Three Castles Burning: Recent Episodes
Donal Fallon
Three Castles Burning is a social history podcast, dedicated to the story of the Irish capital. Dublin is a city of many stories, Three Castles Burning tells some of the more forgotten ones.
In the early nineteenth century, Madame Tussaud spent several years in Dublin. Her waxworks and relics of the French Revolution proved a big draw for crowds here, packing out a gallery on Exchequer Street and touring the country. She would even create works honouring the leading Irish politician of the day. Her time in Ireland would shape her later world famous museum, and decades later it acquired a particularly gruesome relic connected to a violent day in Dublin.
In Ulysses, the pub we know as J & M Cleary's appears as The Signal House. It seemed a good location to explore food in the time of James Joyce. Ann Marie Duffin's fantastic page Bia Duit has been exploring food history and folklore, and she joins me to talk all things food in 1904. Ken and Gwen from the brilliant Assassination Custard - a beloved institution on Kevin Street - brought along their own unique contribution to proceedings, with food inspired by the time.
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At the recent Luke Kelly Festival, I was delighted to speak with Sabina Higgins (née Coyne) all about the Focus Theatre and Deirdre O'Connell. Bringing the Stanislavski acting system to Ireland in the 1960s, Deirdre transformed how young actors felt about the possibility of the theatre. The tiny Focus Theatre - with the support of Luke Kelly and others - had a massive impact on the theatre here, producing a generation of actors who would have real impact in the Irish arts. We talk about it, and Sabina's career more broadly, including the landmark television programme Insurrection (1966).
In October 1955, the visit of Yugoslavia to Dublin caused real division in Irish society. A top-class football side on the world stage, opposition to communism led Archbishop McQuaid and others to call for a boycott of the game. In a new book, Cold War Football: A History in Ten Matches, Alan McDougall and Tony Shaw examine this match and others like it, weaving Cold War tensions and the excitement of the beautiful game.
There could be nowhere more fitting to discuss the life of Edward Fitzgerald than upstairs in the Lord Edward, as part of Culture Date with Dublin 8. That he was born into privilege is clear, but Fitzgerald also rejected it, his sister recalling that "he was a Paddy and no more; he desired no other title than this." Annie Hughes is a singer and a member of An Góilín Traditional Singers. Fergus Whelan is author of Enemies of the State: Richard Musgrave, the Rebellion of 1798 and the Making of Sectarian Irish History.
John Gibney is co-editor of The Story of Us: Independent Ireland and the 1926 Census. On a sunny day, we sat on a bench dedicated in part to a man you'll find in that census, and discussed what is in this extraordinary landmark census. We look at some interesting people, like the writer Dorothy Macardle, the widowed Maud Gonne MacBride and an influential Italian on Pearse Street. An earlier episode made some predictions, but here we are looking at the real thing. The Story of Us is available now in all good bookshops.
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It would seem everyone in the city has an opinion on the shopping centre at the top of Grafton Street. With that in mind, it seems a good time for a potted history of it and the site it occupies. Controversial in its own day, the project was overseen by the architect James Toomey, though it fell somewhat short of the original vision. What is to be done with this 1988 centre, and why has its proposed replacement irked so many?
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In 1965, the body of Roger Casement was returned to Ireland. No longer condemned to the grounds of Pentonville Prison, he would be buried in Dublin's Glasnevin Cemetery, where he is one of the first graves a visitor encounters today. There were political questions around Casement's body in the 1960s, and his final request was not honoured. Rory Carroll, author of the bestselling 'A Rebel and a Traitor: A Fugitive, the Manhunt and the Birth of the IRA' joins me to discuss Casement, life and afterlife.
Today marks the 120th birthday of Samuel Beckett. Inspired both by this milestone anniversary and by the wonderful new exhibition of the work of photographer John Minihan in the National Gallery of Ireland, this episode explores sites that are important to the story of Beckett and Dublin. Some, like Trinity College Dublin, will be familiar. Others, like the family business on Clare Street where he wrote some of his collection More Pricks Than Kicks are unmarked today. Our journey brings us to places as diverse as Elvery's sport shop and Kennedy's pub, as we get to walk in Beckett's footsteps across a city he did love, despite the challenges it put before him.
With the 110th anniversary of the Easter Rising upon us, it seems a good time to look at one of the less familiar figures of the story. Somewhat in the shadows, Éamonn Ceannt was a meticulous organiser, vitally important not only to the revolutionary movements of his time but traditional music too. His Dublin centred on Rialto, Dolphin's Barn, Crumlin and the surrounding areas, and in this episode we learn about Ceannt's importance to the story of 1916.
(Thanks for your patience as we move - and thanks to all Patreon supporters as always)
In 1903, Saint Patrick's Day formally became a national holiday in Ireland, following a push from the Gaelic League. In the pages of their newspaper, An Claidheamh Soluis, a battle was waged for the closure of public houses on the day. Some publicans stood in opposition to this. This is the story of how a sober St Patrick's Day was achieved, and how it would take until the 1960s for change.
In 1997, David Bowie released Earthling, an album deeply influenced by the sound of drum and bass and industrial electronic music. Spending time in Dublin city, Bowie befriended the Quadraphonic collective, who brought the drum and bass sound to the city at venues like The Globe and The Kitchen. This led to a secret concert at The Factory venue in Ringsend. My guest Ray O'Donoghue is now the Night Time Economy Advisor to Dublin City Council, but was then part of Quadraphonic and opened for Bowie on the night.Contributions also come from John Brereton, Director of the DublinBowie Festival. This episode contains bad language.
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The release of the 1926 census from the National Archives of Ireland is now imminent. These returns should give us fascinating insights into a post-revolutionary Ireland. In this episode, we look at the capital in 1926. It was a defining year in Irish cultural history, with the birth of 2RN and O'Casey's Plough and the Stars, but it was also an austere time. Strikes were plentiful, with the General Strike in Britain grabbing the imagination of some, while the controversial IRA campaign against Moneylenders took up plenty of column inches. From the reconstruction of the city to the birth of Fianna Fáil, this is the story of the capital in a defining census year.
SERIES 4, EPISODE 1.
Welcome back to a new series. Emmett Grogan was one of the defining figures of American counterculture in the 1960s. Though his name is almost completely unknown in Ireland, the author of Ringolevio: A Life Played for Keeps is a man for whom Bob Dylan dedicated an album, and who was described by Abbie Hoffman (who he distrusted greatly) as "the hippie warrior par excellence." Yet before the Summer of Love took San Francisco, Grogan was in Dublin in the early 1960s. His accounts of the city are fascinating, from Neary's to Guinness, but how much of it is true?
You can read his account here: https://stealthiswiki.com/library/emmett-grogan-ringolevio
One of Dublin's Historians in Residence, Elizabeth Kehoe has developed a walking tour of Parnell Square which shines a lot on many aspects of its history. Walking around it, we encounter things as diverse as symbolic weapons in the mosaic tiles of the Garden of Remembrance and the coat of arms of the Duke of Rutland. In recognition of the involvement of the Hugh Lane Gallery in Dublin City Council Dublin Winter Lights, Elizabeth took me on a walk around one of Dublin's most important squares. With thanks to Dublin City Council for supporting this edition of the podcast.
James Earley comes from a family rooted in the story of Irish stained glass. As an artist, his work often pays homage to Earley Studios and those who came before him. As part of Dublin City Council Dublin Winter Lights, he has brought an extraordinary show to James Gandon's Custom House. This offered an opportunity to talk about his career to date, stained glass broadly, and art in the public sphere. With thanks to Dublin City Council for supporting this edition of the podcast. For more information.
More than just a resident of Oliver Bond House, Gayle Cullen Doyle is a vital voice within her community, advocating for and representing her neighbours. Eoin Ó Broin is the new author (with photographer Mal McCann) of a study on Herbert Simms, which places schemes like Oliver Bond House in context. Recorded in Oliver Bond House, this discussion is one that emphasises the importance of good quality public housing in any urban environment. Flats and Cottages: Hebert Simms and the Housing of Dublin's Working Class 1932-48 is available now.
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On three occasions, Charles Dickens would speak in Dublin. Each time huge crowds came to hear him speak in the Rotunda, with the crowds spilling out into Sackville Street and well beyond. A Christmas Carol was the highlight of all three tours. Beyond his readings, Dickens also wrote interesting letters from the city, comparing it favourably to London and Edinburgh. There was once a time when Dublin even had street names taken from the world of Dickens.
Cormac Murray is the author of a new study of the US Embassy in Ballsbridge. A visual feast, it explores one of Dublin's most unusual buildings in its architectural, social, cultural and political contexts. The work of John M. Johansen,described as "a Neoclassical Modernist", the building was something of a never-ending saga. In an edition of just 400, the study is available from Phibsboro Press
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The story of Guinness is one of great success, yes, but also turbulence. Together with historian Antonia Hart, Ned Guinness has produced a family history that doesn't shy away from the challenges faced, while shining a spotlight on some of the key figures in the ultimate success of the brand. Our story passes through events like 1798 and 1916, but there is also talk of the future.
Please vote for The Dublin Pub: https://www.irishbookawards.ie/
Lord Leitrim, John Twiss and the songs of our year (with Michael Steen)
This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Manchán Magan.
Singer Michael Steen (a member of the An Góilín Traditional Singers Club) has developed an intriguing calendar of the year, which creates a journey of song through the seasons. Some of these songs are tied to folklore traditions, others mark key anniversaries. In this discussion, we touch on all from the story of a detested landlord buried in St Michan's Church to the recently pardoned John Twiss. The calendar is available to view at www.songcalendar.ie.
