This blog is a personal take on Listowel, Co. Kerry. I am writing for anyone anywhere with a Listowel connection but especially for sons and daughters of Listowel who find themselves far from home. Contact me at listowelconnection@gmail.com

Tag: dolphins

Listowel Writers Week 2018 Opening Night, Roadworks, Revival, Folklore and an old photo

During this recent warm spell, the Beal dolphins came in really close to the shore and Ita Hannon got this photo.

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People at Opening Night Writers’ Week


I took up my position st the door of the Listowel Arms and I snapped these lovely people on the way in to the festival’s opening event.

As you can see I am automatically drawn to local people or people with a Listowel Connection. If you see anyone here who you know is not a blog follower will you alert them.

(more tomorrow)

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We Still have roadworks Disruptions



Listowel people have had a lot of disruption to put up with as natural gas is brought to Listowel. Road works begin at 7a.m. and finish at 8.00p.m. and we won’t mention the odd disruption to water supply due to burst mains.

It will be all worth it in the end.

I just hope that the Tidy Town judges will understand because the local committee is doing every thing it can to keep the town as clean and tidy and presentable as possible while the work is ongoing.

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Revivsl



Book early as ticket numbers are limited. Listowel’s great music festival is back for another year.

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From the Archives



The following is taken from the great folklore collection of 1937/38 when local children throughout Ireland collected lore from their older family and neighbours. We are lucky in Listowel that we had Bryan MacMahon on board with this project. Bryan was a great collector of folklore himself and he well understood the importance of remembering and preserving folk memories.


1. Baskets

One boy wrote about a woman called Madge Shine who lived in The Red Cottages, Cahirdown. Madge used to make baskets from hazel. She used to place the hazel twigs over the fire to soften before weaving them into baskets.

Sciath is the word in Irish for shield. We are familiar with it now in the title Sciath na Scol. So I’m guessing that the sciath refered to are flat baskets.

Another local man, Martin Sheehy, made ‘sgiaths” from “scallops” According to Michael O’Brien of Ashe Street who recorded the story, “he bended the sticks in and through one another until he had his sgiaths made.”

Bill Barrett of Beal made baskets from sedge which he used to harvest from the sandhills in Ballybunion. He also made hats and babies cradles. He also made “gads” for flails for threshing.

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This is how Listowel Races looked up to the 1970s  before all of the public were moved to the stand area. There used to be a cheaper option of attending The Races in the centre of the field on the inside of the racetrack. This option had bookies and a few carnival stalls and but no shelter.

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Job for an artist?


Job description

We currently have full time position for a **Sandwich Artist** in our store on Market St, Listowel Co. Kerry. Sandwich Artists have a positive outlook, thrive in a busy work environment and are keen to learn the art of great sandwich making. You will work well as part of a team, making delicious sandwiches to customer requirements. You will be responsible for serving customers, following health and safety procedures, and keeping the store clean.

The job will involve evening and weekend work so applicants must be fully flexible.

The job is going in Subway, by the way

Sundown in Ballybunion and beautiful Athea

Mike Enright took this photo of a fantastically peaceful Ballybunion sunset earlier this week. We are lucky to have someone like Mike with his knowledge of the weather and the tides to bring us views of Ballybunion that us landlubbers rarely get to witness.

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Early morning in Ballyb

Another photo from Ballybunion Prints Beach of the dolphins at play

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Beautiful Athea

When I was away with the fairies in Athea a few weeks ago I missed these  beautiful sights. These photographs are from Athea Tidy Town’s website. What talent and community commitment they have in this little place. The village is a credit to everyone concerned.

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This rhododendron forrest in Tipperary looks beautiful but it is practically impenetrable. Two very experienced mountaineers got  trapped here last Sunday. The South Eastern Mountain Rescue Association had great difficulty in reaching them to free them.   Avoid!

(Photo; SEMRA via Facebook)

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I was a bit surprised to run into these two gentlemen as I was walking the streets to get away from the World Cup. I suppose even mad soccer fans have to get away from it sometimes.

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Beach weather




The children are still in school but the beach is still busy these days (photo Ballybunion Prints Beach)

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2009 At Listowel Races on Friday was Listowel races Secretary Brendan Daly and Assistant Secretary Brenda Daly. Picture: Eamonn Keogh (MacMonagle, Killarney) —



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Hymns at a former Redemptorist retreat in Limerick



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3fPG_4jMkE&feature=youtu.be

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Photographs from the interior of the Redemptorist Church, Limerick

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OG5Y-fXNLco&feature=youtu.be

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All you who sleep tonight



Vikram Seth

All you who sleep tonight

Far from the one you love

No hand to left or right

And emptiness above

Know that you aren’t alone,

The whole world shares your tears

Some for two nights or one

And some for all their years.

Dublin Zoo, dolphin watch at Bromore and Bridget Walsh of Tullamore N.S.

This photo was taken in Dublin Zoo in 1963. The elephant’s name was Komali. We have no names for the children. The photo is from a site, Photos of old Dublin.

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Cabra Outdoor Baths in the 1950’s. Before swimming pools came to every other town in the country, people swam in unheated outdoor pools and rivers. This one in Cabra, Co. Dublin seems to have been well fitted out and popular.

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Denis Carroll took this photo of a tree felled during the recent storm. The tree has now been chopped up and drawn away and the path is clear again.

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Mile Flahive took this photo last week. It shows the Carrigaholt Dolphinwatch boat at The Devil’s Castle off Bromore Cliffs.

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Did you know that  the Catcher in the Philadelphia Quakers Baseball Team in 1886 was Limerick born Andy Cusick (second from the right, back row).

Source; http://www.limerickslife.com/

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Both Vincent Carmody and Aidan OMurchú contacted me after they identified this lovely lady who retired from Tullamore School in 1972.

The lady in question is Bríd Walsh who taught in Tullamore for many years. She lived in Courthouse Road next door to the ÓMurchú family and Aidan remembers her as a “lovely lady”.

Aidan also knew the man on the far left. He is Tim Kennelly’s late dad. Michael Kennelly.

Vincent identified the others in the photo as :

Gerald Mulvihill, Fr. Mundy Stack P.P. Ballydonoghue, Bridget Walsh, Thomas Flaherty, Jeremiah O Carroll.

Thanks lads.

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