Joe Klecko always had mayhem on his mind. Klecko, the legendary defensive linemen for the New York Jets, is regarded as the strongest man in the history of American Football. When Joe Klecko was inducted into the Hall of Fame, he invited Joe Brolly to Cleveland to be part of the event. On Free State today, Joe Klecko talks to Joe about his life on the front line of the most demanding sport of all. But it came easy to a man who once wrestled a bear and another time pulled the doors off Burt Reyno...
May 14, 2024•32 min•Ep. 98
Roger Casement’s executioner described him as ‘the bravest man it fell to my unhappy lot to execute’. In part 2 of a special Free State on Casement, his biographer Roland Philipps explains the doomed and heroic final act of Casement’s life when he was driven by an obsessive desire for Irish freedom. He talks to Dion and Joe about the love affair which helped to condemn an impractical romantic. If Roger Casement’s life had ended after he had exposed the barbarity in the Congo, he would have been ...
May 09, 2024•40 min•Ep. 97
When Roger Casement was hanged in Pentonville Prison in 1916, he died an Irish hero and a traitor to the British Empire. On Banna Strand in 2016, President Higgins described Casement as “not just a great Irish patriot, he was also one of the great humanitarians of the early 20th century”. On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at the many lives of a man who so impressed a tribe of cannibals with his courage that they didn’t eat him. Casement’s lives were varied, and some of them were secret, but...
May 07, 2024•35 min•Ep. 96
What drives Jim McGuinness? Why does he inspire such devotion and how does he command such loyalty? On Free State, Joe explains his own complicated relationship with Jim McGuinness. In a world where GAA managers are conformist and conservative, McGuinness is a man apart. Is this why he was able to dismantle Derry? And Joe reveals what he was shouting at Mickey Harte from the stand. Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in association with SwanMcG. For more on Free ...
May 02, 2024•44 min•Ep. 95
Christy Moore has been a giant in Irish life. In the final part of the Free State special he talks to Joe and Dion about the songs and the people who have guided him along the way. He plays the songs whose success surprised him and he talks about the ones that were censored. What word led the BBC to ban ‘St Brendan’s Voyage’? How did a review of ‘The Time Has Come’ lead to it being taken off the airwaves? He also tells the extraordinary story of how he was given the lyrics to ‘Back Home In Derry...
Apr 30, 2024•37 min•Ep. 94
When the Stardust Families were on their own, Christy Moore stood with them. On Part 2 of the Free State Special, Christy Moore remembers the dark days of the tragedy in 1981. When Christy found himself in court in 1985 charged with contempt because of one line in his song about the fire ‘They Never Came Home’, the Stardust Families stood with him. Christy also talks about the impact his father’s death had on him and the rest of his family. He also turns the tables on Joe and has a few questions...
Apr 25, 2024•31 min•Ep. 93
Christy Moore has been the voice of the nation for more than fifty years. Christy has been on the side of the underdog, called out the establishment and has never taken a backward step. In the first part of a Free State special, Christy Moore joins Dion and Joe to reflect on his extraordinary life. Christy recalls his own parents’ time in politics, his involvement with the hunger strikers and why he still finds a live show such a special and unpredictable place. Free State with Joe Brolly and Di...
Apr 23, 2024•46 min•Ep. 92
When it comes to a united Ireland, economists might know the price of everything and the value of nothing. Except they’re not even sure of the price. On Free State, Dion and Joe consider the report which said a united Ireland could cost €20 million a year for 20 years and look at all it didn’t say. Are these numbers being used to scare voters in the south by an establishment which fears becoming irrelevant in a united Ireland? Or do they show the need for a conversation that everyone can be part...
Apr 18, 2024•46 min•Ep. 91
Ireland’s new Taoiseach Simon Harris says he belongs to a generation more familiar with Berlin and Paris than Belfast or Derry. To the Irish citizens of Belfast and Derry, it may have been a surprise but not a shock to hear the Taoiseach speak of them as if they were a strange and distant people. Or maybe they’ll be relieved he didn’t say Londonderry. On Free State today, Joe and Dion talk about a united Ireland. Ireland is the only country with a constitutional aspiration for unity so why do th...
Apr 16, 2024•36 min•Ep. 90
The power of the GAA is best seen when the people who are its lifeblood support a cause. The sense of a community united for the greater good is what makes the GAA different and special. On Free State, Joe and Dion talk about how the GAA makes a difference and why it contrasts with the one-way street of fandom in the Premier League. Joe explains the importance of the 65 Roses Day, the Fundraising Day for Cystic Fibrosis Ireland, and the phenomenal work the charity is doing. Joe also explains why...
