‘45 Years of Listening’ tells the story of the Dublin Lesbian Line – an essential, landmark community-led resource – through a collection of personal reflections from one of the original founders, and current volunteers.Dublin Lesbian Line was founded in 1979 – a time in Ireland when homosexuality was invisible, unmentionable, and profoundly isolating – to provide a way for gay/queer/bi/questioning women to connect, meet, make friends, find a community, or even just to talk anonymously on the phone. In 1979, and in the years that followed, it took enormous courage to pick up that phone and dial. Homophobia, patriarchy/gender roles, and heterosexism were so normalized and taken for granted as ‘the way things should be’ that some callers to Dublin Lesbian Line couldn’t even get the words out once they had gotten through to the number. Others, like one-time caller and then volunteer, Marina, found it a lifeline — found not only support, but friends and community.Ireland has changed, but many LGBTQ+ people still experience discrimination and hostility. Now, in 2024, 45 years later (and despite its legacy name), Dublin Lesbian Line (DLL) serves the entire country – and all genders. As the current volunteers and organisers point out: “We’re not just for Dublin, we’re not just a phone line, and we’re not just for lesbians.” DLL is a registered charity, and aside from offering a listening ear and advice, DLL acts as a reference point for other services (social, health, advisory), and the team at DLL also organises events and courses for the Lesbian community. In the words of volunteer Val, DLL strives to be an “open embrace”.This programme gives the listener an opportunity to learn about diversity of experience in Ireland and reflect on aspects of Irish society and social history, and explore the work of a grass-roots community-led charity/organisation.Information and support for the issues raised in this programme can be found at Switchboard, LGBTQIA support and resources, on 01 872 1055 or by visiting theswitchboard.ie. Please note: Anyone can call on any day, but Tuesday is a dedicated women’s night, 6.30-9pm.’45 Years of Listening’ was produced, recorded, and edited by Shaun O’Boyle and Maurice Kelliher, shaunandmaurice.com, and was supported by Coimisiún na Meán.Connect with Dublin Lesbian Line on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Dublin-Lesbian-Line/100064358546983

Vision: The Story of Sister Margaret Coyne tells the remarkable story of  Irish nun Sister Margaret Coyne, who ran an eye clinic near the Ethiopian-Eritrean border for decades, saving the sight of countless thousands - often in the midst of war, conflict and famine.Produced and presented by her nephew John Higgins, her story is told in her own words and through the eyes of the Ethiopian and Irish people who know and worked with her -  from her sister Sabina Higgins, to the Spanish doctors who stumbled across her clinic and started an international NGO to support her work, to Ethiopian people living in Ireland and those who live there now - as the Tigray region where she lived once again finds itself embroiled in a brutal civil war.Vision: The Story of Sister Margaret Coyne is edited, presented and produced by John Higgins of As the Crow Flies Productions, with sound mixing by Neil Kavanagh of Coach House Media. With special thanks to Proyecto Vision and The Daughters of Charity. Funded by Coimisiún na Mean with the television licence fee.Photo credit: John Higgins/Ivo Rovira

In 2020, a few weeks after Ireland entered one of the longest COVID lockdowns in the world, Patrick Dexter began uploading videos online of him playing the cello outside his cottage in County Mayo. In a matter of weeks, his life had changed forever.Producer Hugh Hick and Documentary on Newstalk bring you an intimately-told story of music and landscapes – and the part both play in our lives, sometimes without us realising it.Born and raised in Dublin, Patrick Dexter spent most of his twenties abroad, living for long stretches in Vietnam and the Netherlands. It was only after all this that Patrick and his partner Jan decided to try for a different type of existence. One as far away from the crowded city life they had always known as you could imagine. And so they moved to a tiny cottage outside Westport in Co. Mayo, determined to live an isolated and monkish lifestyle.Then, in 2020, that all changed.With COVID-19 spreading uncertainty into our lives and lockdowns confining us, Patrick began sharing videos of his own way of passing the days – sat outside in his garden, playing cello, the stunning landscape of the locality his background. What started as something to send to his friends quickly caught fire through Twitter and Instagram and within months was being viewed regularly by hundreds of thousands of people worldwide.This documentary tells Patrick’s story through his own words as well as those of his family and friends, including producer Hugh Hick, who has known Patrick since they were teenagers.But it’s not just Patrick’s story – it’s the story of a unique place in Ireland that continues to capture the hearts and minds of so many. And it’s the story of all of us, and why, at that most uniquely dark and incomprehensible of moments, something about a man playing cello to us through our screens compelled us and gave us something to latch onto.‘Strings’ was made with the support of Comisúin na Meán with the television licence fee.

