From Puppy Love to a Big Pash via the Front: A Mish-Mash Zig-Zag of an Episode! – Episode 80
In this pinball machine of an episode, Dara bounces all over the place and is none the wiser at the end of it whether things held together.
The Trickiness of Tone, or Do You Ever Put a Knob of Butter in Your Porridge? – Episode 79
In this episode Dara discusses the importance of tone. Considering tone as the ultimate mood setter, he looks at it in the context of movies, public ceremonies and vocations. He also considers tone in the auditory sense, recognising it as a vibration, and recalls how thrilled he was as a child to hear and feel the rumble of the engine of the car ferry that he travelled on several times on journeys to London.
Speaking From the Heart: Three Righteous Preacher Men – Episode 78
In this episode Dara finds himself concerned about the upcoming FIFA world cup in Qatar. What blind eyes were turned and what palms greased to award the tournament to such an unlikely host nation? Footballers heading to the competition want to express their reservations about human rights abuses and the exploitation of workers, but FIFA wants them to ‘stick to football’.
Speaking From the Heart: Three Righteous Preacher Men – Episode 78 Read More »
Heading Fear Off at the Pass, or Oh No, Not Another Catastrophe! – Episode 77
A mental health-focused episode partly inspired by Blindboy Boatclub’s ongoing commitment to sharing his own mental health and wellness journey.
Heading Fear Off at the Pass, or Oh No, Not Another Catastrophe! – Episode 77 Read More »
The Helpless Gobshite Episode! A Defence of Men – Episode 76
In this free-roaming episode, Dara attempts to thread the needle from poor mental health to perceived male incompetence and on to a celebration of non-toxic men.
The Helpless Gobshite Episode! A Defence of Men – Episode 76 Read More »
How Fitching! The Fetishisation of White Beauty and the Erosion of the Black Face – Episode 75
After semi-bingeing on Netflix documentaries set in the USA, Dara has some chewy meat to digest in the areas of race, beauty, identity, representation, status and opportunity.
The Insanity of Being Unable to Tolerate a Different Opinion to Your Tribe, or What Exactly Did JK Rowling Do Wrong? – Episode 74
In this episode, Dara wades into the murky waters of the discourse around transgender identity and language, and who is or isn’t a woman. The focal point for the discussion is the recent Twitter row that erupted in the wake of Graham Norton’s framing of cancel culture, the support he got from Billy Bragg, and the anger it inspired in JK Rowling.
Going Down in Flames – The Fall and Fall of Marilyn Monroe – Episode 73
In this episode Dara assesses the recently-released Marilyn Monroe biopic, ‘Blonde’. Written and directed by Andew Dominik, and based on the 2000 Joyce Carol Oates book of the same name, the film has been widely panned by critics and Marilyn fans, but Dara found a lot to recommend in the performance as Marilyn of Ana de Armas. He argues that de Armas imbues her characterisation with such sympathy and emotional honesty that she effectively insulates herself from many of the less subtle aspects of the film’s storytelling.
Going Down in Flames – The Fall and Fall of Marilyn Monroe – Episode 73 Read More »
The Hateful Power of Hipsters, or Today’s Letter is ‘H’! – Episode 72
In this tonally-light episode, Dara weaves a thread through 4 apparently unconnected words to create (what he hopes is) meaningful content. As they like to say on Sesame Street, “today’s letter is ‘H’. What begins with ‘H’?”
The Hateful Power of Hipsters, or Today’s Letter is ‘H’! – Episode 72 Read More »
Fractured Faith and Religion as Instrument of Terror – Episode 71
In this episode, Dara doesn’t think he’s going to talk about Mahsa Amini, the Kurdish woman who was killed in police custody in Iran in recent weeks, but that’s what he does end up doing. He questions the strength of a faith that feels it has to police itself so viciously. He argues that when religious teaching becomes dogma, it weaponises itself and betrays an inherent insecurity.
Fractured Faith and Religion as Instrument of Terror – Episode 71 Read More »