Shows / The Women's Podcast
The Women's Podcast
A female take on Ireland and the world. Hosted by Róisín Ingle, the show is packed full of feminism, humour, health, politics, sex, storytelling, relationships and more. The podcast is produced by Suzanne Brennan.
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Episodes
- The Women's Podcast
Miriam O’Callaghan on Ireland’s falling birth rates
In just one decade, Ireland’s birth rate has fallen by 30%. It’s a statistic that is worrying economists and demographers, who warn it could threaten Ireland's…
- The Women's Podcast
Joanne McNally on Jimmy Fallon / Dr Shefali on raising conscious children
In today’s episode, Róisín Ingle is joined by clinical psychologist, parenting expert and bestselling author Dr Shefali to talk about raising children in the…
- The Women's Podcast
Girls is back / Roisin Kiberd on botox, beauty and blending in
In her new book of essays, The Most Normal Woman, writer Roisin Kiberd examines society’s obsession with beauty and the lengths people go to to keep up…
- The Women's Podcast
The ‘Cornell 7’ case / Dearbhla Mescal live from Electric Picnic
In today’s episode, we’re bringing you highlights from a conversation with writer and poet Dearbhla Mescal that was recorded live at this year’s Electric…
- The Women's Podcast
Louise O’Neill on heartbreak, healing and starting again
Author Louise O’Neill was 37-years old, when her five-year relationship came to an end in January 2023. Suddenly, the future she had imagined for herself with…
- The Women's Podcast
Bonus Episode: Caitríona Balfe on Sense & Sensibility
The new adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility opened in Irish cinemas last weekend. The period drama tells the story of two sisters - Elinor and…
- The Women's Podcast
Nikita Hand: Not the Perfect Victim
In December 2024, MMA fighter and businessman Conor McGregor was found liable by a civil High Court jury for sexually assaulting Nikita Hand in a Dublin hotel…
- The Women's Podcast
Drummer Seeks Musicians: Listen to Róisín Ingle's new podcast series about U2
Today we're sharing the opening episode of a three-part series by Róisín Ingle that tells the untold origin story of U2. We hope you enjoy it. The full series…
- The Women's Podcast
Denise Chaila / New podcast reveal
This week on The Women’s Podcast, Róisín Ingle meets award-winning rapper, singer, poet and spoken-word artist Denise Chaila. After a meteoric rise that saw…
- The Women's Podcast
Mary McAleese vs The GAA / Justine Megan
Today’s guest is a woman who has managed to combine two worlds that you don’t exactly put together every day: the law and stand-up comedy. Justine Megan is a…
- The Women's Podcast
Kyla Cobbler on love, laughter and living the dream
In 2021, comedian Kyla Cobbler performed her first ever stand-up gig at an open mic night in Barcelona. Five years on, the Cork woman has become the second…
- The Women's Podcast
Miss You: The Dublin Fringe show inspired by Ireland’s missing women
Dublin's Fringe Festival is just around the corner and over the next couple of weeks we’ll be highlighting some brilliant shows by women that feature in this…
- The Women's Podcast
Vicki Notaro on anxiety, creativity and being childfree / TikTok Joyriders
'Anywhere but Here' is the new novel from Irish author and former journalist Vicki Notaro. The book follows three friends in their 40s who take a trip to…
- The Women's Podcast
The rise of 'pervert glasses' / Making sense of Matrescence
Later this month, The Women’s Podcast will be recording a live episode at Electric Picnic in Co Laois, with Róisín Ingle in conversation with special guest…
- The Women's Podcast
Ailín Kennedy: ADHD in Irish Women
ADHD coach Ailín Kennedy was 32 years old when she was diagnosed with the condition. Having struggled for years with her mental health Kennedy went to therapy…
- The Women's Podcast
Best of The Women's Podcast: Grieving an estranged parent
This episode was originally published in February 2026. In today’s episode, we’re covering a topic that isn’t often spoken about, but is estimated to affect…
- The Women's Podcast
Best of The Women's Podcast: Joanne McNally
Joanne McNally on midlife, monogamy and making history at the 3Arena This episode was originally published in March 2026. In today’s episode, Róisín Ingle is…
- The Women's Podcast
Louise Brangan: Inside Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries
Throughout the 20th century in Ireland, thousands of women and girls were sent to work in Magdalene Laundries all across the country. By 1951, for every…
- The Women's Podcast
Author Lily King on the unexpected success of ‘Heart the Lover’
Back in March, The Women’s Podcast book club read Heart the Lover by American author Lily King. The story which tells of a complicated love triangle between…
- The Women's Podcast
MEP Maria Walsh on becoming a single mother by choice
Fine Gael MEP Maria Walsh always wanted to become a mother and spent years hoping she’d meet the right person to start a family with. By 2024 however, Walsh…
- The Women's Podcast
Katriona O'Sullivan / Oklahoma!