Here on Documentary and Drama on Newstalk, Ben Finnegan has travelled to the African country of Malawi to look at the effects of climate change, and how organisations like Trócaire are helping them in 'Low Emissions, High Price: Climate Change in Malawi'.

Citadel is a group of musicians formed at the Kinsale Road Accommodation centre in Cork city in 2018, who refuse to be put down by the system. They are from different countries, such as Burundi, South Africa, DR Congo, Angola and Tanzania.The musicians perform songs from home, accompanied by rhythms and tunes from around the world. Citadel have played many concerts around Ireland and help to build bridges with the Irish community through their music.Some of the musicians are refugees, others are newly arrived International Protection Applicants. They all speak different languages, but music is their universal language.‘Citadel: Building Bridges Through Music’ is a documentary that explores the different stories of band members, how they came to be refugees in Ireland and the difficulties they face here. The founders of the band; Roos and Norbert speak about how they started the band and a not for profit organisation, International Community Dynamics.In June 2023, International Community Dynamics hosted ‘The Festival of Belonging’ in the Triskel Arts Centre in Cork. With poetry, spoken word, a conversation cafe, an art exhibition by refugee and Traveller artists and a conference on belonging at UCC, it was a busy weekend. The highlight of the weekend was a performance by Citadel.The documentary follows the band in the buildup to their performance, taking in rehearsals and nerves before they take to the stage on the night.Citadel raises awareness and spreads joy, peace and understanding by sharing their music with each other and with the Irish community and this is reflected in the programme.Produced by Alan Meaney.Funded by Coimisiún na Mean with the television licence fee.

Documentary and Drama on Newstalk brings you the almost forgotten true tale of Laurence Carroll, a working-class Dubliner turned sailor, who embarked on a journey that traversed continents, identities, and cultures.  This documentary, titled Laurence Carroll’s Mindful Anarchy: U Dhammaloka, The Irish Buddhist of Rangoon, tells the story of an Irishman, who, after ordaining as a Buddhist monk in the early 1900’s, under his monastic name U Dhammaloka, ascended to celebrity status throughout Burma and Asia, for his denouncing of Colonial Christian Missionaries and campaigning for the rights of Buddhists, while skirting colonial sedition and treason laws.              Shedding light on the enigmatic life of a man who defied norms, embraced Buddhism, and faced down the British Empire, his remarkable odyssey is chronicled from his humble beginnings in Dublin to his tumultuous years as a sailor and hobo in the United States before his eventual arrival in Rangoon, Burma, circa 1880.  With 25 years of his life prior to his arrival in Burma shrouded in mystery, Carroll's transformation into U Dhammaloka marked a turning point in the anti-colonial resistance in Burma and the Southeast Asia region. At the heart of this true tale lies U Dhammaloka's surely inevitable trial for sedition in 1911. The trial is a pivotal moment in Colonial Burma's history which drew international attention. Resonating with the masses, his defiance of colonialism garnered support from thousands, including multiethnic minorities across Burma and Southeast Asia, while at the trial, he is supported by Gandhi's esteemed associate Dr Pranjivan Metha.  Through interviews with those at the forefront of resurrecting Carroll's odyssey; dramatic reenactments, and factual storytelling, this programme reasserts U Dhammaloka's rightful place within Irish history and reveals the true reasons why this remarkable tale became almost lost to the sands of time.  The documentary is produced, edited, and presented by multimedia journalist and documentary maker Noel Sweeney. Funded by Coimisiún na Mean with the television licence fee.

Making Ireland Home, Henry McKean celebrates becoming an Irish citizen after 30 years with new Irish citizens.

