Recording in the wet, cold, grey and dreary year of 2026, Wet Cold Irish Summer is a comedy podcast that sees three comedians unearth the weird and wonderful gems that Ireland has to offer.
Much like its namesake, Wet Hot American Summer - a satirical comedy that sees a group of camp counselors attempting to complete their unfinished business on the last day of camp - the mission is to pack in as much chaos and fun as humanly possible in a short amount of time.
Unlike the movie, the deadline is less about the end of summer camp and more about three grown men attempting to scrape a few hours together, out of the house, off the phone, and away from the stage.
Our hosts are: Thomas Lawrance, a journalist with Cork Beo who hails from England; Mark Moloney, a stand-up comedian from Dublin; Ross O'Donoghue, a stand-up comedian who spent much of his life in America. And somehow, they've all ended up in Cork.
"We are all stand-up comedians of varying success," quips Thomas. "We've been thinking about doing a podcast for years, but it's a very saturated market. Three guys doing a podcast is very saturated."
"It's ended up being an excuse for us to spend time together," he adds. "As long as Mark's car can get us there!"
Set on exploring and celebrating every bizarre gem that Ireland has to offer, they have so far enjoyed a trip to the Titanic Experience, the Butter Museum, a dinosaur exhibition, and a once-in-a-lifetime meeting with twin pop stars and former X Factor contestants, Jedward.
"That was one of our most conflicting ones," Thomas says of the gig. "It ended up being quite a heated debate about Jedward's role in Irish culture, and our role as 30-ish-year-old men going to see them. These, sort of pop, ironic icons. We ended up going a tiny bit Blindboy on the existence of Jedward."
Other highlights included a storytelling night, a ghost tour, and a trip to the ice rink, which ended with one of the hosts going home with a broken rib.
The most memorable moment, though, had to be the trio's visit to a psychic medium in Cobh.
"We all went in very sceptical, but one of us came out having got a bit of a reading," he explains. "They really had their mind totally changed on the existence of the afterlife. So that was a really fun one, and a strange one."
"I never, ever would have gone to a psychic medium if it hadn't been for the podcast," he adds.
In fact, recording the podcast has led the men to complete a number of bucket list experiences. Despite being fascinated by the Titanic, for example, Thomas had never made it to the Titanic Experience in Cobh before an episode called for it.
"It's nice that we can, every couple of weeks, go and do something nice together," he adds. "The main thing is that it's funny, but it's also nice that it's a kind of self-help scheme for men in their mid-30s trying to be friends."
"As well as people, hopefully, finding us funny, and maybe being interested in some of the things we say about Jedward's cultural impact, I do hope that people think, 'oh, that sounds cool'."
Their next list of adventures is still in the works, but so far they're thinking of a visit to Ireland's little-known Amish community and a potential tour of the country's vape shops.
Tune into Wet Cold Irish Summer wherever you get your podcasts.
