Hurling and Us is a new podcast series about Kilkenny hurling, commissioned by the Heritage Office of Kilkenny County Council and produced by Conor Sweetman and Regina Fitzpatrick. Each episode comprises interviews and memories of people from Kilkenny about hurling – from the 1910’s to 2012 including Paddy Buggy, Dan McEvoy, Ned Quinn and Nickey Brennan.

The series is based on extracts from the original interviews conducted for the GAA Oral History Project (2008-2012) commissioned by the GAA to mark its 125th Anniversary. This podcast series brings these treasured GAA interviews to a wider audience.

The 4 episodes in the series each focus on a different theme:

1. Schools (hurling in school life)
2. Journeys (travelling to matches)
3. Heroes (the legends of the game)
4. Behind the Scenes (the GAA Oral History Project and the riches the collection holds)

Hurling and Us celebrates the place of hurling in the social life and cultural heritage of Kilkenny, as well as in our collective sense of identity, so it’s very fitting that we launch the podcasts during Heritage Week”

says Dearbhala Ledwidge, Heritage Officer Kilkenny County Council. 

The game of hurling and camogie which dates back 2,000 years features strongly in Irish mythology, most notably in the epic saga of Cú Chulainn, and is officially recognised by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as an internationally important part of global cultural heritage.

The GAA Oral History Project, on which these podcasts are based, includes 32 interviews with people involved in the GAA from all over county Kilkenny. They were conducted primarily by Regina Fitzpatrick, a native of Galmoy, Co. Kilkenny and capture the place of the GAA in Irish life and the experience of people across the country who were involved in the games, in their own voices. 'Listening back to these interviews 10 years after they were first recorded has been a wonderful reminder of the richness of the Kilkenny collection. The unique value of Oral History is its ability to capture the lived experience of events in the past in all of their colour and emotion and life. This podcast is a celebration of the memories of hurling in Kilkenny as preserved in this collection', according to Regina, Oral Historian, and founding member of the Oral History Network of Ireland.   The complete archive is housed at the GAA Museum and Archives at Croke Park and can be accessed at www.gaa.ie/the-gaa/oral-history/.

Dearbhala Ledwidge

Heritage Officer

Kilkenny County Council

Aug 2022