Highlights From Lunchtime Live

Time Out Magazine has put The Liberties in Dublin on its list for the 39 coolest neighbourhoods in the world.Does it deserve to be there?Joining Andrea to discuss is Kevin O'Kelly Jr, owner of the Thomas House Pub and Amy Ryan, Visitor Services Manager at Marsh’s Library Liberties.

Yesterday, Andrea spoke with Paula Crotty who discussed losing her daughter to an eating disorder…It got a really big reaction, so we want to stay with it.How big of an issue are eating disorders in Ireland?Joining Andrea to discuss is Aveen Bannon, Dietican with the Dublin Nutrition Centre, as well as listeners with experience…

Many people are at risk of being evicted and made homeless after the Government’s announcement this week that it will exempt small cabin homes on family land, such as back gardens, from planning rules…The plan has come too late for Andrea’s guest, who demolished his timber chalet-style home last month. Brendan McDonagh from Brittas lost an eight-year battle to keep a timber chalet-style home he built on his parents’ land in Brittas, in the foothills of the Dublin mountains. He was fined €2,000 in the District Court.Brendan and his family did not qualify for HAP, and built their log cabin as a place for him, his wife and two children to live.Since the demolition, their friends have rallied around them to set up a GoFundMe for the family.Brendan joins Andrea to discuss, as well as Town Planner Derek Whyte.

From Waterford boy racers to Limerick jazz, Newstalk’s Eamonn Torsney joins Andrea with the stories from around the country that you might have missed this week…

American Football is back in Dublin, and this time, it’s bigger than ever!The Vikings and the Steelers will be going head to head in Croke Park this Sunday, as thousands of international fans flock to Ireland to watch the match.But, are we rolling out too much of a red carpet for the event?Andrea is joined by Independent Councillor Mannix Flynn, Cian Fahey from Off the Ball, as well as listeners, to discuss.

When you want to make a big change to your home, there are few better options than your windows and doors, both inside and outside of the house.From variety to cost to inflation, the Home Squad are here to discuss choosing windows and doors!Joining Andrea to discuss is Martin Glynn, Founder and CEO of The DIY Academy and Jenny Sheahan, former winner of ‘Home of the Year’ and @workerscottage on instagram.

Andrea’s guest attempted to buy and sell clothes sustainably on Vinted. Laura Burke sold a dress on the platform for €75 to a French customer. Going about delivering her parcel correctly and on time, she thought she had done everything the same way she normally does. It wasn't until she was told that she had scammed the customer that she realized she herself was being scammed…Laura joins Andrea to tell the story, and Rosalyne Lipsett, Fashion Broadcaster with Ireland AM also joins to discuss.

Ticketmaster is being forced to change how it advertises tickets after the dramatic Oasis dynamic pricing backlash.They’ll have to tell fans 24 hours in advance if a “tiered” pricing system is being used as it was for Oasis standing tickets.And they’ll have to provide more information during online queueing, so you'll know when the cheaper batch of tickets have sold out.So, does this go far enough?Joining Andrea to discuss is Newstalk’s Technology Correspondent Jess Kelly, CEO of First Music Contact Angela Dorgan and listeners.

When a loved one has an eating disorder, what help is available to them?Paula Crotty lost her daughter Jennifer two years ago to an eating disorder, and is Founder of CARED Ireland, a support group for parents and carers for loved ones with eating disorders. Jenny Langley, is a lived experienced carer and workshop facilitator.They join Andrea to discuss.

We’ve decided to do a deep dive on some of our favourite albums to explore the stories behind them.What did the artists really think of each other? Where did the inspirations from the songs come from?Joining Andrea to discuss is Head Tour Guide at the Irish Rock ‘N’ Roll Museum Experience, Alan Buckley, who’s going to talk through Simply Red’s album ‘Stars’!

