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Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning

Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning

Gold Hat Productions

Free State is a podcast for the curious that stimulates, provokes, challenges and entertains, while never taking itself too seriously. Free State covers topics from sport to politics, love to loss, the human condition and how to fix the world, with guests from across the planet including Nigerian princes, former Prime Ministers, ex convicts, footballers, boxers and extraordinary people from every walk of life. 


Free State is presented by Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning. Brolly is a barrister, an original thinker with a fascinating backstory, who donated a kidney to a stranger and then led a crusade to transform organ donation on the island of Ireland, and Fanning is an award-winning interviewer and author. 


They are not motivational gurus or life coaches. They will never try to sell you a penis scented candle. They are two people from very different worlds, with one core belief uniting them - this is not a high performance podcast.



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

154 - Hello Mary Lou. A Free State Special with the leader of the opposition, Part 1 (no hamsters were harmed in the making of this podcast)
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  • 154 - Hello Mary Lou. A Free State Special with the leader of the opposition, Part 1 (no hamsters were harmed in the making of this podcast)

    Mary Lou McDonald is promising change but will Sinn Fein be able to deliver? On the first Free State election special, Mary Lou McDonald joins Dion and Joe for a major podcast interview.


    She talks to Dion and Joe about the challenges facing her party and why she believes the media is hostile to Sinn Fein. Will Dion indulge in ‘IRAing’ or are these legitimate questions to be asked of the leader of Sinn Fein? When does IRAing come to an end and normal politics begins? When it does will Sinn Fein bring the same radical change as Bernie Sander and Jeremy Corbyn promised? Or will they be destroyed by the system before addressing Ireland’s fundamental problems. Will this be the first podcast where one of the interviewers storms out? And will any hamsters be harmed in the making of the podcast?


    Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.


    For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Tue, 12 Nov 2024 - 42min
  • 153 - Rick Perlstein on Donald Trump and the Dukes of MAGA. A Free State Saturday Special

    When historian Rick Perlstein is asked what awaits America under Donald Trump’s second presidency, he quotes Clubber Lang in Rocky III - Pain.


    On a Free State Special, Perlstein talks to Dion and Joe about the long rise of the right in the US. Through his books Nixonland and Reaganland, Perlstein has chronicled the Republican Party and their journey to the world beyond truth.


    He tells Dion and Joe how Trump is now ready to take full control of American democracy and what will happen to that democracy.


    Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.


    For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Sat, 09 Nov 2024 - 51min
  • 152 - Trump’ll fix it for you, and you and you…

    How do you destroy democracy and will anyone notice if it happens in America? On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at how Donald Trump became US president again. Was it the economy, stupid, was it the weakness of Kamala Harris or did America embrace the hateful elements Trump has tapped into.


    Joe Biden’s role in Trump’s return can’t be overlooked. What will Trump do with the power which is coming his way and which he is ready for this time. Are there any warning for Ireland in what has happened in America? Democracy might be under threat but do the 70 million Americans who voted for Trump care?


    Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG.


    For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Thu, 07 Nov 2024 - 48min
  • 151 - The Last US Election? Donald Trump & Project 2025

    America gets ready to vote but what is really at stake? Kamala Harris doesn’t have a radical plan to tackle the inequality that plagues America. Donald Trump might have a radical plan, but it looks a lot like fascism. On Free State Dion and Joe look at the polarisation of America, Trump’s Project 2025 plan which attacks democracy at its heart and why Trump might not care about the polls. Joe also reveals a letter to his new baby from a surprising source


    Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG Productions.


    For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Tue, 05 Nov 2024 - 44min
  • 150 - The Perilous Life of the Penis (and associated scandals)

    What drives people to behave recklessly? What is it that motivates men to send dick pics without a thought to the consequences? On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at the anatomy of scandals and how they unfold. They move on to disagree about the developments in the Brian Stanley affair. They also consider the new drama Say Nothing and argue about the damage it may or not do to Sinn Fein.


    Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG Productions.


    For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/



    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Thu, 31 Oct 2024 - 43min
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