Yes folks, it’s time for another brilliant episode of Blind Guys Chat. This week the Blind Guys are out of the gate faster than a greyhound on smack because they have a bee in their bonnet about the latest COVID-19 variant and the protests happening in the Netherlands. Have you got a good argument for not taking the vaccine? Well, we want to hear from those of you who think it’s all a load of codswallop. Stuart is going to give us a demo of his Alexa routine which he has set up to keep him warm and snug. Spoiler alert: he is too lazy to switch the heating on himself. Jan and Óran attempt to do a demo with Stuart on FaceTime sharing, but guess what? It’s a load of hooey and they can’t be bothered to subscribe to Apple music just to listen to Stuart’s spangley showtunes. Clodagh is here with emails. Will there be a Blindie tip? Will we get to hear the Blindie tip jingle again? The suspense is killing us. And finally, are you interested in joining the Blind Guys for an online Christmas show? Email us and we’ll put you on the guest list. So, quit trying to unravel those Christmas lights, turn off that Perry Como ‘best of’ CD you found in a bargain bin all those years ago, and snuggle up on the couch with man’s best friend… Blind Guys Chat.

It’s another fun filled episode of Blind Guys Chat and this week the Guys are once again talking to their favourite member of the band ‘The Metabolics’. Yes, it’s Professor Luke O’Neill. The Prof tells us about the current state of COVID19 in Ireland and the research going on around the world. He also speaks to us about watching telly after his vaccination, and his good time band, The Metabolics. The Guys give us their views on the COP26 summit and their enjoyment of the mild weather in November. Stuart is trying to convince Jan & Óran that Facetime isn’t all that bad for music and video streaming, but they’re only willing to try it if Stuart plays Pink Floyd instead of all those showtunes he loves. We have a query from someone who would like to learn the piano, and Jan has a surprise for Óran & Stuart, spoiler alert, Jan is learning the black & white notes also. In our email section, Adele has a message for The Blind Guys, Otis Mac Stroupy-Pants has had to put on the heating in Baltimore, and we have a “blindie tip” from Blind Gordon who has finally found a reason to use Windows Narrator. So, throw away those used antigen tests, switch off the water pump, tell those shouty kids outside to go to bed, and have a listen to the most gratifying, scrumdiddlyumptious, thigh-slappin’ podcast in this galaxy… …Blind Guys Chat.

It’s our 30th podcast and the Blind Guys are scared of the halloweenies, but Stuart is ok cos his maid is answering the door. We’re talking IOS 15 - Stuart thinks it has some cool new features, but Jan & Óran, well… Óran really is somewhat cynical about some of the features. Jan gives us a COVID-19 update and he is still whinging about living below sea level. Get over it man!! Jade McCormack is back to help Stuart find his way to the train station in North County Dublin using Soundscape and Google Maps. Clodagh is here with “a clatter-load of emails”, one of which is rather scolding. Yes Stuart, it's addressed to you! 🤣 Óran is delighted that he gets to sing the Blindy Tips jingle again as it’s the best jingle in the world EVER! Or so he says. And we’ve got audio messages from Saleem and Gary from South Africa. So, put away that ghostly white sheet, stuff your face with all those treats you got at Halloween and get ready for the most auspicious, bodacious, and fun lovin’ podcast in the world … Blind Guys Chat.

The Blind Guys are not firing on all cylinders this week as poor Jan and his family have been unwell. He tells us about his experience with COVID-19, a flooded kitchen and a poor little doggy who can’t eat his treats because he hurt his neck.

Óran is aiming his grumpiness towards Microsoft and how they have botched up accessibility of MS Teams with the latest update. Stuart is wondering why there are so many blind-related observance days in the same week?

We’ve got a fantastic interview with Clara Murray & Kevin Sherwin, 2 of RTÉ’s audio describers. (Don't forget to check out Kevin's podcast(Things gay people like). Clodagh is here with emails and we unveil our new ‘Blindy Tips’ jingle - yaaaay! Now all we need are your tips - [email protected].

So slip off your high heels and tights, don’t answer the door to anyone, snuggle on the couch with your pet dog, frog or alligator, and listen to episode 29 of the bestiest podcast in the world - Blind Guys Chat!

