Ireland Said Yes
Ireland Said Yes
Podcast Description
Comedian Shane Daniel Byrne celebrates 10 years of marriage equality in 'Ireland Said Yes'. He'll take you on an emotional journey exploring the decades-long fight for same-sex marriage. From the deeply personal stories of LGBTQIA activism and resistance, Shane explores the cultural shifts that eventually made the historic 2015 referendum possible. Shane interviews the key players and unsung heroes of the Yes campaign, including drag royalty Panti Bliss, former President of Ireland Mary McAleese and TV presenter Brendan Courtney among many others. The series includes Shane’s personal reflections and live standup from his sell-out run at Vicar Street in Dublin, as he revisits a time that reshaped his life and transformed Ireland completely. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on LGBTQIA activism, marriage equality, and cultural transformation, with episodes featuring themes such as the historical context of the 2015 referendum, personal reflections on growing up gay in Dublin, and the activism that led to societal change. Episode One, for example, dives into the stigma surrounding queer lives and the decline of religious influence in Irish society.

Comedian Shane Daniel Byrne celebrates 10 years of marriage equality. Shane will take you on an emotional journey exploring the decades-long fight for same-sex marriage. From the deeply personal stories of LGBTQ+ activism and resistance, he explores the cultural shifts that eventually made the historic 2015 referendum possible. Shane interviews the key players and unsung heroes of the Yes campaign, including drag royalty Panti Bliss, former President of Ireland Mary McAleese, journalist Una Mullaly, artists Pillows Queen and Joe Caslin, alongisde TV presenter Brendan Courtney among many others. The series includes Shane’s personal reflections and live standup from his sell-out run at Vicar Street in Dublin, as he revisits a time that reshaped his life and transformed Ireland completely.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In the final episode of the series, Shane chats to Irish royalty – Panti Bliss – aka Rory O’Neill. Panti talks about growing up gay in rural Ireland, their early days of drag, a changing Dublin and their incredible speech at the Abbey Theatre that went global. Thank you so much for listening to this series, it has been a passion project for everyone involved and a true honour to feature so many inspiring voices. Le grá, le chéile – Paul and Shane xoxox
Ireland Said Yes is an Onic Original.
Written and Presented by Shane Daniel Byrne.
Developed and Produced by Paul Macgregor, Series Producer.
Audio design, mixing, and sound editing – Fionn O’Brien and Paul Macgregor.
Visual design – Stephen King O’Farrell and Conor Daly.
News archive, courtesy of RTE, Virgin Media, BBC, Channel 4 News, CNN, Euronews, Getty Images and Associated Press. Archive images and video courtesy of Getty Images.
Music and sound effects courtesy of Audio Network and Epidemic Sound.
Legal Counsel – Hugh Hannigan and Claire Telford.
Executive Producer – Sasha Hamrogue.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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