In the series profiling controversial figures in Irish society, friends of unconventional politician Tony Gregory look back at his work to improve the suburbs of Dublin.
This edition looks at the life of former diplomat, politician and writer Conor Cruise O'Brien.
Many people may be aware of Nuala Ó Faoláin as a result of her writing or indeed her intimate interview with Marian Finucane on the latter’s radio show where, six weeks after being diagnosed with two inoperable brain tumours, she announced; "Even if I gained time through the chemotherapy it isn't time I want. Because as soon as I knew I was going to die soon, the goodness went out of life. It amazed me, Marian, how quickly life turned black, immediately almost." ‘Cloch Le Carn’ provides a space for some of the people who were close to Nuala O Faolain to reflect on both a public and private life full of conflict, controversy, pain and laughter and to give audiences a further insight into Nuala’s life.
Another Irish figure whose life will be examined is singer and sometimes sex symbol, Joe Dolan. The reflective programme will look at the Mullingar man’s life before his death in 2007 using foreign archive material previously unseen in Ireland. Joe Dolan and his brother Ben founded their showband, ‘The Drifters’, in 1960, just as the showband craze was taking off. However, it soon became clear that Joe was the real star, and the group was soon renamed ‘Joe Dolan and the Drifters’. Unlike most Irish showband singers, Joe went on to become an internationally recognised star, recording original songs and selling millions of records around the world. The programme will also examine the controversies that surrounded Joe when he was alive such as drink driving, gigs in apartheid-era South Africa, an air rage incident on an Aer Lingus plane, and non-payment of taxes.
Cloch Le Carn focuses on “the last of the Kennedy brothers”- Senator Edward M. Kennedy after a political career which was as controversial as it was long. He leaves a huge and complex legacy not only to American politics but to the world and in no small way to Ireland. Ted Kennedy was the youngest of the Kennedy clan and forever remembered as the surviving brother – after the assasinations of JFK and RFK. (His oldest brother Joe jnr had been killed in WWII). The trauma following the violent deaths of his siblings, conflicted by the Kennedy political ambition, left a long shadow over Ted’s life, both public and private. Understandably in 1968, already a US Senator for 6 years, he declined to replace his slain brother Bobby as the Democratic candidate for the presidency. Within a year another tragedy would effectively end any hope of Ted ever reaching the White House. “I think that Chappaquiddick was in someways the fullstop to his political ambitions despite what he wanted to do – I think there is only so much people can forgive and are willing to forgive, even when he died it was the C word that kept coming up…time and time again.” Ryan Tubridy However he went on to become one of the longest serving US Senators ever and a key power broker in Washington. His involvement with the Irish Peace Process was crucial to leveraging US Government influence on the parties, particularly in regard to the famous US Visa for Gerry Adams MP. “I think his legacy in the US is the extraordinary achievement in a very complex political system in congress that he managed to get more than I think it’s 330 bills to which his name is attached covering a range of subjects from health care to civil rights to all sorts of issues. I think it is a huge political legacy and ironically probably a greater political legacy in the US than he could have achieved as a one or two term President.” Seán Donlon – Former Irish Ambassador to Washington
When the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, addressed the Labour Party conference in September 1998 and spoke of “our one and only Mo”, his speech was interrupted by delegates who gave her a prolonged standing ovation, an unprecedented event during a Prime Minister’s speech as Tony Blair himself acknowledged. Mo Mowlam regularly topped surveys of popular politicians. Her empathy, frankness and irreverence endeared her to the general public. Some observers would say that her widespread popularity may have eventually led to her political downfall. Born Marjorie Mowlam in Watford in 1949, but since her schooldays she was known as “Mo”. Her parents both worked for the post office but her father Frank had a lifelong battle with alcoholism. She excelled academically and taught political science in Florida State University. On her return to England she became active in the Labour Party. She took a leading role in Blair’s leadership victory in 1994 and she was given the post of Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary. Having spent three years acquainting herself in detail with the