Highlights From The Pat Kenny Show

It was a dramatic weekend of Liverpool as Mo Salah hit out at Arne Slot for benching him at the weekend. The 33-year-old claimed he was ‘thrown under the bus’ by the club, as he was benched for Liverpool away game to Leeds United. In rugby, the Champions cup returned with a bang as Bath dominated against Munster. Also in F1 McLaren's Lando Norris won the Formula One championship in Abu Dhabi.  All to chat with Cathal Mullaney with Off The Ball and Newstalk's own Rory Galvin.

Local residents of Brittas in Dublin are seeking orders to remove a set of modular homes that were allegedly built in the area without any planning permission. The developer is claiming the project is exempt from needing any sort of planning permission. To discuss this further was Mary Carolan Legal Affairs Correspondent of the Irish Times and Orla Hegerty Architect and Assistant Professor at UCD School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy.  

Gardaí have opened a double murder investigation after a young boy and his great-aunt were killed in a suspected petrol bomb attack on a house in Co Offaly. Pat was joined on the show by Newstalk reporter Kyle Butler who was in Edenderry yesterday morning.

A look back on the stories of the week on our Friday Forum. Joining Pat this morning on the panel was Fine Gael TD for Louth Paula Butterly,  Labour TD for Dublin Fingal East and spokesperson on Foreign Affairs and Defence Ducan Smith and Christina Finn, political editor with Thejournal.ie.  

The Government is launching a new research programme to determine the risk of Russian sabotage on our undersea cables. With a rise in Russian ships visiting our seas, the project hopes to map out all or Ireland’s subsea cables, offshore windfarms and energy pipelines to assess how vulnerable we would be to an attackJoining Pat to discuss the research programme is Conor Gallagher, Crime and Security Correspondent of The Irish Times.  

Friday Food Creamed Celeriac soup with toasted walnuts and garlic croutons, Classic Prawn cocktail and Roasted king scallops, black pudding, apple salad.  Some tasty Christmas starter recipes with Gareth Mullins.

A Nobel prize winning economist has said there is no true European single market. Phillipe Aghion says Europe is falling behind the US in terms of innovation because the market is over-regulated and punishes failure at every turn. If the EU is to keep up with Washington and Beijing, the barriers to entry need to be lowered. Economics lecturer from Technical University Dublin, Emma Howard joined Pat in studio to discuss whether a “true single market” is possible in Europe. 

Is Panto the highest artform? Up and down the country Pantos are showing. Henry McKean visited the Helix Panto in Dublin and this year they are putting on the Snow Queen. Henry sent us this report. 'Oh no he didn't, Oh yes he did.'

Taxi drivers will now protest for six days next week over Uber’s fixed fare system.  After four weeks of warnings and protests, taxi drivers have decided to escalate matters. They feel they have been ignored, dismissed and pushed to breaking point. Pat spoke to David Mitchell, Taxi Driver and Protestor coordinator.

It was a disappointing game for Man Utd last night as the Red Devils disappointingly drew against west ham. the results left former player and pundit Roy Keane has taken aim at Manchester United's subs for "bringing down the level".  in rugby the champions cup returns as Leinster face harlequins and Munster play Bath. And in Formula 1, drivers' championship will be decided in a three-way showdown that takes place this weekend on Abu Dhabi's Yas Marina circuit.To look ahead to the busy weekend of sport was Colm Boohig from Off The Ball.

Barretstown aims to rebuild the lives of children affected by cancer and other serious illnesses through its camps at its kildare campus and also through its outreach services in hospitals. All of their services are provided free of charge to families who use them. One of the families who have seen the importance of their services is the family of Fióna O’Reilly who was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer at just 14 months.Sarah O’Reilly, mother of Barretstown camper Fióna chatted to Pat this morning.

With many people heading out shopping this weekend, some will Blanchardstown Shopping Centre. But there’s a chance you won’t be able to get in. Tomorrow protestors are staging a blockade over the introduction of parking charges.  An official complaint has been lodged to An Comisiúin Pleanála by Solidarity TD for Dublin West Ruth Coppinger who has praised the protest and who joined Pat on the show.  

Netflix psychological crime thriller TV series The Beast in Me  starring Claire Danes and Matthew Rhys features in this weeks Boxed with John Fardy.

“Next year marks 100 years of the world-famous Harlem Globetrotters, whose players dazzle crowds with their amazing skills and mischievous antics on the court. While times have changed and left the team behind somewhat, they played an important role in desegregating basketball in the US – even if some in the civil rights movement felt the Trotters didn’t foster change but inhibited it. To give us the full story, Cameron Hill from Off The Ball joined Pat.

Ireland's top Google results for 2025 have been revealed and top of the list is Storm Eowyn. To chat about the results was Newstalk own Ciara Treacy.

Ireland will host the EU Presidency from July of next year and, ahead of it, cybersecurity experts are warning of the potential risks to Ireland for cyberattacks from hostile nations. All to discuss with Richard Browne, Director of the National Cybersecurity Centre and Raluca Saceanu, CEO, Smartech247. 

The MyFutureFund portal officially opened for employers this week. Any employees that aren't already contributing to a pension through their payroll will be auto enrolled into the MyFutureFund pension scheme, with payments set to start on the 1st of January 2026. Joining Pat in studio to discuss the new scheme as well as the bonus payments available this winter is Minister for Social Protection Dara Calleary.

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most fatal malignancies, with most patients diagnosed only after the disease has already spread. For those with metastatic cancer, the five-year survival rate sits at just 2–3 percent, and median survival is typically measured in months. A breakthrough study from researchers at UCLA could be a pivotal shift in treatment.Professor Luke O’Neill, Professor of Biochemistry at the School of Immunology, Trinity College brings us the details.

The Irish people are no strangers to emigration, in fact last year nearly 14,000 of us moved to Australia alone. The majority of those emigrants will have been young, but data now shows emigration is on the rise among older people too. So, what's behind this wave of middle-aged emigration and is it a cause for inspiration or concern? Our report Sarah Madden finds out.

There’s plenty of time to plan for a low-impact festive celebration so this week Jo Linehan looks to trees, crackers, food waste, table settings and secret Santa as areas we can all be more sustainable.