Join Ireland’s most popular comic satirist for brand new comedy, rants about the state of the world, and interviews with a twist. You never know what you’ll get by pressing play on this podcast, but you always know Mario Rosenstock will be there to welcome you in
The Secrets Behind the Bookies: How They Really Make Their Money
Ever wondered why the bookies always seem to come out on top? Or whether those tempting accumulators, bet builders and big-race specials are quite as attractive as they look?
Economist and UCD Professor Karl Whelan joins me on this episode to lift the lid on the economics of sports betting. His new book, Fine Margins: How Economics Explains Sports Betting, explores the mathematics behind the odds, the strategies bookmakers use to protect their profits, and why some of the most popular types of bets offer surprisingly poor value for punters.
There's also a brilliant story involving my great friend, the late Tony Fenton, Paddy Power and a €16,000 win on a Roy Keane Gift Grub sketch reaching Christmas number one. And we'll revisit that classic Roy Keane musical moment from the archives.
Karl previously worked as an economist at the US Federal Reserve, so we also chat about Donald Trump, the state of the American economy and the possibility that the enormous sums being invested in artificial intelligence could be fuelling another financial bubble.
Tour alert: My brand new live stage show ‘Boom’ has just gone on sale Nationwide- Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway, and Waterford. Tickets at Ticketmaster & venue box office. See you there !
23 Oct 2026
Mark Little: Will AI destroy us or make us more human?
Is AI is going to take your job, destroy civilisation or just make you feel completely inadequate?
My chat with Mark Little in this episode might help shed some light on the answers to these questions.
Mark is a former RTÉ foreign correspondent and news presenter, the founder of the very successful company Storyful, and somebody who's been at the forefront of the digital revolution for a long time.
He’s just written a fascinating new book called The Last Good Day on the Internet, about how technology has changed our lives, what we've lost along the way, and why the future might not be quite as bleak as we're sometimes led to believe.
We talk about whether AI could turn against us, why the people building it can sometimes seem a little bit mad themselves, and why the things that make us human might actually become more valuable in the years ahead.
COMEDY link – So it seems anyone who is anyone has a book to promote at the moment – and the intrepid team at RTE's Prime Time is worried...
Produced by Patrick Haughey, AudioBrand
17 Oct 2026
Held at Gunpoint, Chased by Cartels: The Extraordinary Life of Jeff Farrell
What kind of person voluntarily walks into a Venezuelan prison run by armed inmates, travels to the front line of a war without a flak jacket, or goes looking for drug cartels while supposedly on holiday?
Meet Jeff Farrell, an Irish journalist and author whose extraordinary career has taken him into some of the most dangerous places on earth. And as I quickly discover, Jeff has an almost unnerving ability to recount terrifying experiences as though they were just another day at the office.
Jeff tells me about being held at gunpoint in Caracas, gaining access to a notorious Venezuelan prison, and the remarkable chance encounter that led him to co-write the bestselling The Cocaine Diaries.
He also reveals what it was like working for a fiercely pro-Brexit British newspaper, following Nigel Farage around the campaign trail, and the rather colourful response Farage gave him when asked about the future of Irish people living in Britain.
And there's plenty more: reporting from the front line in Ukraine, a frightening encounter with a Mexican drug cartel, and Jeff's new crime thriller, Bad Blood in Caracas (https://www.jefffarrellonline.com/books), inspired by his years reporting in South America.
COMEDY - There are new houses being built near the home of Michael D Higgins – and he is NOT happy about it.
My brand new live stage show ‘BOOM’ is going Nationwide from early 2027 -book your tickets now on Ticketmaster or Venue box offices
Produced by Patrick Haughey, AudioBrand
Who has been a guest on The Mario Rosenstock Podcast
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Niall Harbison
Claire Roche
Justine Halpin
Ian O'Doherty
Fintan O’Toole
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
15 ratings
Spotify
4.7 / 5
395 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 57 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
75
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
97
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