Documentary on Newstalk presents a new documentary by producers Alan Meaney and Amanda Gunning go behind the scenes at the Another Love Story music festival in Co. Meath.One of Ireland’s premier small festivals, Another Love Story has been running since 2014. Set in the beautiful surrounds of Killyon Manor House Co. Meath over 3 days in August, the festival showcases both Irish and international acts. It is a custom-made festival with a focus on sustainability, smaller crowds, and an emphasis on a kinder, gentler festival setting. ‘Another Love Story’ documentary delves into the running of ALS festival and the music and attractions available.Founding members Peter O’ Brien, Emmet Condon, and Sam Bishop discuss some of the aspects of organising and hosting the festival. Live features from ALS 2023 include on-site chats with musicians, crew, and attendees, as well as musical performances showcasing the wide variety of genres and acts on offer to festival-goers. Crew and guests talk about distinctive features of ALS, including child and dog-friendly facilities, and sustainability efforts such as the Flushing Meadows compost toilets. The programme features performances and interviews with musicians Villagers’ Conor O’ Brien, Brigid Mae Power, JFDR’s Jófríður Ákadóttir, DJ Hewan Mulugeta, and Negro Impacto’s Chi Chi and StrangeLove. Other interviews include Psycare Ireland, Siobhan Kane of Young Hearts Run Free, and crew members Ali Morris, Octavian Fitzherbert, and Sarah Howlin. Another Love Story was produced by Alan Meaney and Amanda Gunning. Narration by Amanda Gunning.  The programme was funded by the Coimisiún na Meán with the television licence fee.

This documentary was produced by Valerie McHugh, with interviewee Aisling Smith and voiceover artist Jessica Bourke. It highlights Aisling's story with OCD, and her journey to recovery. It also includes a voiceover dramatisation of other people's experiences with OCD who have asked to remain anonymous.

Documentary on Newstalk presents a new documentary by independent producer Bairbre Flood. "Jewish Ireland" is an exploration of Jewish Irish history and culture - from Deli 613, to the Irish Jewish Museum: historians, musicians and Jewish groups and individuals share different aspects of modern Jewish culture in Ireland. Edwin Alkin talks us through the various artefacts, photographs and exhibitions at the Irish Jewish Museum in Dublin, and explains some of the history of Jewish people in Ireland. Dr. Melanie Brown tells us what she learnt from her involvement with the Jewish Oral History Project and the Inter-Faith Council - and what it means to her to be Irish and Jewish. Rabbi Zalman Lent and Rifky Lent at Deli 613 - the first kosher deli in Dublin in fifty years - share Jewish food and explain why they set up and how they’ve been received by the community. And then we head to Cork to meet klezmer composer Ruti Lachs, of the Cork Jewish Community and we’ll get her take on being one of the ‘new Irish’ Jews who’ve made Ireland their home. ‘Jews have been here since the time of the Normans. Jews are not strangers here, but they remain to be othered in a lot of ways. And that, to me, is very interesting. Why, after a thousand years,  why is there still this othering?’ - Dr. Melanie Brown. Produced by Bairbre Flood and funded by Coimisiun na Mean under the Sound and Vision Scheme.

Climate change, civil war in the south, a breakaway region in the north, hunger, internal displacement: these are just some of the issues facing Somalia.  Presenter Sean Moncrieff reports from the Horn of Africa in: Somalia: the complicated business of helping people.The Newstalk host spent a week with aid agency workers and UN officials who describe the often frustratingly slow process of trying to help a country off its knees: not just through the provision of aid, but trying to convince parents of the benefits of education, of changing attitudes towards contraception and female genital mutilation and of establishing a democracy in the face of resistance from the all-powerful clans.All this, along with the constant threat of suicide bomb attacks from the Islamist group Al-Shabaab. In Somalia, everything is complicated.

