Wild Old Times

Irish mythology is thick with prophecy, the inescapable visions of blonde-haired prophets and the geasa laid on heroes that bring doom when broken. So join us on a journey that takes us from the madness of King Sweeney to the dubious prophecies of St Malachy, through the prophets and prophecy of Ireland.
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

Although the word "soviet" makes people think of the USSR these days, it meant something quite different back in the early history of the Irish labour movement. It was when rather than strike, workers would seize control of a business themselves and run it - a way to show that worker-centred enterprises were possible. Find out the history of the movement, and how it was ruthlessly brought to an end, in this week's episode.
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

The collapse of the Tipperary Joint Stock Bank was one of the greatest financial scandals of the nineteenth century. The greed and immorality of two brothers, John and James Sadleir, ruined hundreds of lives and left scars on the Irish psyche that remain to this day.
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

There's a place in the Caribbean where they celebrate St Patrick's Day with a week-long party, where some of the greatest albums of all time were recorded, and where a future Irish president made a documentary. One of the smallest islands in the West Indies, the colony of Montserrat was founded by Irish settlers and was home to native Irish speakers up until the 19th century. But that's only one part of this island's complicated history, and its even more complicated present - battered by natural disasters, but still standing proud.
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

Although nowadays he moulders in obscurity, for thirty years Dion Boucicault was probably Ireland's most successful playwright. His plays packed out theatres on both sides of the Atlantic, and his scandals and political entanglements made front page news. Join us this episode for his wild old story. 
Here's the video I mention in the episode that describes the stage mechanism Dion created for The Corsican Brothers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TyNJKbB88g
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

The railway line along Donegal's northern coastline was a strange endeavour, and arguably one that was never meant to succeed. It had a long history of mismanagement and failure, but in the end it might have been the success that made the county what it is today.
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

The Walt Disney movie Darby O'Gill and the Little People has an infamous reputation among Irish film students. In this episode we unpick the roots of Darby's version of Irishness, and how it has shaped Ireland's global image - including making the leprechaun the symbol that none of us want.
You can watch the episode of Walt Disney Presents that I mention here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgSNPj803AY
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

After a brief digression across World War 2 propaganda, we return to the history of Irish films with a look at some films made in Ireland in the years after the war. From a personal favourite to an acknowledged classic, these show how Ireland's film industry developed despite the heavy hand of the Catholic Church.
 
The following films were mentioned in this episode and are available online:
- A Pathe newsreel about the 1936 All-Ireland Hurling Final: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nl_DJpK-WzY
- Orson Welles’ Othello: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09NWcKA7JKw
- Return to Glennascaul: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gxdfK9vcGlA
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

In a break from our history of the Irish film industry, we look at how both sides of the conflict portrayed Ireland in their propaganda movies. From an American comedy starring a future Hollywood star to a German film with literal blood on its hands, these films show how Ireland was less a place and more a symbol during those wartime years.
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk 

In our last episode, we covered the history of Irish film in the years before it gained independence. But a new era for the country meant a new era for the Irish film industry, so in this episode we look at the films made in Ireland and by Irish people during those early years of Irish independence.
 
The following films were mentioned in this episode and are available online.
Irish Destiny: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBYNRrAShn0 
Nanook of the North: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSigF6ELY9I 
Moana (1926): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3fnxzYHzb4 
Man of Aran: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JxnU0_BFzw 
Oidhche Sheanchais (A Night of Storytelling): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wu0EteAgnYc  
(Incidentally, I made a couple of mistakes in the episode talking about this film due to misreading my notes. First, I say there were four cast members in this movie. It’s actually five. And I referred to Tom O’Dioran (the storyteller) as Maggie ni Mhaolain’s husband, but he is actually her brother in law. Apologies.)
The Dawn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjtfAmY0L-U
 
Wild Old Times is a podcast about the strange and obscure corners of Irish history, written and presented by Ciaran Conliffe.
Our logo is by Liffy Designs.
The opening theme is The Cat That Ate The Candle. The closing theme is The Parting Glass. Both were recorded by Gregory Mahan and are used under a Creative Commons license. You can find more of his music at https://tinwhistler.com
Wild Old Times is recorded at Farset Labs in Belfast. Learn more about Northern Ireland’s favourite hackerspace at https://farsetlabs.org.uk