Highlights From Lunchtime Live

The General Election campaign will formally begin later today when Taoiseach Simon Harris asks President Michael D. Higgins to dissolve the Dáil. Harris will travel to the Áras to trigger a three-week campaign ahead of polling day on Friday November 29th. Joining Andrea to react to his speech and discuss what to expect is Craig Hughes, Political Correspondent with the Irish Daily Mail, with Newstalk’s Political Correspondent Sean Defoe and Newstalk Reporter Andrew Louth reporting on the ground.

Have playdates become too competitive?Writing in the Irish Independent today, Tanya Sweeney talks of homemade smoothies, crudites and educational games – very different from the past!Tanya, as well as Katie Makk from the Opinions Matter podcast, join Andrea to discuss.

On November 9th 1995, 21-year-old JoJo Dullard was on her way home from Dublin, where she had met with friends earlier that day. However, Jo Jo didn’t make it home to Callan, Co Kilkenny. 29 years on, her family are still urging anyone with information about where she might be to come forward.JoJo’s sister Kathleen joins Andrea to discuss.Image: PA

From a dog surviving 150 wasp stings to protests against a new McDonalds - Newstalk’s Eamonn Torsney has the stories from around the country that you might have missed this week.

Does smoking seem to be becoming fashionable for young people?The dangers of smoking are well known at this stage, but there are a number of young, influential celebrities, including Ireland’s own Paul Mescal, who continue to smoke.There has been an increase in the amount of smoking on TV shows and in movies; of the 10 films nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars, all except ‘Barbie’ feature smoking.What do you think? Are we in danger of having smoking being seen as ‘cool’?Andrea is joined by Entertainment Journalist Sarina Bellisimo, Newstalk Reporter Bella Finn and more to discuss.

From placement to painting them, how can you give your radiators a more prominent place in your house?Well, the Home Squad are here to chat about heating your house, but stylishly!Andrea is joined by Jenny Sheahan, Irish Examiner Columnist and former winner of ‘Home of the Year’ and Roisin Lafferty, Founder and Creative Director of Roisin Lafferty to discuss.

The long-awaited General Election has finally been called: it will happen on November 29th.The Taoiseach will ask President Michael D Higgins to dissolve the Dáil tomorrow.So, what do you need to know now?Joining Andrea to discuss what we can expect, and how you can register to vote if you haven’t already, is Newstalk Political Correspondent Seán Defoe.

Have you ever been told that there is a minimum 2 item purchase in a shop? Gordon posted about his experience lately when trying to buy a candle in Rituals in Kildare Village. Gordon joins Andrea, along with Stylist Laura Mullet, Damian O'Reilly, Lecturer in Retail Management at TU Dublin and more to discuss.Image: Kildare Village

Listener Siobhan Cunningham got in touch with the show about her story of a cardiovascular misdiagnosis.She joins Andrea to discuss, along with Dr Angie Brown, Medical Director at The Irish Heart Foundation.

From the arrival of Big Bird to a Christmas favourite, 98fm’s Ciaran O’Connor has plenty to chat about on this week’s throwback Thursday.Image: Disney

A new report from the Garda Síochána Inspectorate recommends that gangland informants who provide valuable intelligence on organised crime should be permitted to commit criminal offences in certain circumstances.What do you think about this approach?Should informants be allowed to get away with some crime if they are feeding information to the police?Joining Andrea to discuss is Nicola Tallant, Host of the Crime World Podcast & Investigations Editor with the Sunday World, Kathleen Chada, Founder of SAVE Action Group, Niall Spelman, former Assistant Governor of Wheatfield Prison and more.

Last week, Peter McElroy from myUKpension was on the show to discuss how you might be eligible to claim a UK pension. So many people sent in questions, that he joins Andrea again for this week’s Ask the Expert!

Can you make yourself into a morning person?Sleep Expert Tom Coleman has tips on how to make those early mornings a little brighter, and joins Andrea to discuss.

With the required 270 Electoral College votes passed, it is all but confirmed that Donal Trump will be returning to the White House as President of the United States.So, what are your reactions, did you stay up late for coverage, and is it anything you expected?Andrea is joined by Americans living in Ireland and Irish living in America to discuss reactions, as well as Newstalk Reporter Ellen Butler.Image: Reuters

Dinner party ‘do’s and don’ts’ have been revealed in a new survey.About a quarter of us taste food directly from a spoon we’re cooking with, while only a third have wiped down a bread knife and put it back in the rack!Joining Andrea to discuss more of these is Andrew Rudd, Chef and Director of Medley Restaurant and Tara O'Connor from The Designed Table.

Lunchtime Live's Reasons to be Happy looks at some of the news stories that you might have missed that will leave you feeling more optimistic.Today FM’s Cathal O’Sullivan joined Andrea in the studio to put a smile on your faces…

Welcome to The Pod Squad!We review podcasts every Tuesday so you always have something new to listen to.Sarah-Jayne Tobin, Editor of rollercoaster.ie and Laura Donnelly from Newstalk’s Newsroom joined Andrea to review ‘Against All Odds: Chilean Mine Collapse’!

Haughton’s Pub in Kilmeaden in Waterford closed its doors 14 months ago, but thanks to a group of regulars, the bar has reopened, much to the delight of the local community!Sean Lyons from Haughton’s Pub joins Andrea to discuss what happened.Image: Daft.ie

Election day voting has begun in the United States, with Donald Trump and Kamala Harris vying to become the next President.Harris has advocated for abortion rights and pledged to lower food and housing costs for working families, while Trump has vowed to seal the border and has proposed tax cuts worth trillions.So, who will win? And when will we know?Joining Andrea to discuss is Simon Marks, Chief Correspondent for Feature Story News in Washington DC. Newstalk Reporter Josh Crosbie and Chief Newstalk Reporter Barry Whyte also report from Mar-a-Lago in Florida and the University of California in Berkeley. Image: Reuters

Do you know how much Christmas is going to set you back?Irish Times Consumer Journalist, Conor Pope has calculated just how much Christmas will cost for a family of five in Ireland, and joins Andrea to discuss.