In this episode, Dara takes a deep dive into two very different on-screen depictions of what the French call ‘amour fou’, or ‘mad love’. 1986’s Betty Blue (37.2 Le Matin) and Hitchcock’s 1958 classic ‘Vertigo’ are the two texts in question.
Two Twisted Love Stories and Dismantling Man-made Erections – Episode 60 Read More »
Dara presents the second of two parts of an in-depth interview with author, artist, and abuse survivor, Aisling Creegan.
Dara presents the first of two parts of an in-depth interview with author, artist, and abuse survivor, Aisling Creegan.
Dara begins this week’s episode by looking at the Irish discomfort with self-approval and putting it in the context of small-island, village mentality. He argues that it is a product of a damaged national psyche that leaves many Irish people with a pathological self-deprecation born of superstition and distrust of success.
Why Idealism Matters and the Proximity Principle of Enmity – Episode 57 Read More »
In this week’s episode Dara reflects on a week in recovery from Covid and realises he enjoyed dropping down to his slowest gear. It prompts him to think about the benefits of living with one’s defences down. He argues that it makes us more receptive and more capable of seeing positive things in the world.
The Art of Disarming Oneself, or How to Live with Defences Down – Episode 56 Read More »
Compromised by a cold-induced fogginess of brain which precludes his normal freestyling approach, Dara decides to recite some American poetry from the Confessional School, and cautiously takes on Allen Ginsberg’s Howl as the closing piece of this verse-drenched episode.
Barbaric Yawps and Righteous Howls – Cries from the American Poetic Heart -Episode 55 Read More »
Dara kicks off this episode with a revelation from his daughter, follows it with a plant the size of three Manhattan islands, and then discusses a black actress getting hate online after appearing in a new Star Wars tv series.
Blazing Baby Blues and a Killer’s Grin – Saying Goodbye to Ray Liotta – Episode 54 Read More »
In this episode Dara is very pleased to be celebrating a year of The ClearOut. He revisits the last twelve months and talks about some of the other ways he was spending his time.
The 1st Birthday Episode! – Receiving Transmissions of Joy – Episode 53 Read More »
In this episode Dara thought he was going to keep it light and stay firmly in the positive psychology territory of inspirational quotes and personal motivation, but he ended up being led by the recent mass shooting in Buffalo to look at the ideologies of hate and division that are currently enjoying a disturbing level of popularity amongst certain demographics.
Dispensable White Men, or Who’s Coming to Replace Me? – Episode 52 Read More »
In this episode Dara is thrust back to his childhood by a concert of John Williams music, and specifically the music of the Star Wars films. That event, and his recent watching of Matt Reeves’s The Batman, gets him thinking about fictional heroes and what role they fulfil in our lives, and why in his late forties he is still happy to consume these heroic tales.
Stepping into the Breach, or The Quandary of Heroes – Episode 51 Read More »
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