Showing posts with label Seán Lyons. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Seán Lyons. Show all posts

Friday, 23 November 2018

North Kerry, Clounmacon boots, Eamon Kelly and Alison Spittle at the Young adult Bookfest 2018


St. John's, Bryan MacMahon statue and Seanchaí


Entrance to Kerry Writers'Museum

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Visiting North Kerry

Patty Faley took these photos on her recent holiday.


The visitors  were disappointed to find Carrigafoyle Castle closed.


Patty took this on the way to Lislaughtin.

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Clounmacon and Boot wearing

From the schools folklore collection in Dúchas


“Some of people used not wear boots until they were eighteen or nineteen years long ago.”

Some of people used not wear boots until they were eighteen or nineteen years long ago. They used to work in the fields and in the dikes and the frost cracking under their feet. Jack Mahoney used never wear boots and he could walk on any thing and he would not feel it. he used to walk on bushes and on briars and he would not feel it.
Most of the children go barefoot in the summer but they put them on in the winter. They throw the water they use for washing wash their feet if they did not throw out the water after washing their feet they should get up in the middle of the night and throw it out.
Some people used to wear clogs locally. They used to wear them in the winter but they are not worn now at all.
There was a tannery in Listowel about three miles form here. The National Bank is now built where it stood. About fifty or sixty years ago brogues used be worn. They were made of cheap leather and stitched. In Listowel up near the top of church Street lived a man named Johnny the Cottoners or Johnny O' Connor. He used make brogues and sell them at the big fair in Listowel and Abbeyfeale. In the same street lived two men named Mick 
the Nailer and Jacky the Nailer. They used make the heavy nails that were driven into the soles of the shoes.
Most shoemakers at that time used cut out the uppers themselves and sew them and the boots used hold a long time.
Collector- Martin Kennelly, Address  Dromin, Co. Kerry
Informant  John Shanahan- Age   69- Address,  Dromin, Co. Kerry

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More Local Doors









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A Seanchaí remembered at The Seanchaí

I took the two photos below at The Seanchí, Kerry Writers' Museum. I grew up listening to Eamon Kelly on the radio. I was a child in pre TV times when people sat down and paid attention to the radio. My mother loved a good story and Eamon Kelly was far and away her favourite storyteller.


BryanMacMahon, John B. Keane and Eamon Kelly


Passing on the stories.

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Young Adult Bookfest 2018

On November 15 2018 over 800 North Kerry and West Limerick second level students gathered  in Listowel Community Centre for a great day of entertainment and education, organised by Listowel Writers' Week.



Among the inspiring speakers was Edaein O'Connell.


Eilish and Máire met Alison Spittle at the centre.
Alison was a photographer's dream, willingly posing for all my snaps, with Kay Halpin, Catherine Moylan, Seán Lyons and Joanne O'Riordan.





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1938 Ireland

This story, which I found shared on Twitter, falls into the category of truth stranger than fiction.



Thursday, 12 June 2014

Places of worship and out and about during Writers' Week 2014


Did we ever think we'd see the day……..?


Cisco lorry outside St. Mary's which is now a building site.


Weekday masses for Listowel's Roman Catholic faithful are now said in the old Church of  Ireland St. John's church. Local people are enjoying the irony. Once upon a time local children believed that if they set foot inside this building they would be turned into goats.
A friend of mine told me that her mother, who was a Catholic, had to receive a dispensation in order to attend weddings and funerals of her husband's family in this church. He was a member of The Church of Ireland.
Changed times indeed!

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Kathy Taylor who loves Listowel and follows this blog from afar sent me a link to her church and her pastor who believes in the therapeutic and holy power go gardening


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On the streets with my camera



I met Beta O'Brien strolling with  friends on William St.

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 Shop Windows during Writers' Week



Walking through Listowel's streets during Writers' Week is like a literary odyssey. Shops and businesses enter into the spirit of things with book related displays. 
The following are a few windows I noticed during this year's festival.
















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These lovely ladies were on the streets at the weekend doing some market research.



Vincent Carmody met up with Seamus Hosey while he was out perambulating his twin grandchildren.


Seán Lyons was nabbed for a signing of his hilarious Travels with my Tan


Friday, 11 April 2014

Graveyards, Craftshop na Méar , The Buds of Ballybunion and Michael D.

I took this photo in Ballincollig on Saturday last as I indulged with my family in a long standing tradition of picking horses in The Aintree Grand National. I had no luck but there was a little money returned to the Cork branch of the family.

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While in Ballincollig I visited the grave of rock legend, Rory Gallagher.



Rory is buried in a lawn cemetery, where there is a cap on the height of the grave memorials. Good idea.

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I also visited another older churchyard on the Ovens side of town.





This beautiful old graveyard is full of character but almost impossible to maintain.

