We’ve all been feeling the squeeze over the past couple of years as Covid and then Russia’s invasion of Ukraine saw a massive rise in the cost of living. Prices of everyday goods have soared, and it doesn’t appear that next week’s Budget will give much relief to hard-pressed consumers.

While you may have learned some cost-saving tricks from a frugal granny, Gen Z learn these things online, so every penny-pinching trick conceivable is now part of a tiktok trend called Frugaltok.

Some of them are pretty mundane, some very extreme. The Irish Examiner’s Jess Casey has given it a go, and tells Deirdre about it on today’s episode.

Read Jess’s article here: Frugaltok is going viral — here's what happened when I tried some money-saving tips

For regular money-saving tips from the Irish Examiner, check out Caitriona Redmond’s weekly articles in Weekend here: Advice - Irish Examiner

The Irish Examiner will be covering Budget 2026 extensively – you can follow that here: Budget 2026 - Irish Examiner

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Tipperary town was left reeling earlier this month when a local man was killed in his own garden.

Teddy Murnane was a husband and father of three who was well known in Tipperary as a bus driver with Kavanaghs Coaches and a big GAA supporter, having driven Tipperary hurling and football teams for many years.

Widespread tributes were paid to Mr Murnane from GAA and political figures, and a community vigil was organised. A man has been charged with assault causing harm to Mr Murnane.

However, in the days after his death it was revealed that Mr Murnane had a conviction dating from 2024 for historic sexual offences – and his victim is unhappy with the widespread tributes to the deceased man.

Reporter Ann Murphy has been covering this story – she is the guest on today’s Deirdre O’Shaughnessy Podcast.

Tipperary man who died after incident in his garden had recently been convicted of sexual offences

Priest questions safety in homes after death of Tipperary grandfather Teddy Murnane

Vigil planned for Tipperary man who died after incident in back garden

Man, 80s, who died in Co Tipperary named locally as former senior hurling team driver

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It’s been six months since Kenmare farmer Michael Gaine went missing, and four since parts of his dismembered body were found in a slurry tank.

There has been considerable criticism of the investigation given that the slurry tank had previously been searched for his body.

A suspect in the investigation – American drifter Michael Kelley, who had been living on the Gaine farm in an old farmhouse – was arrested early on and released without charge. He is subject to a deportation order after a failed asylum bid and is now believed to be living in Tralee.

The family held a funeral for Mr Gaine in June of this year, his ashes carried into Holy Cross Church in a sheepskin-lined basket, a soft resting place for a man who was remembered as “soft and loving, caring and affectionate, kind and considerate”.

Six months after Mr Gaine’s disappearance, Irish Examiner Reporter Neil Michael went to Kenmare to find out whether people there believe the person who killed him will ever be caught

Neil is the guest on today’s episode of The Deirdre O’Shaughnessy Podcast.

LINKS

Kerry murder mystery: Michael Gaine’s killing and the haunted life of suspect Michael Kelley

Vanished without a trace: What happened to Kerry’s missing farmer Michael Gaine?

Watch: The search in Kerry continued over the weekend for missing farmer Mike Gaine

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On Sunday the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and Portugal recognised Palestinian statehood, with more countries expected to follow.

Almost two years since the October 7th attacks by Hamas and since Israel began its genocidal campaign in Gaza, the international community is finally reacting.

Over 65,000 Palestinians, among them many children, have been killed in what the United Nations Commission of Enquiry and the International Association of Genocide Scholars say is a genocide.

One such child is seven year old Khaled, who was killed in the bombing of Rafah on 17th October 2023. Khaled’s mother Amal El Khawaja, who works with the Norwegian Refugee Agency and now lives in Oslo, will visit Cork this weekend to tell her son’s story in a series of public events organised by Coffee for Palestine. She is the guest on today’s Deirdre O’Shaughnessy Podcast.

Details of A Coffee and Conversation with Amal can be found on Instagram.com/coffeeforpalestine.

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Earlier this week the Irish Examiner reported that a major investigation is underway into a massive case of fraud with a Cork-based businessman arrested under gangland legislation.

The man was unknown to gardaí before approximately €750,000 in ATM withdrawals caused suspicions. Originally from Nigeria, he has a family and a business in Cork and works in a major Dublin tech company.

It’s suspected the case may be related to an international crime gang such as the Black Axe gang, which is active internationally and throughout Ireland. Last year, gardai arrested 63 people as part of Operation Skein, targeting the gang.

The Irish Examiner’s Security Correspondent Cormac O’Keeffe is the guest on today’s Deirdre O’Shaughnessy Podcast.

Cork-based businessman arrested in major fraud probe

Black Axe: From Cork to Nigeria: Gang of cybercriminals caught out by their own technology

Gardaí arrest 63 as part of global operation targeting West African crime groups

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The name Catherine O’Brien is a familiar one to regular followers of the Irish Examiner – in this first episode of The Deirdre O’Shaughnessy Podcast, reporter Ann Murphy brings listeners up to date on the latest in this complex story of fraud and deception.

The subject of a 2022 podcast series by the Irish Examiner, Catherine the Fake, Catherine O’Brien has been sought by Gardai since 2019 when she failed to show up in court as a witness for the State in a case of demanding money with menaces.

Reporting of that case led to the gradual unravelling of the Buttevant woman’s story, as person after person came forward to the Irish Examiner with stories of being deceived or defrauded by O’Brien.

The 2022 podcast series Catherine the Fake investigated claims that O’Brien had convinced many people to invest in different business ventures over the years, causing losses in the millions of euro. She falsely claimed she had bought a pub in Clare; told acquaintances she worked as an agent for an Arab prince buying large properties in Tipperary; and pretended to be a solicitor who could ‘sort’ speeding fines for a man she met on a dating site.

She was finally arrested in June 2024 and in July, O’Brien was convicted of three charges of deception after meeting Dubliner John Blake on Plenty of Fish and convincing him to invest €22,000 in racehorses.

Listen to episode one of The Deirdre O’Shaughnessy Podcast featuring Ann Murphy now on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

LINKS

Catherine O’Brien found guilty of deception charges

Listen back to the 2022 Catherine the Fake podcast series Catherine the Fake podcast: The story of florist turned fraudster Catherine O’Brien

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Launching on Tuesday 16th September, The Deirdre O'Shaughnessy Podcast will focus on the biggest, best and quirkiest stories from the Irish Examiner's unrivalled team of reporters and contributors.

If you want the latest news, the best insight into what’s happening in Cork and around Munster, and the inside track on our exclusive national stories, look no further.

Dropping twice a week on Tuesdays and Fridays, the Deirdre O'Shaughnessy Podcast will help you stay up to date with the Irish Examiner's best content.

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Corkwoman Sonya Egan was sentenced in 2023 to three years in prison with one suspended for a sustained campaign of harassment against community activist Laura O’Connell and then Sinn Fein TD Jonathan O’Brien. She is due for release next week, having served less than two years.

Her victim Laura O’Connell spoke to Deirdre O’Shaughnessy on the Irish Examiner podcast about her fears for what the future holds with her stalker free, the lack of support for victims of crime, and how she has rebuilt her life, which was utterly destroyed after Egan’s relentless four year campaign of lies and intimidation.

Read the original Irish Examiner court report of Sonya Egan’s case here: 'You couldn't make it up' — The relentless and prolonged harassment of a Cork TD and a businesswoman

Listen back to Laura O’Connell speaking to Mick Clifford after Egan’s sentencing in 2023: https://www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/commentanalysis/arid-40913375.html

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