Please vote For The Dublin Pub at https://www.irishbookawards.ie/vote/
Follow the Irish Traditional Song Calendar on Instagram at: https://www.instagram.com/irishsongcalendar/
At a packed Oak Room in the Mansion House, a celebration of the life of the journalist Con Houlihan last Saturday brought the audience on a journey into the work and passions of one of Ireland’s most beloved scribes. Born in Castle Island (two words, he insisted) in 1925, Con became the heart of the Evening Press newspaper on Dublin’s Burgh Quay. His love for his native Kerry, sport, literature, the theatre, St Patrick’s Athletic, the public houses of Dublin and more besides are all explored here. One of Ireland’s great actors of the stage, Brendan Conroy reads march reports and other pieces from Con, while the journalist, writer and friend of Con, Roy Curtis, held the attention of the room throughout with his beautiful memories of a man who influenced him greatly. Recorded at the Dublin Festival of History.
Thanks to all Patreons of the podcast (www.patreon.com/threecastlesburning) The Dublin Pub is available (with free post and packaging) from independent bookshop TheBookshop.ie.
Shaffrey Architects was established in 1967 by Patrick and Maura Shaffrey. Based on Ormond Quay,the practice has made a real and meaningful contribution to Dublin and beyond, with projects including 14 Henrietta Street and Wicklow Head Lighthouse. Fifty years on from Patrick Shaffrey producing The Irish Town: An Approach to Survival, Grainne Shaffrey joins me to talk about the journey since. This event was part of the brilliant Seán Corcoran Series in Drogheda’s Highlanes Gallery, an annual event dedicated to the life, work and memory of one of Ireland’s great collectors and local champions: www.seancorcoranseries.com/
(Image: William Murphy shot of 14 Henrietta Street. Creative Commons. With thanks to William for his on-going photography capturing Dublin.)
Brian Kerr’s voice is instantly familiar as a broadcaster, and his contribution to Irish football is extraordinary. Born in 1953, his first coaching role came while barely a teenager. In the 1980s he would come to manage the team he had supported since his childhood, St Patrick’s Athletic, before going on to historic victories with Ireland’s youth teams in the 1990s. In this discussion, we touch on everything from the 1966 World Cup Final to the visit of the Al-Helal Football Academy in Gaza to Dublin. A little language in this one.
With thanks to Naoise Nunn and all at Mindfield/Electric Picnic. For more on Kerr’s story, see Joe O’Rourke’s ‘The People’s Champions’ exploring his 1989/1990 league winning side.
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Padraic X. Scanlan is the author of Rot: A History of the Irish Famine. Framing the crisis in Ireland within the broader picture of Empire, this book brings much to how we understood the events that reshaped Ireland. While the crisis recalls rural Ireland, Dublin was central to the story, as the location of the Castle Administration and a bustling port. In this episode we touch on the peculiar story of Alexis Soyer, chef to London’s Reform Club, who would arrive in the city in 1847. Establishing a soup kitchen in front of the Royal Barracks, Soyer’s intervention was widely condemned in the contemporary press. Rot is available now in all good bookshops.
In 1860, a blaze in the Kildare Street Club led to the death of three workers and the destruction of an institution. Together with other fires of the era, this provided the imperative for a municipal fire service. While Captain James Robert Ingram’s name is associated with the ‘Whiskey Fire’ of 1875, there were many other significant fires, including the destruction of Dublin’s Theatre Royal. This all occurred in a time when a new scientific approach to firefighting was taking shape, thanks to the pioneering writing of James Braidwood, influenced by the Great Fire of Edinburgh. This episode explores the emergence of modern firefighting, and how Edinburgh and London paved the way for what followed in Dublin.
Las Fallon is the author of The Great Liberties Whiskey Fire (2025) available from Chapters Bookshop and online from Kenny’s at: https://www.kennys.ie/shop/the-great-liberties-whiskey-fire-fallon-las-9781916742673-1
Niamh Hassett and Sean Nugent join me in this special edition of the podcast, exploring a wonderful Tipperary tradition on Dublin’s Talbot Street. When the Premier County reach an All Ireland Final, hundreds gather to remember Seán Treacy on the morning of the game. What began this tradition, and why is it growing in popularity?
This month brings the fiftieth anniversary of the tragic murders of members of The Miami Showband. This band, drawing its members from both sides of the border, was a defining part of the showband scene that withstood the changing musical tastes of the country from one decade into the next. Where did the Showband Scene come from, and what were its lasting impacts on music in Dublin and beyond?
The Donnybrook Fair is recalled in ballad and memoir as a notorious and chaotic annual event, but what really went on there? Over centuries, the annual fair drew revellers from near and far to Donnybrook, but a combination of social reformers successfully brought about its demise in the 1850s. In this story, we meet characters as diverse as prize fighter Dan Donnelly, and civic reformer James Haughton.
This month marks the twentieth anniversary of the passing of the great Frank Harte, a truly remarkable man and Dubliner, who brought this fair to life in his singing.
Christina Wade’s new history of Irish beer is a masterclass in social and economic history. In the context of Dublin, it tells us a lot, especially about the challenges that faced breweries in turbulent times. In this episode, we look at her chapter ‘Porter Wars’, and how unfair trade laws and domestic and international politics all shaped the producing and selling of beer in Dublin. Filthy Queens: A History of Beer in Ireland is out now.
The first ever Kilkenny Law Fest took place last weekend. On its bill, a discussion with Superintendent Paul Maher of the Garda Historical Society. Paul did so much in the Decade of Centenaries to involve the force, and it was great to talk to him about the 1925 merging of the Dublin Metropolitan Police and AGS. This discussion takes in early Irish policing, as well as looking at what made Dublin unique in policing.
A nice mention for the podcast recently on Crime World inspired me to go back to the subject of the Animal Gang. Seperating fact from folklore, just who made up the so-called Animal Gang of 1930s and 1940s Dublin. Was there one gang, or does the term mean something much broader? What was the relationship between the Animal Gang and the turbulent politics of the time.
For more on the Animal Gang, see John Gibney’s Doc On One at https://www.rte.ie/radio/doconone/647163-documentary-podcast-animal-gangs-inner-city-dublin-folklore
Tony Gregory remains one of the most beloved TD’s in the history of the city. Lately, talk of the Molly Malone monument has reminded me of the story of Gregory’s activism on behalf of Dublin’s largely female street traders, and his comments on the statue of Molly in the late 1980s. Is it time to move her to a more fitting location, where Jeanne Rynhart’s monument might finally be respected?
Historian Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc has just produced Burn Them Out, a history of the Irish far-right. One of its most intriguing chapters studies the Blueshirt movement, tracing its development from an association of veterans into something much broader. Studying intelligence files and reports, Ó Ruairc demonstrates the surprising level of violence associated with this movement around the country. So, was Eoin O’Duffy’s so-called ‘March on Dublin’ ever a serious proposal, and what could have happened on the streets of Dublin in August 1933?
Buy the book: https://chaptersbookstore.com/products/burn-them-out?srsltid=AfmBOop0N2oZXPbSABE-zU5TPnUeajS5-fJ2bJ8TJrNdsMUQYynSN-tM
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Both Patrick Leo Burdock and Ivan Beshoff were revolutionaries, though in very different circumstances. These two names remain stalwarts of the Dublin chipper landscape, but did you know a branch of Leo Burdock’s was raided in 1941, or that Ivan Beshoff lived to be over 100? From the Battleship Potemkin to a tramway strike in Dublin, this is the story of two remarkable men.
This edition of the podcast contains adult language and themes and is not suitable for younger listeners.
This special live edition of the podcast was part of Abair, an annual programme within the Saint Patrick’s Festival. Joining me is Caroline West (author of a recent best selling history about Monto and a sex educator and columnist), Terry Fagan (oral historian and Monto expert), MacDara Yeates (singer and cultural programmer) as well as musical guests Sean Fitzgerald (The Deadlians) and Phelim Drew.
In Dublin, just a handful of public houses now open at seven o’clock in the morning. Where did these early houses come from, and what has influenced their decline? On this journey across the city, we visit a pub financed by the Beamish & Crawford Brewery, as well as the historic fruit and vegetable market. Thanks to Brand New Retro for scanning SLATE Magazine!
Bob Dylan’s 1966 visit to the Adelphi Cinema is a concert on which there is very little agreement. Torn apart by one Dublin reviewer, many who were there describe the gig in different terms entirely. For many in attendance, it was an extraordinary experience. Visiting Dublin in a year when The Clancy Brothers were putting Dublin’s story on the international map, the Dylan concert survives.
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Described by The Irish Times as 'raucous, bawdy, reflective and wistful in turn', Traditional Singing from Dublin is more than just an album of songs. Inspired by figures as diverse as Liam Weldon and Seosamh Ó hÉanaí, this work has a strong sense of history throughout. Macdara Yeates joins me. You can stream Traditional Singing from Dublin now. Tickets for TradFest are available at www.tradfest.com
In Glasnevin Cemetery, James Clarence Mangan’s grave lists him as ‘Ireland’s National Poet.’ Today, he is a curiously overlooked character. His influence on figures as diverse as Philip Lynott and Shane MacGowan is explored in this podcast, where Mangan’s biographer Bridget Hourican explores his life, and historian Warren Farrell discusses his resting place and memory. ‘Finding Mangan’ and ‘So Once Was I’ are both available now.
In 1898, tens of thousands of people paraded in Dublin for the unveiling of a foundation stone to a Wolfe Tone statue. So why did it not happen? Only in 1967 did Edward Delaney’s tribute to Tone appear on St Stephen’s Green. In this podcast, celebrating the fact the Tone monument is part of Dublin City Council’s Dublin Winter Lights, Delaney’s son and biographer joins me at the memorial to talk about one of my favourite Dublin statues. For more see: https://www.dublinwinterlights.ie/
These are exciting times at the Collins Barracks branch of the National Museum of Ireland. This week, the first Harry Clarke display at the museum opens, showcasing six works by Ireland's most beloved stained glass artist. The Museum is also taking part in the Dublin City Council 'Dublin Winter Lights' for the first time. Dónal Maguire, Keeper of Art & Industry at the National Museum of Ireland, gave me a sense of the museum and its collections. Tickets and more information from www.dublinwinterlights.ie.
