To mark the 250th anniversary of the birth of Daniel O'Connell, Newstalk's Talking History debates his life, his legacy and how he should be remembered. Featuring: Prof Christine Kinealy, Professor of History at Quinnipiac University, and author of Daniel O'Connell and Anti-Slavery and an expert on O'Connell, Frederick Douglass, and the Famine; Pro…

Final part of a three week session on Irish radical and working class history, that was held in the Spark in Phibsboro in April. The main theme today is the “social question” and what that meant in terms of Irish radicalism in the 19th century. It brings up writers such as Agnes Henry, Anna Doyle Wheeler, Bronterre O’Brien, William Sharman Crawford…

Third of four recordings made in the Spark, Phibsboro, in April 2025, dealing with Irish radical and working class history. Topics in this episode include Repeal and Chartism, Daniel O'Connell as a 19th century neoliberal, and working class resistance to the extractive, colonial, mode of production.

In this episode: a profile of Ireland's longest-serving Minister for Justice, Gerald Boland, with Prof Stephen Kelly, Professor of Modern History and British Irish Relations at Liverpool Hope University; counter-insurgency strategies in the Civil War, with author Dr Gareth Prendergast; and how women changed the study of foreign languages in Ireland…

In this episode: Crusader Criminals - the knights who went rogue in the Holy Land, with Dr Steve Tibble, honorary research associate at Royal Holloway, University of London; the forgotten history of the occult, with Raphael Cormack, Assistant Professor of Modern Languages at Durham University; and how Ireland's sea connections brought new ideas, te…

On the 250th anniversary of the birth of Jane Austen, we'll discuss her life and legacy. Featuring: Lizzie Dunford, director of the Jane Austen House museum, John Mullan, author of the book What Matters in Jane Austen?, and Janet Todd of the University of Cambridge.

In this episode of Talking History: a roundup of exciting new exhibitions on the island of Ireland, including: the Irish manuscripts returning to the country for the first time in more than 1,000 years, with curator Matthew Seaver, Assistant Keeper at the National Museum of Ireland; the life, art and legacy of the husband of Constance Markievicz, w…

In this episode: from our earliest ancestors to today's global diaspora, we take a trip through 10,000 years of Ireland's history. Featuring Professor Jane Ohlmeyer, Erasmus Smith's Professor of Modern History, Trinity College Dublin; Professor Bríona Nic Dhiarmada, Thomas J. and Kathleen M. O'Donnell Professor of Irish Studies and Concurrent Profe…

In this episode of Talking History, we're debating one of the most dramatic episodes of the Second World War: Operation Dynamo, the incredible evacuation of Allied forces from Dunkirk in May 1940. Featuring: Prof Eunan O’Halpin, Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Irish History, Trinity College Dublin; Dr David Jordan, Co-Director of the Freeman Air…

In this episode of Talking History, we're going back in time 10 years to remember how Ireland became the first country in the world to legalise same-sex marriage by popular vote, as we debate what the passing of the marriage equality referendum really meant for Irish history. Featuring: Dr Mary McAuliffe, historian and Director of Gender Studies at…

In this episode of Talking History: The social history of death and dying, with historian and bereavement counsellor Molly Conisbee Vietdamned: How the World’s Greatest Minds Put America on Trial, with historian Clive Webb And Alexander The Great: Lives and Legacies, with Stephen Harrison of Swansea University.…

Talking History is searching for white smoke as we explore the history of the most unusual conclaves, including the one that lasted almost three years. Featuring Dr Celeste McNamara, Assistant Professor in Early Modern European History, DCU; Dr Patrick Houlihan, Associate Professor in History at TCD; and Dr Massimo Faggioli, Professor of Historical…

In this episode, we bring you a roundup of history books: we explore how New York was invented in the 17th century, with Russell Shorto, director of the New Amsterdam Project at the New York Historical and senior scholar at the New Netherland Institute; we chart the fall of civilisations with Paul Cooper, podcaster and historian; and discuss why Ma…

This week is the 250th anniversary of the birth of JMW Turner, so we are playing back our show on one of the greatest landscape artists of all time. Joining Patrick is Charlotte Topsfield, Prints & Drawings Curator, National Galleries of Scotland; Anne Hodge, Curator of Prints & Drawings, National Gallery of Ireland; and Niamh McGuinne, Paper Conse…

In this episode, we explore some fascinating new historical exhibitions and curations taking place around the world. The recreation of Anne Frank's annex in New York, with Tom Brink, Head of Collections and Presentations at the Anne Frank House. Bilingual Dublin street signs and what they reveal about our cultural heritage, with Nicole Volmering of…

Second of three workshops held in the Spark, Phibsborough. Recorded on 10 April 2025 and continues the themes of the previous week, looking at historical materialism. Topics include Engels, Mao, Peadar O'Donnell, Brian O'Neill, The Ripening of Time Collective, and Mahdi Amel and the pitfalls of underdevelopment/world systems theory when applied to …

In this episode, we mark 100 years since the publication of F Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby and explore how its themes are still relevant today. Featuring Prof Philip McGowan, School of Arts, English and Languages at Queen's University Belfast; Prof Kirk Curnutt, executive director of the F Scott Fitzgerald Society and Professor and cha…

Recording of the first of three workshops on Irish radical history, held in The Spark, Phibsborough, 3 April 2025. The series will focus in on Marxism and history, Irish class consciousness and class struggle, and pioneer Irish socialists of the 19th century. Slides from the workshop available here - https://conor-mccabe.com/2025/04/04/irish-radica…

In this episode: this month's round-up of history books - 'Travellers in the Golden Realm' by Lubaaba Al-Azami, 'The Brutish Empire' by Des Ekin, and 'Dublin: The Irish Revolution, 1912−1923' by Brian Hughes.

In this episode: our panel reflects on King James I & VI of Scotland - his life and loves - on the 400th anniversary of his death. Featuring historian Gareth Russell, Anna Groundwater, Principal Curator, Renaissance and Early Modern History at National Museums Scotland; Clare Jackson, Honorary Professor of Early Modern History at the University of …