complexities of Northern Ireland it was no surprise that she was given the position of Northern Ireland Secretary after the 1997 general election. A number of months before the election she was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour. Once described as the woman who put the “Mo” in momentum. Her mission in Northern Ireland was to restore the IRA ceasefire and bring Sinn Féin into the talks process while at the same time keeping the Unionists on board. To do this, in January 1998 she controversially went on a mission into the Maze Prison to ask convicted loyalist prisoners to support the negotiations. Her period in Northern Ireland was marked by outbreaks of lethal violence. She annoyed and angered people along the way. She retracted a statement she’d made claiming that the negotiations could go ahead without the Unionists. She infuriated the Garvaghy Road residents over her dec
This edition of Cloch le Carn looks back at Séamus Brennan’s career in Fianna Fáil and also at the ups and downs within the party. Séamus Brennan had Fianna Fáil blood running through his veins. He was reared in Salthill and his father served as Director of Elections for the party in Galway in the 1960s. His professional political career began at the age of 25 when he was appointed as General Secretary of Fianna Fáil by Jack Lynch in 1973 and after visiting America to check out the political campaign of Jimmy Carter in 1976 he was instrumental in the landslide victory of Fianna Fáil in the General Election the following year. He was the brains behind their presidential-style campaigning, opinion polls, slogans and even a specially commissioned pop song. Séamus Brennan’s reward was being appointed to the Seanad and he stayed as a Senator until he won a seat in the 1981 General Election in the Dublin South constituency. The early 1980s was a turbulent time politically in the country and within Fianna Fáil. Séamus was a prominent member of a group of politicians within the party who tried unsuccessfully to wrestle control from Charles Haughey. He supported George Colley, and later Desmond O’Malley, in various leadership heaves throughout the whole era. It was widely expected that Brennan would join the Progressive Democrats when they were founded by O’Malley in 1985 but instead he remained within Fianna Fáil. He reconciled with Haughey was eventually made Minister for Transport, one of six Cabinet positions he held until 2008. In 1992 after Albert Reynolds succeeded Haughey as Taoiseach, Brennan was one of the few ministers in Haughey’s Cabinet who remained in Reynolds’ new government. In his capacity as Minister for Transport he introduced a two-airline policy which gave Ryanair exclusivity on certain routes and he completed work on the roll-out of the Luas in 2004. Brennan was also known as a very good negotiator, and these trait
Eugene Lambert was Ireland’s first and greatest puppet-master. To generations of Irish children, he was “O’Brien”, a jolly grown-up child who lived aboard the Wanderly Wagon and sported a check suit with the colourful flourish of magical handkerchiefs. His most beloved creation was Finnegan, a boy puppet who cheekily answered his master back. He was also the best pal of “Judge” the “Safe Cross Code” dog, but “Judge” was only one of hundreds of puppets he created, operated and voiced. Eugene Lambert was born and raised in Sligo. His interest in puppetry began at an early age when he made a puppet from the shell of a lobster the family had eaten. He attached strings to the lobster shell and made it walk up the stairs. Eugene made a number of puppets and developed an act with them on stage. He toured all over Ireland and was known as “Ireland’s youngest boy ventriloquist.” When he got married to Mai, they moved to Dublin to take advantage of the Capital’s throbbing cabaret scene. He was a fridge mechanic by day and an entertainer by night. Eugene Lambert’s early television programmes included Cártaí Hiúdaí, Murphy agus a Cháirde and Brogeen Follows the Magic Tune, but Wanderly Wagon would make Eugene an Irish television legend. Wanderly Wagon ran from 1967 until 1982 and featured characters such as O’Brien (Lambert), Godmother (Nora O’Mahony), Mr Crow and Judge. The Wagon itself became an Irish icon and it was frequently seen on the streets of Dublin during various children’s parades. Its magical powers were well demonstrated in 1969 when it survived a bomb blast in RTÉ. In 1972, Eugene Lambert opened Ireland’s first ever purpose built puppet theatre in Monkstown, Co. Dublin. He became involved with international puppet festivals and was a highly respected figure in international puppetry. He also toured all over Ireland with his family of troubadours. As he was returning from France in 1980, he was wrongly arr