Documentary on Newstalk presents “The Iveagh Trust: How Ireland’s Richest Man Housed Dublin’s Poor”, in which producer Sarah Stacey explores the 133-year history of Ireland’s oldest housing charity.The Iveagh Trust was founded in 1890 by Edward Cecil Guinness, head of his family’s famous brewing empire, who at the time was the richest man in the country. His vision was to provide safe, clean and affordable housing to the working poor of Dublin. In the nineteenth century the city was home to some of the worst slums in Europe, with families crammed into overcrowded and unsanitary tenements. Disturbed by the conditions he saw in The Liberties, where his brewery was based, Guinness invested a considerable amount of his fortune into building housing and communities in the area.Sarah Stacey’s family connection to the Iveagh Trust goes back four generations. With the help of social historians, staff members and residents, including her own relatives, she looks at how one man’s generosity transformed the lives of thousands of Dublin families, and why the Iveagh Trust’s ongoing work is just as important in today’s housing crisis as it was over a century ago.Contributors include Tracey Bardon, engagement co-ordinator at 14 Henrietta Street (the Tenement Museum), historians Cathy Scuffil and Alan Byrne, Rory Guinness, chairman of the Iveagh Trust and great-great-grandson of Edward Cecil Guinness, former Iveagh Trust community officer Kelley Bermingham, and past and present residents Paul Tester, Pat Stacey and Tina Brennan.“The Iveagh Trust: How Ireland’s Richest Man Housed Dublin’s Poor” was produced and presented by Sarah Stacey, with additional production by Daniel Cahill and music composed by Emily Worrall. Special thanks to the Iveagh Trust and Dublin City Library and Archive. Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television Licence Fee.

A new radio documentary, 35 Years of GCN, produced by Shaun & Maurice for Documentary and Drama on Newstalk, explores the story of Ireland’s LGBTQ+ community through the pages of Ireland's longest-running free LGBTQ+ publication and press.The story of GCN (Gay Community News) is also the story of LGBTQ+ rights, history, and culture in Ireland. Since 1988, the magazine has reflected and documented the lives and lived experiences of LGBTQ+ people. The first issue of GCN was published from a small office at the top of the Hirschfield Centre in Dublin’s Temple Bar, and since then it has been at the heart of the LGBTQ+ community.35 Years of GCN explores some of the LGBTQ+ stories captured by the magazine. The programme features an interview with Tonie Walsh who co-founded GCN with Catherine Glendon during the height of the AIDS epidemic. It features an interview with Senator David Norris about the foundation of GCN in the same year that he won his case against the Irish government at the European Court of Human Rights (which ruled the existence of laws in Ireland criminalising consensual gay sex to be illegal).The documentary also features interviews with former GCN editors Brian Finnegan and Lisa Connell, about the struggles and celebrations that have been documented by the nation’s LGBTQ+ paper of record—including the introduction of civil partnership, the passing of both the marriage and abortion referendums, and the introduction of the gender recognition act.The programme was produced with funding from the Coimisiún na Meán Sound and Vision scheme.

Documentary on Newstalk presents ‘The White Line’, a new documentary that reveals the shocking truth about how Irish Traveller children were treated in Irish schools and the unacknowledged apartheid that existed in the Irish education system for over 5 decades.Through personal testimony we hear how Traveller children were: kept separate from the settled children at all times; put in Traveller-only classrooms where they received little or no teaching; and were physically and mentally punished regularly simply because of who they were.All the voices, including that of the narrator, in this documentary belong to members of the Irish Traveller Community. The interviewees come from many parts of the country, from Tipperary, to Galway to Meath and Dublin and for most, this is the first time they have told their story publicly.‘The White Line’ was produced by Independent radio Producer Susan Dennehy. The Narrator was Christine Collins. The Final Mix was by Moynihan Russell Studios.The programme was funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television License Fee.

Documentary On Newstalk presents a new documentary by producer Pavel Barter.  Telling the forgotten story of how Irish immigrants built a Wild West mining town two miles high in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado in Cloud City. This portrait of Irish diaspora, in one of America’s most ruthless settlements, explores the lives of two characters whose names live on in Leadville lore: Mart Duggan from Limerick, one of the most fearsome yet respected lawmakers in the American West; and Michael Mooney, a union leader from Dublin who fought for worker rights. This month (September, 2023) sees the opening of a memorial to the Leadville Irish, who until now had been forgotten in unmarked graves at the town’s Evergreen Cemetery. Credits:Pavel Barter: presenter and producer. Michael Mellamphy (Red Dead Redemption 2) plays Mart Duggan and Michael Mooney. With thanks to David Wright (research) and Wil Masisak (VO recording). Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television License Fee.

In “The First Hundred Years: Albert Dryer and the Irish National Association” producer J.J. O'Shea explores the aims and achievements of an important Irish Cultural organisation founded in 1915 in Sydney, Australia, and the life of the man who was the driving force behind the association. The story of the Irish in Australia remains a relatively unexamined aspect of the Irish emigration story and this programme shines a light on some surprising aspects of that story."The First Hundred Years" was Produced by J.J. O'Shea.Excerpts from the INA Centenary Oral History Project were used with the kind permission of the National Library of Australia.This programme was supported by a grant from Coimisiún na Meán as part of the Sound and Vision Scheme.

