82. Lillis Ó Laoire & Seán Ó hEaráin: Aodh Ó Canainn & Saggart Heron
Episode 82 is a conversation with An Feannadóir (Fender Jackson), his father Seán Ó hEaráin and Lillis Ó Laoire around a book written by the late Aodh Ó Canainn about Priest Heron which tracks the language shift from Gaelic to English in the south of County Derry just after the famine in the 19th Century.
Conversation includes: introductions; a background to the book; Páidí Láidir Mac Cullach; Jane McCrory; Aodh Ó Canainn; Terence ‘Terry’ Heron; Saggart (Priest) Heron; Cardinal Paul Cullen and the Romanisation of the Irish church including the introduction of ‘Father’; Kitty clerkin and Éilis Ní Chléirighean; Katie Kelly’s in Portstewart; Anne Marie Kennedy; Charlie Conville; Biddy Donnelly, matchmaking and near misses; poitín; the conditions for a language shift; the famine; John Heron in America; Nóra Ní Chathain; Peter McNamee; Seán Mac Diarmuida and Miss McGuigan; Bridie Browne; Dr Wilhelm Doegen (1877-1967) Director of the Lautabteilung, Preussische Staatsbibliothek (the Sound Department at the Prussian State Library), Berlin; Gaelic in Ulster in 1930s; the Royal Irish Academy; John Carolan; Sarah Tracey; Francie Frank; Art Hughes; Fr. Mathew Pledge and the Pioneers; Seán’s aunt Brigid and how photographs in Draperstown came into existence; Patrick J. Heron; John O'Donovan from the Ordnance Survey visiting the area before the famine; Seán’s journey to gaelic; Francie Convery; Rosguill; Oideas Gael; Gleann Cholm Cille; Tomás Ó Canainn; Diarmuid Ó Devlin; the Aodh and Tomás’ nephew Neil Martin; Burns’ shop in Draperstown; the supernatural powers of the priest; Saggart Heron’s potatoes; the songs in the book; Tory Island; King Patsy Dan Rodgers;’ Prince Paul and other topics.
Relevant Links
http://www.oideas-gael.com/en/
Additional Links
https://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000015943
https://cic.ie/shop/leabhair/on-a-rock-in-the-middle-of-the-ocean/
https://www.itma.ie/ga/people/lillis-o-laoire/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7cusdCsHSY
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1130595573939102&rdid=aIIQuuzyKMnWAyov
https://cic.ie/shop/leabhair/neamhfhicsean/dha-leagan-deag-leargas-nua-ar-an-sean-nos/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSBLL5UzZWE
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Ireland Podcast
About the Podcast
The Ireland Podcast is a long-form interview series creating space for unhurried conversation about life on the island of Ireland and beyond.
The Conversations
Hosted by Fender Jackson and produced by Salthill Media, the podcast centres on listening rather than argument. Each episode features a single guest and allows time for reflection, context, and experience to emerge naturally. Guests include artists, musicians, writers, athletes, broadcasters, historians, and cultural figures whose work or perspective offers insight into place, memory, and lived experience.
There is no political or religious agenda. The podcast does not seek to persuade, promote, or argue a position. Instead, it exists as a space for careful dialogue, where complexity is allowed and difference is approached with curiosity rather than confrontation.
The Host
Fender Jackson grew up in Ulster and later lived in England and China before returning to Ireland and settling in Galway, where most episodes are now recorded. These experiences inform a listening-led, exploratory approach shaped by distance as well as proximity, and by an awareness of how place, movement, and memory intersect.
Approach
The Ireland Podcast approaches the island as a shared, lived place - shaped by multiple histories, traditions, communities, and viewpoints. In a post-conflict society, conversation itself has value. The podcast recognises the role that respectful dialogue, storytelling, and careful questioning can play in fostering empathy and understanding.
Over time, it becomes an informal record of conversations about the island and its many expressions, offered quietly and without prescription.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- No. of episodes: 204
- Latest episode: 2025-12-16
- Society & Culture Places & Travel
Where can you listen?
