean spoke to Hopwood Depree who is Renovating a Downton Abbey style home

Sean spoke to Margaret Gallagher who lives off the grid, and has done so for 80 years.

Today on the show Sean spoke to Steve Brusatte, who worked on the new movie Jurassic World Dominion

Recent pictures of seagulls in Scotland sitting on and beside models of eagle owls whose sole purpose is to scare seagulls away indicate the birds no longer fear the models. Steve Newton the Senior Seabird Conservation Expert with BirdWatch Ireland joined Sean to discuss if seagulls are becoming braver and less fearful of humans.

Irish libraries are facing a crisis due to the extortionate cost of eBooks. President of The Library Association of Ireland Cathal McCauley, told Sean Irish libraries are encountering an uphill battle to remain feasible due to “scandalous” price increases, restrictive licensing terms, and a lack of availability where eBooks are concerned.

A new €9 monthly train ticket is threatening to cause chaos in Germany, after it proved so popular that there aren’t enough trains or staff to meet the high demand. Thomas Sparrow, German Correspondent joined Sean to explain the unfolding situation.

The centrepiece of a new World War One memorial in Dundalk has been covered with a blue tarp after it received a copyright complaint. The artwork, depicting soldiers leaving for the battlefield, bears a remarkable resemblance to work by sculptor Sabin Howard for the National War Memorial due to be erected in Washington DC in 2024.Dundalk councillor for Sinn Féin Tomás Sharkey joined Sean to discuss how this happened and if the memorial can be saved.

Lisa Canny has been described as a “disgrace” by her fellow Irish Harpists but told Sean she revels in being the maverick of the Irish traditional music scene. Blending Irish trad with contemporary beatboxing might not be to everyone’s taste but she believes that adding modern twists will expand the story of folk and breath new life into the art form.

Each week we take a topic and deep dive into it, doing all the research so you don’t have to. This week Brian McIntyre Programme Manager at High Performance Building Technologies at SEAI, joined Sean with all you need to know about how to get a solar panel.

A new study on substance abuse among young people in Ireland has identified an increasing prevalence in the use of cocaine in 15 to 24-year-olds. Senator Lynn Ruane joined Sean to discuss if legalizing the drug market would reduce some of the issues associated with illegal substances.

Lying is universally viewed as a sinister trait and people with a propensity to lie are often condemned. Despite this, on an average day, you will be lied to between 10 to 200 times. Enda Murphy, Psychotherapist and Director of SeeMe.ie joined Sean to discuss why we lie.

Nude scenes in theatre might become a thing of the past due to a growing trend whereby audience members are taking photographs of actors while they are unclad. Boston born actress, Maria Tecce starred in 'Les Liaisons Dangereuses' in The Gate Theatre in 2010 where she appeared nude in a number of scenes. She joined Sean to explain why she would think twice about doing it today.

Scientists at Cambridge have created a new robot with the ability to decide whether a dish requires seasoning or not. Fumiya Lida, Professor of Robotics at Cambridge University joined Sean to discuss if we might see more food tasting robots in the future.

Francois-Marie Dibon has broken the world record for the most bungee jumps in 24 hours. He joined Sean to share his delight at breaking the record and explain how many bungee jumps it took to push the previous record holder off the top stop.

Tik Tok star Dr Alicia Jeffrey Thomas said in a video women should not urinate in the shower. She says some doctors say to stop it because your bladder associates the sound of running water with going to the toilet and it can cause a lot of problems. Reporter Henry McKean went out and about to investigate how many people pee in the shower.

With war waging on in Ukraine, the democratic merits of Russia have of course been called into question. However, more countries than expected actually might not think Russia is a net negative. Jonas Parello-Plesner, Director of Alliance of Democracies joined Sean to discuss how the world views Russia.

Andrea Martin, Consultant Solicitor at Media Lawyer.ie joined Sean Moncrieff to discuss all things defamation.