The story of Michael Healy is one that tells us much about the Dublin of his time. Born into a working class inner-city family in 1873, Healy was shaped by the artistic and cultural movements of the time, becoming a central figure in the stained glass studio An Túr Gloine. The work of that studio is still to be found across Dublin today. His biographer David Caron joined me in Dublin’s Hugh Lane Gallery to discuss Healy and his time. Be sure to check out the Hugh Lane Gallery's fantastic After Hours programme. With thanks to the gallery and Sherpa events.
In the heart of Dublin’s north inner-city, the SFX was one of the defining venues of Dublin’s music scene. U2, The Smiths, New Order, Siouxsie and the Banshees and The Pogues are just some of the acts to have taken to the stage in the Jesuit hall that enjoyed a remarkable second life. I’m joined by David Bell (who experienced the venue as a fan, reporter, merchman and band manager) and Paul Page (Whipping Boy). Thanks to Laura Williams, Jackie Trulock and all at the Annesley Bridge House.
Bram Stoker’s life and career was shaped by the strong women around him. Charlotte Stoker, his mother, raised him on folklore and stories of her own youth, while Speranza (Lady Jane Wilde, the mother of Oscar) was a key influence in expanding his knowledge of Ireland’s folklore and mythology.
I’m joined by Marion McGarry, author of the acclaimed book Irish Customs and Rituals and an authority on Charlotte Stoker to discuss some of the women central to Stoker’s life and work. Live readings by actor Eva Jane Gaffney bring their words to life.
Marion's book is available from: https://www.orpenpress.com/books/irish-customs-and-rituals/
Irish Food History: A Companion is an extraordinary thing - a moment in Irish publishing history. Coming in around 800 pages, it covers everything from archaeology and food to the pub grub of today. Full of archival images, poetry, recipes and more besides, the book captures the best of what is happening in Irish food research. On this episode, editors Dorothy Cashman and Máirtín Mac Con Iomaire join me to go through this collection.
The book is available from: https://booksupstairs.ie/product/irish-food-history-a-companion/
Paula Meehan is a poet for whom history is a constant source of inspiration. In this discussion at the Dublin Festival of History, she reads a number of poems written throughout the Decade of Centenaries, as well as other work shaped by the past. Paula’s collection, The Solace of Artemis, is available from: https://booksupstairs.ie/product/the-solace-of-artemis/
Lee Miller is best recalled now for her defining images of the Second World War. With Kate Winslet playing the role of Miller in a new film, it seems a good time to explore Miller’s visit to Dublin in the winter of 1946. Sent by Vogue to photograph James Joyce’s Dublin, her images capture scenes like Barney Kiernan’s public house and Belvedere College.
Catriona Crowe is former Head of Special Projects at the National Archives of Ireland. She is Ireland’s most recognisable archivist, and someone to whom all historians of modern Ireland are indebted. At the recent Seán Corcoran Series (www.seancorcoranseries.com/) we discussed archives, oral history and much more.
Clodagh Finn and John Morgan have produced an important history of the involvement of Irishmen and women in the anti-fascist movements of the Second World War. One of the most extraordinary stories they have uncovered is Catherine Crean, a woman in her sixties originally from Dublin’s Moore Street. She would give everything in defence of democracy and in opposition to Hitlerism. The Irish in the Resistance is out now (Gill Books.)
This year marks four decades of the DART. Along with that, the Luas has turned twenty. These two services have radically changed how we live in Dublin, but where did they come from and how did Dublin's transport history shape them? This episode explores these things and questions of tomorrow.
Seeing the inevitable headlines on the horizon around the Wolfe Tones performing at Electric Picnic, I decided to reach out to Brian Warfield for a chat about his book, The Ramblings of an Irish Ballad Singer. Amongst other things, Brian spoke to me about his family origins, why the Tones recorded songs like 'The Sash', and the importance of the English folk music revival for his band.
(Original image: Richard Walshe, Mindfield Flickr)
The Liffey Swim is a beloved painting, and one of the most visited works in the National Gallery of Ireland. A century ago, it led to the first Olympic medal of the new Free State. With calls for the creative arts to return as a competitive dimension of the Olympics, this episode explores Jack B. Yeats and the cultural and political context of his win.
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At the Irish Museum of Modern Art, a new exhibition explores the life and work of artist Hilary Heron. Like many, I came away from it amazed that this important modernist sculptor was not better known here. Born in Dublin in 1923, her work achieved international recognition in her own lifetime. Dr. Billy Shortall is the author of an essay on Heron in the exhibition catalogue, and has done great work to bring her back to deserved prominence.
An article by Billy on Heron can be read at www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2021/0105/1187779-hilary-heron-sculptor-art-ireland/
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More than just one of Ireland's most beloved musicians, Martin Hayes is also the author of Shared Notes: A Musical Journey. In his memoir he introduces us to a host of brilliant characters, ranging from childhood friends and relations in East Clare to those who would become central to The Gloaming. One figure we meet is Tommie Potts, a Dublin firefighter from the Coombe and a fiddle player. The Liffey Banks remains a beloved record. In this excerpt from a conversation at London's Féile MOTH, Hayes discusses Potts and revisits a tune that means much to him.
Orson Welles made his stage debut in Dublin. To him, The Gate Theatre would always be a part of the story of his own life development and professional career. Later, he returned to scenes of protest against the same theatre for hosting him. In time, all was forgiven and Welles would deliver an astonishing Q and A before a packed Dublin crowd who quizzed him on everything from American politics to the future of cinema.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of Red Roses For Me, the first album from The Pogues. Borrowing its title from Sean O'Casey, it also carries literary influences like Ulysses and Brendan Behan proudly. As an exhibition on the London-Irish currently runs in Dublin's EPIC emigration museum, what better time to discuss this defining London-Irish band who still mean so much? Here Comes Everybody by James Fearnley (Faber & Faber) is available now.
We know it as ‘On Raglan Road’, but the journey of the song that began life as a poem tells us a lot about Bohemian Dublin in an earlier time. In the Bailey tent at the Luke Kelly Festival, playwright Jimmy Murphy takes us through the story of the Kavanagh masterpiece Luke Kelly made his own. We also get a great rendition from Fergus Whelan (with a little help from Patrick Kavanagh in the recording!).
Like his father Jim Hand before him, promoter Brian Hand would build a real and lasting relationship with The Dubliners over many years. For singer and actor Phelim Drew, the band were like an extension of family. In this discussion, recorded live at the Luke Kelly Festival, we get into great personal memories of The Dubliners and what the band still mean today.
Contains some bad language.
Fifty years ago today, a series of no-warning car bombs erupted across Dublin and Monaghan. This would prove to be the bloodiest day of the Troubles. Immediately, questions were raised about how this event had come to pass. In a new documentary, director Joe Lee and producer Fergus Dowd explore what happened on 17 May 1974. Warning: This episode is quite graphic in describing the day. This episode of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Derek Byrne.
Temporary interventions into the Dublin streetscape have a curious history. This week, the livestream portal with New York made international headlines. For me, it recalled the CowParade, Bowl of Light and other such things.
When you put something out there on the street, there's no way of telling how people will respond.
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In 1970, the outdoor rock festival was a totally new idea in Ireland. Amidst press coverage of Woodstock and the Isle of Wight, focused on LSD and exagerated crowd trouble, the booking of Mungo Jerry, Thin Lizzy and others for Richmond Park would be the first Dublin experience of such a festival here. Why did this festival fail? And how, just a few short years later, had the festival become such an integral part of Irish youth culture?
To the Dublin press, the American Civil War veterans in Dublin cut an unusual shape. These ‘Yankee’ characters looked different, but they also behaved differently. Under the direction of Captain Thomas J. Kelly, these men would be centrally important to the Fenian uprising of 1867. While history remembers this as a skirmish on a hill in Tallaght, much more happened in March 1867 than that.
The story of Mount Jerome Cemetery is the story of Victorian Dublin. There, many of the great innovaters of the city are at rest. If Glasnevin brings to mind the Irish revolution, Mount Jerome instead makes us think of the nineteenth century. Still, there is great diversity in who is (and isn't) buied there. This is a story that touches on everyone from Charles Stewart Parnell to the so-called 'General.'
Thanks to Patrons of the podcast whose support made this research possible.
The labour leader Jim Larkin was international news when he departed Ireland in 1914. In America, Larkin would cross paths with the FBI founder J. Edgar Hoover, landing in prison for 'Criminal Anarchy'. What did all of this mean back in Dublin? My guest is Ronan Burtenshaw, author of a recent piece on Larkin for Jacobin magazine: https://jacobin.com/2024/01/jim-larkin-ireland-labor-150
This year marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Jim Larkin. In this two-part special, Ronan Burtenshaw (author of a recent piece exploring Larkin for Jacobin magazine) joins me to discuss this important and divisive revolutionary figure. Larkin in Dublin means 1913, but where did he come from? This story brings us from Liverpool Cathedral to the streets of West Belfast.
Ronan's piece: https://jacobin.com/2024/01/jim-larkin-ireland-labor-150)
Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc is no stranger to this podcast. While his latest book explores 'The Disappeared' (launching this month from Merrion Press), he has also been undertaking a study of the far-right in Ireland historically. Moving beyond the familiar, like the Army Comrades Association ('the Blueshirts'), Pádraig's study begins with some more overlooked groups. Even before Oswald Mosley, the British Fascisti were a force with surprising connections to Dublin, and an active branch in the city.
SEASON 3!
A recent television debate on the Irish language in schools reminded me of a curious story from history. The Language Freedom Movement touches on many widely known figures in 1960s Ireland, including John B. Keane and the broadcaster Gay Byrne. In the Mansion House, a meeting descended into chaos.