This week's programme explores the legend of Anna Manahan - diva, celebrity, ard aisteoir, civil rights activist and good friend and colleague. Anna Manahan was one of our most respected and acclaimed stage and screen actresses, with memorable appearances in The Irish RM, Leave It To Mrs O’Brien, Big Maggie, The Riordans, Fair City, and The Matchmaker as well as triumphant runs on Broadway in Brian Friel’s Lovers and, latterly, Martin McDonagh’s The Beauty Queen of Leenane. But we sometimes forget just how famous Anna Manahan was. She was a star upon the world stage and the Waterford native was one of the very few Irish actors to win the theatre’s highest honour — a Tony Award — for her role in the Broadway run of The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Did we ever really know the real Anna — the complex and dynamic person behind the famous theatre and screen roles? The civil rights activist whose campaign on behalf of senior citizens gave the fiery and talented actress a brand new stage to fill in her golden years and resulted in a Government climbdown on the issue of medical cards. Cloch le Carn explores the legend of Anna Manahan – Diva, celebrity, Ard Aisteoir, civil rights activist and good friend and colleague. The programme interviews many of Anna Manahan’s colleagues and friends, amongst them Martina Stanley, Des Keogh, Tomas Mac Anna, Maire Ní Ghráinne and Barry Cassin, to offer a captivating, fascinating and intimate portrait of one of the true greats of Irish stage and screen.
"Dermot Earley was a good man; in fact he was a great man, but to the people of Roscommon, he was a mighty man." These were the word spoken by Monsignor Eoin Thynne, Head Chaplain of the Defence Frces at the funeral mass of the former Chief of Staff, who died in June 2010 at the age of 62. Regarded as a born leader on the football pitch, he played minor championship football for Roscommon in 1963 at the age of 15, two years later he was promoted to the Roscommon senior side and won the first of five Connacht championship medals in 1972 as well as an All Ireland medal in 1966. Twice an All Stars award winner, he won a National League medal in 1979, an All Ireland runners-up medal in 1980 and two Railway Cup medals .He retired from inter-county football in 1985 and as a measure of his popularity was carried shoulder high from the pitch by members of the opposing Mayo team. Dermot Earley was also both a skilful rugby and soccer player, often lining out for the Army rugby teams under the pseudonym "Lieutenant Late" in the days of the GAA "Ban". Having joined the Defence Forces as a cadet in 1965 Dermot Earley rose through the ranks to emerge as one of its most highly regarded chiefs. He had a variety of operational and administrative appointments including two tours of duty with UNIFIL in Lebanon and later as a UN military observer. From 1987 to 1991 he served as Deputy Military Observer to UN Secretary General Javier Perez de Cuellar. He called on his international experience to reform and modernise the Irish Defence Forces as Chief of Staff. Dermot Earley was known for his impassioned oratory, especially while addressing younger members of the Defence Forces reminding them of the confidence he had in them. Both his military and sporting colleagues remember him as an inspirational figure who bought out the best in people. It has been suggested that his unique leadership qualities would have made him an ideal candidate for the Presidency however he fell serious
Alex Higgins, world champion snooker player twice over, died last summer alone in his native Belfast. Although a tragic figure in death, he had lived up to his nickname as “The Hurricane” and stormed the professional snooker world hitting the headlines throughout his career – not always for the right reasons. Higgins began playing snooker when he was nine years of age but really wanted to be a jockey. After failing to make it as an apprentice jockey in England he switched back to snooker and quickly rose through the ranks, reaching world class level within a few short years. In 1972 he won the World Championship. His unorthodox style of play, as well as his showmanship, set him apart. Alex arrived on the snooker scene at a key moment; up to then Snooker was an obscure, minority sport with a shady reputation of dark, smoke-filled rooms but in the 1970s snooker became a hugely popular TV sport and the top players were stars. In this pantheon Alex Higgins became the “People’s Champion”. But wherever Alex went trouble never seemed far behind. He seemed always in conflict (often physically) with the snooker authorities. His game could be brilliant but was hugely inconsistent and that was the element of danger that attracted so much interest. With Alex you never knew what you were going to get. With contributions from Ken Doherty, Nell McCafferty, Ronan Collins, Louis Copeland, Aonghus McAnally and Ruth McAvinia – We look at the life and controversies of “The Hurricane” in the calm after his passing.
