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Irish History Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Fin Dwyer
From the Norman Invasion to the War of Independence, the Great Famine to the Troubles, the Irish History Podcast takes you on a journey through the most fascinating stories in Ireland's past. Whether it’s the siege of Dublin in 1171 or gun battles in the 1920s, the podcast vividly recreates a sense of time and place. Each episode is meticulously researched, creating character-driven narratives that are engaging and accessible for all.Since the first episode was released back in 2010, the podcast has covered scores of captivating stories. Major multi-part series have explored the Great Famine, the Norman Invasion, and Irish involvement in the Spanish Civil War. If you are looking for standalone episodes, there are lots of great interviews with leading Irish historians covering topics from medieval sex magic to Irish connections in the Jack the Ripper murders!Why not start with 'Three Days in July', an acclaimed mini-series from the summer of 2024. It explores th
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- 2 days ago43 min
Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries: Why Were Women Locked Away? [The Shepherds' Secrets 1]
This episode includes survivor testimony and references to abuse. Nothing is described in graphic detail.Why were tens of thousands of Irish women detained in Magdalene Laundries, often sent there by the people they trusted most? Most never received a sentence. Many never left.In the opening episode of a three part series, The Shepherds' Secrets, I explore how this system took hold in Ireland through the history of the Good Shepherd Laundry in Waterford. From its origins as a lay-run rescue asylum for women who worked in prostitution, I trace its transformation under religious control into an institution of high walls, barred windows and forced labour. At the heart of this history are the women themselves.Through the stories of ‘Alice C.’, Maureen Sullivan and ‘Nancy S.’, I ask why Irish society treated women, particularly working-class women, so appallingly and how families, religious orders and the state sustained this system for generations.Credits and Links Thanks to Maureen Sullivan and Dr Elizabeth Riordan-Coppin for their time and permission to use their interviews.Written, produced and narrated by Fin Dwyer.Audio Editor: Kate DunleaThe interviews with Maureen Sullivan and Dr Elizabeth Riordan-Coppin used in this series were recorded by Dr Jennifer O'Mahoney as part of the Waterford Memories Project.Thanks to the many people who were interviewed for this series: Professor Katherine O'Donnell, Dr Claire McGettrick born Lorraine Hughes, John Spencer, Dr Sarah-Anne Buckley, Dr Claire McGettrick & Professor Leanne McCormick and Professor James M. Smith.A particular thanks to Dr Jennifer O'Mahoney.Additional Research: Liam CostelloAdditional Interviews: Stephanie LordVoice Actor: Therese MurraySound: Sam Blanche and Dakota Venn Keane. With thanks to Dawn Kenny.Artwork: Jenni Cooney - The Creative Pocket.Thanks to Joanne Rothwell of Waterford City & County Archives.Made possible by listeners who support the Irish History Podcast at www.patreon.com/irishhistoryResources and sources To find out more about Magdalene Laundries check out https://jfmresearch.com & https://www.waterfordmemories.com/survivors.If you are a survivor of Magdalene Laundries this is an excellent research guide https://jfmresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/Research-Guide-for-Magdalene-Survivors_April-2025.pdfIf you are a relative of a survivor, living or deceased this guide is extremely useful. Research Guide for relatives of Survivors https://jfmresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/Research-Guide_Relatives_April-2025.pdfSources mentioned in the episode Maureen Sullivan’s autobiography Girl in the Tunnel: My Story of Love and Loss as a Survivor of the Magdalene Laundries https://www.irishacademicpress.ie/product/girl-in-the-tunnel/Full interview with Maureen: https://www.waterfordmemories.com/survivorsFull interview with ‘Nancy’ by Dr Sinead Pembroke available here https://jfmresearch.com/home/oralhistoryproject/transcripts/survivors/nancy-shannon/TerminologyWords can make all the differenceThe way we discuss this part of our history has changed dramatically in recent decades. We all make mistakes but this document has interesting explainers as to why terms still in use can cause hurt. https://www.universityofgalway.ie/media/unescochildandfamilyresearchcentre/2023/Language-&-Terminology-Report--Web.pdfPolicy on Naming SurvivorsUnless given express permission
- 1 weeks ago32 min
The First Flight Over Dublin: Which Irish Generation Saw the Most Change?