2023 marks the 200th anniversary of the Royal Hibernian Academy, an institution which has moved across the Liffey owing to the flames of Easter Week, and which has championed the visual arts through an ever-changing Ireland. Cristín Leach is the author of a new creative study of the body, which weaves history and art to tell the story.
Over five generations, one family have played a unique role in the story of the Phoenix Park. More than that, the Flanagan family have a history that stretches back even earlier in the story of this beloved space. Joyce maintained that in the particular is contained the universal - can we tell the story of a place through this one unique tale?
The Lamplighters of the Phoenix Park is available now from all good bookshops.
Brendan Kelly is the author of a new history of Grangegorman and the asylum located there for generations. This conversation was recorded within the grounds of the site. What was the life of a patient in an asylum really like? Through letters, medical records and doctors' notes, Brendan Kelly gives us a glimpse inside Grangegorman and the lives of those who lived and worked there.
Not a particularly easy listen at times - and please note that some of the language, drawn from primary sources, reflects very different times.
Ridley Scott doesn't seem to get on with historians, but here is a nice little story all about Napoleon and his surprising Dublin connections. One of the most revealing and personal insights into Napoleon came from a Dublin doctor who spent time with him on the island of St Helena.
My Name Is Napoleon Bonaparte by Dónal Lunny and Frank Harte was released in 2001.
Nicola Pierce is the author of O'Connell Street: The History and Life of Dublin's O'Connell Street. It is a book as much about people as buildings, which charts the unique story of Ireland's most famous street. Now illuminated in a unique way as part of Dublin Winter Lights, we walked the street together on a busy evening chatting about its statues and landmarks. Thanks to the team at Dublin Winter Lights (www.dublinwinterlights.ie)
James Morrissey has produced a beautiful and important book exploring the history of Claddagh Records and Garech Browne. 'Real to Reel' explores a record label which championed not only Irish folk and traditional music, but also poetry and the visual arts. Now, the label has returned with great new talents including OXN. Both me and James Morrissey will be appearing at 'Banter' at Other Voices this weekend.
Thanks for your patience. We raised thousands of euro towards a good cause, as mentioned in the introduction here.
Roger Doyle has made an incredible contribution to Irish music across decades. In this discussion he talks about everything from his own musical beginnings to Operating Theatre, and from The Diceman (Thom McGinty) to James Joyce. Roger Doyle's music is available from https://rogerdoyle1.bandcamp.com/
This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of my friend Hughie Friel.
(Image Credit: The cover of 'Spring is Coming with a Strawberry in the Mouth' by All City Records, image by Amelia Stein)
Irish supernatural writing did not begin or end with the great Bram Stoker. Indeed, even within Stoker's own family there were other great writers. In this very special edition of the podcast, actor Kathy Rose O'Brien brings to life four extraordinary authors, while Brian J. Showers of Swan River Press talks us through this genre. www.swanriverpress.ie
This December - most likely - marks the centenary of the birth of Anthony Cronin. His memoir of Bohemian Dublin, Dead As Doornails (1976), remains a masterpiece. With Jimmy Murphy, I went through the book and its importance. With thanks to Ian Dunphy at the Museum of Literature Ireland for sound.
P.S, 'The Lamplighters of the Phoenix Park' is out now!: https://www.kennys.ie/shop/pre-order-category/the-lamplighters-of-the-phoenix-park-donal-fallon-with-james-and-frank-flanagan-9781399722810
Did you learn much about yourself in Lockdown times? Dermot Bolger (poet, publisher, playwright and more besides) discovered some of the incredible people who lived in his locality in times gone by. These included the radical Grace Gifford Plunkett, architect Herbert Simms and the writer Patricia Lynch. In Other People's Lives, Dermot honours these people and captures a moment in time beautifully. Available from: https://www.newisland.ie/poetry-drama/other-peoples-lives
Geographer Joseph Brady is the co-producer of a new study of Dublin in maps. This journey begins with the earliest depictions of the Irish capital, but brings us through some fascinating oddities. Did you know that the Soviet Union produced a map of the city for intelligence purposes, or that mapping Dublin's postcodes has proven surprisingly divisive? Dublin: Mapping the City is available now.
There are few careers in Irish music as extraordinary as that of Dónal Lunny. His name will forever be connected with the groups Emmet Spiceland, Planxty, The Bothy Band and Moving Hearts. Yet beyond being a defining musician, he has made important contributions on the other side of the sound desk too. In this discusssion, recorded at Another Love Story, we pass through some of the greatest Irish albums of the twentieth century.
Three Castles Burning: A History of Dublin in Twelve Streets is available now with free P&P from: https://www.kennys.ie/shop/three-castles-burning-a-history-of-twelve-dublin-streets-donal-fallon-9781848408722
A real privilege to talk to an artist who first emerged in the 1960s, and who is still making fantastic work today. Any discussion with Jim Fitzpatrick passes through subjects as diverse as Harry Clarke, Ernesto 'Che' Guevara, Phil Lynott, Sinéad O'Connor and the world of Marvel. Recorded at the Electric Picnic, thanks to those of you who came along. This episode touches on some serious issues including the Dublin bombings, the Troubles and addiction.
Visuals can be viewed on Instagram at @threecastlesburning, on Twitter @fallon_donal and on Patreon.
Jim's work: https://jimfitzpatrick.com/
'Three Castles Burning' with free P and P: https://www.kennys.ie/shop/three-castles-burning-a-history-of-twelve-dublin-streets-donal-fallon-9781848408722
Seán O'Casey had a turbulent relationship with the Abbey Theatre. Now, his Dublin trilogy is back on the stage of the national theatre. Championed with his arrival on the stage in 1923, and denounced in 1926 with The Plough and the Stars, O'Casey remains one of the most inspirational figures of twentieth-century Irish theatre. Did you know that Alfred Hitchcock tried his hand at bringing O'Casey to the world of cinema?
TCB book with free P&P in Ireland: https://www.kennys.ie/shop/three-castles-burning-a-history-of-twelve-dublin-streets-donal-fallon-9781848408722
TCB Patreon: www.patreon.com/threecastlesburning
Peig McManus was born into a life in tenement Dublin in the late 1930s. In subsequent decades, she became one of Ireland's most recognisable voices for educational reform. In her brilliant memoir, I Will Be Good: A Dublin Childhood and a Life Less Ordinary, she talks about her childhood, her time in school, her activism over many decades and the various campaigns for educational reform. Recorded live at 14 Henrietta Street. Peig's book: https://chaptersbookstore.com/products/peig-mcmanus-i-will-be-good-2023-paperback Teatime Talks: https://14henriettastreet.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/873650441
The body of Daniel O'Connell is at rest in Glasnevin Cemetery, an institution with which he is eternally linked. His heart? Well, that has been something of a mystery. Dublin artist Claire Halpin joins me this week to talk about her recent show in Rome, and a little intervention she made into the question of just what happened to the heart of 'The Liberator'.
https://clairehalpin2011.wordpress.com/
This episode is dedicated to the memory of Sinéad O'Connor.
The Foggy Dew is in itself a historic document. Written in 1919, this story of the Easter Rising and the contrasting World War has gone around the world. This episode of the podcast explores the song and its meaning, and how it came to bring together the incredible talents of The Chieftains and Sinéad O'Connor.
The National Stadium on the South Circular Road has witnessed some really incredible nights. To some, it is the home of Irish boxing, a story that's connected to the sporting history of the Gardaí as well as the endless enthusiasm of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association. To others, it is a gig venue which recalls names like Planxty, Led Zeppelin and Leonard Cohen. Thanks for your memories!
In June 1963, President John F. Kennedy arrived into a city in crisis. As Dublin tenements seemed to be collapsing to the touch, the visit of a U.S President was a welcome distraction. In some ways, it was a distraction for him, too. History recalls New Ross, but in Dublin there were significant moments, captured brilliantly by reporters and writers like the poet Louis MacNeice.
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Sincere thanks to the Dalkey Book Festival for the invitation to interview Roddy Doyle. This was a chance to talk about things as diverse as Maeve Brennan, the impact of the 1974 Dublin bombings, Myles na gCopaleen and more. A language warning on this one.
Bloomsday as we know it owes its existence to Brian O'Nolan, otherwise Myles na gCopaleen, otherwise Flann O'Brien. In 1954, he was the catalyst for gathering together a number of Dublin McDaidsian types who embarked on an epic journey of their own in honour of Leopold Bloom, Buck Mulligan and the cast of Ulysses. They didn't make it too far.
This week, we got some data from the 2022 Census. It seems a good time to look into the past. The census has always given us unusual insights into Ireland. We can find humour and protest in it too.
See: http://www.census.nationalarchives.ie/
The Phoenix Park assassinations of May 1882 shook British politics. All had heard of the Fenians, but who were the Invincibles? Today, a cross in the grass on Chesterfield Avenue marks the location where these events played out - but who put it there?
Thanks for your patience! This new episode explores the incredible life and influence of Peadar Kearney, a key figure in the Cultural Revival then, and the folk revival now. My guest is Macdara Yeates of 'The Night Before Larry Was Stretched', a monthly singing session in The Cobblestone. He's also co-producing 'One Hundred Years of Brendan Behan'. https://ilfdublin.com/whats-on/one-hundred-years-of-brendan-behan/
The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists is a book that had a massive impact on British society. Some say it helped win a General Election, George Orwell called it essential reading. In Ireland, it is little known, despite the author coming from Wexford Street. This week, playwright Jimmy Murphy joins me to talk about the impact this book had on his own life and work.
The area between Smithfield and Capel Street has historically been known as 'The Markets'. A recent event gave some idea of what this area could be. Today, we're exploring it with a hopeful message for the future.
This week marks the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Archbishop John Charles McQuaid. I visited the studio of acclaimed artist Robert Ballagh, who has just painted the Archbishop. In the 1980s, Ballagh painted Noël Browne, the Minister for Health who clashed with McQuaid. These two works are connected in many ways.
