Podcast Archives - Page 4 of 25

I Am Not my Thoughts and Emotions! Or Maybe That’s All I Am? – Episode 211

In this episode, Dara picks up a point from last week and wonders if we can simultaneously be and not be our thoughts and emotions. He asks of what use our emotions are to others. Are we just being self-indulgent when we unload on others or is there room for more self-regulation? He also offers a way into better understanding relational estrangements and resentments.

The Comfort of the Familiar, or Your Brain Would Like a New Pathway, Please! – Episode 210

In this episode Dara is trying to disembed some of his thinking in an attempt to do better. The well-worn pathways in his brain contribute to narratives that he can't stop regurgitating and which are no longer serving him. Time for change - but that's easier said than done.

Stop Laughing at Me, I’m a Very Important Person! – Episode 209

In this episode, Dara is concerned about egos getting out of control, and he has two specific case studies in mind - one playing out presently in the Middle East, and one that played out a long time ago on a little Japanese island.

The Intimacy of Male Connection, or What Do Men Need to Talk? – Episode 208

Dara kicks off this episode celebrating the extraordinary story of Tina Turner and how she overcame the worst adversity to reinvent herself as an iconic figure of 80s and 90s popular music. Having recently seen the astonishing stage musical based on her life, he has renewed enthusiasm for Tina's inspirational girl power narrative.

Fathers’ Day Episode – Stopping the Rot and Staying in the Lovelight – Episode 207

In this week's show, Dara talks about his experience of fatherhood and his ever-evolving relationship with his daughter. He continues to fall at the same hurdle on a regular basis - will he, or can he change? He shares a personal father moment that made him cry and wonders why it can be so difficult to cry for oneself.

Monkey? What Monkey? – Catharsis, Fandom, and the Owning of Self – Episode 206

This episode has something for everyone. Dara kicks off with an acknowledgement of the show's 4th birthday before breaking down his fandom of Tottenham Hotspur in the wake of their recent Europa League triumph - the trophy monkey is finally off the collective backs of long-suffering Spurs fans. Thanks be to the Gods of Football!

‘Sinners’ and ‘Moonstruck’ – Movie Pleasures of the Old and New School – Episode 205

In this week's episode, Dara reviews Ryan Coogler's rip roaring 'Sinners', a movie that defies easy categorisation but is infused with the director's characteristic heart, immersive world-building, and brilliant lead performances. Of particular delight was a thread of Irishness that leant the movie an unexpected and resonant depth. There's also an Irish connection to the movie that Dara recommends as a double bill partner for 'Sinners'.

Minimising, Maximising, and Getting the Balance Right – How We Deal with What Challenges Us – Episode 204

In this episode Dara is thinking about challenging moments and situations and the places we put them to help us cope better. After a very unpleasant accident that sent him to hospital, Dara laughs at the way men can fail to offer care, depending on their assessment of the urgency involved - everything can be laughed at until it can't.

Have You Done Your Homework? Oppression, Conflict, and the Pursuit of Truth – Episode 203

In this episode Dara tries to thread the needle between domestic and personal crises and those of a much larger, humanitarian nature. Taking in current events in Gaza as well as historic instances of grievous abuse by Catholic institutions in Ireland, the question of truth seems to be of primary importance when a larger power treats others with such callous impunity and indifference to the consequences.

This Is Not a Performance (It’s My Life!) – Episode 202

A hiatus imposed on Dara by life's steamroller has reminded him how non-performative the podcast continues to be. He reflects on the circumstances that rendered him incapable of recording over the last few weeks and reiterates his conviction that being judiciously transparent is of more use to his listeners, and to him, than jazz hands and soft shoe shuffles.

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Latest Episodes

I Am Not my Thoughts and Emotions! Or Maybe That’s All I Am? – Episode 211

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The Comfort of the Familiar, or Your Brain Would Like a New Pathway, Please! – Episode 210

Read More »

Stop Laughing at Me, I’m a Very Important Person! – Episode 209

Read More »

The Intimacy of Male Connection, or What Do Men Need to Talk? – Episode 208

Read More »

Fathers’ Day Episode – Stopping the Rot and Staying in the Lovelight – Episode 207

Read More »

Monkey? What Monkey? – Catharsis, Fandom, and the Owning of Self – Episode 206

Read More »

‘Sinners’ and ‘Moonstruck’ – Movie Pleasures of the Old and New School – Episode 205

Read More »

Minimising, Maximising, and Getting the Balance Right – How We Deal with What Challenges Us – Episode 204

Read More »

Have You Done Your Homework? Oppression, Conflict, and the Pursuit of Truth – Episode 203

Read More »

This Is Not a Performance (It’s My Life!) – Episode 202

Read More »

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