What Were We Like

Jaksot

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  The Ballyseedy Massacre (Part 2) 14.09.2026 32min

  After committing one of the worst atrocities in the Irish Civil War, the State attempts to cover up its role in the massacre.As “Terror Month” in Kerry continues, further atrocities are carried out with more prisoners blown up by landmines.However, the man who gave the order at Ballyseedy, Paddy O'Daly, remains unrepentant, stating: “No one asked me to take my kid gloves to Kerry and I didn’t take them.” Diarmaid and Catriona discuss the fall out from Ballyseedy, how the truth finally emerges, and why the Dáil record still contains the cover-up.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The Ballyseedy Massacre (Part 1) 07.09.2026 30min

  On the 7th of March 1923, nine anti-Treaty prisoners were taken to a field in Kerry, tied to a landmine and blown up. It was one of the most shocking events of the Irish Civil War and became known as the Ballyseedy Massacre. The State immediately tried to cover it up but incredibly, one man survived and his witness account revealed just how brutal the civil war had become. Diarmaid and Catriona recount the whole affair, and also the wider conflict in Kerry at the time, which is often referred to as "Terror Month".See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The Pope's Visit of 1979 31.08.2026 39min

  John Paul II, the "rock star" Pope took Ireland by storm in 1979, and millions came out to see him. (Everyone except Catriona, who went to Donegal in a sulk but kept an eye on proceedings through the television). This was an iconic moment, and everyone was swept away by his good looks, his "deep baritone" voice, and his ability to connect with young people. Yet his abilities as a showman belied a deep conservatism, particularly on women's issues, and his visit turned out to be a last hurrah for the Catholic Church before it was rocked by child sexual abuse scandals, the rise of feminism and plummeting mass attendances in later years.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Best of What Were We Like (Part 2) 25.08.2026 49min

  RTÉ's podcast intern Arran returns with the second instalment of his favourite parts of What Were We Like. This time around, grumpy Patrick Kavanagh, "airhead" Ronald Reagan, and the insertion of the Eighth Amendment into the Constitution all feature. This is Arran's last selection - he's off to Electric Picnic on Thursday where he'll be boring his pals with his newfound knowledge of history. Diarmaid and Catriona are back next Monday, 31 August.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Best of What Were We Like (Part 1) 20.08.2026 39min

  Diarmaid and Catriona are on holidays, so RTE's podcast intern, Arran has selected some of his favourite parts of What Were We Like so far. Bobby Sands, The Contraceptive Train, and John Charles McQuaid all feature in the first part of this "Best of" series. Part 2 of Arran's selections will be out next week, and Diarmaid and Catriona return on Monday 31 August.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  What Were We Like: Back in Two Weeks 10.08.2026

  What Were We Like is on holidays for the next two weeks. We'll be back with a podcast about the visit of Pope John Paul II to Ireland in 1979, and that will come out on Monday the 24th of August.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  1980s Ireland: Moving Statues 03.08.2026 31min

  Ireland was gripped by a bizarre phenomenon in the summer of 1985: sightings of moving statues of the Virgin Mary. Tens of thousands of people flocked to villages in Kerry - and elsewhere - to catch a glimpse of these monuments, which eyewitnesses claimed would move, beckon and even undergo strange facial transformations. Diarmaid and Catriona chart this crazy story, look at how it challenged the Catholic Church, and also trace the history of holy apparitions in Ireland.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  1980s Ireland: The Kerry Babies Case 27.07.2026 44min

  In 1985, the body of a newborn baby washed up on a beach in Cahersiveen, Co Kerry, stabbed to death. What followed was one of the most infamous incidents in the history of An Garda Síochána. Diarmaid and Catriona trace the botched Garda investigation into the baby's death, carried out by the notorious Heavy Gang, the shocking Tribunal of Inquiry which followed, and how it became a watershed moment in the treatment of women in Ireland.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  1980s Ireland: The Eighth Amendment 20.07.2026 36min

  Today, Diarmaid and Catriona kick off a new series focusing on Ireland in the 1980s. This was a decade of great political instability, with three general elections alone happening between 1981 and 1982. Unemployment and emigration were high. Heroin took hold in Dublin and spread around the country. But one of the most polarising issues of all was abortion. In the first of this series, What Were We Like looks at how the extremely controversial Eighth Amendment came to be inserted into the Constitution in 1983 - and remained there until its repeal in 2018. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The brilliant poetry and turbulent life of Patrick Kavanagh 13.07.2026 45min

  Monaghan born Patrick Kavanagh was a notorious presence in Dublin for much of his life. Broke, drunk and often bitter, he boozed in the bars around Grafton Street, clashing with the likes of Brendan Behan and railing against the literary establishment. Always an outsider, he nonetheless transformed Irish poetry by focusing on the ordinary aspects of rural Ireland, paving the way for the likes of Seamus Heaney, and writing perhaps the greatest love song of all time, Raglan Road.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  Bobby Sands, Margaret Thatcher, and the 1981 hunger strikes 06.07.2026 46min