The story of U2's emergence is connected to the broader story of late 1970s Dublin. From the Project Arts Centre to the explosive visit of The Clash to the unlikely setting of Trinity College Dublin's exam hall, this episode brings you behind the scenes of the recent documentary U2: A Sort of Homecoming.
Arran Henderson of Dublin Decoded knows the streets of Dublin inside out. On a walk through streets I always think of as part of a different Dublin story, he showed me how Werburgh Street, Fishamble Street and others were all central to the story of early Dublin theatre. On this journey we meet some interesting characters, from a pioneering nationalist theatre director to the much-feared Lord Deputy of Ireland. Dublin Decoded tour tickets are available from dublindecoded.com
(Image: Thomas Wentworth)
One of the most eagerly awaited books about the city in recent years, Dublin: A Writer's City is a triumph. In this edition of the podcast, presented as part of the Young Hearts Run Free series, author Chris Morash brings us on a journey across literary Dublin. (Event poster by Niall McCormack)
This episode of the podcast explores some of the most peculiar films shot in Dublin over many decades. From Fu Manchu to the Bogside, we're looking at times directors turned Dublin into somewhere else.
(Reupload, apologies due to podcast hosting gremlins!)
Part II of the Brendan Behan centenary special, this journey brings us through some surprising places. From Littlewood's London to strange times in North America, this is the story of the fame and fall of Brendan Behan.
Part II of the Brendan Behan centenary special goes to some surprising places. At the heart of the story is the brilliant Joan Littlewood, who championed Behan's work and brought him to new audiences. We're passing through London, New York, Toronto and more.
Support TCB: www.patreon.com/threecastlesburning
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This week marks the centenary of the birth of Brendan Behan. Over two editions, Three Castles Burning will explore the life and times of this remarkable talent. In the first part, we look at Behan's revolutionary days and the impact of Borstal on him.
Musician Joe Chester has produced a beautiful musical tribute to Lucia Joyce, the dancer and illustrator. Daughter of James Joyce, Lucia was born in Trieste in 1907. She would spend more than four decades of her life in institutions after being diagnosed as schizophrenic in the mid-1930s. 'Lucia' by Joe Chester is his first major composition for classical guitar & strings, inspired by her journey.
Support TCB: www.patreon.com/threecastlesburning
This week, a new app launched exploring the history of Dublin's Docklands. Where do the Docklands begin, and what remains are left of its industrial past? This episode explores the changing fortunes of Dublin's Docklands, and the working class communities who lived and worked alongside it. Oh, and a disappearing elephant!
Dublin Discovery Trails: https://doorsintodocklands.com/
On the outskirts of Dublin city, a series of memorial crosses mark sites were bodies were discovered in 1922 and 1923. A sad part of the Civil War conflict, they are a reminder of how the conflict deteriorated in the city. In a war with no clean hands, as discussed in this show, they show how former comrades could turn on one another. Historian John Dorney, author of The Civil War in Dublin (Merrion Press), joins me. Dorney's book: https://www.irishacademicpress.ie/product/the-civil-war-in-dublin-the-fight-for-the-irish-capital-1922-1924/ Support TCB: www.patreon.com/threecastlesburning
When Pele visited Dublin with Santos in 1972, one Irish newspaper proclaimed him to be "Soccer's Sinatra."
In a country that came late to television - and which fell in love with the global game thanks in no small part to the magic of Pele in the 1970 World Cup - Santos vs Bohemians/Drumcondra was the hottest ticket in town. The game proved somewhat lacklustre, but many will never forget seeing Pele on Irish soil.
Happy New Year!
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Luke McManus has produced North Circular, a documentary which brings the viewer on a journey from the Wellington Testimonial all the way through the north inner-city. He chatted to me about the NCR, the various people who call it home and what it means for Dublin today.
North Circular info: https://twitter.com/northcircular_
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Each year, Dublin City Council hosts the Winter Lights festival, lighting up key buildings and sites around Dublin. Myself and historian Fergus Whelan went for a walk through some of the 2022 locations, from the Marshalsea Prison to Wolfe Tone Park. Did you know that the 'Father of the Scottish Enlightenment' is buried in Dublin, or that Smithfield was once transformed into Checkpoint Charlie? For more see: Dublin Winter Lights.
Dermot Looney has spent years working away on a history of Saint Patrick's Athletic. The final product, which includes a beautiful introduction by Brian Kerr, is something much broader - an important social history of Inchicore. Saint Pat's emerge as a club strongly connected to the railway works, and with surprising connections from the very beginning. Saints Rising is available now.
What can we learn about a subject by looking at 100 objects? Thanks to Siobhán Doyle, author of a new study 'A History of the GAA in 100 Objects', for getting into material culture, museums and the social history of the Gaelic Athletic Association with me. From Michael Cusack (was he 'The Citizen?') to yellow sliothars, we're talking about.....stuff.
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Hans Holzer was a well-known broadcaster and author in the United States, perhaps the most famous 'ghost hunter' of his day. In 1965 and 1966, he made research visits to Ireland. In Dublin, he heard some amazing stories, and went in search of ghosts in some familiar and lesser-known places.
Hans Holzer was a well-known broadcaster and author in the United States, perhaps the most famous 'ghost hunter' of his day. In 1965 and 1966, he made research visits to Ireland. In Dublin, he heard some amazing stories, and went in search of ghosts in some familiar and lesser-known places.
Sam Stephenson (1933-2006) is one of the most important - and divisive - architects in the history of the Irish capital. As the Central Bank returns to view, we're looking at it and other Stephenson projects in the city. Some, like the Dublin Institute of Advanced Studies (DIAS), have recently become protected structures. Others have already been lost.
A young Edna O'Brien fell in love with Dublin. The city would shape her life and her work. It brought love, lust, learning. Now, at 91, her play Joyce's Women takes to the stage of the Abbey Theatre. This podcast explores how Dublin impacted on her, and how she impacted on it.
Housing is today the issue of issues in Ireland, but what can we learn from looking back? Over the course of a century, the Irish state has had successes and failures when it comes to housing. Eoin Ó Broin is the author of Home: Why Public Housing is the Answer, he's also someone firmly at the centre of the political debates around housing in Ireland today. On a wet day in a field in Laois, he answered my questions and a few from the floor. With thanks to Naoise Nunn and Mindfield at Electric Picnic.
When standing in front of Clery's today, and beside the Larkin statue, it is difficult to imagine this was once the site of a brutal police riot in 1913. Just what happened on the first Bloody Sunday in twentieth century Irish history? This is the story of Larkin, the ITGWU and a city of tension.
When standing in front of Clery's today, and beside the Larkin statue, it is difficult to imagine this was once the site of a brutal police riot in 1913. Just what happened on the first Bloody Sunday in twentieth century Irish history? This is the story of Larkin, the ITGWU and a city of tension.
In recent weeks, a headstone was unveiled in Deansgrange Cemetery honouring Kathleen and Stephen Behan. The parents at 70 Kildare Road in Crumlin, their children would produce an astonishing array of songs and plays capturing the Irish experience. This podcast includes voices from the day, as well as rich archive.
Support TCB: www.patreon.com/threecastlesburning
From The Rag Trade to The Castle Lounge, South William Street has come on a great journey. Now, the street is set for significant change. This journey brings us through the changing fortunes of a city, and while the Georgian buildings may speak loudest on the street, there is much more to South William Street.
This episode of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Mícheál Ó Doibhilín. In 1922, thousands of people from Belfast and other northern cities were arriving into Dublin and other places in the new Free State. Where would these people be housed, and what kind of life could they expect? There was surprising opposition to what the press termed the 'Belfast Pogrom refugees'.
In Temple Bar, a plaque honours the Hirschfeld Centre. At Bow Lane East, an aging sign is all that remains of Incognito, a gay sauna that made it to the front of the international press in the early 1990s for all of the wrong reasons. Then there's Dublin Castle, a site of joy and scandal. These are just some of the many sites of memory that help us tell the story of Gay Dublin.
This episode contains some explicit language.
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In June 1962, Sylvia Beach was in the last months of her life. She unveiled a tower in Sandycove as a museum to James Joyce. Without her, would the world have known the significance of that place? Her little Parisian bookshop will forever be bound to Dublin.
Last week, a series of commemorative brass plaques were unveiled on Dublin 8's Donore Avenue in honour of six victims of the Holocaust with connections to Dublin. These memorial stones are part of a truly global project honouring the victims of the Holocaust, but marked the first on Irish soil. This edition of the podcast explores the background to this project.
Sarah Cecilia Harrison (1863–1941) lived many lives in one. A Suffragist, a social campaigner, a nationalist and an artist, she was closely aligned with Hugh Lane in the battle for a modern art gallery in London. The first female member of Dublin Corporation, she is the subject of a new study. Editor Margarita Cappock joins me to discuss her importance.
Joseph Brady is a geographer with a special interest in the changing landscape of the city and county of Dublin. A discussion on Dublin since the 1970s brings us through things like smog, the stinking Liffey, the quays and the changing docklands. Some change was good, some wasn't, and some remains on the table.
Brady's new study Dublin from 1970 to 1990: The City Transformed is available now.
Thomas Kinsella from The Ranch was one of Ireland's great poets, but Dublin - and working class Dublin especially - was at the very heart of his work. This podcast explores what we might call Thomas Kinsella's Dublin, from his home on the border of Inchicore and Ballyfermot to Wood Quay.
"In writing The Playboy of the Western World, as in my other plays, I have used one or two words only that I have not heard among the country people of Ireland, or spoken in my own nursery before I could read the newspapers."
Why did Synge's masterpiece cause such trouble in the Dublin of 1907, and was it really a 'riot' or something else?
The story of 24 April 1916 is well told. What about the day before?
In Dublin, the eve of an insurrection was a strange day of rumour, horse racing tips and - in Phibsborough - a kidnap saga.