In this episode, psychologist & bestselling author Katriona O’Sullivan joins Kathy Sheridan to discuss her new memoir Hungry: A Biography of My Body. The book…
- The Women's Podcast
Bonus episode: Claire Keegan Q&A
Earlier this month, author Claire Keegan joined The Women’s Podcast bookclub for a live event at Chapters Bookstore in Dublin to discuss her favourite summer…
- The Women's Podcast
'Gwynocide' / Love in the age of AI / Maggie O'Farrell
In today’s episode, best-selling author Maggie O’Farrell joins Róisín Ingle to discuss her new book Land. Set in the 1800s - in the aftermath of the Irish…
- The Women's Podcast
The Book Club: Summer reading recommendations with Claire Keegan
Last week the Women’s Podcast book club gathered for a live event in Chapters Bookstore in Dublin to discuss what books they’ll be packing with them on their…
- The Women's Podcast
Festival women / Sally Hayden on love during wartime
Summer is finally upon us and that means festival season is officially here. In today’s episode, we meet a pair of women behind two of Ireland’s most exciting…
- The Women's Podcast
Ailbhe Smyth: Life lessons on turning 80
Academic, activist and friend of the show Ailbhe Smyth is turning 80 this Friday 29th May. To mark the occasion and to celebrate all her achievements, we…
- The Women's Podcast
Surge in women seeking help for cocaine addiction / Emer McLysaght & Sarah Breen
Almost three years on from their final Aisling book, writers and besties Emer McLysaght and Sarah Breen are back with a brand new novel, Our Deadly Summer…
- The Women's Podcast
Jan Carson on the Troubles, trauma and faith
In today’s episode, Róisín Ingle is joined by award-winning Northern Irish writer Jan Carson, who has just released her ninth book, Few and Far Between. Set on…
- The Women's Podcast
The decline in marriage rates, Met Gala moments, Jan Brierton
Fifty-year-old mother of two and stylist Jan Brierton became an accidental poet during the pandemic and has since become a regular on The Women’s Podcast. Her…
- The Women's Podcast
Free travel for domestic abuse victims / Women of Iran
While the war in the Middle East dominates the daily headlines - from peace talks to the price of oil - far less attention is given to the lived experiences of…
- The Women's Podcast
The women of the 1926 census / Walking the Camino
This May, 13 members of the Sea of Change choir will spend five days walking a Camino in Portugal. The choir, which is based in Dublin, is made up of cancer…
- The Women's Podcast
The Book Club: A Beautiful Loan by Mary Costello
This month the book club is reading A Beautiful Loan by Mary Costello, as chosen by bookclubber Niamh Towey. The novel follows Anna Hughes, who , from the…
- The Women's Podcast
Caroline Foran on anxiety, self-compassion and ASMR
Bestselling author and podcaster Caroline Foran is back with her fourth book, Everything I Wish I’d Known about Anxiety. The book is for anyone struggling with…
- The Women's Podcast
Women in space / Louise O’Neill on fame, fate and turning 40
Author Louise O’Neill is back with her sixth novel, Whatever Happened to Madeline Stone? It’s a gripping page‑turner about the dark side of the entertainment…
- The Women's Podcast
Martina and Ammi Burke arrest / Learning to drive later in life
What is it like learning to drive in your 50s? In today’s episode, we hear from journalist June Shannon who passed her driving test at the age of 54. For…
- The Women's Podcast
Northern Ireland’s alarming femicide rate / Exposing a global ‘rape academy’
In 2024, the mass‑rape trial of Dominique Pelicot - who was tried alongside 50 other French men - shocked the world. The father of three was found guilty of…
- The Women's Podcast
Fact to fiction: Jen Bray and Tanya Sweeney on becoming novelists
For journalists Tanya Sweeney and Jen Bray, 2026 has been a very exciting year so far. In January, Sweeney published her debut novel, Esther is Now Following…
- The Women's Podcast
Joanne McNally on midlife, monogamy and making history at the 3Arena
In today’s episode, Róisín Ingle is joined by the brilliant Joanne McNally. The comedian and podcaster dropped by the studio to talk about her newly announced…
- The Women's Podcast
The digital war on women (and how to fight back)
This Sunday 8th March is International Women’s Day and to mark the occasion, The Women’s Podcast hosted a live podcast recording at Chapters Bookstore in…
- The Women's Podcast
The Book Club: Heart the Lover by Lily King
This month on The Women’s Podcast Book Club, Bernice Harrison, Niamh Towey, Róisín Ingle, and Ann Ingle are discussing Heart the Lover by American author Lily…
- The Women's Podcast
Is Wuthering Heights any good? / The Irish Times Debate
This week, the grand final of the Irish Times Debate will take place in Dublin, where teams will debate the motion: This house believes the United Nations has…
- The Women's Podcast
U2’s new feminist EP / Inside America’s Next Top Model
When America’s Next Top Model arrived on our screens in 2003, it was an instant hit with viewers around the world. The reality TV competition, hosted by…
- The Women's Podcast
The Epstein files / Grieving an estranged parent
In today’s episode, we’re covering a topic that isn’t often spoken about, but is estimated to affect around one in four families: family estrangement. It’s a…
- The Women's Podcast
Is Lucy Letby innocent? / The challenges facing lone migrant parents
Last month, Action Aid Ireland published a new report highlighting the challenges that lone migrant parents, mainly women, experience when they leave state…
- The Women's Podcast
Motherhood over 40 / Who was Brigid?