THE words 'legend' and 'larger than life' are perhaps used a little too freely nowadays but in the case of Moss Keane they could hardly be more apt. When he passed away last October, Irish sport lost a true giant and gentleman who was a legend in his own lifetime. This edition of ' Cloch le Carn' looks back at the life of Moss Keane through the eyes of those who knew him, played with him and loved him. Those interviewed for the programme include his wife Anne, Mick Galwey, Tony Ward, Ollie Campbell, Billy Keane, Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh, Micheál Ó Sé and Mártan Ó Ciardha.
The life and career of actor Mick Lally
As the year 2011 comes to a close “Cloch le Carn” looks back on the life of the late Brian Lenihan, former Minister for Finance & Justice and the only Fianna Fáil TD in the Dublin Area to be re-elected in this year’s general election. ( Cloch le Carn is the occasional series which takes a constructive but not always uncritical look at public figures who’ve made a contribution to Irish society.) Brian Lenihan was destined to be a politician. His father Brian Snr, grandfather Paddy and aunt Mary O’Rourke all represented Fianna Fáil with distinction in Dáil Éireann before him, and although initially it seemed that Brian was destined for a distinguished career in law, he took a career detour in 1996 when he won the Dublin West by-election arising from the death of his father. His early years in the Dáil saw his busy himself as a backbencher and he was appointed as chairman of the All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution. However, he was passed over for Ministerial Appointment on a number of occasions by Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and it was only in the dying days of Ahern’s leadership that he became Minister for Justice in 2007. Within a year Ahern was gone but ensured he would be replaced as Fianna Fáil leader by Brian Cowen. Cowen, in turn, decided that Lenihan should replace himself as Minister for Finance. But in politics timing is important and within weeks of Lenihan taking over in Merrion Street what became apparent was that the economy was in meltdown. In a midnight move the Government guaranteed the banks. Brian Lenihan presented a series of harsh budgets and also set up of NAMA in an attempt to address the crisis. In his budget speech of December 2009 he predicted that the worst was over, but there was soon to be the shock that he was suffering from pancreatic cancer. The news of his cancer was broken on TV3 on St Stephen’s Day 2009 – a shock to friends and colleagues. Lenihan decided the country came first and vowed to con
Cloch le Carn looks back at the life and times of David Kelly through the eyes of those who know him best including his son and daughter David and Miriam, as well as colleagues and friends Niall Tóibín, Maureen Toal, Mary McEvoy and Alan Stanford. In February 2012, David Kelly, one of Ireland’s most charismatic, versatile and iconic actors died, at the age of 82, after a short illness. He left behind a body of work that will be long remembered in film, television, radio and on stage and was proud of the fact that he never retired. He was a dapper dresser who always wore a bow-tie and said that denim was “the work of the devil”. Cloch le Carn looks back at the life and times of David Kelly through the eyes of those who know him best including his son and daughter David and Miriam, as well as colleagues and friends Niall Tóibín, Maureen Toal, Mary McEvoy and Alan Stanford. Although David trained as a calligrapher and draughtsman his first love was the stage and he cut his teeth at the Abbey School of Acting. He was a regular on all the major stages of Dublin throughout the 1940s and ‘50s and it was while working at the Pike Theatre that he met fellow actress Laurie Morton who was later to become his wife of over 50 years and with whom he had 2 children. David gained early attention in Samuel Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape which he performed on the Abbey stage in 1959. He revived this role for a performance that lit up the Gate’s first Beckett Festival in 1991. The dawning of the television era in Ireland meant that David’s versatility as an actor had a new platform and he appeared in lots of dramas and plays throughout the 1960’s on RTÉ. But it was on British TV screens that he really made his mark, starring opposite Milo O’Shea in Me Mammy, appearing as the hapless builder O’Reilly in an iconic episode of Fawlty Towers and then playing the part of Albert Riddle, the one-armed kitchen hand in the successful ITV sitcom Robin’s Nes
More than a decade after his death Joe Lynch is still fondly remembered by his friends and legion of fans. Joe Lynch ended his career as a household name, maybe better known as Dinny Byrne, the Wicklow farmer he played in Glenroe and before in Bracken for so many years. But Joe was more than Dinny – an actor, a singer, a comedian – theatre, radio, TV he was a multi-talented performer but always a Corkman! Now more than a decade after his death he’s still fondly remembered by his friends and legion of fans.
