County Dublin
In this week’s episode we look at the way that unmarried mothers – and other “social undesirables” were treated in Ireland, especially in the period from the 1940s to the 1960s. Carina reads out two letters – one on the Magdalene Laundries and the other shares the story of one mother who never gave up…
Read More
In today’s episode, we explore the different sort of Irish music that was coming onto the scene from the mid-1970s. We first look at the story of that great London-Irish band – The Pogues – and then onto the more subtle music of Paul Brady. In both cases, lots of background stories, music and craic.…
Read More
Today we take to the streets of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland. Edinburgh was the home to Seán Connery, the actor who played James Bond for many years. We also examine another native of Edinburgh – Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of the immortal detective Sherlock Holmes. We chat about their Irish roots –…
Read More
In this special St. Valentine’s episode of the Letter from Ireland podcast we share the story of Saint Valentine’s association with the city of Dublin – and the tale of love and loss of a young couple who were married in Kilmainham jail shortly before he was executed for partaking in the Easter rising of…
Read More
We are (hopefully) at the closing stages of a pandemic as I write. However, our ancestors had to endure many pandemics and famines through the centuries – and all without the same access to medicines we enjoy today. Today’s show is all about one famous Irish author whose mother had to endure a pandemic in her native Sligo town before heading off for a new life in Dublin.
Read More