Rebel Matters Podcast

This weeks episode is with Mo Chara and Móglaí Bap from KNEECAP who are making waves in the hiphop world over the last year or so. KNEECAP picked up 5 awards at the Gradam Ceoil Nós, have been described as 'hip hop gold' by Nialler9, and have been banned from RTÉ. Check them out on Spotify, Youtube, Instgram (KNEECAP32), Facebook, and Snapchat.  You can now support the Rebel Matters Podcast by becoming a patron on Patreon! 

This week's episode is a chat with lead students strength and conditioning coach for the Leinster Rugby Academy, Joe McGinley, and it is very much two friends sitting down to shoot the breeze about coaching and what we do in our professional lives. We talk about  Is it healthy to be an athlete Coaching mastery and coaching philosophy Creativity in coaching Creating a productive and nurturing environment to work in Being 'in service' to the people you are coaching or facilitating The basics of nutrition and recovery.   

This week's episode is a conversation with producer and documentary maker Brian Reddin. Brian has a massive amount of shows under his belt from It Came from Connemara (2014), Fir Bolg (2016) and John Huston: An t-Éireannach (1996), Route 66, Underdogs, Amú le Hector, and many more. We talked about how to prepare for interviews, some of the most bizarre experiences and situations that Brian found himself in during the course of his work from filming with the KKK, a minute man on the American side of the Mexican border,  and some of the awkward moments he has had including an interview with Robin Williams. Brian also delved into the ingredients required for a great documentary, and the work he has coming up.  At the start of the episode, I talk a bit about my new website, upcoming events at ACLAÍ, 

This week I chatted with my friend Feargal Mac Ionnrachtaigh about his work as a community activist in West Belfast, issues that effect working class areas, and the Irish language revival. 

This week I am chatting with Father Des Wilson, who is 93 years of age, and spent nearly his entire life serving the people of West Belfast and Ballymurphy through some of the darkest times Ireland has ever seen. He is particularly known for his work in setting up Springhill Community house 'as a place for discussion and learning, where people could work and enjoy themselves in freedom.'  Relevant show links: Video of Father Des During Hunger Strikes Mother Theresa in Ballymurphy Article about the Ballymurphy Massacre Article about Noelle Ryan

In this episode, the roles are reversed and Orla-Peach was calling the shots and asking me about my experience of being in Palestine twice this year. We spoke about the Irish connection with the conflict in Palestine, and some of the differences between the two struggles, as well as discussing some of the lesser know facts from the ground in the West Bank. Enjoy! Ainle Links mentioned in the show: http://www.badil.org http://www.alhaq.org https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Aida+refugee+camp 

This week is a chat with local historian Kieran McCarthy about this history of Cork city, the river Lee and many other facets of day to day life in Cork. Checkout Kieran’s website and details about his walking tours below. http://kieranmccarthy.ie In this podcast I also talk about the brand new initiative Cork, Neighbour Food, ACLAÍ’s recent National Inclusion Award, my interview on Raidió Fáilte’s new studio, anabolic steroid abuse feature in the Evening Echo, and our latest project to open a volunteer gym in the West Bank. Links below: Neighbour Food https://www.neighbourfood.ie National Inclusion Award https://www.aclai.ie/blog/3-people-with-disabilities-who-impact-my-life Evening Echo Anabolic Steroid Abuse Feature https://www.eveningecho.ie/corknews/Cork-trainers-warning-about-teens-using-steroids-41c932c2-44e7-4cc7-9273-3c6a9fb127e7-ds West Bank Volunteer Gym Project https://www.aclai.ie/blog/help-us-open-a-gym-in-the-west-bank

Today's episode  episode was recorded in the East Belfast Mission, on the Newtownards Road with Linda Ervine. Linda has been the driving force behind setting up Turas, which provides Irish lessons and talks on the Irish language on the Newtownards Road, making it the only Irish language centre based in a Unionist community, It was great to record this episode with Linda to get an insight into how Turas came about, its challenges, and what they have planned for the future. In this episode we also talked about the current political landscape within Unionism, and quite a few other interesting topics that will give you a real perspective on some of the problems that exist in the north today, and especially how they relate to the irish language. To give you a bit of perspective on the political geography of Belfast if you are not familiar with it, many areas in Belfast were separated in the late 60's, early 70's by what are known as peace walls which separated protestant areas from catholic areas, and the walls ar

