Highlights From Lunchtime Live

Officials from the National Parks and Wildlife Service have raised concerns at Dublin Zoo following their most recent inspection. They found medicines with no expiry dates, animals from social species being housed alone, an unclean water trough and inadequate ventilation. Is it time that we closed down zoos? Or are they important for education and animal conservation? Clare McKenna was joined on Lunchtime Live by listeners to discuss...

As the school run starts back and more of us are going into the office, there’s calls for more to be done to make cycling safer in Ireland. In rural parts of the country for example, there’s often no cycle lanes and narrow roads. Clare McKenna was joined by listeners on Lunchtime Live to discuss cycling infrastructure in Ireland...

Once considered solely American practices – baby showers and gender reveal parties are now becoming more and more popular here in Ireland. How do you feel about these practices crossing the Atlantic? Clare McKenna was joined on Lunchtime Live by Chrissy Russell, journalist and mother, Sinead Lyons, from Polkadot events and other listeners to discuss...

Dublin Fire Brigade have posted about rescuing a man in his 70s after he had become trapped in his home for about 14 hours due to hoarding of belongings. Clare McKenna was joined on Lunchtime Live by Fiona Hall, Psychotherapist and owner of Consciously Clearing Decluttering. Listener, Paul also joined the show to discuss his own hoarding habits...

Andrea was joined on the show by Cormac Lally, who is a poet and a spoken word artist but for the last 10 years he has also been working as a wedding speech writer. He counts pro-rugby players, TV pundits and MMA fighters among his clients. Cormac and other listeners gave their tips to writing a good wedding speech.

‘No construction workwear and/or tools are permitted in the in-store seating area’ – this was a sign seen in a FRESH store. What do you think? Is it fair to have a ‘dress code’ or is it unfair on construction workers? Andrea was joined by listeners to discuss..

The countdown is well and truly on for Garth Brook’s Dublin gigs this weekend. But, he will have no support acts for any of the 5 concerts. The Music and Entertainment Association of Ireland say that it’s not good enough and it is an enormous stage and that it would be a great opportunity to raise the profile of an Irish support act. Matt McGranaghan, Spokesperson for the Music and Entertainment Association of Ireland and David James, country music singer and singer, Aoife Brady joined Andrea on Lunchtime Live to discuss..

Organic farmer Lisa Fingleton is challenging people to eat only Irish produce for a month, to highlight how little of the food we eat is actually made here. She wants us to think harder about what we eat, and where it comes from. Andrea was joined by Lisa and other listeners on the show to discuss the ways in which we can incorporate more Irish produce into our diet.

Electric Picnic is back after a two-year hiatus. Around 70,000 people are heading down to attend the music and arts festival at Stradbally Hall this weekend, and Andrea will be among them. This weekend is set to be the largest attendance on record and although we are scheduled for some rain hopefully everyone will be in good spirits that Electric Picnic is returning. We've heard from people heading to Stradbally for the weekend.

As schools are starting back there are calls for the areas around them to make car-free. Has the traffic at the school gates gotten too dangerous? Would this make things safer for kids? What has been your experience of dropping children to school? A few schools have done it and we talked with them on our show.

Our listener Lucy was scrolling Twitter when something caught her eye – her own handwriting on a book. Declan Cashin had posted a picture of a book inscription he found inside the book. With little help from social media, the book was reunited with its owner. Together they joined Andrea on the show to share their story.

Have you been hit with high hospital car parking fees? Childhood cancer Ireland is calling for car parking charges to be scrapped, with some parents saying they’ve been stung with daily charges in excess of €30. Laura Cullinan, mother of 10-year-old Isobel, diagnosed with cancer was charged with a hospital car parking fee and she joined Andrea on the show.

Every week we give you the chance to get access to an expert and this week, we put your motoring questions to Motoring Journalist Geraldine Herbert.

After an incident in Roscommon shocked onlookers, Andrea was joined by listeners to discuss what can be done to stamp out violence in sport.

Ten years ago, Derry and Sallyanne Clarke lost their 16 year old son Andrew to suicide. They joined Andrea to talk about the stigma around suicide and living and dealing with grief. If you are affected by any of these issues Pieta House operates a 24 hour crisis hotline (01) 4585490.

A video mocking Nadine Coyle’s distinct Derry accent has gone viral, that is the offending clip and it has racked up nearly 1 million views and 91 thousand likes on Tik Tok with a lot of comments taking aim at Nadine’s strong accent. Andrea was joined by listeners to discuss Irish stereotypes.

The GAA has launched a full investigation into an incident at an underage match in Roscommon last night. Early in the second half of the championship game, an incident occurred, which led to the referee requiring medical attention. The match was abandoned and an ambulance was called to the pitch. Andrea was joined by refs and members of the soccer association to discuss the incident.

Listener Antone joined Andrea to share his story of falling victim to a rental scam. He told Andrea that after moving over from France, and paying €1800 for accommodation, he discovered the room he was due to rent did not exist.

From airplane flings to long distance romance, Andrea spoke to listeners about their experiences of finding love in unusual places.

Younger workers face paying an extra €2,500 a year in taxes so that older people can retire at 66, the State’s budget watchdog warns today. The true cost of keeping the pension age down amid an ageing population is laid bare by the Irish Fiscal Advisory Council. Andrea was joined listeners to discuss how fair this system is and what are the repercussions for younger earners.