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The Clare Oral History Podcast

by Clare Memories / Cuimhneamh an Chláir

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Latest episodes

  • Paddy Joe McMahon

    October 8, 2026 · 45 min

    Paddy Joe McMahon from Cappabane, Scariff in East Clare, died in June 2026 in his 92nd year.  He was one of those people every oral history collector dreams of because of his ability to tell a story, his powerful recall of the details of…

  • Traditional Farming, Nature & Environment – National Biodiversity Week 2025

    May 14, 2025 · 45 min

    For National Biodiversity Week we bring you stories of traditional farming and rural life and how they relate to biodiversity.  There are very few direct references to biodiversity in the Cuimhneamh an Chláir archive since that concept has…

  • Biddy Early

    December 10, 2024 · 50 min

    Biddy Early (1798-1874) was born in Killanena and lived most of her life in Feakle in Co. Clare.  She was a ‘bean feasa’ or wise woman (literally a ‘woman of knowledge’). She was famous as a woman of otherworldly knowledge and the power to…

  • Supernatural

    October 31, 2024 · 35 min

    Supernatural experiences abound in Irish Folklore.  The veil is thin between the concrete world and the other dimensions especially in the dark part of the year.  The stories are told by Teresa Flynn from Mountshannon, Paddy Murphy, Joe…

  • The Kitty Leyden Tapes Part 2

    October 18, 2024 · 38 min

    In Part 2 of a public interview with 88 year old Kitty Leyden, she talks of being an emigrant in New York, returning home, emigrating to England, meeting her husband, her work in Bunratty Folk Park, making bread, family memories of…

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  • The Kitty Leyden Tapes Part 1

    October 3, 2024 · 36 min

    88 year old Kitty Leyden was the youngest of 11, born on a small farm in Clonina, Cree, West Clare. She spent her young adulthood in New York. She then settled in Tulla, and raised 8 children. Hers is the story of the ordinary joys and…

  • Robin O' Connell

    February 23, 2022 · 36 min

    Episode 7 focuses on Robin O' Connell from Meelick, in South East Co. Clare - poitin maker,  Gaelic football supremo, tradition bearer, free spirit. This episode is dedicated to the memory of Margaret O' Connor,  who made lovely…

  • Stories of the Land

    February 4, 2022 · 31 min

    Episode 6 features stories of life on the land in Co. Clare. There are stories of farming and of the crafts associated with it, of entertainment and of the rhythms of rural life in Co. Clare in times past. John Vaughan from Kilfenora…

  • Stories of the Towns

    January 24, 2022 · 38 min

    Episode 5 features stories of life in the towns of Co. Clare. Madeleine Killeen and Pat Foudy tell unusual stories of the lives of children and women in the town of Ennis.  Frank Sheedy and Mary Angela Keane tell us of the eclectic mix of…

  • Stories of Christmas

    December 24, 2021 · 36 min

    Episode 4  features stories of Christmases past in Co. Clare in the West of Ireland. Stories of the magic of Christmas candles in the days before electricity, the hustle and bustle of decorating the house, what 'Santy' brought children…

  • A Woman's Work

    November 27, 2021 · 41 min

    Episode 3 features stories of the working lives of women in Co. Clare. Susan Williams in Kilfenora and Maura McInerney in Killaloe talk of hard physical labour.  Peggy Hogan in Feakle tells us of the magic of the washing machine.  Susan…

  • Stories of the Coast

    November 12, 2021 · 41 min

    Episode 2 features stories of the Clare coastline. John Daly and Michael Falsey tell us about the herring fishing industry around Quilty.  Randal Counihan talks of ravenous seals and slaveships.  Pa Joe Mahony and Senan Blunnie talk of…

Full episode archive on Apple Podcasts →

About the show

This podcast delves into the thousands of Irish life stories in the archive of the Irish Oral History and Folklore Group known as Cuimhneamh an Chláir or Clare Memories. We’re based in Co. Clare in the West of Ireland. The oral histories we’ve gathered reveal ordinary lives and extraordinary stories. The podcast will introduce you to the people and experiences that make the West of Ireland what it is.