From Warsaw to Cairo, Birmingham to Porto, this week’s show has you covered if you are thinking about taking a flight. Yes, the Blind Guys have all been abroad since our last podcast. And we are here to tell you about our experiences, good and bad.

Óran says he is dripping in his own sweat since the last podcast. It seems Clodagh has been increasing his workload at home. Booo!!

Jan & Óran talk to Louis Martens from the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Cairo, Egypt. Louis is the first Secretary of Economic Affairs and is one of very few blind diplomats in the world. Louis talks to us about his work as a diplomat in Cairo and how he manages to get around Cairo and various diplomatic receptions with his “habibi”. And of course, Jan & Óran want to know what the weather is like, spoiler alert, it’s 28̊°C most days.

We are going to ‘Midnight Mass’ in TV Corner and Óran is moaning again about terrible audio description on ‘Jack Whitehall, travels with my Father’.

The Blind Guys are looking for you to share your daily living tips. This will be a new section for which Óran is going to compose his own jingle. God help us all!

We’ve got voice messages from Saleem from Dublin and Blind Gordon from Scotland, and Stuart has a question for Otis McStroupy-Stroup.

So, move your seats to an upright position, put your tray tables away securely, take note of your nearest emergency exit and let us take you on your flight with the best airline in the world, Air BGC.

Disclaimer: Blind Guys Chat is not an airline and is therefore possibly not the best airline in the world, but if we were, we would be.

…probably.

Don’t worry, the BBC haven’t taken over this podcast and this is not the official Woman’s Hour show, but we do have a Woman’s Hour of our own on this episode, or at least half an hour or so. Anyway, welcome to another show where the guys are in something of a reflective mood, because, believe it or not, it is our first anniversary. Of course the question is, who bought the flowers?

If BBC’s Woman’s Hour are looking for a stand-in presenter, they really need look no further than our very own Clodagh O’Donovan, who has dragged herself away from the email box for a while, to bring together a panel of partners of two of the blind guys and our very own Blind Gordon!

Joining Clodagh are Chantal de Vette and Alaine Anthony. There’s some gems in this piece and we hope you and your sighted partners and family will enjoy it. For example, did you know that Óran O’Neill likes to smack pedestrians with his cane if they don’t move out of his way quickly enough? That Jan Bloem got malaria and had to spend two weeks with his then very new girlfriend? Or, that the wonderful Blind Gordon doesn’t have what it takes to cut it on the dance floor?

Here are links to things that were mentioned during the chat:

• The Ramble tag is available here: rambletag.co.uk
• The iron guard mentioned by Alaine doesn't seem to be available on RNIB.co.uk anymore. We found it on Amazon at this link. It's currently unavailable but hopefully will be back in stock soon.
• We also found a handy page of tips on how to do your ironing safely from Guide Dogs UK which includes a video - check it out here.

After all that, the guys are ready for a few emails and we’ve a request for a follow-on piece to our Soundscape review, which is currently being actioned.

As it is our anniversary show, the guys and Clodagh share some of their highlights over the last year and there’s a quick shout-out for JAWS version 2022, which is now in public beta.

Otis emailed from Maryland (we love hearing from Otis) and talked about how Clodagh could be inspired by Ireland's legendary female pirate queen, Granuaile (Gron-ya-wail).

Don't think we're finished after the emails though, because our wonderful producer Óran O’Neill has been in the archive room and has put together a little montage of some of our best bits over the last year to play us out. Tell us which bit is your favourite!

Remember to keep in touch with us on Twitter and Facebook and email [email protected] with any feedback or complaints. Seriously, we love to hear from you, complaints and all!

Hello blind guys chatters! We start the show with a request for sighted partners who would like to take part in an interview this coming Thursday September 9. Clodagh is going to have a light-hearted chat about the trials and tribulations and funny experiences sighted partners have when living with someone with sight loss. Do you know someone who would like to take part? Email [email protected]!

The guys are talking about the weather again. This time it’s about the names for the upcoming storm season. Will there be a Jan, Stuart or Óran or even a Hector from HR storm? Jan is worried about needing a snorkel soon to live in the Netherlands. He lives 5 meters below sea level and is wondering how much above sea level Dublin is. He might need that zipline to make his escape after all!