In December 2009, Ciarán Mac Mathúna, one of Ireland’s best loved broadcasters with his own signature voice died, aged 84 years. He began work in Radio Éireann in late 1954 as a music producer with responsibility for traditional music. During the 1950s & especially in the ‘60s, he was engaged in extensive field-recording. Travelling the highroads and byroads of Ireland getting to the source of the Irish musical tradition, recording musicians in the own homes and locales. His gentle, slow manner put nervous musicians and singers at their ease amid all the new fangled and cumbersome technology . “Ciarán’s voice was central to it all, everyone recognised it and when he spoke about music people hung onto his every word.” Paddy Glackin It was on one such fieldtrip to the west, that he met his future wife Dolly while interviewing her father Martin Furey. They went on to have three children together. “Love is a very peculiar thing, it happens, and we were both very lucky. We were different in lots of ways but maybe that’s why our marriage was so successful.” Dolly MacMahon Ciarán also travelled abroad recording music in Britain and in the USA and it was on one of his American trips that he heard the Clancy Brothers for the first time, and had a hand in helping them become such a success on their native shores. He presented such radio series as Ceolta Tíre and A Job of Journeywork in the 60s while in the 70s and 80s he also worked in television, presenting traditional music series such as Fonn and The Humours of Donnybrook as well as fronting numerous traditional music documentaries. “He was somebody who didn’t believe in formal barriers between different types of music. Music was good or not good.” Deirdre Mac Mathúna ( Daughter) He was perhaps best known to Irish audiences for his long running Sunday morning radio programme Mo Cheol Thú which combined music, poetry and folklore. A constant in the RTÉ R
At the height of her fame as an international author, Maeve Binchy made many television appearances. The purpose was, of course, to publicise her latest book, but the results could be hilarious. During one Late Late Show appearance, she spoke to Pat Kenny about some of her early difficulties as an author: “When I started writing the books, I couldn’t really put any graphic sex into it because I was never at an orgy. Were you ever at an orgy Pat?” Maeve Binchy was born in Dalkey in south county Dublin in 1940, the eldest of four children. As a young history student in UCD, Maeve discovered the disadvantages of living in the quiet seaside village. “It was so far out, nine and a half miles from Dublin. What would you have to promise somebody to give you a lift home? When people discovered that you lived in Dalkey, it was goodbye after the first dance.” Maeve spent time living in a kibbutz in Israel, after which she went teaching and writing part-time. Finally, she got her big break and joined the Irish Times. She moved to the paper’s London Office in the mid-1970s and, a few years later, married the BBC journalist and writer, Gordon Snell. Maeve Binchy’s articles were witty and lively. They also showed her interest in the lives or ordinary people whose conversations she overheard on the bus or the Tube. She often missed her station so that she could hear the end of a fellow passenger’s story. A few years later, Maeve turned her hand to fiction, starting with the short story collections Victoria Line and Central Line. Her big break came in 1982 with her first novel Light a Penny Candle, which told the story of a long friendship between an Irish girl and her English pal. The book was a massive bestseller. Further success followed with Circle of Friends and Tara Road, both of which were made into films. During the course of her career, Maeve Binchy sold over 40 million books. Sadly, she died in July 2012 after a lifetime of consisten
