Highlights From Talking History

In this episode of Talking History, Patrick Geoghegan looks at Ireland's connection to transatlantic slavery, and finds out how Irish enslavers profited across all the major European slave economies.Joining him to discuss this are:·         Prof Finola O’Kane, School of Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy at UCD, and co-editor of 'Ireland, Slavery and the Caribbean: Interdisciplinary Perspectives'·         Dr Ciaran O’Neill, Ussher Associate Professor in Nineteenth-Century History at TCD, and co-editor of 'Ireland, Slavery and the Caribbean: Interdisciplinary Perspectives'·         Prof David Dickson, Emeritus Professor of Modern History at TCD

In this episode, Patrick Geoghegan rounds up some of the most interesting recent history book releases - featuring:Queen of Codes : The Secret Life of Emily Anderson by Jackie Ui Chionna A Nation Is Born: Ireland In Colour 1923-1938 by Michael B. BarryAnd Gentlemen of Uncertain Fortune: How Younger Sons Made Their Way in Jane Austen's England by Rory Muir

In this episode of Talking History, we're looking at a new multimedia exhibition, held at the National Museum of Ireland which delves into the history of the GAA.GAA: People, Objects & Stories casts a fresh perspective on Ireland's largest sporting organisation, spanning from the 15th century to the contemporary era, showcasing an array of artifacts painting a picture of the GAA's impact on Irish societyJoining Patrick Geoghegan to discuss this is Lynn Scarff, Director of the National Museum of Ireland, Dr Siobhán Doyle, Curator of GAA: People, Objects & Stories  and Dr Clodagh Doyle, a curator with the NMI - Museum of Country Life in Turlough Park, Mayo. 

In this episode of Talking History, we're looking at the life, legend and legacy of King David and we'll be finding out how the boy who killed Goliath became one of the most important figures in the Bible and an inspiration to later generations. Joining Patrick Geoghegan to discuss this is:Dr David Shepherd, Professor in Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Trinity College Senior Lecturer and Director, Trinity Centre for Biblical Studies; Dr Tobias Winright, Professor of Moral Theology, St. Patrick’s Pontifical University, Maynooth University; Dr. Bridget Martin, Teaching Fellow, School of Classics, UCD; and Prof Ruth Karras, Lecky Professor Of History at TCD, whose current research focuses on King David as a figure of masculinity in medieval Christian and Jewish culture, drawing on a variety of sources from across Europe.

On this episode of Talking History: Hitler's first crisis and defeat in 1923; the role of the Templar in medieval history; and the fascinating 500-year history of the Hampton Court.

In this episode of Talking History, Patrick Geoghegan reflects on the life, times and legacy of The Lord of The Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien to mark the 50th anniversary of his death this weekend.He's joined by:John McQuillen. Associate Curator at The Morgan Library & Museum in New York who organised the recent Tolkien exhibition at the MorganDr Barry Houlihan, archivist at the University of GalwayShaun Gunner, chair of the Tolkien SocietyAnd Dr Corey Olsen, 'The Tolkien Professor', President of Signum University and Mythgard Institute.

On this episode of Talking History: how the Jazz Age affected Ireland; why Irish ringforts were built; and how St Paul's Churchyard in London became the centre of the English literary world.

This week on Talking History, we're excavating the history of Medieval Dublin - finding out what life was like back then and what archaeological evidence can reveal. Joining Patrick Geoghegan is: • Ruth Johnson, Dublin’s City Archaeologist, protecting, managing and investigating the city’s oldest heritage. She completed a PhD in Medieval History at TCD. • Paul Duffy, archaeologist, historian and author, specialising in medieval and urban archaeology. His historical research centres on the Crusades and, in particular, Irish involvement in the thirteenth century Cathar Crusade in Languedoc. • Dr Grace O’Keeffe, a medieval historian based in Dublin and the editor of Archaeology Ireland. Her doctoral research in TCD was on the hospital of St John the Baptist in medieval Dublin. • And Dr Catherine Swift, Department of History, Mary Immaculate College Limerick. Research interests include Medieval Ireland with particular interest in ogham stones, St Patrick, Old Irish historical sources, Scandinavian society a

To mark the start of Heritage Week, Patrick Geoghegan meets some of those behind the 'powerhouse of reform' Kylemore Abbey in Co Galway: • Eithne O’Halloran, Experience Manager at Kylemore Abbey • Anne Burke, history guide at Kylemore Abbey – who is giving a talk on Mitchell Henry for Heritage Week • and Gerrit Nuckton, Experience Supervisor at Kylemore Abbey – who is giving a talk on Kylemore Abbey Girls’ School for Heritage Week

In this episode of Talking History, Patrick Geoghegan discusses: New insights into plots and conspiracies against the life of Queen Elizabeth I with Calum Cockburn, Curator of Medieval Manuscripts at the British Library Cosmetics in the Renaissance World, with Professor Jill Burke, Chair of Renaissance Visual and Material Cultures at the University of Edinburgh, author of ‘How To Be A Renaissance Woman: The Untold History of Beauty and Female Creativity’, a historian of the body and its visual representation, focusing on Italy and Europe from 1400-1700 And the female artists who blazed a trail in the Royal Hibernian Academy in Ireland, with Dr Caroline Campbell, Director, National Gallery of Ireland.