Apr 11, 2024•40 min•Ep. 89
The Late Late Show special on the GAA demonstrated what makes the association special. The people and the communities are where the real glory is found in the GAA, not in the fleeting fame of All-Irelands A UK academic currently studying the GAA spoke of how the association ‘blew his mind’. On Free State today, Joe talks to Dion about how it felt to be back in RTÉ for the Late Late, his Eoin McLove moment and the ties that bind GAA people in life, death and everything in between. Free State with...
Apr 09, 2024•32 min•Ep. 88
They were “young, dumb and full of c**”. The ambitious young men who became traders in the city of London would have been drug dealers if they grew up where Gary Stevenson grew up. And the drug dealers would have been traders if they’d gone to the same public schools as the people he worked with in Canary Wharf. On Free State today Gary Stevenson tells the story of how these insanely ambitious young men have shaped the world we all inhabit. He tells of one trading floor boss who was literally ba...
Apr 04, 2024•39 min•Ep. 87
Gary Stevenson was once the most profitable trader in the world for one of the planet’s biggest banks. He was a working class boy from east London who grew up in the shadow of Canary Wharf. He then went to work in the skyscrapers that had loomed over him and promised him escape. Gary made a fortune. But as he made that fortune, he realised that the game was rigged. On Free State today, Gary Stevenson joins Joe and Dion to talk about his stunning book The Trading Game, his journey to the top of C...
Apr 02, 2024•35 min•Ep. 86
Simon Harris has risen without trace. Who is he and what he stands for are questions that have rarely been asked. Harris has been described as ‘the white Obama’. He was called the TikTok Taoiseach and hailed as a great communicator. But behind the empty phrases, something is happening in Ireland which needs real leadership. On Free State, Joe and Dion explain why it requires more than tub thumping about taking back the flag to make Ireland great again. And why Harris’s coronation as Fine Gael le...
Mar 28, 2024•42 min•Ep. 85
Leo Varadkar’s resignation was described as a ‘political earthquake’. Some said the political world had been turned upside down. But beyond the parlour games of the political class, does it matter at all? On Free State, Joe and Dion ask what has Varadkar achieved? Did he lead a government or a pr agency. What does the giddiness surrounding his departure tell us about the problems in Ireland today? And is the fate of a parakeet marooned somewhere in England another example of how the trivial dist...
Mar 26, 2024•34 min•Ep. 84
Davy Tweed knew exactly how to control those he abused. He did it in a million different ways, big and small. In Part 2 of her interview on Free State, Amanda Brown recalls how Tweed would dehumanise and humiliate her along with the rest of her family. She tells Dion and Joe how she was isolated and how every one of his victims believed they were utterly alone. She talks about how that changed. How Tweed crumbled as the survivors took him on in court and in the community. Amanda explains why she...
Mar 21, 2024•42 min•Ep. 83
Davy Tweed was an Irish international rugby player. He was a unionist politician. He was a monster. On Free State today, his step daughter Amanda Brown talks about the hell she experienced at the hands of Tweed and her slow, courageous journey to freedom. She tells Dion and Joe about the mental, physical and sexual abuse she endured. And she explains what connected the public figure Davy Tweed to the private monster. Free State with Joe Brolly and Dion Fanning is a Gold Hat Production in associa...
Mar 19, 2024•35 min•Ep. 82
History is a nightmare from which Ireland is always trying to awake. On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at how the future is being grasped in the north. But this is a story about the whole island and why the leadership shown by Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little-Pengelly will ripple across the country. Ireland’s history is always with us but the future doesn’t have to be a nightmare. In the spirit of fearlessness, Dion shares with Joe a dream he has - not a nightmare - and immediately regrets ...
Mar 14, 2024•41 min•Ep. 81
Northern Ireland was once a land divided by symbols. Since Michelle O’Neill and Emma Little Pengelly became First Minister and deputy First Minister it is a place energised by them. On Free State, Joe and Dion look at the leadership shown by O’Neill and Little Pengelly and how those like the Allosaurus (Jim Allister) are on the brink of extinction. When Little Pengelly visited St Paul’s GAA club in West Belfast, it was not just an important gesture, to those who know the history of the area and ...
Mar 12, 2024•33 min•Ep. 80
As he locked up Bellaghy Wolfe Tone GAA Club in May 1997, Sean Brown was murdered by loyalist gunmen. The sense of injustice has deepened since the British Government passed the Legacy Act last year. This week, a High Court judge Mr Justice Kinney was so appalled by the behaviour of the state that he pulled the plug on the inquest and recommended a public inquiry. This on the day the inquest was told that surveillance of a leading suspect had mysteriously been suspended on the day of the murder....