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This edition of the podcast explores some of the poetry of the late Vincent Caprani. A proud Italo-Irish Dub, Caprani wrote some excellent and memorable poems about the city and its people. He died last October. Contains bad language, but plenty of soul.
Alderman Tom Kelly is one of Dublin's great forgotten heroes. A Councillor who championed housing (even before the houses of the city were collapsing in 1913) he came from Dublin's tenements and insisted on the need to replace them with good quality housing. Part of his legacy is The Tenters, a series of streets in Dublin 8.
Cathy Scuffil is a Historian in Residence to Dublin City Council and an authority on Dublin 8.
Dublin is a city and county with some brilliant and downright odd street names, reflecting all from industrial history to the moon landings. This week we're exploring some of the more unusual ones, and looking at some names which have somehow survived major change.
(Podcast thumbnail: William Murphy, Flickr)
We're back! Series 2, Episode 1.
In recent weeks, there has been much talk about the Russian Embassy on Orwell Road. The story of Ireland's connections to the former Soviet Union is a sometimes surprising journey, taking in all from the Lockout to the (alleged) Russian Crown Jewels.
Kathryn Milligan is the author of one of my favourite books on Dublin in recent years, Painting Dublin: 1886-1949. It explores how various artists have depicted the Hibernian Metropolis. We share a great love for Harry Kernoff, and in this episode she shares great insights into the man and the artist.
How can we compare the handing over of Dublin Castle with key moments in the history of other nations like India or Barbados? How accurate was the depiction of the transfer of power in Neil Jordan's 1996 classic Michael Collins? Kate O'Malley, co-author of The Handover (with John Gibney) joined me to explore what the handing over of Dublin Castle meant in the context of Empire.
This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the passing of Dublin's first female Lord Mayor, Kathleen Clarke. A founding member of Fianna Fáil, her time in the Mansion House brought her into serious confrontation with the party. She transformed the symbols of the city and paved the way for the nine other women who have followed her.
A red flag over the Rotunda, and a manifesto which demanded employment. The 1922 protest of the unemployed led by World War One veteran and writer Liam O'Flaherty grabbed plenty of headlines in Ireland and internationally. A century on, this is the story of what some called 'The Rotunda Soviet'.
It is sixty years since the arrival of Irish television. De Valera launched the station into the world, telling viewers that "I must admit that sometimes when I think of television and radio and their immense power I feel somewhat afraid." What did television mean for Dublin?
January is a time for thinking about mental health. Few names are as important in that story in an Irish context as Jonathan Swift, the founder of Saint Patrick's Hospital. Swift transformed the area around his Cathedral, ensuring work and dignity for the people of the Liberties, but the hospital remains the most important part of his legacy.
Dublin has been well served by photographers, men and women who have captured the Hibernian Metropolis in all of its glory and tragedy. A new exhibition tells the story of photography in Ireland from 1839 right up to the present.
(Thumbnail: Elinor Wiltshire image of Arbour Hill, NLI)
In 2002, Dr. Ruth McManus published her landmark study Dublin 1910-1940, shaping the city and suburbs.Now, ahead of its twentieth anniversary, it is back on our shelves. Ruth joined me to talk about all things planning and suburbia in a Dublin that was changing rapidly.
Agnes Bernelle brought the spirit of Berlin to the stage of Dublin. Described in one obituary as "a true Bohemian", she was a guiding light to a generation of Irish performers. Her story passes through Blitz-era London, the development of young Phil Chevron and more besides.
As we say goodbye to Chapters, TCB looks at some of Dublin's great bookshops of old and more recent times.
How did British copyright law shape our bookshops? What impact did censorship have? How did a theatre end up in the back of Connolly Books?
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Frank McDonald's The Destruction of Dublin (1985) is one of the most important books ever written on this city. His latest book, A Little History of the Future of Dublin (Martello Publishing) takes up some of the same battles. What is to be done?
Last week, Cormac O'Malley joined me to talk about his father and his journey to the War of Independence. This week, we talk about the life of Ernie O'Malley from the Civil War through to his great contributions to Bohemian Dublin's art scene, and his marriage to Helen Hooker. Ernie O'Malley: A Life is out now (Merrion Press)
Ernie O'Malley's life is the stuff of a big screen film - in a sense it was, as a central inspiration to The Wind That Shakes The Barley. A young medical student at the time of the Rising, he became a key link between the IRA GHQ in Dublin and the army in the field. He was also a key figure in Dublin's bohemian art scene, together with his wife Helen Hooker. My guest is Cormac O'Malley. Ernie O'Malley: A Life is out now from Merrion Press.
Yes, there was a Hellfire Club in eighteenth century Dublin. We know they existed, we know their antics, but what about the ruin in the Dublin mountains? The story of the Hellfire Club is not only the story of history, but also folklore.
Eustace Street in Temple Bar is a street of ideas. It is a street which produced the first meeting of the United Irishmen, the street which hosted Frederick Douglass twice during his visit to the city, and the street that plays home to the IFI, a cinema which challenged censorship.
Merchant's Arch is a part of the story of the golden age - just about - of Dublin planning. From the Wide Streets Commission to the redevelopment of Temple Bar, this Dublin passageway is at the centre of the story of a changing city. So, what to do with it?
This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of historian, singer and trade unionist Manus O'Riordan.
I hope you all enjoy finding these benches across the city, places which remember and honour some incredible lives.
In 2017, Dubliners came together to mark the final resting place of Thomas Dudley, better known to Dublin as 'Bang Bang'. This podcast, with Daniel Lambert from Phibsboro's Bang Bang Cafe, explores the great love of the city for this never-forgotten character.
Please forgive sound as I'm away from - and between - homes. Recorded from deepest East Berlin.
I have long been interested in the factory buildings that dot Dublin - Art Deco gems like Kodak and Player Wills especially - but who worked in them? And what should be done with them?
(Pod Thumbnail: Williams and Woods from G&T Crampton Archive, UCD)
St Enda's - Scoil Eanna - was a radical new approach to education. With a strong emphasis on art and nature, as well as a keen internationalism in its approach, the school was a key part of the cultural revival in early twentieth century Dublin.
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In 1965, The Rolling Stones toured Ireland twice. On both occasions, they packed them in to Dublin's Adelphi. They were stars in January but superstars by September. Recorded this one at the weekend as a tribute to Charlie Watts,RIP.
(Spotfy Thumbnail is Subset's Rolling Stones mural, Dublin 2018)
Jane Wilde - Speranza - was a nationalist, a champion of the rights of women, a poet and a Dublin socialite. In her lifetime her son Oscar achieved international fame, and her husband infamy at home. She also inspired the title of a Smiths song, and deserves a Dublin memorial.
The Irish Museum of Modern Art is celebrating thirty years in 2021. One of Ireland's finest and most engaging cultural centres, the story of how it came into being is sometimes surprising. This is the story of Gordon Lambert, Charles J. Haughey, and generations of modern artists from Mainie Jellett to Robert Ballagh.
In November 1925, 19 men were sprung from Mountjoy by George Gilmore, a young maverick Republican. A few short months later, he carried out an even more impressive action - breaking the famous Jack Keogh out of Dundrum Lunatic Asylum.
Through history, many changes to Dublin have been proposed and never realised. These included concreting over the canals, an art gallery on the Liffey and, perhaps most famously, a Temple Bar bus station. This podcast explores the Dublin that could have been.
How many eager Dubliners can you fit into Dalymount Park? On 5 February 1985, more than forty thousand of us somehow squeezed in to watch Ireland take on the Azzurri. At a time when Ireland was mad for Italian football - in no small part thanks to a Whitehall boy - the game could have resulted in tragedy.
The end of the War of Independence in Dublin was a strange thing: Even on the very day a truce was being negotiated, the IRA was planning a spectacular. But were they capable of doing it? Who was Margaret Keogh, the Cumann na mBan activist killed at the very end of the conflict? And what was different about Dublin in 1921? My guest is Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc, author of a study of the Truce.
Christopher Robson took more than two thousand images of Pride and gay rights activism in Dublin from 1992 onwards, some of which are now on display in the National Photographic Archive. They capture iconic Dublin faces like Thom McGinty - the Diceman - and a city in a time of transition and change.
Few writers are as fondly remembered in Dublin as Con Houlihan. Even in his own lifetime, a series of testimonials were erected to him in public houses he frequented. On paper a sportswriter, Con was something much broader. His story touches on things as diverse as the Evening Press, Saint Patrick's Athletic, Welsh miners and Mulligans.
Arguably the most influential Dublin-born politician of the modern age was Edward Carson, the unlikely figurehead of Unionism who played no small role in the partition of Ireland. Cormac Moore, author of Birth of The Border, joins me to discuss Carson and Unionism more broadly, at a time when contemporary Unionism seems in freefall.
HAPPY BLOOMSDAY!
In the 1960s, American director Joseph Strick did what many felt was impossible - he brought Ulysses to screen. There was a fistfight at the Cannes Film Festival, segregated audiences in New Zealand and complaints from the League of Decency at home.
The great hope of 1960s Dublin housing, Ballymun, followed on from the 1963 tenement collapse. As homes collapsed in the city centre, killing four Dubliners, it was a time for new thinking on working class housing. There was activism and anger in the city, but Dublin itself seemed to continue expanding into new suburbia.
Few streets in Dublin have the history of Capel Street - and now, it seems destined for major change. This podcast explores a street with an architeictural history stretching back to pre-Georgian times, and at the heart of change in more recent decades.
With less than sixty seats, the tiny Pike Theatre still brought new life into Irish theatre, and introduced Irish audiences to internaitonal talent. Yet it all lasted less than a decade, thanks to a campaign waged against it by state forces.
Éamonn MacThomais did much to popularise Dublin's history. Best remembered for his television series, Dublin: A Personal View, he wrote his book Me Jewel And Darlin' Dublin while a guest of the state in Mountjoy Prison. His life story tells us much about republicanism and Dublin in the twentieth century.
