Shows / Brendan O'Connor
Brendan O'Connor
Brendan O'Connor has all you need for the weekend with time to pause and reflect on the week just gone. Featuring a selection of human interest, consumer and lifestyle stories, as well as keeping you up to date on the news stories that matter. Listen live Saturday and Sunday at 11am - 1pm on RTÉ Radio 1.
Episodes
Brendan O'Connor“After your show aired, the guy I loved, from years back, got in touch...”
In February, Brendan read out a letter from a listener, about his love affair with a rival athlete, 30 years ago. While watching Heated Rivalry, this listener…
Brendan O'ConnorDoes technology mean that our cars are no longer private spaces?
Irish Independent technology editor, Adrian Weckler, joins Brendan to explore the increasingly sophisticated technology built-in to modern cars. From driver…
Brendan O'ConnorThe Newspaper Panel
Joining Brendan to discuss the big stories in Sunday’s newspapers are Oisín Coghlan, public policy advisor; Dan O’Brien, Chief Economist at the Institute of…
Brendan O'ConnorThe Watchlist
Joining Brendan to discuss the week’s film and TV highlights are writer, Zara Hedderman, and Business Post Film Critic, John Maguire. They discuss the return…
Brendan O'Connor“I thought I was the saviour of the planet” - GOT actor, Hannah Murray
Game of Thrones actor, Hannah Murray, joins Brendan to discuss her memoir The Make Believe, which recounts her experience becoming involved in a wellness…
Brendan O'Connor"Did I want to be an actor or a movie star? That was the question for me" - Jack Reynor
Actor Jack Reynor joins Brendan for My Life in Five Songs, reflecting on a career that has taken him from Wicklow to Hollywood. He discusses the reality of an…
Brendan O'Connor“Although the U.S. has an awful lot of problems, most Americans will still celebrate the 250th anniversary”
Larry Donnelly joins Brendan ahead of an MMA cage fight at the White House – to celebrate President Trump’s birthday. They also discuss the Trump plan for a…
Brendan O'Connor“Being an influencer is the loneliest job” - TikToker, Miriam Mullins
Tables for one... solo travel... jogging alone... After turning 30, TikToker, Miriam Mullins, has decided to do more activities on her own – with a goal of…
Brendan O'Connor“I’m telling his story, because Brian can’t” - Emily O’Reilly
Three years after the death of her brother, Brian, former European Ombudsman, Emily O'Reilly, tells Brendan about her search for answers. Since contracting HIV…
Brendan O'Connor“Lot of lemon juice, lots of lemon zest; delicious”
Chef and food writer Domini Kemp joins Brendan to champion the versatility of lemons in everyday cooking. She explores how zest and juice can lift everything…
Brendan O'ConnorHow to holiday with friends without falling out
Travel expert Lisa Regan, fresh from a trip to Amsterdam with friends to see Harry Styles, joins Dearbhail to talk about group holidays and why groups of women…
Brendan O'ConnorPlaywright Deirdre Kinahan - “Living to retire is such a cod. None of us knows what’s coming next”
Playwright Deirdre Kinahan joins Dearbhail to talk about her latest play ‘Refuge’ which explores Ireland’s complex history with migration, through the…
Brendan O'ConnorThe Newspaper Panel
Joining Dearbhail to discuss the big stories in Sunday’s newspapers, are disability advocate and mother of the late Harvey Morrisson Sherratt, Gillian…
Brendan O'ConnorThe Watchlist
Joining Dearbhail to discuss the week’s film and TV highlights are Director of the Dublin International Film Festival, Grainne Humphries and Movies Editor with…
Brendan O'ConnorThe low down on cholesterol
Professor Robert Byrne, Director of Cardiology at the Mater Private talks to Dearbhail through the difference between good and bad cholesterol, why your…
Brendan O'ConnorWhy brack is not just for Halloween
The Cupcake Guy Graham Herterich gives Dearbhail baking ideas that include nuts and dried fruit - from a coffee and peacan brack to the ultimate…
Brendan O'Connor“I was a very shy kid and suffered from shyness right up until my 40s”
Garden designer and TV presenter, Diarmuid Gavin joins Dearbhail to talk through the songs that bring him back to moments and milestones through his life. He…
Brendan O'Connor“I was so moved by the experience of hopelessness I shared with these women”
Author Doireann Ní Ghríofa joins Dearbhail to discuss her haunting new book ‘Said The Dead’, which explores the archive, history and lives lived in Cork’s…
Brendan O'ConnorCan a chatbot be a good friend? Two Gen Z guinea pigs find out
Kai Brosnan and Sophie Hynes - two younger people who undertook a one-week digital detox for the show last January - return to talk about a week of using AI…
- Brendan O'Connor
The Newspaper Panel
Joining Brendan to discuss the stories making the papers today were teacher and broadcaster Emer O’Neill; Jennifer Bray, Political Editor with the Sunday…
- Brendan O'Connor
The Watchlist
Features writer with the Irish Times, Nadine O’Regan and Culture Journalist, Brian Lloyd bring us the hits and misses of the week’s TV and movie offerings…
Brendan O'Connor“When dressing for an event, don’t forget who you are!”