Producer Michael Cullen introduces us to some of Ireland's most successful quizzers. "Know It All" looks at the quizzing scene in Ireland, and talks to some of its most successful participants, including two winners of Mastermind, and a winner of the million on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire.

Producer Patricia Baker of Curious Broadcast takes a walk past the many famous and infamous statues and monuments in Dublin, in the radio documentary Dead White Men, and considers who and how we commemorate. By talking with academics and arts practitioners she asks questions about the monuments that we have chosen to destroy, those we have kept and those perhaps we should not. This is a walk through the monuments controversy past and present. Dead White Men is a Curious Broadcast Production, Funded by Coimisiún na Meán with the Television Licence Fee.

Unbeatable Together presented by Henry McKean is a documentary which celebrates the Special Olympics in Berlin, with all the success and tears of emotion as Special Olympics Ireland brought home 75 medals.

New radio documentary ‘Tainted Blood’ lays bare the devastating impact of infected blood products on the Irish Haemophilia Community In 1982 the first case of HIV was recorded in Ireland. By 1985 all people with haemophilia were being tested for the disease. More than one third of them were found to be HIV positive having contracted the disease through infected blood products that were made up of pooled plasma from thousands of donors, much of which had been imported. Colm Walsh, who has haemophilia, features on the documentary. As a child Colm and his older brother Brendan were treated with the same blood products and, by some cruel twist of fate, Brendan contracted HIV and eventually died of AIDs. Colm did not, but sadly did contract Hepatitis C, another disease which ravaged the haemophilia community in the late 80s as a result of infected blood products. Colm shares his remarkable story on the documentary, he said, “Despite the fact this happened over 40 years ago some of us are still living with this grief. Not only the grief of losing our loved ones, but for how we were treated and for the lengths we had to go to for the injustice against our community to be acknowledged. This documentary is an important piece of work that shares the heartbreak and distress we went through. We have many reasons for hope today but we can never forget what happened because it can never be allowed to happen again.” Another key voice in the documentary is Brian O’Mahony, Chief Executive of the Irish Haemophilia Society, which became a significant support network, lobbying on behalf of people with haemophilia and their families (which eventually contributed to the collapse of the Irish government in 1989). They set up services to care for the dying, at a time when there was significant stigma associated with the diseases of HIV and AIDs. The documentary shares stories of the torment and shame experienced by those who contracted HIV and AIDs as well as their families, and how, in many cases, they never shared their diagnosis owing to this stigma. Brian said, “It was like going through a war, it was a cumulative trauma to the whole community. It brought our members very close together and despite the huge number of deaths our community is hugely resilient. This story is one that everyone in Ireland should know because we can never let anything like this ever happen again. That message has been a big part of our ethos since we first became aware of the plight of so many of our members. “We were a tiny, volunteer-run organisation before this crisis and now, following years of trauma and campaigning we can proudly say we have one of the best haemophilia treatment systems in the world. Out of the darkness has come some light. I would encourage anyone to take the time to listen to this documentary and understand what happened to our community because all those deaths cannot be in vain.” Kelly Crichton, documentary maker, said “I was incredibly moved when I first encountered these stories and knew there was a whole generation of Irish people out there who would know nothing or very little about this. I wanted to share this story because it’s hard to fathom just how abandoned this community was and yet, in banding together they overcame so much. “The Irish Haemophilia Society went above and beyond in their support - risking prosecution by handing out condoms to members, which were illegal at the time. They set up palliative care and worked with undertaker services because of the stigma and protocols associated with death of those infected with HIV or AIDs. Families could then follow traditional funeral arrangements without the fear of their loved one being outed as a HIV and AIDs victim. It truly beggars belief what they had to go through without government support. “I’d like to thank everyone who I spoke to for the documentary. These are some of the bravest people I have ever met and it was a privilege to record their stories.” Other voices from the haemophilia community share the heartache, shame, stigma, fear and hurt they experienced. It is a story of fear, isolation, empathy, heart-breaking selflessness and triumph through adversity. "Tainted Blood" was funded by Coimisiún na Meán, with the television license fee.