Clare Fm - Podcasts

A cattery in Co. Clare has been recognised at this year’s Local Pet Awards. Colin’s Garden Cattery in Connolly won the Registered Cat Breeder of the Year award! To tell us more, Alan Morrissey was joined by the owner, Beata Raszka.

Ennis Tidy Towns are running a free "Crafternoon" this Saturday the 22nd of November. To tell us more about this free initiative, Alan Morrissey was joined by Ennis Tidy Towns members, Shayla Hilpert and Mary Howard.

With requests for help set to exceed 250,000 this year, the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul (SVP) has launched its Annual Appeal, urging public support for families under pressure. This year’s theme, ‘The Wonder of Christmas’, reflects the rising calls from people ‘wondering’ how they will put food on the table, keep homes warm, and afford toys this December. Alan Morrissey was joined by Denis Carty, Clare SVP President on Tuesday's Morning Focus. Photo (c) SVP

Residents of a West Clare community say they continue to live in fear on a daily basis due to a treacherous stretch of road. It comes as Transport Infrastructure Ireland has been requested to carry out a speed limit review and erect warning signage on the N68 between Darragh and McNamee's Cross following a spate of road traffic collisions. Since 2007, four people have been killed along the route, with a further eleven hospitalised. Local Resident Collette Gavin who previously lost a loved one on the road has been telling Clare FM's Daragh Dolan that action is urgently needed. We also hear from June Dillon, Clare's Aontú rep who has been raising her own concerns following the incident involving a truck last week. Photo (c) Google Maps

Residents of a West Clare community say they live in fear on a daily basis due to a treacherous stretch of road. Transport Infrastructure Ireland has been requested to carry out a speed limit review and erect warning signage on the N68 between Darragh and McNamee's Cross following a spate of recent road traffic collisions. Since 2007, four people have been killed along the route, with a further eleven hospitalised. Local resident Colette Gavin, who previously lost a loved one on the road says action is urgently needed.

Concern has emerged that the digital health records of most Clare patients won't be available for at least another five years. It follows confirmation from the HSE's Chief Technology Officer that the Dublin North East Region will be the first to go live under the Digital for Care Plan 2030, and will not be operational until around 2029. At present, electronic health records are available in the MidWest for maternity, neonatology, and gynaecology services. Clare Sinn Féin TD Donna McGettigan says much more progress is needed.

Ryanair is expressing confidence that it'll see a further expansion of its operations in Shannon in the future following a jobs boost today. The budget airline is holding a recruitment event at the Park Inn by Radisson at Shannon Airport on November 29th to fill 25 new cabin crew jobs at its Clare base. The announcement of the posts comes in a year when the airline has added a fourth-based aircraft as well as 180,000 extra seats through routes to Rome, Madrid, Warsaw and Poznan to its Shannon activities. Ryanair's Director of Communications Jade Kirwan has been telling Clare FM's Seán Lyons the new roles boast an "industry-leading" salary and don't require prior cabin crew experience.

Clare FM's Derrick Lynch and Tommy Guilfoyle joined Alan Morrissey to review the weekend's sporting fixtures. Games reviewed: Munster Club SHC Semi-Final: Éire Óg 2-20 Loughmore-Castleiney 1-16 (Sunday, Zimmer Biomet Páirc Chíosóg) Munster Club IHC Semi-Final: Tallow (Waterford) 1-21 O'Callaghan's Mills 1-23 (Sunday, Mallow) Clare U21 A Football Championship Semi-Finals: Ennistymon v Kilmurry Ibrickane (Saturday, Cooraclare) Clondegad v Cooraclare (Sunday, Ennistymon) Clare U21 B Football Championship Semi-Finals: Cratloe v Banner (Saturday, Clarecastle) Eire Óg v Corofin (Monday evening) Munster Junior Cup Fourth Round (Sunday): Bridge United v Grattan United Newmarket Celtic v Abbeyfeale United (McDonough Park) Fairgreen Celtic and BT Harps (Lees Road)

The hugely popular Judy Beck from Clonroad Garden Centre was back on Monday's Morning Focus to answer all your gardening questions. This week Judy spoke about apple trees and how to look after them.

