Highlights From The Pat Kenny Show

New Apple TV Thriller series Down Cemetery Road starring Emma Thompson and from the creators of Slow Horses features in this weeks 'Boxed' with John Fardy, Presenter of Screentime. 

Cork comedian Chris Kent will be performing his last few shows from his ‘offline’ tour this month.  From touring across the UK, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, with two small kids and 100 shows. Life has been very busy for Chris. Chris joined Pat in studio to talk about how he’s been getting on and what life has been like since he went back online. 

Ice hockey team, the Belfast Giants, received a huge boost last week with the news that former Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech will rejoin the franchise for this season’s Elite Ice Hockey League. The links between Ireland and ice hockey may not be immediately obvious – but the sport was actually adapted from a 18th-century form of hurling. Off The Ball’s Cameron Hill can tell us more:

Mary ‘May’ McGee, activist who won landmark court case against the State’s ban on contraception. She left the country a little better than how she found it'‘ Her nephew writes a tribute to the incredible woman who fought the state on contraception ban so she wouldn’t die by pregnancy. Her nephew is David Robert Grimes, Author and Disinformation expert.   

There has been progress in this effort with immunotherapy becoming more common in the treatment of cancer, but many patients don’t respond to the immune boosters being used. Now comes news that patients with lung cancer are surviving twice as long in those who have also been given the mRNA Covid19 vaccines. All to discuss with Professor Luke O Neill , Professor of Biochemistry at the school of Immunology, Trinity College.   

A new podcast chronicling the serial fraudster, Amy McAuley. ‘Unravelling Amy’ will tell, over two parts, the story of Amy and the trail of deceit that followed her as she scammed a mental health charity, among many other individuals and institutions. Joining Pat on the show was Crime Editor of the Irish Sun Stephen Breen, Producer of the podcast, hosted by Damien Lane of the Irish Sun. 

Fianna Fáil’s infighting continues this week, with Micheál Martin flying to Brazil for the COP30 summit. With revolt in the air and Martin across the pond, could the rebels seize the moment and remove the Taoiseach? Joining Pat to discuss the latest news on the ongoing Fianna Fáil drama is Craig Hughes, Political Editor for the Irish Daily Mail. 

The Department of Agriculture yesterday confirmed a second outbreak of bird flu at a commercial turkey flock in Meath, following confirmation of the disease among a Carlow flock. From next Monday, all poultry and captive birds will be under a compulsory housing order to minimise further risk of bird flu spreading. So will this have any impact on the supply of Christmas turkeys and what is the risk posed to the public? Pat asked Martin Heydon TD, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

With fresh talk of the latte levy coming in after years of delays we take a look at coffee cup waste, alternatives and we hear about towns who have already banned them completely. All to discuss with Jo Linehan Climate Journalist 

The Movember  “Dispose with Dignity” campaign is being launched this morning, calling for male sanitary bins nationwide. At the moment they are only in ladies toilets. The Irish Cancer Society and PHS - a sanitary bin company, have come together to have a conversation and to reduce stigma around the subject. Henry McKean met a delivery driver recovering from prostate cancer, he tells Henry about his experience of having a catheter bag and finding it difficult to bin it, out and about.

Over the past number of years we have covered the lack of green spaces and play areas for children in Dublin 8, highlighting the difficulties the local community has had in making any progress towards a playing field in a community that is constantly growing in population. This morning, we return to that story once more but, this time, we have some good news to bring you on it with funding provided for a pitch at St James’ School. Pat spoke to JJ O’Mahony, Chairperson, Sporting Liberties on this good community news.

Ireland’s new auto-enrolment pension system is coming in 2026, with most of the public’s focus on the January start date. However, Caroline Rowan, Head of Retirement Consulting at Aon Ireland, believes that it is actually now, the beginning of November, that is the critical window for the auto-enrolment rollout.

In the middle of the Scottish hills, far from the museums and polite drawing rooms of Edinburgh, there’s a garden unlike any other on earth. It’s called Little Sparta, and it was created by one man. Ian Hamilton Finlay who turned a bleak stretch of moorland into a living battlefield of art and ideas. Diarmuid Gavin tell us more about LIttle Sparta.

Former Hurling superstar DJ Carey received his sentence on Monday, after defrauding those who trusted him claiming he had cancer. Joining me now is journalist and author Eimear Ní Bhraonáin, whose brand-new book, ‘The Dodger, DJ Carey And The Great Betrayal’, is out now. The book follows DJ’s life, from his childhood obsession with hurling, to his GAA career, and his swindling of supporters who believed they were funding lifesaving treatment. 

Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani has been elected Mayor of New York City, defeating former Governor Andrew Cuomo, and becoming the first Muslim to ever hold the office. For this and more Pat spoke to Terry Sheridan, a Peabody-nominated, award-winning journalist, and Senior Director of News at WSHU Public Radio.   

Motorways are statistically very safe but they have particular dangers – especially in bad weather, and especially on the hard shoulder. All to discuss with Conor Faughnan, Transport Consultant. 

We all love a good classic the kind of film that defined a decade. But every so often, Hollywood decides to dust one off and remake it for modern audiences and the result doesn’t quite live up to the original. All to chat about with Lisa Cannon, Head of Studio at DMG Media.

The Department of Finance has said that our housing crisis is likely to persist for at least another 15 years. Pent up demand will not be fully eliminated until at least 2040. However, this all depends on housing supply reaching sixty thousand a year by. But is this prediction that things will be better in fifteen years even realistic?Pat discusses this further with Lorcan Sirr, Senior Lecturer in Housing, TU Dublin and also Karl Deeter, Irish Mortgage Brokers.

This week on the Green Scene we take a look at the health benefits of outdoor schools and how stinkbugs coat their eggs in fungus to protect them.All to chat with Dr Ruth Freeman Director of Research for Society For Research Ireland .With thanks to Repak.

Coast Guard pilots have said that conditions have worsened since the Rescue 116 tragedy. To discuss the issue with Pat was is Sinn Féin TD Conor D. McGuinness from Waterford, who is Chair of the Oireachtas Committee on Fisheries and Maritime Affairs.