Will Meara has lived about ten lives—and he's not even 40 yet. You might know him as the co-founder of Bingo Loco, the man who turned a chaotic drinking game into a global phenomenon. But before the sold-out arenas, there was a different kind of chaos.

In this first part of a sprawling, unforgettable conversation, Will sits down with his old friend Stephen to trace the arc of a life that refused to play it safe. They go back to the beginning—watching his car-salesman dad graft in Dublin, the student union days, and working the nightlife scene in Dublin thereafter. But then the story takes a turn. What followed was an 18-month journey that landed him in Pakistan with anti-Taliban vigilantes, couch-surfing in Iranian opium dens, and eventually on the front line against ISIS in Iraq.

This is Part 1 of a two-part conversation about restlessness, hospitality, the stories we're told about the world, and what happens when you stop reacting to life and start living it actively. Pull up a chair. This one's a journey.

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She’s the patron saint of poets, healers, and blacksmiths. Her feast day marks the start of spring, but is St. Brigid of Ireland a Christian saint, a pagan goddess reborn, or a powerful symbol we’ve shaped over centuries? To help us unravel this mystery, we’re joined by historian Dr. Niamh Wycherley. We’ll dig into the earliest evidence, decode the famous legends, and ask what Brigid’s complex legacy tells us about Irish spirituality—past and present. This is an exploration of how one extraordinary figure can hold so many worlds within her story.

Dr Niamh Wycherley is Assistant Professor in Maynooth University. She hosts The Medieval Irish History Podcast and is the Principal Investigator of the Research project 'Power and Patronage in Medieval Ireland: Clonard from the sixth to twelfth centuries' and contributes regularly to RTÉ Brainstorm and television programmes such as the RTÉ 1 documentary Finding Brigid (with Siobhán McSweeney) and was historical consultant on RTÉ's Blindboy: the Land of Slaves and Scholars.

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Pull up a chair and pour a cup—it's time for a long-awaited catch-up. As 2025 draws to a close, Aidan in Vienna and Stephen in Carrownamaddy finally steal a moment to wrap up the year over coffee (watermelon-infused, of course).

In this soulful review, they hold a mirror to their hopes from last January. They talk about the goals they nailed—like Stephen's unforgettable festival-wedding and Aidan's dedication to learning German—and the ones that got away (we're looking at you, dental floss). More than a simple review, this is a raw and moving conversation about the hard trade-offs of a big year, the complex pull of home, and how to find your rhythm again when life throws you off pace.

With some big news at the end of this episdoe it's the perfect companion for your own year-end reflection. Settle in, and let's brew.

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