JANE ALGER, director of the UNESCO City of Literature programme, speaks to John Healy about the purpose of the programme. Jane talks about what the programme encourages, the book that the programme are celebrating this year, the events that they put together that connect to the book, the plot of the book itself based on the…
Winter Tales For All The Family
Pat speaks to RAB FULTON, author of Winter Tales For All The Family. He talks about what inspired him to write the book, the plot and description of the one of the tales in the book, his storytelling gigs that he does in Galway that are filmed live to people across the world, Florence Welsh’s…
World Ghost Convention
Pat speaks to CATHERINE MCCOURTNEY about the World Ghost Convention in Cork. She talks about the details of the convention, the guest speakers who will be speaking during the convention, her involvement in the convention, her beliefs on the speaker’s abilities and how everyone can have their own perspective on spirits or ghosts. She also…
Culture Night 2013
AMY VAN WYLICH joins Eoin Drinan to speak about the upcoming events as part of Culture night 2013. Amy speaks of how the festival has grown over the previous eight years, with 2013 featuring over 200 different venues. Highlights are RTE Concert Orchestra in Meeting House Square and also the National Photographic archives hosting an…
Live from the Origin Gallery
Barbara Jennings reports from the Origin Gallery where she speaks to NOELLE CAMPBELL SHARPE about the hotels exhibition tour taking place all around Dublin. Some of the city’s top hotels have great art collections which are being opened to the public. There are works by artists as diverse as Yeat and O’Connor to more contemporary…
Short Operas in Public Places in Dublin
Noel speaks to FERGUS SHEIL, a conductor involved in a series of short operas in public places in Dublin called “Things We Throw Away”. He speaks about how it is the first of its kind in Ireland, how the RTE concert orchestra recorded soundtracks specially for the public operas, how the writers of the operas…

Hay Literary and Arts festival, Kells Co. Meath 2013
GER GAUGHRAN tells Eoin Drinan about the upcoming Hay Festival in Kells, Meath. We hear that this brand of Arts and Literary festival started in Wales. In 2011 the chamber of commerce contacted the festival committee about organising a Hay festival in Kells and after two years work this is the first Irish event. Ger…
Pearse House Photography Exhibition: Council Flats in the 1930s
Photographer JEANETTE LOWE joins Noel McGuinness to discuss the launch of her latest photo exhibition, which is being opened by the Lord Mayor of Dublin in Meeting House Square in Temple Bar. The exhibition is connected to a project revolving around the restoration of a dwelling in the Pearse House flats to its original 1930s…
Report From The Paris Climate Summit
Noel speaks to WILLIAM HEDERMAN, a journalist reporting from the Paris Climate Summit. He talks about the situation he and many other activists are in due to the high security in France following the Paris attacks, the people organising the protests, how they plan to assemble under the circumstances, other ways to protest climate change,…
Intercultural Media Project Update 21st November
PAT MEEHAN is joined by GRACE WILENTZ, Coordinator of Near FM’s Intercultural Dialogue through Community Media initiative. She gives updates about the second round of the Intercultural Media Project she is working on and how the training with the participants is going. The Intercultural Dialogue through Community Media project is co-financed by the European Commission under…

A New Journey For Irish Girl Guides
JILLIAN VAN TURNHOUT of the Irish Girl Guides organisation talks about the Journey Programme. The Journey Programme is designed to ensure that we achieve the Irish Girl Guides’ mission “to enable girls and young women to develop to their fullest potential as responsible citizens of the world.” The Journey Programme has three elements in each…
Culture Night 2012 – preview
Barbara speaks about Culture Night 2012 live from Lemon Jelly restaurant on Millennium way[REPORTER PHONE CRACKLE PRESENT THROUGHOUT]. She speaks to DERMOT MCLOUGHLIN who started Culture Night originally back in 2004 as a small event which has since grown into a very large annual project. They speak about the history of the event and more…

Hands Up for Children Campaign
Mark speaks to ROSEMARY GAFFNEY, Principal of St. Joseph’s National School; LOUISE MCGUIRK from Doras Bui and NOEL KELLY from the Northside Partnership about the Hands Up for Children campaign. They talk about the influence they’re trying to put to ministers about the need for funding children, the delight of the parents over the campaign, how…
New shows and projects at Near FM
Noel McGuinness interviews DAVE O’CONNOR from Near Media Co-op about the new shows coming up at Near FM and the different projects both Near Fm and Near TV are taking part in at the moment…
Christian Aid Responds to Typhoon Haiyan in The Philippines
FLORENCE MUTESASIRA of international relief agency Christian Aid joins John Healy on the phone. They discuss the current crisis in The Philippines and how they will distribute the €500,000 which has been donated by the Irish government. Florence says the money will directly help 40,000 people providing tangible help in the form of tents, tarpaulins,…