A few weeks ago i went up to Belfast and recorded chats for the podcast with people that have given a huge commitment to community development and people that have a story that I would like people to hear about. Today’s episode is a sit down chat with Séamus Mac Seáin, and it is a chat as Gaeilge. Séamus is a community leader, an Irish language activist and a revolutionary. I think he coined the motto "Ná habair é, déan é" (Don’t say it do it), that has become the philosophy of the Irish language movement in Belfast. Séamus has had a big impact on the course of my life and the lives of my brother, and  friends, on account of the work that he committed his life to. Give it a go if you fancy putting your cúpla focal to the test. Here are  few links a follow up for some of the projects that Séamus has been involved in over the years.  Bombay Street Burning: https://www.rte.ie/archives/exhibitions/1042-northern-ireland-1969/1048-august-1969/320452-vast-areas-in-ruins/ http://www.anphoblacht.com/contents/12159 h

We have a system in Ireland called direct provision that keeps asylum seekers who have come here to seek refuge from violence and the threat of being killed in their home countries in institutions with very poor living conditions. The direct provision system forces people into a limbo for long periods of time where they can’t work, build a meaningful life for themselves in this country, and have no control over the food they eat and their overall day to day lives. It is an inhumane system that needs to be ended. In this episode I chatted with Ellie Kisyombe who has lived in the direct provision system since 2010, is an  activist, and founder of Our Table, an organisation that works to highlight the direct provision system as well as bringing people together to learn new skills and share experiences around food. Our Table: http://www.ourtable.ie Journal.ie Article on Ellie https://www.thejournal.ie/readme/having-been-in-direct-provision-for-such-a-long-time-i-had-started-to-lose-confidence-4072559-Jun2018/ In

This year I was in the West Bank twice. This episode countains a short selection of sounds that represent some of the things that are happening in Palestine today, the basics of Palestinian modern history that gives an idea of how we ended up with the situation that exists there today, and a short talk I recorded from Aysar, who is a volunteer in the Laylac Centre that serves the second biggest refugee camp in the West Bank, the Dheisheh Camp.  Useful Links for More Information Laylac Centre Information Aysar Go Fund Me To Raise Funds To Translate Writings BADIL- Palestinian Refugee Human Rights Organisation FAQ about Palestinian Refugees Article on Dheisheh Refugee Camp Shootings  

There is a man living in a tent on Patricks Quay in Cork city. I have seen him around many times, and he has been in the news recently as a local politician and former Lord Mayor of Cork featured in the local newspaper and said about his home:  "It should be removed, dismantled, thrown into the back of one of our council trucks and taken away." I spoke to him about his life, his home, and his philosophical outlook on life. 

On this episode I chat with Strength Coach and Author Dan John about the importance of developing a coaching philosophy, training and nutrition, the benefits and importance of intentional community, the challenges facing young people today, and a few more topics!

Arveene and Shamon Cassette from Acid/Hiphouse duo Bon Voyage are in the Rebel Matters hotseat this week. We chatted about  their individual paths to hip-hop, the creative process, and the importance of the message behind genuine music and art. So many great points were raised and discussed that this is an episode to listen to, not only if you are a music fan, but if you just want the good vibes to spread all over! Enjoy.

This week I sat down with Dan Murphy from Hermitage Green and Global Village Tours. We discussed the creative process, working within set limits in art, the Irish language, travel, and a few more interesting segues. 

This weeks episode is a conversation that I recorded with Mick 'The Iron Man' Murphy at his home just outside Caherciveen back in 2010. The original recording was 4 hours long, and not initially intended for release, so the quality is not as good as it should be.  This enthralling conversation details Mick's life as a circus performer, wrestler, cyclist, weightlifter, darts player, and all round journeyman. Putting this episode together brought back a lot of great memories of the chats that I had with Mick over the 5 years that I knew him.   

Pádraic discusses his involvement in the Republican movement from a young age, his time in Crumlin Road Gaol, and in Long Kesh, where he took part in the blanket and no-wash protests, and his life as a community activist. 

Gill Bourke has over 50 caps for the Irish Rugby team and suffered a life altering concussion during an Irish training session. In this episode, Gill chats about how she built her international career, and her treatment in the aftermath of sustaining the concussion. We also get stuck into the importance of upholding personal and professional values on and off the field. 

This week on Rebel Matters I sat down with music producer Peter Power to discuss the importance of art in our modern society and the challenges that come with building a successful career in an industry that is off the beaten path in relation to more conventional career paths.   I also have another Rebel Matters first for all you lovely listeners out there. Today we are going to close out the episode with a new song that has over 300000 views online, has been banned from radio and television, and  despite that has picked up several awards in the last few weeks. Straight from the streets of West Belfast, stay tuned to the end to hear Irish language rap trio Kneecap and their first release, Cearta.

Cork Musician Clare O Mahony was in the Rebel Matters Hotseat today talking about her albums, what goes in to getting a show on stage, and he upcoming Songs of Joni Mitchell show at the Everyman Theatre.