On the 15th of December 2012, Ireland lost one of its most passionate, colourful and recognisable sporting icons when Páidí Ó Sé died suddenly at the age of 57 at his home in Ceann Trá, West Kerry. Páidí won an extraordinary 8 All-Ireland Senior Football medals and he captained Kerry to the 1985 title. His speech on the Hogan Stand as he received the Sam Maguire has become part of Irish folklore. He also managed Kerry between 1995 and 2003 and led the county to All-Ireland glory in 1997 and 2000. Páidí’s early career playing for Kerry coincided with his professional life as a Garda stationed in Limerick. However, he decided to give up his life of fighting crime to become a publican, initially leasing the famous ‘Kruger’s Pub’ in Dún Chaoin before he opened his own pub in Ard a’ Bhóthair in the mid-eighties. Páidí was the star attraction and many celebrities like Dolly Parton and Tom Cruise paid him a visit. Páidí was very proud of his family, his roots in Corca Dhuibhne and of the traditions of Kerry football. At times, however, he could be a controversial figure as was the case in early 2003 when he called the Kerry supporters ‘F***#ing animals’. Although Kerry reached the All-Ireland semi-final that year, Páidí was sacked as manager, a decision that hurt him deeply. But every cloud has a silver lining as Westmeath offered him a job the following week and they went on to win a Leinster title under Páidí for the first and only time in their history. This episode of Cloch le Carn delves into the archives to look back at Páidí’s career on and off the pitch, with personal contributions from Mick O’Dwyer, Jack O’Shea, Dara Ó Cinnéide, Micheál Ó Muircheartaigh, Brian Mullins, Fiona Looney, Tomás Ó Flatharta and Mártan Ó Ciardha.
Cláracha Gaeilge RTÉ brings you a documentary portrait of the late legendary broadcaster Colm Murray that looks back over a remarkable broadcasting career spanning 35 years. Creating television history in 1989 by becoming one of the first ever sportscasters on RTÉ news, he went on to became the authoritative voice of horse racing in Ireland. When Colm failed to get to his beloved Cheltenham Festival in 2009 due to RTÉ cutbacks, his friends, the musical duo Foster & Allen, offered to pay his fare and called his absence a ‘national disgrace’. In 2010 Colm was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease, a fortnight after working at that years Cheltenham. On his diagnosis Colm said; ” Of all things going, I used to pray to god please don’t let it be Motor Neurone Disease….I am bloody well sure I am not going to let this thing change me. I see no reason why I should grant it that power or authority so to hell with it.” A long and difficult battle ensued for Colm and his family. Fondly remembered by sports fans, Colm brought a unique and engaging style to his broadcasts, irrespective of the discipline his unwavering enthusiasm and passion for sport always shone through. The programme brings us a treasure of classic Colm Murray reports peppered with the colour, excitement, madness and high emotions of Italia 90, one of his career highlights. We re-live those unforgettable scenes from the Stadio Olimpico after Schillaci truly burst the Irish dream. Always full of charm, personality and humour, Colm delivered his reports with a considerable dollop of linguistic gymnastics. In tonight’s documentary he is fondly remembered by colleagues and friends, including broadcasters Sean O’Rourke, Robbie Irwin, Evanne Ní Chuilinn, Breandán O’Rourke and leading horse trainer and friend Willie Mullins.
Cloch Le Carn pays tribute to legendary Dublin Football manager, Kevin Heffernan. Heffo, as he was known, revived Dublin football in the 1970s and he gave his name to the famous “Heffo’s Army”, the colourful Dublin supporters who invaded Hill 16 for the legendary encounters with Kerry. Apart from managing Dublin, Kevin was a talented footballer himself. As a player, he won an All Ireland medal when Dublin beat Derry in the 1958 All Ireland Final. Such was his talent that he was selected for the Football Team of the Century and later the Team of the Millennium. This latter accolade led to the rare distinction of appearing on a postage stamp in his lifetime . Heffo devoted his life to his club, St Vincent’s, with whom he won a sackful of County Championships, and his beloved Dublin. The programme contains tributes from friends, colleagues, opponents and fans from all over Ireland. The programme also contains rare archive footage of Kevin from his playing days in the 1950s as well as a wealth of nostalgic memories on film of the 1970s.
