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: Kevin Barry

Garden Birds, Refurbishment and another lovely Michael O’Connor piece

Lovely Listowel ; Photo Éamon ÓMurchú

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This is the time of year when Listowel traditionally gets a facelift in preparation for the Harvest Festival of Racing. This year, the numbers at the festival will be decimated but Listowel people are determined that our town will look beautiful anyway.

Even the image of Our Lady at St. Mary’s is being cleaned.

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A Café for Birds

Chris Grayson loves to entertain birds in his garden. Bertie, his loyal robin, has become familiar to Chris’ Facebook friends from one of Chris’ other hobbies, taking photographs.

Now Chris has set up a bird café in his garden and he has been photographing and sharing photos of some of the clientele.

Chris has captured the many sides of house sparrows, caring, nurturing and just socialising.

Bertie looks a bit like the maitre D.

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Believe it or Not

July 1959;

The first female recruits were accepted into An Garda Síochána. Twelve Bean Gardaí (as they were known then) were sworn in at a ceremony in Dublin.

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A Feast for the Eyes

My half forgotten Latin suggests that this is on a book from Trinity College Library in Dublin. The art work by Michael O’Connor is truly extraordinary.

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I Love a Good Short Story

I’m enjoying these.

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Kevin Barry, John B. and friends and remembering Smiler

Wish you lived here?


Liz Chute, formerly of Listowel and now of Halifax, Canada does.

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Mountjoy  November 1 1920

With the 1916 commemoration coming up, many of these old images from a troubled time in our history are finding their way on to the internet. This is a photo of women praying outside Mountjoy where Kevin Barry was awaiting execution. This photo is in the Clann na Gael Archive.

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Tommy Murphy and John B.

These two old photos were sent to me by Paul Murphy formerly of William St. They show his father, Tommy Murphy and John B. with some friends performing in The Loft. Paul cannot identify the friends but maybe someone can.

The Loft was a theatre cum concert hall in the back lane behind John B.s. Local enterprising actors, singers and musicians used to put on shows here in the 40s and 50s. If anyone has memories of these shows, there is an audience waiting to hear them.

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Changes on our streets



Kerry Wool is a new shop situated between The Shebeen and McGuire’s new extension to the pharmacy.



This premises appears to be between tenants.

NCBI are relocating up the street to Number 27.


My moles tell me that the new tenant for The Harp and Lion will not be a publican.

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Absent Friends



November is a month when we remember our lost loved ones. Every time I pass this memorial I am struck by what a lovely tribute to Dylan McCarthy it is from his friends at Xistance.

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Big day for the crusaders on Saturday

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Don’t Miss This!




Friday November 13 2015 RTE 1 6.30p.m. Nationwide in Listowel for theListowel Tattoo

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A Treasure to watch 

The story of Listowel’s railway line and the fight to turn it into a greenway for the benefit of us  all is beautifully told in this video:  Journeying from a railway to a greenway

 ENJOY!

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