It's that time of the year again: Ray D'Arcy has taken his show on the road. His first stop on Monday, was Waterford. Never one to shy away from some physical activity, Ray took the opportunity while in the south east to cycle the county's new off-road cycling and walking trail, the Waterford Greenway. All 46km of it. Then, fortified, no doubt, by some blaa, it was time to do some broadcasting.
The show set up in Garter Lane Theatre in Waterford city and one of Ray's guests was a legend in those parts: John Mullane, five-time hurling All-Star and passionate advocate for his native county. Mullane feels that Waterford has taken some big hits over the years, naming Waterford Crystal and Talk Talk as two big blows the city has suffered relatively recently.
"I've got three young kids. In fifteen, twenty years' time, I don't want to see my kids going to the other side of the world."
John told Ray that Waterford needs investment, and stressed that Waterford's voices need to be heard in Dublin. He's angry that his county seems to have fallen off the radar, but he doesn't believe in abusing politicians:
"If you abuse a politician, I mean, what's a politician going to do? He's going to turn around and say, look, two fingers to you, I'm not going to do anything for you."
Waterford, as Ray pointed out, hasn't had a minister since Martin Cullen left office in 2010, and that seems to make a big difference. John reckons that having a minister from the area meant that investment was made, but since 2010, there's been very little interest from successive governments.
"We want to go and dine with the Dublins, the Limericks, the Corks, the Galways. We don't want the breadcrumbs from Dublin."
Would John consider going into politics himself, Ray asked him? The response was cagey, but John wouldn't say either way. So, naturally, Ray took that as a yes…!
You can hear more from the Waterford legend that is John Mullane and listen back to the rest of The Ray D'Arcy Show here.