  On 5 May 1981, 26-year-old Bobby Sands became the first of ten IRA hunger strikers to die at the Maze Prison, changing the course of history in Northern Ireland. In this episode, Diarmaid and Catriona assess his life, his status as a Republican icon, and how he impacted the career of his chief antagonist, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher among others.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  All aboard the contraceptive train 29.06.2026 34min

  The Irish Women's Liberation Movement, Mary Magee and the fight for contraceptive rights in Ireland.  It was the 1970s and in many ways, things were grim for the women of Ireland. Marital rape was permitted, women had to stop working in the public service when they got married, and most relevantly for this podcast, contraception was illegal. Here, Diarmaid and Catriona tell the stories of the brave women and men who fought to change that. Two key events feature: the famous "Contraceptive train" of 1971, in which a group of women bought contraceptives in Northern Ireland - where they were legal - and brought them back across the border, and dared the Gardai to arrest them. The second is the remarkable bravery of Mary Magee, whose legal case paved the way for contraceptives to become legal in Ireland.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The 1926 Census - LIVE at Listowel Writers Week 22.06.2026 49min

  In this special recording, What Were We Like appears before a live audience at this year's Listowel Writers Week, to discuss the 1926 census. Diarmaid and Catriona talk about what the census tells us about Irish society in the early part of the 20th century - both in Kerry, and in Ireland in general. Catriona takes umbrage at the performance of Garda Daniel Rooney, who was responsible for some of the less-than-impressive record keeping at the time. But nonetheless, the census provides a remarkable insight into Ireland back then - and a great opportunity for us to snoop on our neighbours.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The jealous rage that inspired a key chapter of Ulysses 15.06.2026 39min

  To mark Bloomsday, Diarmaid and Catriona tell the remarkable story of how two of James Joyce's friends made false allegations of infidelity against Nora Barnacle, something which sent Joyce into a jealous rage. The impact on Joyce was severe, and caused him to question the paternity of his son, Giorgio - but it also had major literary consequences, forming the basis of one of the key chapters of Ulysses. Joyce's political beliefs are also explored, as well as the social history of Dublin at the time.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The Fearsome Ruler of Catholic Ireland: John Charles McQuaid (Part 2) 08.06.2026 47min

  In the 1960s, John Charles McQuaid faced a number of serious challenges that saw his influence over Ireland wane. The advent of television and the women's movement were major problems for him - and Vatican 2 presented the biggest threat to his authority. But McQuaid still wielded considerable power, and went after people who crossed his path, including novelist John McGahern, various Protestants and more or less anyone interested in sex. McQuaid gradually came to be regarded as out of touch with the country. He resigned in 1972, and died the following year. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The Fearsome Ruler of Catholic Ireland: John Charles McQuaid (Part 1) 01.06.2026 44min

  The powerful and fearsome John Charles McQuaid was the archbishop of Dublin from 1940 to the early 1970s, and was described as the ruler of Catholic Ireland. He was obsessed with protestants, communists and "moral purity", and ran a huge spying operation on the Irish population, both at home and abroad, to keep everyone in check. In the first part of this series, Diarmaid and Catriona chart his early life, his ascent to power, and his often difficult relationship with Eamon De Valera.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  By Elections That Shaped Ireland (Part 2) 23.05.2026 35min

  More giants of Irish politics feature in this episode. Enda Kenny – was he lucky, was he devoid of strong convictions, was he Fine Gael's most successful Taoiseach? Probably all three. Prickly Des O’Malley won his famous uncle’s seat in a by election and went on to found the influential Progressive Democrats. And two trailblazers of Irish politics, Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, the first woman to hold a seat at cabinet since the foundation of the state, and the Susan Sontag-esque Eileen Desmond also feature. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The By-Elections That Shaped Ireland (Part 1) 18.05.2026 37min

  With by-elections in the air, Diarmaid and Catriona look back at some of the most significant ones in Irish history. Part one features big beasts Sean Lemass and Sean MacBride, as well as Ireland's most handsome communist. Lemass succeeded Dev and is credited with modernising Ireland, as well as smoking vast amounts of tobacco through a pipe. The more “exotic” MacBride founded Clann Na Poblachta and Amnesty International, but his abilities as a politician are questioned, and the roots of his unusual French accent considered. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The History of The Tricolour (Part 3) 11.05.2026 48min

  This episode charts the Tricolour's 20th Century evolution: its formal adoption in 1937; getting the Brits to return the Tricolour that flew over the GPO in 1916; all the way up to Italia '90.The gruesome digging up of Roger Casement's body features, as does John McGahern's most famous novel, Amongst Women, which came out in 1990 with a Tricolour splashed across its cover.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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  The History of The Tricolour (Part 2) 04.05.2026 34min

  Patrick Pearse’s dramatic ‘The fools, the fools’ speech at Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa’s funeral was a key moment in the story of Ireland’s flag. Pearse made the oration alongside a Tricolour draped across the veteran Fenian’s coffin. The Green White and Gold was then flown over the GPO during the Easter Rising, and it was Sinn Féin’s skill as propagandists, alongside the monumentally 'stupid’ British reaction to 1916, that helped the Tricolour ascend, leaving Parnell’s green flag in its wake. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.