In this episode of Talking History, we'll be looking at the history of Belfast as a city and for its people who face declining unionism and a possible reconfiguration of their state. Joining host Patrick Geoghegan for this discussion is: • Prof Feargal Cochrane, Emeritus Professor & Senior Research Fellow at the Conflict Analysis Research Centre, University of Kent, and author of ‘Belfast: The Story of a City and its People’ • Geoffrey Bell, author of ‘The Twilight of Unionism: Ulster and the Future of Northern Ireland’

In this episode of Talking History, we'll be looking at the challenges facing American Liberalism from the 1960s to the 1990s through the prism of the political career and presidency of Bill Clinton, and we'll be debating whether it should be viewed as a success or a failure. Joining host Patrick Geoghegan for this debate is: • Nelson Lichtenstein, Research Professor in History at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and his book A Fabulous Failure: The Clinton Presidency and the Transformation of American Capitalism will be published in September 2023 • Dr Daniel Geary, Mark Pigott Associate Professor of U.S. History at Trinity • Prof Patricia Sullivan, William Arthur Fairey II Professor of History at the University of South Carolina • and Prof Mary Ellen Curtin, Associate Professor at the American University in Washington DC, and historian of modern African-American and women's social and political history.

On this episode of Talking History: we explore Spike Island in Cork - a monastery, island fortress and convict prison, on the 85th anniversary of it being handed back to Ireland as one of the treaty ports. Featuring: John Goulding, Assistant Manager, Spike Island; Dorota Gubbins, curator, Spike Island; and Eric Curtis, Spike Island volunteer - a past resident who grew up on the island.

In this episode of Talking History, we're finding out about the history of the first public library in Ireland, Marsh's Library in Dublin, from caged readers to a mummy discovered there in the 19th century. Joining Patrick Geoghegan to discuss are: Dr. Jason McElligott, Director of Marsh’s Library, Dr Janée Allsman, IRC Enterprise Partnership Scheme Fellow at the Department of French and Francophone Studies at University College Dublin, post-doctoral researcher who is working on French collections in Marsh's Library and also on the use of AI technology to examine this material, and Amy Boylan, Assistant Librarian at Marsh’s Library.

In this episode of Talking History, Patrick Geoghegan speaks with authors of exciting new historical releases. Featuring: Dr Agnes Arnold-Forster, writer and historian of medicine, on her book 'Cold, Hard Steel: The Myth of the Modern Surgeon'; Dr Michelle McGoff-McCann on her book 'The Irish Coroner: Death, murder and politics in Co. Monaghan, 1846-78'; and Dr Mark Jones, Lecturer/Assistant Professor in Global History at University College Dublin, author of '1923: The Forgotten Crisis in the Year of Hitler’s Coup'.

In this episode of Talking History, Patrick Geoghegan reflects on 240 years of the Bank of Ireland, the milestones in its history, its governors, and how the old parliament building in College Green came into the possession of the bank. He's joined by Newstalk Business Editor Joe Lynam; John McGrath, premises manager, Bank of Ireland; and Mick O’Farrell, employee with Bank of Ireland and published historian.

In this episode of Talking History, we're looking at the history of Irish wakes, and exploring Irish beliefs and practices about death over the centuries. Featuring: Éamonn McEneaney, Director of Waterford Treasures Museums, Donnchadh O Ceallachain and Rosemary Ryan, Curators at Waterford Treasures Museum, and John Thompson of Thompson Funeral Homes (established in Waterford in 1786), former President and founder of the Irish Association of Funeral Directors.

On this week’s Talking History, Patrick looks at the life and legacy of Katherine Mansfield, the New Zealand-born modernist writer, whose haunting and powerful works helped redefine the modern short story. Joining Patrick to discuss is: Sir Vincent Gerard O'Sullivan, Professor Emeritus, at Victoria University of Wellington, one of the world’s foremost Mansfield scholars and President of the Katherine Mansfield Society. He has edited, with Margaret Scott, the five-volume edition of Katherine Mansfield’s Collected Letters, published by Oxford University Press. He is also widely published as a poet, fiction writer, playwright, and biographer; Dr. Adrian Paterson who lectures in English at the University of Galway and has published widely on eighteenth, nineteenth, and twentieth-century literature with a particular interest in the artistic interactions of modernism and Irish literature; and Dr. Gerri Kimber, Visiting Professor in the Department of English at the University of Northampton and co-editor of Katheri

In this episode of Talking History: this summer marks the 225th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1798 Rebellion, a massive uprising inspired by the revolutions in France and America which attempted to create an independent Irish Republic, inspiring Irish nationalists up to 1916 and beyond. Patrick Geoghegan looks at what happened in Wexford in 1798 and how it is being commemorated this year, alongside Bernard Browne, author and vice-chair of the National 1798 Historical Centre, Mico Hassett, Enniscorthy Castle manager, and Michael Fortune, folklorist.

In this episode of Talking History: how Ireland became a founding member of the European Space Agency with space commentator Leo Enright; we'll explore Europe's old towns and find out what they hide about our continent's history with author Marek Kohn; and we'll hear about the 300 men, women and children buried in Dublin's Glasnevin Cemetery who died during the War of Independence and Civil War, from author Conor Dodd.