We are talking to musician and singer Nicky Kealy about his time working on a cruise ship, how he has been dealing with COVID-19 and about his guide dog Phoebe.

Óran is getting on his high horse (again – cue eye roll!) in our TV corner section. He feels the Blind Guys should talk about content that is badly audio described as well as content that is well described. Have you any thoughts on this? Let us know! Talking about well-described content, Óran also tells us about a new crime drama starting on RTÉ ONE this coming Sunday, Sep 12 at 21:30.

We’ve got emails from our Dublin correspondent, Derry, who tells us about his new podcast ‘The Book Lovers Show’ - give it a listen, it’s great. Stuart has a book recommendation of his own, 56 Days by Catherine Ryan Howard. Fred in Margate is sympathizing with what Clodagh must put up with when we are very cranky. Blind Gordon lets us know his views on Soundscape. Gary in South Africa has a very special gift for the guys and Óran has great news about his Apple Watch. Clare McLaughlin tells us about SÚIL, Lines of Longitude on Rathlin Island.

So lie back, switch on the autonomous self-drive mode on your couch, take the curlers out of your hair and slip into a vat of double whipped cream while you listen to the greatest show on earth: Blind Guys Chat.

We have some nostalgia on the show this week as we are interviewing the legendary Adam Curry. Yes, the PodFather – co-inventor of podcasting.

Jan and Sjeff are beside themselves with excitement because Adam is their favourite DJ/MTV VJ. Adam talks to us about his life growing up in the Netherlands, his new life in Texas and all about Podcasting 2.0 and his No Agenda podcast.

We asked Jade McCormack to give us a demo of Microsoft Soundscape. Perhaps she can help Stuart find his way home so he can get to that piano for the email jingle. (Boo to the new jingle - Óran)

We have news on a new podcast from HIMS called Sensecast and we’ve got an email question asking the Blind Guys about their favourite music. Does Jan really dislike Run DMC?! And as for Stuart, The Lighthouse Family, really Stuart?!!

We've also got info on the Greenwich Docklands International Festival

So come on - kick off your shoes, whip off your bra, put on a pot of coffee, and give Blind Guys Chat a whirl!

Episode Notes

The day has finally arrived! The Blind Guys get to meet the new Director of Human Resources, Hector; and there are some new promotions and developments coming down the road. Will Stuart be happy? Let's wait and see...

The lads chat about the weather as usual, and Óran tells us that his guide dog Larry has been unwell lately.

Jan is about to head off on his holidays, but before he goes a WhatsApp for desktop demo is in order.

We have an interview with Dr Judy Dixon, who is Head of Consumer Relations at the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped in Washington DC. Judy has written a new book on audio description, which, as you all know, is our constant obsession.

The Microsoft Soundscape app is now available in Ireland. Stuart chats about it, and tells us how he managed to get lost while using it. We've asked him to do a demo for the next podcast, and hope he finds his way back home in time!

Clodagh is here with your emails about airport travel and politically correct language. Please keep the emails and voice messages coming - send them to [email protected]. Clodagh will be so happy!

All this and more in this episode. We hope you enjoy it.

Welcome to another fun-lovin' episode of BGC. We begin the show with some disruption as the builders are in to construct our new Director of HR's office complete with jacuzzi. Guess who is not happy about this...?

We have an interview with Mohammed Laachir who tells us about his life and how he got started working at Vispero. We have a big surprise for Stuart, as we bring on a guest he has a little bit of a crush on. Needless to say, he’s a bit shell shocked. Who could it be…? It's only the lovely Veronika Hyks, audio describer on The Crown and many other shows!

Clodagh is here with emails from Gary in Capetown, Derry from Dublin, Otis Mac Stroupy-Stroup and the guys are even asked for advice on how to follow the ball when watching soccer.

Jan gives us a weather update, Stuart is still complaining about his desk, and Óran is whinging about the lack of sing-ability of the new email jingle. Clodagh has a lot to put up with!

So, sit back, relax, and have a chuckle with the Blind Guys for a little while.