Tabitha Monahan, political reporter with the Independent, journalist Lise Hand, Dave Hanratty, host of the No Encore podcast, and Eoghan Tomás McDermott, MD of the Communications Clinic, all join The Last Word to look back on the biggest news stories of 2024.

Stories include:

• Donald Trump's return to the White House

• General Election 2024

• Nikita Hand’s civil rape case against Conor McGregor

• Cillian Murphy's Best Actor win at the Oscars

Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

The Last Word remembers some of the famous people who passed away in the last year.

Journalist and broadcaster Tommie Gorman

Jim Beard, keyboardist with Steely Dan

John Savident, who played Fred from Coronation street

Tito Jackson from the Jackson 5

Actor James Earl Jones

Musician and producer Quincy Jones

Former Minister and TD Mary O’Rourke

Singer Marlena Shaw

Actor Dame Maggie Smith

Paul Di’Anno from Iron Maiden

Journalist and activist Nell McCafferty

Writer Edna O’Brien

Actor and musician Kris Kristopherson

Actor Donald Sutherland

Actor Shelly Duval

Philip Dadae Harvey from Soul II Soul

Actor Shannen Doherty

Actor and singer David Soul

Singer Liam Payne

Journalist Charlie Bird

Singer Dickie Rock

Comedian Jon Kenny

Commentator and national treasure Micheal O'Muircheartaigh

Musician Eoin French known as Talos

Roe McDermott and Brian Lloyd join The Last Word to chat about the best movies released in the last year.

There's been huge blockbusters like Dune Part Two and hits from Irish stars like Cillian Murphy, Paul Mescal and Kneecap.

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Ian Guider, columnist with the Business Post, joined Matt to discuss the biggest business stories that made the headlines throughout 2024.

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Judith Boyle, beverages lecturer in TU Dublin, joins The Last Word to discuss her top choices for whiskeys, gins, vodka and even poitín. Perfect for a last minute gift or as something special to sip on Christmas Day.

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From STEM gifts for curious minds to headphones and beer dispensers, Andy O'Donoghue has a comprehensive list of last minute tech gifts to suit everyone

To listen to the conversation, press the 'play' button on this page.

Dave Fanning was the latest inductee into The Last Word’s Culture Club on Wednesday.

Hit the ‘Play’ button on this page to hear his choices.

RIP.ie has announced it will be charging funeral directors €100 to post a death notice from January.

Clare Ann Irwin of Irwin Funeral Directors in Galway City joins The Last Word to discuss the change to one of Ireland's most popular websites.

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The cost of the average Christmas dinner is on the rise, according to new figures from Kantar.

Meanwhile, Chill Insurance is urging homeowners to keep their homes secure due to the fact that the Christmas period is a peak time for burglaries.

Charlie Weston joined Will O’Callaghan for Wednesday’s Personal Finance slot.

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Coimisiún na Meán is to join a European Commission election integrity investigation into video-sharing platform TikTok.

Andy O'Donoghue, tech journalist, joins The Last Word to discuss what this could mean for the social media company which is also facing an outright ban in the US.

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ABC News has agreed to pay Donald Trump $15 million to settle a defamation action, sparking concerns that the incoming President could bring more cases against other media outlets.

Cal Thomas, nationally syndicated US columnist, and Marion McKeone, US correspondent with the Business Post, join The Last Word to discuss this and more of the weeks news from the US.

Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!