On a freezing January morning in 1785, four cannons echoed across Dublin. Thousands of people abandoned their work and flooded into Ranelagh to watch Richard Crosbie step into a wicker basket, untie the ropes, and drift into the sky. To the stunned crowd below, they were watching the dawn of a new age.Except they weren't. When Crosbie died forty years later, travel in Ireland was just as slow and gruelling as it had always been.Today, we are constantly told we are living through unprecedented, breakneck change. The ground feels like it is moving beneath our feet, and it is easy to believe our generation has it faster than anyone before us. But is that actually true?In this episode, I look back at the moments the future arrived in Ireland: from Richard Crosbie’s eccentric flight over Dublin, to the first motorcars rattling along ancient dirt tracks to the steam trains and electric telegraphs that shattered distance and forced Ireland to reinvent the clock. Along the way I ask a simple question: which Irish generation actually saw the world change the fastest?Coming Next Week: The Shepherd’s SecretsNext Wednesday my major new three-part series, The Shepherd's Secrets, begins. It explores the dark and complex history of Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries, told through the story of the Good Shepherd Convent in Waterford.Get ad-free early access at patreon.com/irishpodcast.Sound by Kate Dunlea. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- 2 weeks ago27 min
Haunted Ireland: Why the Supernatural Mattered to Our Ancestors [Listener Favourite]
The supernatural is viewed with healthy scepticism today but not so in the past. This episode looks at what our ancestors really believe about ghosts and the supernatural? Historian Dr Clodagh Tait joins me to explore why the supernatural was so important to Irish society and how they were woven into every day life.First released in October 2023, this listener-favourite episode examines why the supernatural mattered in Irish history.On November 11 my new series, The Shepherds' Secrets begins. This series explores the history of the Ireland's notorious Magdalene Laundries through the story of the Waterford Good Shepherd Magdalene Laundry.Sound by Kate Dunlea Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Oct 14, 202656 min
Lest We Forget: The Poppy & Remembrance Day in Ireland
Every November, the Royal British Legion organises remembrance ceremonies and millions of people wear red poppies. Often portrayed as a way to remember the dead of the World Wars, these commemorations have a far more complicated history in Ireland and Britain. They have been contested since their inception.In the 1920s, remembrance ceremonies in Dublin became a focus for unionist demonstrations after independence, provoking considerable unrest. During the Troubles, commemorations honouring the British armed forces became contentious in new ways given the British Army’s role in the conflict in the North.In this episode, historian Brian Hanley joins me to explore the contentious history of the poppy and Remembrance Day in Ireland. From British Army veterans and clashes over commemoration in the 1920s to the central place of the Somme in modern loyalism we explore what these ceremonies and commemoration are for.Sound by Kate Dunlea.Footage of Armistice Day in Dublin in 1925 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0FHpoGGMZc Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Oct 7, 202644 min
The Mystery of the Missing Postman: Silence in an Irish Village
On Christmas Day 1929, postman Larry Griffin disappeared from Stradbally, Co. Waterford. His bicycle was found abandoned outside the village. While evidence suggested his disappearance was suspicious, the case became an enduring mystery. In this episode, I’m joined by Fachtna Ó Drisceoil, author of The Missing Postman: What Really Happened to Larry Griffin?, to explore a case that became a national scandal. From an illicit Christmas party to a troubled Garda investigation, dramatic arrests and retracted testimony, the story challenges the often idealised image of village life in post-independence Ireland.At its heart lies an unsettling question: what happens when a close-knit community closes ranks, leaving a family without answers?Get you copy of the book https://www.mercierpress.ie/books/the-missing-postman/My guest is Fachtna O Drisceoil. Fachtna is a broadcaster and writer working in both Irish and English. He has presented and reported on television series such as Scannal, Léargas, and CSÍ, and has produced radio programmes such as Tonight with Vincent Browne, The Dave Fanning Show and Drivetime. He has contributed radio essays to the popular Sunday Miscellany programme and is a frequent contributor to Irish language publications such as Tuairisc.ie, Comhar and Scéal in the Irish Times and Irish Examiner. He currently presents the Tús Áite drivetime news and current affairs programme every weekday on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta. The Missing Postman was an Irish non-fiction bestseller when it was published in 2011. He lives with his wife and two sons in Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Sep 23, 202634 min