With Ireland’s housing crisis showing no signs of easing, the Government has confirmed that the First Homes Scheme will remain limited to new builds in Budget 2026 — excluding second-hand homes, despite earlier commitments.This decision has raised fresh questions about affordability, access, and the Government’s broader housing strategy…Joining Andrea to discuss is Ciarán Mulqueen from Crazy House Prices, as well as listeners.

Do you find yourself doomscrolling for hours, even though there’s a million other things you’d rather be doing?We’re all prone to spending too much time on our phones, but when is enough, enough? Singer Cian Ducrot recently encouraged people to get rid of their social media to improve their mental health.Joining Andrea to share their experiences of this is Rosanna Irwin. Founder of Samsú Digital Detox Cabins, Sarah Madden, Newstalk Reporter and Hilda Burke, Psychotherapist & author of ‘The Phone Addiction Workbook’.

Lunchtime Live's Reasons to be Happy looks at some of the news stories that you might have missed that will leave you feeling more optimistic.98FM’s Cathal O’Sullivan joined Andrea in the studio to put a smile on your faces…

Were you watching The Traitors? It’s safe to say that it was a brilliant finale.Spoiler alert! The Faithfuls finally scuppered the Traitors in a dramatic ending, to win the prize money.Andrea is joined by two of the winners, Vanessa and Oyin, to chat about the experience!

Every Wednesday afternoon, we’ll be talking Making Babies.Andrea will be joined by Professor Shane Higgins, Master of the National Maternity Hospital to cover every area of trying to have a baby. From the very start of knowing how to prepare, right up to pregnancy – and all the bumps in the road in between.This week, Shane joins Andrea to discuss the topic of preterm birth.

The Office of Public Works have culled more than 118 deer in Phoenix Park since the beginning of last year. It comes after they have paid €17,000 to snipers to manage the deer population in the capital.UCD, who tag fawns and keep track of the deer population in the park, found that the way deer were being targeted for culls by the OPW up to 2018 was “not a recommended approach”.The report recommended that “at least 65 individuals” should be targeted during each culling season in order to keep the deer population in the Phoenix Park “stable and sustainable”.Is culling deer the best approach to managing this population, or are there alternative measures to manage these animals?Joining Andrea to discuss is John Tierney from the Association of Hunt Saboteurs, as well as listeners.

A record number of secondary school students were offered Irish exemptions in the 2024-2025 school year, according to figures from a TG4 Investigates series due to be broadcast tonight.Over 60,000 students were not required to study Irish, up more than 5,000 from the previous year…The Director of the National Association of Principals and Deputy Principals, Paul Crone, claimed that part of the reason for this is the pressure put on principals by parents.Joining Andrea to discuss this is Eric Nelligan, Assistant Principal and member of Aontú, Bill Clear, local Naas Councillor, Aodhán O’Dea. Director of Development with Conradh na Gaeilge, Lisa O’Sullivan Shaw (@modernirishmom on Instagram) and more.

For this week’s Ask the Expert, Andrea is joined by Chartered Physiotherapist Tony Spain to answer your physio questions!

People are paying to have spiders removed from their homes!According to the app Airtasker, where you can hire tradespeople, people are paying up to €600 to have people come to their homes and remove spiders…Does this seem bonkers or totally reasonable to you?Trevor Hayden, from Complete Pest Control, Collie Ennis, Zoology Research Associate at Trinity College Dublin and Biodiversity Officer and Dr John Francis Leader Psychologist from JFL.com join Andrea to discuss.

The household waste collection system could be due for a revamp. Bin companies may start to take ­responsibility for an entire geographic area rather than competing for customers on the same street.The new change, however, may come at a cost to customers as they will no longer be in competition with one another, meaning companies will have full control over their costs.We want to know what do our listeners feel about the change, would you like to only have one bin provider in your locality?Joining Andrea to discuss is former Irish Rugby International and owner of AWD Waste Solutions Shane Byrne, Consumer Journalist with the Irish Independent and Presenter of the Home Show on Newstalk, Sinead Ryan and listeners.