Cloch le Carn looks back at both the personal and political life of the wily Independent politician, Jackie Healy-Rae. His daughter Rosemary remembers fondly the Healy-Rae home in Kilgarvan that was filled with her father’s storytelling and music. She also speaks of his bitter disappointment at not being nominated by Fianna Fáil, the disappointment of Bertie Ahern refusing to come to his aid and the bursting pride the day he took his seat in the Dáil for the first time. ‘He loved Christmas as we all did. It started at the beginning of December and he’s be telling stories of how he met Santa on the Bog Road.’ ‘That time when he didn’t get the nomination, I think it’s safe to say that he was devastated. He had stood back in the wings all those years, and then when it came around to what he saw as his turn, he was dropped’ Rosemary Healy-Rae Jackie Healy-Rae worked tirelessly for Fianna Fáil over several decades, delivering many election victories for the party. He broke ranks with them in 1997 having failed to get a nomination to contest the general election in Kerry South and won a seat as an Independent. Victory was sweet revenge for Jackie, and when Bertie Ahern sought his support to form a government, Jackie presented him with a long list of demands for his local area. Risteard Ó Lionáird worked closely with Jackie on all of his campaigns. He recalls that while Bertie Ahern was courting Jackie’s support, Fine Gael were offering their own sweeteners in an effort to woo the south Kerry politician. John Bruton’s rainbow coalition offered him a position in Cabinet as Minister for Agriculture. In turn he used this offer to gain even more concessions from Bertie. ‘We went out to St. Luke’s where Celia Larkin was waiting for us. She told us she had the kettle on’ ‘We got Fine Gael to send a fax to Jackie, outlining their offer and this fax was used in the talks with Fianna Fáil, to make sure all the
There’s not many people whose name, over six decades, became a by-word for protest, sectarianism, even bigotry; who have ignited such passionate support and opposition in equal measure; founded their own Church and Political Party and in their eighties performed an Olympic political volte face to share power with lifelong enemies – Rev. Dr. Ian Kyle Paisley is the focus of CLOCH LE CARN with a “no holds barred” look at the life of the Former First Minister of Northern Ireland with rare archive and insights from former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, Professor of Modern Irish History Diarmaid Ferriter together with Éamonn Ó Cuiv TD & Mary Hanafin who were among the select invitees to his Memorial Service in the Ulster Hall. 1926, Ian Paisley was born in Armagh to a Scots mother and an Ulster Baptist preacher father and like him or loathe him, what cannot be denied is that he made a mark on our country, but maybe not always in a good way. He originally rose to prominence as a fundamentalist preacher in the evangelical Protestant circuit. Even early on it was clear he was a force to be reckoned with. Originally Paisley took to the streets as much against the ruling Unionist party & ecumenism as against Civil Rights marchers. He put the protest back into Protestant and was jailed for his actions – adding fuel to his fire. One after the other, he saw off any attempt at compromise with nationalists. All the while fomenting sectarian strife and many would believe, inciting tit for tat loyalist and republican violence. Sunningdale; The Anglo-Irish Agreement; The Downing Street Declaration and The Good Friday Agreement Paisley opposed them all and continued the politics of “No Surrender” until he took over the lead position in Unionism having beaten and defeated the UUP – only then did he change and very dramatically.
