Paul Howard

They send one loafer in the post.

you know Paul Howard Russell

Carroll Kelly used to Paul Howard used to say that when he came up with Russell Carroll Kelly many years ago which I presume you're aware of

100% and like

I mean he's

The IRFU says the Lansdowne Quarter will be fully funded by the partner enterprise and will provide a significant long-term revenue stream for Irish rugby.

Now, what they fail to mention, though, is that it will also provide the Irish Times' Paul Howard with no end of content for Russell Carroll Kelly.

Finally, you can take Mark Paul out of Ireland and make him the Irish Times' London correspondent, but his latest dispatch proves you cannot take the Ireland out of Mark Paul.

This week, while post-Brexit Britain continues to wrestle with identity, Mark gets a seat in first class and a lesson in Englishness.

Two things that surprised me.

Great guest, Paul Howard, too, who's, I mean, and isn't it, isn't it typical of the first free stater to seriously engage with the subject of United Ireland as a comedy writer? Yeah.

But listen, it's all there.

And it was a very buoyant night.

So it's absolutely wonderful to invite Joe and Dion to bring their Free State podcast live to West Belfast.

And tonight's very special.

There's a special guest, Paul Howard, who's just recently launched his new book.

So a couple of quick housekeeping rules for me.

And again, I suppose, like the stop people pleasing idea and stop worrying about what everybody else around you is thinking and doing.

Let's move on to fiction now, Jan. There's some great new fiction from Donal Ryan, Paul Howard and Matt Haig.

Do you want to look at this?

Oh, brilliant.

And just some, as usual, as you would expect with Donal Ryan, some beautiful writing.

So I just started this one myself and I'm just transported already.

And the other I want to mention Paul Howard, as you said, Paul Howard, of course, we know from the Ross O'Carroll Kelly books.

Paul has stopped writing Russell Carroll Kelly novels and he's branching out.

Also, just to let you know that this weekend's subscription edition is something different.

It's a recording of a live event that I did with Paul Howard last week at the Pavilion Theatre in Dun Laoghaire last Sunday night about his new book, A Nation Once Again.

So it's sort of a different political podcast, but it is talking about a united Ireland, albeit in a more humorous vein.

So hopefully you'll enjoy that if you want to listen to that on the subscription edition.

We will leave it there.

Leo, thank you both very much for being with us.

As I said, we have our special with Paul Howard available to subscribers from Sunday.

Marion McKeown and myself will be talking about Donald Trump and lots of other things to do with America in Wednesday's edition.

What happens when you say goodbye to a character who some say defined Ireland and your life? You find a new world to bring us all into.

Maybe easier said than done and Paul Howard has done exactly that with his new book, A Nation Once Again.

Paul, lovely to have you in studio.

Great to be

But for now, I mean, this is...

But it's funny writing a book like this because the first person narrator in this book is a reliable narrator and Ross is not that definitely not that and Fiak is the most sensible man in the room it's everybody else is insane around

him yeah it's so good I can't recommend it more highly A Nation Once Again by Paul Howard is out now and Paul is doing events in Cork Galway and Belfast and you can find out all the booking details go to aka Paul Howard on Instagram lovely to catch up with you this

morning likewise Catherine great to talk to you

it now.

Paul Howard, thanks very much.

Thanks to our producer, Declan Conlon.

We will be back with you very soon indeed.