Mar 07, 2024•36 min•Ep. 79
The Maze Prison is a central part of Northern Ireland’s history. But there was once a plan to make it a shared monument to a brighter future. On Free State, Joe and Dion tell the story of the plan to turn the Maze prison into a National Stadium for the three main sports (and ice skating). They show how it was brought down by the same forces who thought Brexit was a good idea for the north and who want to stop Casement Park. They also remember Maisie’s Garden Centre whose human rights were trampl...
Mar 05, 2024•37 min•Ep. 78
People were denied the truth in the north during the troubles and that denial of truth extended to sport. The coverage of the GAA reflected the nature of Northern Ireland at the time. On Free State, Dion and Joe look at how the north is changing and why sport is too. The resistance to Casement Park’s redevelopment is the death rattle for the old ways when the GAA found itself billed below the Pigeon News and topless darts. Those days are gone and as Jarlath Burns takes over the GAA presidency, J...
Feb 29, 2024•31 min•Ep. 77
Why is Casement Park so divisive? When Ravenhill and Windsor Park were redeveloped in the north they had cross community support. What is it about a GAA stadium that enrages a certain faction of unionists? On Free State today, Joe and Dion look at the issue of Casement Park and explain why it is linked to the days of naked sectarianism. The redeveloped stadium will be a shining beacon on the hill in Belfast. A sign of progress and reconciliation. Is this why it angers some people so much? Like t...
Feb 27, 2024•46 min•Ep. 76
The RTE scandal is not about pay-offs, flip-flops or Ryan Tubridy’s salary, it’s a story of how the media was manipulated in Ireland. From the Troubles to Gaza one point of view has always been given an easier ride than the other. On RTE The Musical Part 5, Joe and Dion look at who has been platformed by the national broadcaster and who is excluded. RTE’s future is a story that is much bigger than the national broadcaster. It’s not just about the media but about who governs Ireland. For more on ...
Feb 22, 2024•41 min•Ep. 75
RTE can’t escape scandal. The controversies of the last six months have demonstrated how the organisation operated in the dark. But there is a bigger story. On Free State, Joe and Dion look at how RTE was captured. How free and fearless journalism has been replaced by cronyism. They trace the story of decline back to the 1970s to see how journalism and journalists in RTE were censored during the Troubles. Dion and Joe disagree about Section 31 which banned Sinn Fein from television and radio. Th...
Feb 20, 2024•40 min•Ep. 74
Having dealt with the question ‘What is Bono?’ on today’s Free State, Dion and Joe ask the more important question: why? Why God why? They look at how Bono’s endless hot air became a comfort not a challenge for the elites. What was Bono’s plan to combat ISIS? And they ask the most important question - how did Bono become the butter in the peace process sandwich? For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/ To get in touch with the podcast: info@freestatepodcast.com Hosted on Acast. See ...
Feb 15, 2024•33 min•Ep. 73
What is Bono and who is he for? On today’s Free State, Dion and Joe look at Bono’s activism, what he has said and, as importantly, what he hasn’t said. Is he a symbol of all that is wrong with the world? Is he a false god of philanthropy or has he achieved something meaningful? They also discuss the Kneecap case against Kemi Badenoch and Dion explains why her censorship represents another nail in the coffin for the modern U.K. For more on Free State: https://freestatepodcast.com/ To get in touch...
Feb 13, 2024•37 min•Ep. 72
How close are we to a United Ireland? The unionist voices that said ‘no terrorists in government’ and no Sinn Fein First Minister have been marginalised. How will they respond to what is coming next? Joe recalls his own encounters with Jamie Bryson and explains why he would be a good convert to Catholicism. The boys also suggest another career path for Bryson now that politics isn’t working out. Joe and Dion disagree about the media in the south’s response to Michelle O’Neill’s election, while D...
Feb 08, 2024•34 min•Ep. 71
Michelle O’Neill’s election as First Minister of Northern Ireland made worldwide headlines. On today’s Free State, Joe reflects on the importance of O’Neill’s election and considers what it means for the nationalist community. Joe and Dion look at the generous speeches of O’Neill and the deputy first minister Emma Little-Pengelly and consider their journeys to this point. It is a moment of real significance where history may now become just that - history. It is a moment where Ulster finally sai...
Feb 06, 2024•39 min•Ep. 70
Northern Ireland prepares for a Sinn Fein First Minister, but why has it taken so long? On today’s Free State, Joe and Dion look at how culture was used as a tool of oppression in the north. As Kneecap the movie demonstrates the Irish language is now part of a vibrant culture among young nationalists. The language has more power because of how it was so recently suppressed. Dion also finds a strong reason called Conor Bradley for a border poll. And things get heated when the lads discuss Israel ...
Feb 01, 2024•36 min•Ep. 69
