Caitriona Twomey is the face and voice of Cork Penny Dinners. She's co-ordinator of the charity, leading a huge team of volunteers to provide hot food and support to those who are down on their luck. Whether it's a homeless family needing a meal & perhaps some warm clothing, or just someone who can't quite manage a dinner because they have too many bills to pay, the service is the same, free of charge and no questions asked. Caitriona talked to me about the charity, and about the work... and of course I wanted to know.. how did she become involved?

Twenty Minutes With..

Episode 18... Twenty Minutes With.. Caitriona Twomey

Don O Leary is the director of the Cork Life Centre, a groundbreaking centre of education on the Northside of the City. The Life Centre takes in students who have left formal mainstream education. His remit when he was hired was to develop its profile and promote its ethos. He & his team have done that, to the point where the Cork Life Centre is now nationally recognised and respected. I wanted to focus though, on Don's own story.. and believe me, it's not what you might expect!

Episode 17 ... Twenty Minutes With.. Don O Leary

Michael Guerin is one of my favourite 'specialist' contributors on radio. In my view, his knowledge of Irelands experience with alcohol and drugs, illicit and otherwise, is without equal.. He & his team at Cuan Mhuire have put hundreds of men and women on the road to addiction recovery. I sat down with Michael to talk about that and much more, for this episode of Twenty Minutes With

Episode 16... Twenty Minutes With... Michael Guerin

(Part 2 of 2) Occasionally, a conversation with my guest of the week, gains a life of its own, and becomes two episodes. That's what happened with Karen Underwood, singer, performer, artist, musician, activist, campaigner and "adopted Corkonian". In the second part of our conversation she talks about growing up with racism, about the once special friend who helped her to see beyond that, and how it made her the person she is today..

Episode 15 ...Twenty Minutes With... Karen Underwood..

Karen Underwood is a singer,  performer & teacher of soul & gospel music.. she came to Ireland 23 years ago, settled here almost instantly, and began to forge a life for herself. The star of "Nina & Me - the Nina Simone story", she had, you'll be amazed to learn, never even heard of Nina until she came to Ireland! There's a lot more to Karen than I ever thought I knew - which is why this is the first of a two part interview... 

Episode 14.. Twenty Minutes With... Karen Underwood

Evaleen Whelton spoke to me on radio about Autism, after it came up on the Election campaign, when a Senator controversially said she thought the Taoiseach was Autistic. Evaleen is Autistic, and her lifes work is devoted to teaching the rest of us that there's no big mystery to it, that it's just how some people are, and all we need to do is accept and understand that. 

Episode 13... Twenty Minutes With.. Evaleen Whelton

In January 1820, Edward Bransfield, from East Cork, master of a vessel called "Williams" became the first man to see, record and chart the continent we now call Antarctica. His maps and charts were later used by polar exploration legends Ernest Shackleton & Tom Crean, but Bransfields story has gone largely untold until recent years. He has now been formally recognised with a monument in his home village of Ballinacurra, near Midleton. For this episode, I went to the unveiling of the monument..

Episode 12.. Twenty Minutes With... Edward Bransfield

Episode 12... Twenty Minutes With... Edward Bransfield

A slightly longer episode than usual... he's got a lot to say! Ross Browne is my colleague on radio,  a comedy writer, a scriptwriter on The Young Offenders,  star of RTE's "The Fear",  and one of Irelands foremost standup comics. He's outspoken, opinionated, razor sharp and irrepressible...  Oh, and  - WARNING - he swears a bit!

Episode 11.. Twenty Minutes With... Ross Browne

If you're into World of Warcraft, you'll be familiar with Nella, as the featured vocalist on the huge track "Canticle of Sacrifice" - but do you know the story of how all that happened? It's been a crazy few years for Nella, writing,  performing & travelling - a lot of travelling! - but right now she's spending most of her time in her native Cork, where she's built a studio, to plan and work on new projects 

Episode 10.. Twenty Minutes With ... Nella

It's the fish stall in The Young Offenders.. and he's the fishmonger who had Queen Elizabeth in fits of laughter during her visit to Cork... he was also a successful President of the Cork Business Association ..  but there's more to Pat O Connell .. the famous stall bears the name of his mother Kathleen, at who's side he learned his trade...

Episode 9.. Twenty Minutes With .. Pat O Connell

Daragh Fleming is a writer, blogger and Mental Health activist, passionate about the importance of allowing young people the freedom to speak up about their mental health, and the struggles in their lives.  Following the death by suicide of his best friend, Daragh has devoted himself to the cause of youth mental health and depression. 

Episode 8.. Twenty Minutes With.. Daragh Fleming

Published these days by "The Echo", the Cork Holly Bough is estimated to have more than 250,000 readers & copies are posted and carried to the four corners of the World every November & December. Englishman - and adopted Corkonian - John Dolan has been editor for the past 17 years & sat down for a chat about the history & the attraction of this unique Cork publication

Episode 7... Twenty Minutes With ... the Cork Holly Bough

In 2016, a young man called Alex Ryan died after taking a drug called N-Bomb, one of an ever-changing range of highly dangerous synthetics flooding the streets and easily available all over Ireland.  Since the tragedy, by gradually assembling a team of experts around her, Alex's sister Nicole has devoted herself to taking the message of drug awareness and the dangers, especially of synthetics, to young people in their classrooms. "Alex's Adventure" is now her full time career.. a career she never in her wildest dreams, expected to pursue..

Episode 6.. Twenty Minutes With .. Nicole Ryan

The first woman to host a chatshow on Irish television..  a regular on BBC Radio.. Why did she pack it all in to run a hotel... in India? Why, when her hotel was thriving,  did she then leave her new home in Kerala to come to live in Cork? Now, she's also an author. What motivates, what excites her.. and what's the secret behind the constant reinvention of Bibi Baskin? 

Episode 5 .. Twenty Minutes With .. Bibi Baskin

Award winning broadcaster, PJ Coogan asks a chosen guest for twenty minutes of their time, to look beyond what we know about them, and perhaps explore a little of what lies beneath.. New episodes drop at Midday on Saturdays.

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Twenty Minutes With..

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