Stylist and personal shopper Cathy O’Connor chats to Brendan about dressing for all your summer occasions without compromising your personal style: how to plan…
Brendan O'ConnorDirector, John Carney: “I had an almost priestly calling to film-making"
Film-maker John Carney chooses five songs from that bring him back to places, people and moments in his life. He talks about the beauty of the sibling…
Brendan O'ConnorMick Lynch - “People feel Britain needs a radical change right now”
As the Labour Party launches a battle for the soul of Britain, former trade unionist Mick Lynch talks to Brendan about whether Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater…
Brendan O'ConnorSalad dressings that don’t skimp on flavour
Food writer with The Financial Times, Tim Hayward, tells Brendan why sad lettuce needs an epic dressing. He talks Brendan through how to make an authentic…
Brendan O'ConnorWhat’s your flexibility score? (and why it matters)
Physiotherapist Aisling Frawley joins Brendan to talk about why flexibility matters at every age, why consistent movement and strength are key and how to…
Brendan O'Connor“The God I grew up with was all about hell and punishment” - Fr. Iggy O’Donovan
Fr. Iggy O' Donovan reflects on the papacy of his old Augustinian classmate, Pope Leo XIV, a year into office, including recent interactions with the US White…
- Brendan O'Connor
Newspaper Panel
Joining Brendan to discuss the top stories in Sunday’s newspapers are: doctor and columnist, Maire Treasa Ni Cheallaigh; Sunday Business Post policy editor…
Brendan O'ConnorThe Watchlist
Joining Brendan to pick their highlights from TV, streaming and cinema this week, are entertainment journalist and broadcaster, Serina Bellissimo and host of…
Brendan O'ConnorThe irrational optimism of driving a convertible in Ireland
Head of Automotive Content at Donedeal, Paddy Comyn, joins Brendan to discuss the enduring appeal, and practical challenges, of driving a convertible in…
Brendan O'ConnorTheo Dorgan: “My Dad buried himself early so that we might live”
Poet and Writer Theo Dorgan joins Brendan to discuss the songs that have meant most to him, throughout his life and career. He talks about being one of 16…
Brendan O'ConnorBill Nighy: “Now I’m Irish, I’m going to have to rebrand”
Actor Bill Nighy, joins Brendan to discuss his fashion sense, his anxiety and the tension between his Irish heritage and his persona as ‘the quintessential…
Brendan O'ConnorMaria Walsh MEP: “It takes a village – that’s the image I’m leaning on, as a gay, single mum-to-be"
MEP for Midlands-North-West and former Rose of Tralee, Maria Walsh, joins Brendan to talk about her fertility journey. She outlines her options as a single…
Brendan O'ConnorWhy we need holidays
Chartered work and coaching psychologist, Leisha Redmond McGrath, joins Brendan to discuss the psychological importance of holidays. She talks about the impact…
Brendan O'Connor“Australia’s Martha Stewart” Donna Hay
On her first trip to Ireland, the best-selling author and cook, dubbed “Australia’s Martha Stewart” Donna Hay, joins Brendan in studio. She discusses…
Brendan O'Connor“Thank you isn’t nearly enough” - finding the good Samaritan who saved his life
A week after he told Brendan about having a cardiac arrest on a Dublin street, Irish Times columnist Brian Boyd is reunited on air with two of those who…
Brendan O'ConnorJames Kavanagh - “My bully found all manner of creative ways to make my life hell”
Podcaster and presenter, James Kavanagh, tells Brendan about his life through the prism of five songs from Enya to Kate Bush to The Spice Girls. He talks about…
Brendan O'ConnorNewspaper Panel
Joining Brendan to discuss the stories in Sunday’s newspapers are: Talk show host and former Independent Ireland candidate in the European elections, Niall…
- Brendan O'Connor
The Watchlist
Writer, Henrietta McKervey and Andy McCarroll, Host of the Extra Vision podcast join Brendan to talk through some of the biggest films and TV shows of the…
Brendan O'Connor“‘Yesteryear’ shines another light on the Trad Wife culture war”
The new novel ‘Yesteryear’ imagines what would happen if a modern-day trad wife influencer woke up in 1855, forced to actually live in the era she’s been…
Brendan O'ConnorDr Richard Hogan - “The birth mothers who’ve come to my clinic have stayed in my soul”
Psychotherapist Dr Richard Hogan talks about historical Adoption in Ireland and its psychological ripples from the perspective of the birth mother, birth…
Brendan O'ConnorFruiting up your salads!
Blazing Salads Chef Lorraine Fitzmaurice has recipes for delicious summer salads that include a sweet pop of fruit flavours. She uses grilled peaches, grapes…
Brendan O'ConnorMichael Bublé - “I’m a pretty big deal, you need to see me before I die!”
Canadian crooner Michael Bublé is coming back to Ireland this summer for three tour dates. He talked to Brendan about his father, his faith, meeting the Pope…
Brendan O'ConnorSummer Life Hacks
Life Hacks Columnist of the Irish Examiner, Denise O’Donoghue, has a heap of summer hacks like: why baby powder is a summer essential; how to wash your wheelie…
- Brendan O'Connor
“I’m looking for the woman who saved my life”
Irish Times columnist Brian Boyd suffered sudden cardiac arrest while cycling past Donnybrook Garda Station in Dublin on April 1st and clinically died. A woman…
Brendan O'Connor“Teaching Love to medical students allows them to bring their own vulnerabilities to the job”
Prof Colin Doherty, Consultant Neurologist and Head of the School of Medicine in Trinity College Dublin tells Brendan why they have put Love on the new…