The Pat Kenny Show review: a confident start with politics, sport and science on the agenda

Veteran broadcaster launches revamped weekend slot on Newstalk with a wide-ranging mix of politics, sport, science and listener interaction

Pat Kenny pictured celebrating 150 years of Bauer Media at the Mansion House,Dublin. Picture: Brian McEvoy

Pat Kenny’s new weekend radio show got off to a confident start following a shake-up that saw the broadcaster move into Newstalk’s coveted mid-morning slot.

The Pat Kenny Show delivered an eclectic mix of guests, with familiar voices offering fresh perspectives on topics ranging from geopolitics and sport to skincare and science. The programme marked Kenny’s first

weekend broadcast in the mid-morning slot following a reshuffle introduced by Newstalk’s parent company, Bauer Media Ireland, in December.

Former RTÉ presenter Claire Byrne now hosts the weekday programme The Claire Byrne Show, which airs Monday to Friday from 9am to 12pm. Kenny previously occupied the slot after leaving RTÉ Radio 1 in 2013.

Former Irish rugby international Devin Toner brought sport to the programme, offering analysis and commentary on the Six Nations.

US political commentator Anthony Scaramucci, who briefly served as White House communications director from July 21 to July 31, 2017, also featured prominently in the discussion.

The host of The Rest is Politics US podcast discussed Donald Trump’s actions in the Middle East, arguing they should be viewed in the context of broader geopolitical tensions.

“Once I saw the troops moving in the naval aircrafts and naval vessels I knew he was going to war because he’s not the type of guy to pull back from something like that,” he told Kenny. 

“I think ultimately it has to do with a broader chess match that’s going on with China. So if you really just step back you are getting the oil from Venezuela to China. You’re getting the oil from Iran to China and I think this is a broader chess board move. It’s not just really being run by him. This is being run by what I would call neocons. This is the great irony because the president ran on no more forever wars.” 

Skincare also featured on the programme, with Niki Ralph raising concerns about skin conditions misdiagnosed as acne.

Chef Gareth Mullins added further flavour to the show, sharing recipes and culinary insights.

There was also the familiar on-air camaraderie between Kenny and renowned immunologist Professor Luke O’Neill, who discussed research into so-called “hasslers” — people whose behaviour can negatively affect wellbeing.

“The number of hasslers in your life take years off you,” the professor explained. 

“The prediction is that for each extra hassler you lose nine months of your life. A hassler is someone who is often hassling, criticising or excluding you. As we age our DNA gets stained. You get these marks on your DNA that correlate with ageing.” 

The show also drew warm reactions from listeners, with several messages of support sent in during the broadcast. One texter joked that she was yet to have a shower after becoming fully absorbed in the programme.

Maeve O’Rourke, lecturer and director of the Human Rights Law Clinic at the Irish Centre for Human Rights at the University of Galway, also discussed a story that recently captured headlines.

Her interview focused on the Sisters of Charity, who are seeking up to €40m for a landmark Dublin 4 property.

O’Rourke said the issue was deeply troubling given the order’s financial history and past decisions involving care facilities.

“I find it very upsetting for two key reasons,” she said. 

“The first is that with this potential sale the nuns stand to make a huge amount of money but they actually closed down their two nursing homes and convalescent site to empty it in 2020 during Covid saying they couldn’t afford to renovate to keep up with HIQAs demands. 

O’Rourke also pointed to earlier property sales involving the order and criticised what she described as a lack of financial contribution towards historical redress schemes.

"This is the same order of nuns who made €45.7m in 2001 on the sale of the adjoining 14.3 acre site that had held St Mary’s School for the Blind which was the biggest sale of a development site in Dublin at that time. 

"In 2009 it valued its own assets at €233m. It has never paid towards the Magdeline Laundries redress and it has never paid anything to anyone affected by the illegal adoptions that happened through St Patrick’s Guild.”