Carmel Snow, from Dalkey, lived a remarkable life. At the helm of both Vogue and Harper's Bazaar at a transformative time in journalism, Snow was a champion of Irish writers and Irish designers. Her name is associated with Dior, Balenciaga and others closer to home like Sybil Connolly.
In April and May 1941, Dublin bravely answered the call of Belfast, after bombs reduced much of the city to rubble. It remains an inspiring moment of human heroism, all the more important to remember against the backdrop of the current political situation in the North.
This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Joe Fallon.
The bicycle has been at the heart of Irish history in sometimes surprising ways. Sport, revolution and literature have all benefited from its place in our lives. This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Paddy Cahill.
A besieged party office on Great Strand Street, a planned ambush from the rooftops of Westmoreland Street, a riot in Glasnevin Cemetery and a march on Leinster House abandoned at the eleventh hour. These events are all part of the story of Dublin and the road to the Spanish Civil War. Historian Fergus Whelan joins me on this edition of the show.
Billy Behan came from a family steeped in Dublin's footballing tradition. He went on to become chief scout for Manchester United in Ireland, spotting all from Liam Whelan to Paul McGrath. Over several decades, players he found went on to international acclaim.
From the 1830s until 1925, the Dublin Metropolitan Police patrolled the streets of Dublin. From rampaging bulls to political radicals, they were ever-busy. Surprising traces of them remain in Dublin today.
Parke Neville was a surveyor and engineer. He transformed Dublin in ways we still see today - the Fruit and Vegetable Market was his idea and design, the Vartry water scheme was his crowning achievement and he even paved our streets. Curiously forgotten now, he remains one of Dublin's greatest servants.
The writer James Plunkett gave us one of the all-time Dublin classics in Strumpet City. He idealised Big Jim Larkin, seeing in him a living representation of a heroic time in the city in which his own father had played a part. Condemned from pulpit and defended by Behan, this is the story of James Plunkett.
The writer James Plunkett gave us one of the all-time Dublin classics in Strumpet City. He idealised Big Jim Larkin, seeing in him a living representation of a heroic time in the city in which his own father had played a part. Condemned from pulpit and defended by Behan, this is the story of James Plunkett.
There are curious traces of Patrick - and his legacy - around Dublin today. A mural painted during the Irish cultural revival in City Hall positions him amidst nationalist struggle, while a well hidden below Trinity College claims strong connections. How much of Saint Patrick - and our idea of him - is imported from the United States?
EPISODE 70! Thanks for your support.
The O'Connell Bridge has a surprising history - from James Gandon to Father Pat Noise. It has long been a place of protest and a place of commerce. This podcast explores the bridge and its many characters.
Cinemas boomed in the Dublin of the 1920s and 1930s, but by the 1960s and 1970s the industry was in massive decline. How did some cinemas make it less than two decades before becoming bingo halls? And how did one Dublin cinema club prosper even against the backdrop of a dying industry?
The Leinster Road home of Constance Markievicz was the de-facto headquarters of revolutionary boyscouts Na Fianna Éireann, an Irish nationalist hijacking of the Baden Powell boyscout ideals. In Unionist Rathmines, Surrey House was a centre of nationalism, Suffrage activism and socialism.
A short edition of the podcast to mark Valentine's Day and the presence of the relics of Saint Valentine in Whitefriar Street Church. Dublin owes much to Father John Spratt, a man of charity and a social reformer, who is to thank for the presence of the relics here. The story of Valentine's relics is also the story of one of Dublin's great female sculptors, Irene Broe.
This special edition of the podcast, produced for Dublin Chinese Lunar New Year, explores the Parnell Street and Moore Street areas in the context of how new communities have come to settle there. This area is now fundamentally linked to Chinese and Asian cuisine and culture in Dublin, but also has a surprisingly long history of migration. Is Parnell Street Dublin’s Chinatown, and what does the future hold for Moore Street?
Patrick Kavanagh described coming to Dublin as the worst mistake of his life. In truth, the city would shape him as a poet and as a man. There are traces of Kavanagh to be found in different parts of the city today, but nowhere moreso than in the Dublin 4 neighbourhood he immortalised forever.
Contains some bad language.
2021 marks 50 years since the first of the Poolbeg stacks went up. The Pigeon House/Poolbeg is at the centre of the story of electricity in Dublin. How have these red and white chimneys come to be a symbol of Dublin, and why are other industrial features forgotten by comparison? Most importantly, what does the future hopd for them?
Where did Monto come from, and how did it last so long? Immortalised as Nighttown by Joyce, Dublin's red light district was a product of more than just the military presence in Dublin. This podcast explores the Monto in reality and memory.
In December 1759, a 'mob' of some three thousand people made their way from the Coombe to College Green. Some of them proceeded to enter the Irish Parliament, demanding that politicians swear an oath and even occupying the throne of the House of Lords. But what influenced them to do it, and what became -or should become of the College Green parliament?
TCB is on Twitter: @3CastlesBurning
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1968 brings to mind the occupied universities of Paris, or the student protests for Civil Rights reform in the United States. In a year of global student revolt, curious things were happening on Irish campuses. From Maoists in Trinity College to a young Kevin Myers in UCD, many were seeking change. In Paris, the students found an unlikely friend in a Dublin-born film producer too. This is the story of 1968.
The 25 May 1921 witnessed the Second Battalion of the Dublin Brigade IRA enter the Custom House. The masterpiece of James Gandon, and the home of the Local Government Board, it was set on fire in minutes. But the fire became an inferno only after the fire brigade arrived. How exactly did this happen? Fire brigade historian and author Las Fallon joins me to discuss a remarkable day of collusion between the DFB and the IRA.
Last night, a Christmas tree appeared outside the Iveagh Markets. On one level, it was a long standing tradition (until the late 1980s), but on another it was a sign of hope, that the markets may yet be reborn.
This year is an important milestone for the Iveagh Trust, and it seems the Iveagh Markets is coming back too. Who was Iveagh, and why did he do it all?
Gillian O'Brien, author of The Darkness Echoing, joins Donal to talk about her new book and Kilmainham Gaol. From 1796 to 1924, Kilmainham was at the heart of Irish history, but how has its meaning shifted through time?
A potted history of Christmas in Dublin, from a tense Christmas which saw a policeman chucked into the Liffey to the annual Wrenboy tradition which still happens in parts of Dublin. What was Christmas like in 1920, and what about during the years of the so-called Emergency?
21 Henry Street, the vegetarian restaurant where the 1916 Proclamation was signed, was later attacked by the IRA in the Civil War, owing to the politics of its owner, Jennie Wyse Power. In its day it fed suffragettes, socialists, Indian students and perhaps the occasional G Man. A future President of Ireland, and a future President of India, both frequented it.
On this day a century ago, two men are killed in The Gresham Hotel in Dublin. Just who they were, and why they found themselves on a hitlist that morning, remains something of a mystery today. This podcast is a sequel of sorts to a recent edition on Bloody Sunday.
This week, an unexpected extra edition of the podcast to celebrate the zoological gardens. Where did Dublin Zoo come from and how has it changed? Our planned show this week, on the Gresham Hotel and Bloody Sunday, will be coming this weekend to mark the centenary of events there.
(Spotify thumbail image by Luke Fallon)
WARNING: This edition of the podcast contains much bad language.
In 1959, J.P Donleavy brought his masterpiece The Ginger Man to the stage. Richard Harris stepped into the very big boots of Sebastian Dangerfield. In England, the censor was horrified and the public complained, but in Ireland things played out differently. This is the story of one of the great banned masterpieces of the Irish twentieth century, The Ginger Man.
The memory of the First World War would come to shape life in post-independence Dublin in sometimes surprising ways. Each November, there would be violent confrontations on the streets. In time, this situation evolved, as some who had once attacked Armistice Day came to partake in it.
This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Thomas Howard, Royal Dublin Fusiliers.
A special edition of the podcast, as part of this years digital Bram Stoker Festival, exploring the impact of Dublin city on Dracula's author. The links are sometimes surprising - from the parents of another Irish writer entirely, to the collections of the oldest library in the city. Guest is Frankie Gaffney (Trinity College Dublin) who sets the book in its context before our journey begins.
The story of Dublin's cemeteries is the story of politics, body snatchers, changing fashions and contested commemoration.
What can we learn from walking around Glasnevin Cemetery, and how is it different from Mount Jerome? What Dublin cemetery is deeply connected to the Battle of the Boyne, and which honours a migrant community who fled Tsarist Russia?
From Le Fanu to Parnell, we're exploring the dead.
On 21 November 1920, more than 30 people were killed or fatally wounded on the streets of Dublin. That is just about all there is total agreement on, even at the remove of a century. In the morning, more than fifteen men were shot dead or fatally wounded, while 14 civilians would die at Croke Park in later violence, and 3 prisoners in Dublin Castle would be dead by the end of the day. This is the story of a day of real violence in the Irish capital, exploring how it happened and how it has been remembered.
This is the story of the Irish Women's Franchise League, and an exploration of the similiarities - and differences - between the suffrage movement here and that on the neighbouring island. This podcast is dedicated to the memory of Margaret MacCurtain.
In the eyes of the media, punk rock was born in 1977. It wasn't, but the foundation story is part of the tale. In Dublin, 1977 witnessed punk rock in the pop charts, The Clash in Trinity College and more besides.
Few streets in Dublin have gone on a journey like Henrietta Street. From Georgian grandeur to tenement decline, this story touches on names as diverse as Luke Gardiner,Mary Wollstonecraft, Uinseann MacEoin and Herbert Simms.
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On 20 September 1920, the town of Balbriggan was besieged by Black and Tans. Their misfortune was to be the proximity of the town to Dublin city, and the atrocity would make its way to the House of Commons and the New York Times. This special edition of the podcast - produced quickly to mark the event - explores that day.