The Devil’s in the Dance Hall is coming to Mullagh this Saturday, 22nd of November. A brand-new interactive dance-theatre experience by Edwina Guckian, exploring the wild, controversial, rebellious history of Ireland’s dance halls—where waltzes were “degenerate,” the Church warned of “sin,” and the people danced anyway. To tell us more, Alan Morrissey was joined by the creator of the project and recipient of the 2023 Markievicz Award, Edwina Guckian. Image (c) edwinaguckian.com

It’s time for another episode of our newest feature on Morning Focus, Traditional Greats. Traditional Greats is presented and produced by Therese McInerney. This captivating 26-part series celebrates the enduring legacy of traditional Irish music in our county. Each episode pays tribute to a legendary Clare musician who has passed on, but whose influence continues to inspire generations. Therese speaks with musicians from across the county, exploring how these iconic figures shaped their musical journeys and contributed to Clare’s unique cultural heritage. Throughout the series, the timeless sounds of these greats are brought vividly to life, weaving their legacy into the very fabric of Clare’s musical identity. Listeners will enjoy a rich and heartfelt journey through the melodies, stories, and traditions that define our county’s proud musical history. In the latest episode of Traditional Greats, Therese pays tribute to Sonny Murray, with the help of Gerladine Cotter.

With over 25 years of experience in home energy upgrades, Ashgrove Renewables invites you to the Radisson Blu Hotel on Monday, 24th November at 6:30pm to learn about vacant and derelict house grants, additional SEAI upgrade grants, the application process and real-life success stories. Homeowners are showing huge interest in bringing empty or run-down properties back to life, and this event could help you do just that. To find out more, Alan Morrissey was joined by Shane Murphy, Sales and Technical Director at Ashgrove Renewables. Image (c) Ashgrove Renewables via Instagram

The Village Inn in Quin has been ran by Ann and Willie for the past eight years. They have now chosen to step into retirement and sell the pub. To discuss this further, Alan Morrissey was joined live by Anne Porter and Willie Heathrown of Village Inn in Quin. Image (c) The Village Inn via Facebook

On Monday's Morning Focus, Alan Morrissey welcomed Siobhán Mulcahy to studio. She informed us on the many cultural events that are happening around the county. She spoke on the grand dance in Mullagh; remembrance ceremony in Killaloe; Ennis players and so many more.

The number of people treated for drug and alcohol addiction in Clare fell by 7% last year. New figures from the Health Research Board shows that 301 people were treated for addiction in this county. While there was a drop in addiction cases involving cocaine, cannabis, heroin and benzodiazepines, the number of people treated for alcohol addiction addition increased by 9% to 132. Additionally, 72 people in this county were treated for alcohol addiction for the very first time, the highest figure on record since 2007. For a closer look at this, Alan Morrissey spoke to Meadhbh Firmino da Silva Santos, Deputy Manager at Bushypark Addiction Treatment Centre and Noel Considine, former Clare hurler and 1997 All-Ireland Winner who battled with alcohol addiction for 30 Years. Picture (c) by Alexander Kuzmin from Getty Images via Canva

The Irish Government paid almost €1 million over a four-year period to provide security to US military forces at Shannon Airport. Responding to a parliamentary question from Sinn Féin, Tánaiste and Minister for Defence Simon Harris has admitted the costs of Aid to the Civil Power, or ATCP duties at Shannon Airport, came to over €965,000 between 2018 and 2021. It's understood the costs for these services from 2022 onwards are still being collated and will be released at a later date. Shannonwatch founder Edward Horgan believes the overall costs associated with the US military's use of the facility over the last number of decades are much higher.

Funding is being sought by any means necessary to order to combat a "treacherous walk to school" in Ennis. It follows concerns raised by the Principal of Holy Family National School for children walking from the Ballaghboy Halting Site on the Quin Road. There's no cycle lane, hard shoulder or footpath for a 550m stretch between the halting site and Johnno's Bar, and the cost of installing the latter is estimated to be €350,000 , but Clare County Council says funding isn't currently available. Ennis Fianna Fáil Councillor Clare Colleran-Molloy says a solution is needed before there's a fatality.

On this week’s Atlantic Tales, Pat Flynn visits Shannon Airport where Limerick man Mike Kelly proudly displays just a fraction of his massive model airplane collection. The largest of its kind in the world, it has been meticulously amassed over many years and offers a captivating journey through the evolution of aviation.

A "whole-of-government" approach is being demanded to facilitate the construction of homes in parts of Clare with little residential zoned land. It follows the publication of the Government's 'Delivering Homes, Building Communities' housing plan which aims to build 300,000 new homes nationwide by 2030. As part of the strategy, 90,000 starter homes as promises, with these to be delivered through the provision of zoned and serviced land. Speaking in the Seanad, Ennistymon Senator Martin Conway plenty of areas here have the infrastructure for more homes but are held back by zoning restrictions.

Councillors in the Shannon Municipal District have received no increase in funding for discretionary projects in 2026. It comes as the Shannon MD's General Municipal Allocation has been confirmed as €343,000 for the coming year, meaning each elected representative will have €49,000 to distribute to local causes of their choice. Concerns have been raised, however, that larger residential areas in the region such as Westbury and Shannon Banks are not receiving adequate funding under the tidy towns scheme as they're not classed as villages. Shannon Banks Sinn Féin Councillor James Ryan says this can eat into GMA allowances unnecessarily.