Hard lives: A History of Irish Childhood
Childhood in the past was hard, but how children were treated and what their lives were truly like is often left out of Irish history.In this episode historian Frank Hopkins joins me to look at the darkest corners of childhood in 18th and 19th century Ireland: the boys sold to master chimney sweeps, the trade in stolen children's clothes and the poverty that could lead to infanticde. We explore how children were viewed Irish society, why people sold and bought children, how the courts treated child criminals as adults and how reformers eventually won the 1875 ban on child sweeps. Content warning: not suitable for younger listeners. This episode contains references to violence against children and sexual violence. Sound by Kate DunleaYou can get Frank's latest book, A Motley Crew, at https://www.newisland.ie/shop/p/a-motley-crew-true-tales-from-irelands-criminal-past Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Sep 16, 202653 min
The Rise of the Provisional IRA: Conspiracy vs Reality
In the late 1960s, the Provisional IRA and what became modern Sinn Féin emerged from a bitter split in the Irish republican movement. This split would shape not only the Troubles but also Irish politics down to the present day.However, for the last five decades, the story of how and why that split occurred has been clouded by enduring conspiracy theories.The most prominent of these claims that the Irish government in Dublin orchestrated the split to create a more conservative force in the Provisional IRA and neutralise left-wing republicanism. Many opponents of the Provisionals in the rival Left Wing Official IRA understood these events through this lens. Meanwhile, unionists believed the Provisionals had been created by politicians in Dublin in the hope of destabilising the Northern state. The theory also found adherents among the political enemies of Charles Haughey and Neil Blaney, two politicians whose actions lie at the heart of these claims.Yet the history of those fateful years tells a different story: one of uncertainty and desperation. Conspiratorial interpretations also overlook how politicians in later decades were happy to court such understandings to suit their own ends. In this episode, I am joined by Dr Brian Hanley to thrash out what happened in late 1969 and 1970 and why the IRA split. We discuss where conspiracy theories come from, why they are more common than we might imagine and what purpose they serve. We then explore how the Provisional IRA emerged and became the dominant force in Irish republicanism.The picture that emerges is far from straightforward and at times, disquieting. Rather than being controlled by a handful of people, events sometimes seemed to gather a momentum of their own. There were many forces at play, but no hidden hand at work.Sound by Kate Dunlea. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Sep 9, 202628 min
The Golden Age of Irish Smuggling
The 18th century was a golden age of Irish smuggling. It's estimated that as many as one third of all luxury goods entering Ireland were brought in by smugglers. Far from being a fringe activity, smuggling was woven into the wider economy and remarkably was often a community enterprise with entire villages involved. It's very different than we imagine: while perhaps less glamorous, it was far more lucrative and important to the Irish economy. In this episode I'm joined by historian James Doherty to explore why smuggling boomed in the 18th century, who was involved and why entire communities along the Irish coast got in on the act.My guest James Doherty is a historian based in Waterford with interests in Military History and the history of smuggling in Ireland in the 18th and 19th centuries.Sound by Kate Dunlea Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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About Irish History Podcast
From the Norman Invasion to the War of Independence, the Great Famine to the Troubles, the Irish History Podcast takes you on a journey through the most fascinating stories in Ireland's past. Whether it’s the siege of Dublin in 1171 or gun battles in the 1920s, the podcast vividly recreates a sense of time and place. Each episode is meticulously researched, creating character-driven narratives that are engaging and accessible for all.Since the first episode was released back in 2010, the podcast has covered scores of captivating stories. Major multi-part series have explored the Great Famine, the Norman Invasion, and Irish involvement in the Spanish Civil War. If you are looking for standalone episodes, there are lots of great interviews with leading Irish historians covering topics from medieval sex magic to Irish connections in the Jack the Ripper murders!Why not start with 'Three Days in July', an acclaimed mini-series from the summer of 2024. It explores th
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