The Gambler – Details, episodes & analysis

Pat descends into the world of crime, as he goes after soft targets and finds the need of his gambling addiction overrides the weight of any guilt.

While his early crimes are small, they rapidly escalate and set his life on a drastically different course, leading to police attention, a desperate attempt to save his reputation and a sudden moment of self-reflection.

Limerick City, a young Pat Sheedy, the first bet, and the first con. This is how it all started, from minor moments that grew to become the start of a dark road.

How did his early years shape the life of crime to come? And what role did those days in Limerick play in his addiction?

Credits:

Producers/Presenters: Ian Maleney, and Nicola Tallant.

Executive producer for GoLoud is Eoin Brennan

Commissioning Editor: Darren Cleary

Sound design: Neil Kavanagh.

GoLoud promotion, design and video: Roisin Reilly, Siobhan Walsh, Cameron Rooney, Andrew McConnell and Darragh Murphy.

If you have been impacted by the issues raised in this series, you can contact Gambling Care on 1800 936 725, or visit gamblingcare.ie

Contact us at info@goloudnow.com

A phone call from prison begins a journey into the world of Pat Sheedy, a convicted fraudster who has a tip for us. And after that, he has an even bigger story to tell.

It leads us into a world of cons, crime, manipulation and addiction. But, can all be as it seems?

Credits:

Producers/Presenters: Ian Maleney, and Nicola Tallant.

Executive producer for GoLoud is Eoin Brennan

Commissioning Editor: Darren Cleary

Sound design: Neil Kavanagh.

GoLoud promotion, design and video: Roisin Reilly, Siobhan Walsh, Cameron Rooney, Andrew McConnell and Darragh Murphy.

If you have been impacted by the issues raised in this series, you can contact Gambling Care on 1800 936 725, or visit gamblingcare.ie

Contact us at info@goloudnow.com

The Gambler tells the fascinating, and often mysterious, tale of Pat Sheedy – a convicted fraudster from Moyross, Limerick, who perpetrated multiple cons to fund a gambling addiction that spiralled out of control and consumed his life.

Over the course of 18-months, Tallant and Maleney have delved into every aspect of Sheedy’s story, from his early life, to his descent into the world of crime, and his attempts to redeem himself and set right the wrongs of his past.

This eight-part series combines interviews with Sheedy, his victims, experts on gambling addiction, and a rich soundscape, to bring listeners on a deeply personal, riveting journey that explores crime, addiction, manipulation, guilt and redemption.

Pat attempts a new start in life, moving to Dublin. He begins a new career, and what feels like a new dawn. A new major figure in his life offers great new opportunities, but before long Pat begins to slide back into old habits, as he hunts out and devises new schemes.

Pat’s scamming hits an all-time high and  he leaves in his wake a trail of devastation. Countless people and businesses fall victim to a variety of schemes and scams, earning Pat tens of thousands of Euro through deception and fraud.

His victims come forward and lay bare how Pat’s scams evolved from low level grifting, to far more elaborate complex schemes, with multiple fictional characters and intricate planning to draw in his unsuspecting targets.

Does Pat’s scamming stop when his gambling stops, or is the relationship a little more complex and tangled?

Pat goes through a long period when he says he was clean – a decade or more of no gambling, no crime, a  steady job, and a successful life.

But how long could the calm last? After many years, the old ways find their way back in, and Pat finds himself juggling again. Juggling his addiction, his crime and every other part of his life.

It's time to confront Pat about his lies. And it brings up an important question - If he was lying about the small things, can he be trusted about the big stuff?

And what will Pat do next when it all comes crashing down?

Pat starts to become distant from us, cancelling meetings and covering up with lies that soon begin to unravel. We wonder what he could be hiding, and travel to Limerick where we end up in an unexpected surveillance operation.

Are we being unfairly suspicious, or has there been something more at play throughout all of this?