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This is how Craftshop na Méar looked on opening day,  Dec 10 2013. Much has happened since then and we are about to have a makeover. Painting will begin shortly and our Summer programme will be launched.

It was all systems go when I called into the shop yesterday.



New crafter in the shop, Eileen Moylan was in store assembling her glass cabinet.


Namir called in to help with the set up.



Máire Logue of Writers' Week gets a sneak preview of Eileen's Listowel range, which is still at the planning stage.


Crafters, Maureen, Mary and Isobel welcomed Eileen to shop.

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Cough Syrup or night cap?


This cough syrup was once  on sale in Limerick according to the Limerick 1912 website.

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Buds

I went to see John B.'s The Buds of Ballybunion on Wednesday night. It was great to see St. John's packed for this dated romping Listowel performance.

The word Buds comes from "budaire". This was a kind of tourist we see no more. Na budairí, or buds as they called them in Ballybunion were country people who came to Ballybunion in September. They rented a room in a boarding house. They brought with them their own potatoes and other vegetables, bacon, eggs, butter, jam etc. and the landlady cooked these for them.

The tradition is coming to an end in John B's play and this motley crew who come to the O'Dea house for their final summer as buds are depicted as backward, sexually repressed, frustrated but lovable characters. They are played to perfection in St. John's by some of the best character actors in North Kerry and West Limerick.

There is poetry, dancing, storytelling, song and ribaldry in this performance. The audience on Wednesday gave them a standing ovation. What more tribute can an actor or playwright ask?


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The state banquet for President Michael D. Higgins  (Getty Images)

So far I haven't mentioned the triumph of the first ever state visit by an Irish president to Britain. Aren't we glad now we elected a speechmaker. I am so proud of Michael D. Higgins. He can sure talk posh and he has few equals in delivery of the bon mot. If I were to single out one speech it would be the "Ar scáth a chéile a mhairimid" bit where he explained that scáth in Irish means shadow and shade. We have emerged from the shadow and now the queen is offering us shade. Isn't the queen some lady. She is playing a blinder. We have taken a giant leap this week in terms of our nationhood and good relations with our nearest neighbours.

I think that Ireland and Britain are a bit like Cork and Kerry, the rebels and the kingdom, sworn enemies until after the Munster Final and then whichever one is out will cheer for the other. There are so many families with dual  citizenship that we are far closer than we admit. Michael D. put it well when he said that because Ireland is not going to Brazil he will raise a glass to the English soccer team. I know the feeling.

Our two are also coping very well with the pomp and ceremony of it all. They are doing us proud. I think I'll send them a card when they get home.

Our president, Michael D. Higgins with Seán Lyons, Chair of Listowel Writers Week in The Square, Listowel on May 30th. 2012.

Tuesday, 17 April 2012

Writers' Week, monks and Anne Enright



This photo from John Pierse is from a 1970s Writers' Week.


This is President Hillary when he came to officially open the week. This year the week will be again opened by our president.


Jackie MacGillicuddy and John B.  do a bit of garden furniture relocation during another Writers' Week.

Last year Writers Week celebrated its 40th. anniversary with a gala programme. This year's looks just as good, if not better. 
There is another anniversary but this time a sad one. Hard to believe that it is 10 years since John B.'s passing.

Here are a few lovely photos from the recent Dublin launch of the festival.



Here are Lisa, Máire and Eilís , the girls in the office. When you ring up the festival office these are the lovely ladies who will charm you into coming not just for a day but for the whole festival. These three work very hard and are excellent at what they do. They are invariably good humored, gracious and helpful.  They are one of the festivals many blessings.




















Liam Mulcahy, DeLourdes McGrath and Rose Wall
Marty among the books


Author of The City of Bohane and recent winner of The Sunday Times Short Story Award, Kevin Barry, Brian MacMahon and Michael Lynch






John Boland and Rita Ann Higgins with Frank Hayes of Kerry Group which sponsors the novel of the year  competition and Seán Lyons, chair of Writers' Week.

The short listed novels this year are;

The Dead Eight    by Carlo Gebler
The City of Bohane by Kevin Barry
The Forgotten Waltz   by Anne Enright
The Cold Eye of Heaven by Christine Dwyer Hickey
Solace    by Belinda McKeon

The prize is worth €15,000

I intend reading all five before the final announcement. So far I've read The Forgotten Waltz and loved it. But I've also read several other really good books this year and they are not on the short list so maybe my taste and that of the judges is at odds.  No On Canaan's Side, no Sealed Letter?


For all the lowdown on the festival, who's coming and what's on visit  http://writersweek.ie/

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This striking photograph from the Facebook page of The Lake Hotel, Killarney shows monks on the shore of Loch Leine. They were gathered in Killarney recently for a weekend of mindfulness.

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Just heard on the radio that Anne Enright's Forgotten Waltz has been short listed for The Orange prize. What a coup for Writers' Week.