Line of Duty Is Coming Back — Mother of God!

Line of Duty, one of the most-watched TV dramas of the century, is officially returning. After four years off air, the BBC has confirmed a brand-new six-part season, with filming in Belfast beginning next spring and the iconic AC-12 trio back together: Martin Compston, Vicky McClure and our own Adrian Dunbar as Ted Hastings. The announcement has detonated across the fandom. But Newstalk Daily’s Tara Duggan has never seen a single episode.

So, on today’s podcast, she’s joined by someone who has practically built part of his career on Line of Duty: Brendan O’Loughlin from 98FM, one of the voices behind Shrine of Duty — the fan podcast that became a runaway hit by decoding acronyms, analysing clues and channelling the intensity of AC-12 obsessives everywhere. Tara and Brendan talk about why the show became such a phenomenon, how Adrian Dunbar’s catchphrases entered everyday Irish slang, what the new storyline might hold, and why the fandom has already burst back to life.

📧 Email your thoughts or favourite Line of Duty moments to:
newstalkdaily@newstalk.com

▶️ Listen to Shrine of Duty here:
https://www.goloudplayer.com/podcasts/shrine-podcast-376

🎧 Catch Brendan every weekday morning on 98FM’s Big Breakfast:
https://www.98fm.com/podcasts/big-breakfast

The ‘Great Resignation’ has reached Irish politics. Paschal Donohoe is the latest big name to walk away from Leinster House — departing immediately for the World Bank in Washington and joining a fast-growing list of high-profile exits that already includes Simon Coveney, Leo Varadkar and dozens of TDs and Senators from the last election.

On today’s podcast, Tara Duggan asks why so many mid-career politicians are stepping back, not at retirement age, but at the height of their influence. Is it burnout? Toxicity? Online abuse? A changing culture in public life? Or the simple truth that the private sector now offers better pay, better hours and a saner existence?

Political correspondent Claire Scott of The Sunday Times digs into the trend and what it means for the next generation of leadership. Former Minister Ciarán Cannon reflects on life after politics, the pressures that drove colleagues to leave, and whether Ireland undervalues its politicians until other countries snap them up.

We also hear a voice note from former Fianna Fáil TD and Senator Lisa Chambers, once tipped for Cabinet, who left politics at just 38 and explains the moment she realised life outside Leinster House might be healthier — and happier.

From the politics of burnout to the politics of opportunity, this conversation explores a system struggling to retain talent — and asks whether the exodus is a warning sign for Irish politics.

For thoughts or feedback, email newstalkdaily@newstalk.com.

Ireland is in the middle of a masculinity reset. Andrew Tate’s influence hasn’t faded. The Conor McGregor civil rape verdict rattled classrooms where he’d been idolised. BBC Three’s Men of the Manosphere aired this week. And “parasocial” has just been named Cambridge Dictionary’s word of the year — a perfect description of the strange, intimate bonds teenage boys form with influencers they’ll never meet.

In real life, the picture is just as messy. Samaritans research suggests one in ten men fake interest in sport and exaggerate their drinking, while two-thirds say they’d live differently if freed from social judgement. And yet we also saw Irish footballer Troy Parrott break down after the Hungary match, offering a rare counterweight to the idea that Irish men must bottle everything up.

Educator Eoghan Cleary has spent years warning that boys are being raised — emotionally, sexually, socially — by the loudest, most misogynistic corners of the internet. Porn is shaping expectations long before adults intervene. Boys are anxious, angry, confused and algorithmically nudged toward men who promise clarity through dominance.

On today’s podcast, Tara Duggan and Eoghan talk about why this generation feels lost, what parents can do tonight, what schools urgently need, and whether Ireland is finally ready to create a healthier, more humane model of masculinity for our sons.

Comments and stories welcome at newstalkdaily@newstalk.com.