A news podcast from The Irish Times that covers Ireland's response to the Coronavirus outbreak. New episodes will be published each weekday. 888821
Latest episodes
-
↗
The biggest story of our lives, part two
This is the final instalment of the Confronting Coronavirus podcast series. For part two of the final two-part episode, we’ve asked a handful of Irish Times journalists to reflect…
-
↗
The biggest story of our lives, part one
This is the final instalment of the Confronting Coronavirus podcast series. For the final two-part episode, we’ve asked a handful of Irish Times journalists to reflect on the last…
-
↗
The emotional impact of Covid-19 with Clinical Psychologist Tony Bates
Traditionally, one in five of the population experience mental health challenges. In the coming year there will be many more. In today’s episode, Clinical Psychologist Tony Bates s…
-
↗
“Aid is politics” - lockdown in Uganda with Sally Hayden
In today’s episode, we hear from Irish Times journalist Sally Hayden, who has been living in lockdown in Northern Uganda for the past three months. In March, during the onset of th…
-
↗
“We must demand equal access to future vaccines”
As the global race to find a vaccine for Covid-19 continues, the question of how it will eventually be supplied and distributed is now under the spotlight. Billions of euro have be…
-
↗
Lifting the lockdown: What can I do in Phase 3?
Ireland is approaching Phase 3 of the Roadmap for Reopening Business and Society. In this episode, Conor Pope talks us through some of the changes that will be coming into place as…
-
↗
A coronavirus surge shocks Beijing - with Peter Goff
The return of restrictions on life in Beijing comes as over a hundred new cases are linked to a huge food market. Peter Goff explains what's happening in Beijing, how the city is h…
-
↗
"There's remarkable buy-in from prisoners" - How the Irish Prison System kept Covid-19 Out
This week the Irish Prison Service put forward a paper to the World Health Organisation as a model of best practices for keeping Covid-19 out of it’s settings. With 3,738 prisoners…
-
↗
How Contagion predicted a pandemic - with screenwriter Scott Z. Burns and Dr Ian Lipkin
In this episode, Irish Times Features Writer Patrick Freyne brings us back to the year 2011 and the release of the scientific thriller movie Contagion. Starring Matt Damon, Contagi…
-
↗
Lockdown is lifting, but new rules cause many conundrums - with Conor Pope
Conor Pope has been looking at how Ireland is reopening this week, in shops and other public places. His assessment: it's going quite well, but many small problems remain, from que…
-
↗
"The psycho-social impact is far greater - and will last much longer"
In our hospitals and psychiatric clinics, it has already begun. Increasing numbers of people are seeking help for mental health problems associated, in one way or another, with Cov…
-
↗
"Compliance is not as good on the way down as it was on the way up"
Next week, Ireland will enter phase two of the roadmap out of lockdown. We’ll be able to travel 20km from our homes and visit another household while maintaining social distancing.…
-
↗
"It's callous to leave businesses closed if they don't need to be"
Should all retailers, restaurants and tourism be allowed to open sooner? Business affairs correspondent and columnist Mark Paul has been arguing for an accelerated easing of restri…
-
↗
The effect of lockdowns and the return of mobility: what the data tells us
Barry Smyth is a data scientist. Early on in the outbreak, he was among the first to realise the importance of looking closely at the number of excess deaths in the population, as…
-
↗
Why did it take so long for a nursing home plan to be put in place?
Coronavirus has presented a huge challenge for our health services, especially in our nursing homes. The devastating death toll in these settings has come under the spotlight this…
-
↗
How to be ready for an unpredictable future - with author Margaret Heffernan
Margaret Heffernan is a businesswoman and author who writes about leadership and strategic thinking. Her latest book Uncharted: How to Map the Future is about the pitfalls of relyi…
-
↗
"Local lockdowns needed to keep virus at bay" - Dr David Nabarro
Yesterday we reached a significant milestone in our fight against coronavirus. For the first time since the 21st March, there were no new deaths from Covid-19 in Ireland. But how c…
-
↗
The Impact of Covid-19 on the young with psychotherapist John Sharry
Among the people most affected by this crisis are children and especially teenagers. Lockdown has put an abrupt stop to their education and their social lives. In today's podcast D…
-
↗
Rethinking nursing homes and the lives of our elderly after Covid-19
Is it time to dispense with nursing homes? The death toll from Covid-19 in these institutions is bringing the arguments for and against them into focus. Today we talk to two expert…
-
↗
Ireland to start antibody testing next month: what that means and how it will help
Political correspondent Harry McGee tells Deirdre Veldon about the news that Ireland will begin a programme of testing for Covid-19 antibodies in the population next month. How doe…