What will happen to the home of The O'Rahilly? The beautiful Edwardian Ballsbridge house, built at the time of the massive World Fair in Hebert Park, is currently causing great debate. Donal Fallon explores The O'Rahilly and his home.
Frank Harte, from Dublin's Chapelizod, was the son of a publican who became an architect, but who is best remembered as a collector of songs. From Anonymous to Zozimus, he gathered thousands of songs in his lifetime, and has been acknowledged as a central influence by Lankum and others. This is an introduction to one of Dublin's great voices.
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Earlsfort Terrace (UCD) produced its share of radicals in the early twentieth century, from Todd Andrews to Sean MacBride, but there is one student radical remembered above all others: Kevin Barry. Immortalised in a ballad performed by all from Paul Robeson to Leonard Cohen, Barry's death was a major international story.
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Mick O'Reilly's memoir 'From Lucifer to Lazarus: A Life on the Left' is a book about growing up in working class Dublin, and a book about labour and trade unionism in the capital. It is also the story of how a young man became involved in the communist movement, and how that faith was shaken by global events. We talk about some of the characters Mick met along the way, and how Dublin has changed and continues to change.
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Dublin's early experiments in suburbia post-independence were drastically different - from the Garden City model of Marino to the expansive Cabra and Crumlin. Some argued the answer lay in good quality housing in the city centre. This is the story of Simms, Suburbia and - Behan joked - Siberia.
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Before Ryanair - or even Aer Lingus - there was Iona National Airways. From humble beginnings, and a familiar shed at Cross Guns Bridge, came an aerodrome in Finglas. Some of those who took to the skies would become the earliest pilots with Aer Lingus, while the story involves great names like Lady Heath. This is the story of how Dublin fell in love with the skies.
Stay safe - wash your hands - stay grounded.
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Dublin once boasted a Little Italy, as the area around Chancery Lane hosted one of the most interesting migrant communities to settle in the Hibernian Metropolis. The story of the Italians in Dublin is the story of chippers, of artists, of trade unionists, the Fascisti, soccer and more besides.
Dublin's Theatre Royal was a legendary venue, though in its final incarnation it lasted less than three decades. From Paul Robeson to Judy Garland, it witnessed some magic nights. Its story goes to sometimes unexpected places. Conor Doyle, historian of the Theatre Royal, talks us through it.
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What is there to say? The sad passing of Jack Charlton is a reminder of magic times in Dublin. This podcast explores some of the Dublin dimensions of the tale, from the traveling support to the amazing homecoming.
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We all know St Stephen's Green as a place we may go for lunch or a stroll, but the park has a remarkable history - from dueling in the Georgian city to the contested memory of the Boer War in Dublin. It's also one of few places in the city where women are honoured in a significant way. Learn a little more about this great park with Donal Fallon.
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To many, Dublin tattooing brings to mind the name of Johnny Eagle. Yet the earliest tattoo shop in the city predated him by decades. Today, Dublin tattoos are in fashion - from Poolbeg chimneys to pints of stout - but where did it all begin?
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The Forty Foot, to many, is forever associated with Ulysses. Others associate it with the women's movement of the 1970s, and the battle for full equality between men and women when it came to swimming in Dublin. But why is it called the Forty Foot, and how long are Dubs jumping into Dublin Bay?
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To us today, it is the George's Street Arcade.
Yet to Victorian Dubliners, it was the South City Markets. It opened at a turbulent time for Dublin, as the middle classes continued to move beyond the canals. Its beautiful red brick exterior is so out of place in Dublin now, but why? Thanks to Las Fallon, fire brigade historian, for contributions on the 1892 fire.
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Pádraig Óg Ó Ruairc is the author of several studies on the Irish revolution, both local and national, but he is currently working on a study of one of the most controversial aspects of the revolution: The Disappeared.
Incredibly, this story begins in Dublin's north inner-city. In the later stages of the Rising, sixteen civlians were brutally killed in and around their homes, with six of the bodies deliberately hidden. This was the North King Street Massacre. Here, we go through the tragic events.
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A shorter, extra edition of the podcast focused on the current debate around statues, looking at some of Dublin's more contested memorials but also with some ideas going forward.
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The story of the anti-slavery movement in Ireland is the story not only of Frederick Douglass and O'Connell, but decades of activism. This podcast touches on the Hibernian Anti-Slavery Association, the great Equiano who visited Dublin in the 1790s and more besides.
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The Palace on Fleet Street has remained much the same through the decades, despite the streets around it being transformed several times over. The pub is forever associated with names like Flann O'Brien, R.M Smylie and Harry Kernoff, but what was it about this pub that attracted such literary minds- and where were the women? Donal is joined by Willie Ahern of The Palace.
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Love Pints, Hate Covid.
For many, the 1988 Millennium is little more than a milk bottle in the press, but the year had a transformative effect on the capital. From Molly Malone to new public parks, much was added to the city, but how much truth was in it all?
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1988 logo design by: www.paulguinan.com
It is fifty years this week since the death of Arkle, considered the greatest race horse of them all.
His story is deeply entangled with Dublin - from Rathcoole jockey Pat Taaffe to a Guinness advertising career, and from Tolka Park to Dominic Behan.
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It is impossible to understand Luke Kelly without having a grasp of the British folk revival. Many of the songs that made Luke a household name with The Dubliners were learned in the folk clubs of England, while Luke also moved in radical political circles that shaped his worldview, like the Young Communist League. Ronan Burtenshaw (editor of Tribune Magazine and author of an article on Luke's radicalism) joins us.
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Wash your hands - fight Covid19.
(Reupload, glitchy software issue beyond my control. Thanks!)
Hi all, something different this week. A chat with Modernist.ie (see www.instagram.com/modernist.ie )
We're celebrating all things Dublin design - from forgotten Guinness ad campaigns to record sleeves, and from Dublin Bus to the poolbeg chimneys.
Wishing you all the best.
www.threecastlesburning.bigcartel.com - launching this Saturday at noon.
Oliver Sheppard's The Death of Cúchulainn sits in the window of the General Post Office. It is my favourite piece of twentieth century art in Dublin. Surprisingly, it predates the Easter Rising, and has even inspired murals in Loyalist Belfast. Inspired by its appearance on the new Fontaines DC LP cover, this edition of the podcast explores Sheppard's masterpiece.
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The story of the Society of United Irishmen in Dublin is a story of subversion and a story of dissent. Historian Fergus Whelan, author of a new biography of leading United Irishman William Drennan, joins Donal Fallon to discuss the United Irishmen's origins, their ideology and to answer a central question: How shaped were they by Protestantism and Protestant identity?
Contains the familiar (Wolfe Tone) and the unfamiliar (Oliver Bond) on a journey through a different Dublin.
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And so a Dublin giant falls, with the closure of Bewley's. This extra edition of the podcast explores the incredible history of Bewley's, in the context of other Dublin coffee houses through the ages. Ludwig Wittgenstein, James Joyce, the Irish Women's Liberation Movement and more besides in this one.
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GEGEN COVID19.
In 1974, Dublin's gaelic football teamp captivated the capital on their unstoppable march to the All Ireland Final. Suddenly, GAA was cool in the Hibernian Metropolis. The kids descended on the Hill, carrying with them a fan culture they had learned from the neighbouring island - You'll Never Walk Alone was the anthem of choice, sang amidst the homemade banners.
Sports writer Roy Curtis joins Donal to explore Heffo's Army.
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Wash your hands - fight Covid19.
Is there a history of baseball in Ireland? There is, and its a remarkable story. From twenty thousand people in Croke Park to O'Malley Fields in Clondalkin, this podcast brings us on a journey acros the Atlantic and back again. Guest is Peter Kavanagh.
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Wash your hands - fight Covid19.
You know the Londis on the corner of O'Connell Street and Parnell Street, but what about the history of the site? Once upon a time, Thomas J. Clarke's shop stood at 75A Parnell Street. This is the story of a Dublin newsagents which was dripping with sedition.
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Wash your hands, smash Covid19.
Dublin is a city famed for her bookshops, but what was in them? Throughout the twentieth century, censorship kept many of the greatest works of literature away from the shelves.
In this podcast, we explore where Irish censorship came from, and ask what it meant for a variety of writers. Who helped to end it, and what escaped the censor?
My guest is Aoife from the brilliant Censored Podcast. On Acast, it is available on all platforms, TCB listeners will love it.
Stay safe and wash your hands.
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Elizabeth Bowen was born in Dublin in 1899. Despite her Irish birth, she is primarily remembered as an Anglo-Irish writer, and for her brilliant accounts of London during the Blitz.
During the years of World War II, or the Emergency as we knew it, she made several trips to Dublin. Her accounts of this trip ended up on the desk of British state intelligence and Downing Street. She tells us much about Ireland during the war, where tea, the cinema and more besides was deeply missed.
Keep washing those hands and best wishes.
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In the 1960s Guinness moved equipment, manpower and a foundation stone from the Liberties to Lagos, to open a brewery in Nigeria.
The historic intersections of Ireland and Nigeria are sometimes surprising. Ireland engaged with Nigeria on a Colonial level, but then as one of the few white nations to embrace a newly independent Nigeria, when Seán Lemass attended the ceremonies honouring the new nation. This podcast explores some of this and more.
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This show is dedicated to the memory of John Gallagher. Community activist, veteran of the battle to save Wood Quay, product of the Coombe. My thanks to historian Liz Gillis for her contributions.
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It is almost fifty years since the burning of the British Embassy on Merrion Square, following Bloody Sunday. Just how did Dublin - and the Republic more broadly - respond to the events in Derry, and what was different less than a decade later, at the time of the 'Battle of Ballsbridge' in 1981?
Guest is Dr. Brian Hanley, author of The Impact of the Troubles on the Republic of Ireland 1968-1979: Boiling Volcano?
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