Italia '90, USA '94 and Saipan.all buzzwords in Irish sporting history. Ray Houghton, Jack Charlton and Roy Keane all had starring roles but for the Irish public at home watching events unfold in their sitting rooms, Bill O'Herlihy was in the magic ingredient that brought all these iconic sporting events to the Irish public. One could say that Bill O'Herlihy's career was a game of two halves, played out between current affairs and sports broadcasting. CLOCH LE CARN casts an eye over the full match that was the life of Bill O'Herlihy. Bill O'Herlihy was born in Cork in 1938. From childhood he wanted to be a journalist, and follow in his grandfather's footsteps as News Editor of the The Cork Examiner. In 1965, while working for The Cork Examiner, Bill was given an unexpected offer to cover the 50th anniversary of the sinking of the Lusitania for Frank Hall's Newsbeat television programme on RTÉ. It was an offer he couldn't refuse! Bill was to become one of the first regional reporters for our only television channel at the time and reported on anything and everything from Cork and its environs. He became 'kind of a big deal' in Cork. The reports he did often came close to being Monty Python-esque with a man being buried alive in one, homemade violins in another and not forgetting odd Hollywood starlet like Jayne Mansfield causing uproar! Bill was happy in Cork and didn't have much desire to cross the county boundary, but that he did, when his versatility and journalistic skills were noticed and he landed a job with the RTÉ primetime current affairs show 'Seven Days'. In 1969 Bill was the reporter on a Seven Days programme which exposed illegal money-lending in Ireland. The programme's production methods caused controversy and led to both an internal RTÉ inquiry as well as an Oireachtas Tribunal of Inquiry. In the wake of the fallout from the Tribunal of Inquiry, Bill made a permanent move to RTÉ Sport where he has covered everything from the '72 Mun
"Derek's sense of humour and his wit were phenomenal." Thelma Mansfield "There was another part of him that was quite contemplative and, standing on a river bank on a drizzly day, catching nothing but a cold, he loved." Colm Davis "Fear mór abhí ann. Ach bhí pearsantacht mór aige. Bhí gach rud mór faoi Derek agus sin an fáth go raibh an méid sin grá ag daoine dó." Evelyn O'Rourke For over 30 years Derek was a familiar and distinctive voice in Irish broadcasting. Born in 1948 to a Protestant father and Catholic mother in Holywood, Co. Down and later something of a "blow-in" down South, Derek always saw himself as an outsider. But as an outsider he had licence to bring a certain irreverence to his commentary. Allied to his quick wit and skill as a wordsmith, this set his work apart. "Most of us who have any success are one-trick ponies. But there really wasn't anything in the business that Derek couldn't do." Brendan Keenan Highly versatile, Derek made a number of seamless transitions between quite diverse broadcasting disciplines. Unusually his career spanned news, TV and radio as he became in turn a news reporter, a newscaster, a presenter of light entertainment programmes, a documentary-maker and finally a radio essayist. His conversational skills, combined with a genuine interest in people and an almost encyclopaedic knowledge, meant that there were few topics which Derek was not equipped to tackle. "Bhí sé an-nádúrtha. Bhí spéis aige i ndaoine, rud atá fíor-thábhachtach do chraoltóir agus bhí réimse fairsing spéis aige fhéin. Ba bheag rud nach raibh spéis aige ann." Bob Collins "He was so versatile. There was no subject that he couldn't tackle and he was so competent, a brilliant scriptwriter and he could have done any programme." Thelma Mansfield "It did seem surprising sometimes that he wasn't getting more work." Brendan Keenan In his personal life Derek was a dedicated family man, a loyal friend and an entert
Frank Kelly was an icon of Irish television, radio and stage. Best known for his comic role of the alcoholic, foul mouthed priest Fr. Jack Hackett in ‘Father Ted’. Scrúdaíonn Cloch Le Carn éirim grinn an aisteora a raibh an-chion ag an bpobal air. Cuimhníonn a chomhghleacaithe agus a chlann ar dhuine a bhí ina aisteoir cruthanta agus fear céíle agus athair geanúil. This programme marks the 1st Anniversary of Frank’s death. ( Frank Kelly died 28.02.2016 age 77)
The life and career of Joe McDonagh, the former GAA president and one-time hurler who died last year, featuring contributions from family, friends and colleagues
A look back at the career of the late Jimmy Magee, the voice of Irish sport on RTE for nearly 60 years. Throughout his career he provided commentary on 12 World Cups and 13 Olympic Games, and here he is remembered by those who knew him best.
A look back at the life of former deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, the late Martin McGuinness.