This Sunday 1st February is St Brigid’s Day and to celebrate the occasion we’re learning all about Brigid - the woman, the myth, the legend - from author and…
- The Women's Podcast
The Book Club: Flesh by David Szalay
This month on The Women’s Podcast Book Club, Bernice Harrison, Niamh Towey, Róisín Ingle, and Ann Ingle are discussing Flesh by David Szalay. The book follows…
- The Women's Podcast
Beckham family feud / The inside story of Ozempic
Although Ozempic and other weight-loss drugs may seem like a relatively new phenomenon, their origins actually stretch back to the mid 1980s. Back then…
- The Women's Podcast
The women against Iran’s regime
In late December, merchants and shopkeepers in Iran took to the streets to protest against the dire economic situation in the country. Since then, thousands…
- The Women's Podcast
AI 'nudification' technology / How Ireland has changed for women
Over the past thirty years in Ireland, the lives of women have changed unrecognisably. Unparalleled advances in legislation have allowed for divorce, abortion…
- The Women's Podcast
Suzie Miller: Prima Facie
Prima Facie, the award-winning one-woman play written by Australian playwright Suzie Miller, is coming to the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin later this month. It…
- The Women's Podcast
Domestic Violence, Molly Malone’s breasts, Skortgate & Catherine Connolly: The Women’s Podcast reviews 2025
2025 was the year Ireland elected its third female President, but only three women were appointed Ministers in the new Cabinet. Down one on the previous…
- The Women's Podcast
The Book Club: Christmas gift recommendations
If you’re looking for a gift for the book lover in your life, The Women’s Podcast Book Club has you covered. In today’s episode Niamh Towey, Bernice Harrison…
- The Women's Podcast
The Book Club: Thirst Trap by Gráinne O’Hare
This month on The Women’s Podcast Book Club, Bernice Harrison, Niamh Towey, Róisín Ingle, and Ann Ingle are discussing Thirst Trap, the debut novel from…
- The Women's Podcast
Celebrating 10 years of The Women’s Podcast - Highlights from The Peacock Theatre
Ten years ago, a group of women in The Irish Times got together to envisage a podcast that told stories about the female experience and provided a space for…
- The Women's Podcast
Should there be women-only carriages on trains? / Christmas gift ideas
Although it’s still November, it’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas over here on The Women’s Podcast. To kick off this year's festive season, we’ve asked…
- The Women's Podcast
‘Quiet Piggy’ / Katherine Zappone on life, love and politics
In today’s episode, former senator and government minister Katherine Zappone joins Kathy Sheridan to discuss her new memoir Love in a Time of Politics. In this…
- The Women's Podcast
Fiona Shaw on fame, feminism and falling in love
With a career spanning theatre, film and television, Irish actor Fiona Shaw has been a household name in Ireland for decades. The Cork native is known for her…
- The Women's Podcast
Kim Kardashian’s acting debut / The day Iceland’s women went on strike
On the 24th October 1975, 90% of the women in Iceland went on strike. For the entire day, women refused to participate in waged work, domestic labour or…
- The Women's Podcast
Lily Allen’s new album / How Jane’s Place helps women
Since opening in 2024, Jane’s Place has become a sanctuary for some of Ireland’s most vulnerable women. The drop-in centre, located in the heart of Dublin…
- The Women's Podcast
Naoise Dolan and Veronica O’Kane / Virginia Giuffre’s memoir
Last week, Irish author Naoise Dolan and psychiatrist Dr Veronica O’Keane arrived home to Ireland after spending five days in an Israeli prison. The pair were…