Podcast Episodes

Sinn Féin ate my hamster

Episode 146

What is at the heart of the media response to the Sinn Fein ‘omnicrisis’? On Free State today, Joe and Dion debate the coverage of Sinn Fein. Is it just a new form of IRAing, a way of denying Sinn Fe…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

The Day of the Dead

Episode 145

The world is divided into the bereaved and unbereaved. On Free State today, Dion talks about the death of his mother, the enduring pain of loss and how some sadness has deepened with time. Dion and J…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Johnny Sexton. Part 2. House of Pain

Episode 144

What is the difference between winning and losing? In 2023, Ireland lost another World Cup quarter final to New Zealand, but was this different to their other failures? In the second part of the John…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Johnny Sexton. Running into brick walls. Part 1

Episode 143

What drove Johnny Sexton? What did he have that separated him from other players?

On a Free State Special, one of the world’s great rugby players joins Dion and Joe to talk about obsession, falling ou…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Free State Interviews: Dion talks to author Robert Harris

Episode 142

"Almost nobody in the world who has ever got power has wanted to lose it,” author Robert Harris tells Dion during this special episode of Free State. Harris was once a political journalist and he bec…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Genocide Pictures, in association with Hollywood studios present: How Israel saved Gaza

Episode 141

In 2002, Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the US congress as the drums for war in Iraq beat louder and louder. “If you take out Saddam I guarantee you that it will have enormous positive reverberations o…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Making genocide respectable. How the Western media colluded with Israel.

Episode 140

Since the horrors of October 7, Israel has waged war on the people of Gaza with genocidal intent. The slaughter now has spread to Lebanon with the west offering little but hollow words and repeating …

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Embracing Racism: Fine Gael’s Plan To Win the Election

Episode 139

If you are building a bike shed in the Oireachtas or the new children’s hospital, Ireland is a good place to live. But what about those marginalised who ask: what does Ireland stand for? Whether it i…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

Surviving a newborn, Lebanon burning & how Kristofferson beat the Devil.

Episode 138

How do you reason with a 13-day-old baby? On Free State, Joe deals with the after effects of a night trying to soothe an unsoothable newborn while Dion feels like he’s taken a role in Falling Down. T…

Published on 1 year, 2 months ago

What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted?

Episode 137

In one of the most personal episodes of Free State, Joe talks to Dion about his childhood growing up surrounded by violence and trauma. He talks about how it shaped who he was as a TV personality and…

Published on 1 year, 3 months ago