Join us on this episode of the Letter from Ireland show as we tell some surprising stories from an Irish Halloween! Did you know that many of the rituals and traditions associated with Halloween came from the Celtic Festival of "Samhain" (pronounced "sow-en" - "sow" as pronounced in pig)?
Carina and Mike talk about the Celtic seasons and festivals, their own Irish Halloween memories - and tell two very special Irish stories linked to this time of year.
So, come on in - sit down and have a listen to these wonderful seasonal Irish tales of things that go bump in the night!
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland show, Carina goes on a voyage of discovery (in more ways than one) as she uncovers the hidden history of her paternal grandfather: Bartholomew Cronin.
Join Carina as she begins at the shop where her grandfather worked and lived - and then she heads back to his home-place before journeying even further back to one very special place associated with an Irish saint in the beautiful wilds of West Cork.
So, do come along - we know you'll enjoy the trip!
Carina never knew the surname that her paternal grandmother was born with - she only knew to call her "Granny"! So, we decided to find out a little more. What did we discover? Well, join us in this episode of the Letter from Ireland show as we go on a voyage of discovery - starting in a small shop in the Irish countryside - then on to a cottage on the fringes of Cork City - before finishing up at a grand castle.
There are lots of surprises along the way - and lots of mysteries solved also! This is a story that is both personal and universal, one that reaches from the present into the ancient past - maybe you have a story (or mystery) just like this one in your Irish family tree? Want to find out? Well, join us now as we start by asking Carina just what she knows - and does not know - about her "Granny Cronin".
Then, we hit the road and the records to find out more. We know you'll enjoy this journey!
The City of Liverpool in England has had very strong links with Ireland down through the centuries. In this Podcast, Carina takes you on a trip around Liverpool - through a gate that could tell a million stories, into "Paddy's Wigwam and then introduces you to four very famous sons of Liverpool - three of whom have direct Irish Roots!
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show we follow the trail of an Irish Emigrant family all the way from County Kerry to Chicago and Illinois in the USA. Join us as we start in the family homestead just outside Listowel in County Kerry.
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show Carina introduces you to five very different heroes of Irish Culture and Heritage. She visits a man who restarted a Whiskey distillery that was in his family for hundreds of years, a woman who oversees the visitors to one of the best known books in the world, another man who discovered a hidden town on his property, an ex-political prisoner who brings people on political tours around his home town and finally a farmer who decided to refurbish the castle on his land. Five different stories that we think you will really enjoy!
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show Carina introduces a wonderful Irish Ancestry Resource that many of us overlook when we are "scouring" the records for the smallest hint or connection. It also has the benefit of being very entertaining. It's called the Irish Schools Collection and I think you will enjoy what you hear - and find it very useful!
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show we preview the 2019 Green Room Hooley - by sharing memories, poems and some wonderful stories based around the areas where we are holding our Green Room gatherings.
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show we go on a tour around the Ulster American Folk Park near Omagh, County Tyrone - meeting some fascinating people and learning all about what life was like back in the early 1800s for the local population.
Have you visited the National Irish Famine Museum in Stokestown Park, County Roscommon? Why not come along with us now as we take you on a tour of this fascinating place. You may even hear about one of your own ancestors.
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show Carina looks back on our visit in March 2018 to Australia following the Irish Ancestral trail. We met some fascinating people along the way, all eager to share the story of their Irish roots - as well as visiting some sites associated with Irish heritage across the states of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania.
Have you ever heard of the Celtic festival of Bealtaine - marking the start of an Irish summer? In this podcast, Carina shares some of her special travels and memories at this wonderful time of year.
Welcome to Season 2, Episode 9 of the Letter from Ireland Show. In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show Carina, Courtney and Mike discuss their own experiences (and opinions!) of DNA testing for Irish Family History research.
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show Carina and Mike chat about many useful aspects of discovering more about your Irish family history - all wrapped inside just one Australian reader's story - and her links back to one county in Ireland.
Welcome to Season 2, Episode 7 of the Letter from Ireland Show. In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show we join John Grenham - author of the definitive guide to Irish Genealogy - "Tracing your Irish Ancestors" - and more. Mike has a very interesting, and wide-ranging discussion on the state of Irish Family History records and research - all recorded at the National Archives in Dublin.
In this episode of the Letter from Ireland Show we share just some of the interviews and commentaries we recorded as we made our way along the "Irish Ancestral Trail" from Newfoundland to Toronto in Ontario. We do hope you enjoy listening as much as we enjoyed making this show!
In the episode of the Letter from Ireland Show we talk with Mike Collins - the publishing director of Cork University Press and specifically about their recent best-seller "The Atlas of the Irish Revolution". We cover a wide range of topics from the Atlas itself, Irish revolutionary history and also delve into Mike's own Irish ancestry. We do hope you enjoy listening as much as we enjoyed making this show!
In this special episode, we select some stories from our annual Green Room Member Storybook. You will hear stories from our members sharing lots of memorable Irish experiences both in Ireland and closer to their own homes.
The Letter from Ireland Show is a weekly podcast that goes out each Thursday from our cottage in County Cork. Tune in to this episode - and dive straight in to a bit of Irish caint, ceóil agus craic (conversation, music and craic!).
Welcome to Series 2, Episode 4 of The Letter from Ireland Show. In this episode, Carina talks with a very unique individual that we discovered in the wilds of West Cork! Cormac Lally originally comes from Tullamore in County Offaly - but now resides in Skibbereen in County Cork where he makes a living as a modern Irish Bard. We worked with Cormac recently on putting one of our Green Room member's Family history to verse - and were delighted with the outcome! So, if you would like to hear the story of a modern Irish Bard - and hear that family history we mentioned - then please do listen on!
Welcome to Season 2, Episode 3 of the Letter from Ireland Show. In this show, we focus in on a very particular first name - Valentine! We look at a a very special connection between Saint Valentine and Ireland, get a poem for the occasion from our resident Bard - and Mike shares lots of insights on the first name Valentine - and the surname also!
Welcome to Season 2, Episode 2 of the Letter from Ireland Show. In this episode we talk about Irish citizenship through a story about a movie star and director you may know - and also share the perspective of our very own Courtney Bayne, an Irish-American living in Ireland for a number of years with her family as an Irish citizen. She also nominates a very famous surname for our Irish surname of the week.
Welcome to Season 2, Episode 1 of the Letter from Ireland Show. In this first episode of our new series we look actually take a look at the Scottish institution known as "Burns Night" - named after Scotland's unofficial national poet, Robbie Burns.
Side by side with only a bit of sea between, the countries of Ireland and Scotland have many shared histories. In this letter we will celebrate one of Scotland’s finest treasures, the gifted poet Robert Burns, for whom the holiday Burns Night is celebrated.