The Mad Dash

MICHAEL: Hello and welcome to Ireland With Michael.

I'm Michael Londra, and in this show I get to tell you everything I love about my home country the best way I know how, through music.

Today we're following in the tradition of past seasons and embarking on a mad dash across Ireland, bringing you something closer to the sometimes- hectic journey we take to bring you this show.

(bell chiming) As well as the sense of the great variety of sites and sounds you will encounter while traveling around this amazing island.

♪ ♪ ANNOUNCER: Ireland with Michael is made possible by... ♪ ANNOUNCER: Whether traveling to Ireland for the first time, or just longing to return, there's plenty more information available at Ireland.com.

♪ ANNOUNCER: CIE Tours, sharing the magic of Ireland for 90 years.

♪ ANNOUNCER: Aer Lingus has been bringing people home since 1936.

If you are thinking about Ireland, Aer Lingus is ready when you are to take you home.

♪ ♪ MICHAEL: You've just landed in Dublin and you're ready for your own mad dash.

Now, if you don't want to come along with me to see Ireland, you can hire your own tour guide in some of the larger cities to show you around.

In Dublin, there's none better than Arran Henderson at Dublin Decoded Tours.

(seagulls calling) ♪ So Arran, what is the essence of a Dublin Decoded tour?

ARRAN: You're very good to ask, Michael.

There are historical walking tours of Dublin.

It's all walking, all on foot.

We don't go near a bus or a coach.

(bell chiming) We talk of course about the history of the city, the historical tour- walking tours.

But I suppose what maybe distinguishes us, is the- is the interesting kind of buildings and- and architecture, old schools, old hospitals, courthouses.

Not just for what they can teach us about history, but in the buildings themselves.

You know, we use design history, architectural history, as a kind of way to read- to read the city, hence the name Dublin Decoded.

MICHAEL: It seems to me that everywhere I look, every building has a story- has its own story.

ARRAN: That's- that's definitely true.

I mean, and that's spectacularly true looking up and down the river.

Out of shot there you can see the Customs House, Liberty Hall.

This bridge that we've just walked across, Michael, the- the- the original version of this bridge was built by a 17th- century developer called Humphrey Jervis.

Jervis built the original bridge here using stones from the old Cistercian Abbey of St. Mary's.

MICHAEL: Wow, a story around every corner, huh?

ARRAN: Pretty much.

♪ (seagulls calling) ♪ MICHAEL: Arran, we're right on the banks of the Liffey, and more interesting building around every corner.

Tell me about this one.

ARRAN: This is a- this is an absolute cracker, Michael.

It's- it's confusing for people when we tell them it's a- it's a Restoration- era theater from the 1600s, 'cause of course it looks like a church.

MICHAEL: It does.

ARRAN: Indeed, it was a church.

But that Catholic church was built on the bones- on the foundations of an old Restoration-era- era theater from the time of the Stuart Kings of England, the 1600s.

♪ MICHAEL: So Arran, tell me about this thing.

I was wondering what it was.

ARRAN: This is one of my favorite things in the old medieval- we're in the old medieval core now of Dublin, Michael.

We're well within the medieval walls.

Well, we're actually at the corner of what would've been the medieval walled City of Dublin.

This is the- these lines you see here on this lovely bronze plaque, on this granite flint, these lines are the- are the old medieval walls.

This rectangle here was Dublin Castle.

MICHAEL: Oh, right!

ARRAN: The small dimples you see all along this line, they're the- they're the watch towers that would've been studded along the medieval walls.

And the- and the little- the just- just some double dimples you see here, well those are the- the six great medieval gates of the old city.

MICHAEL: Hard to remind yourself that this is indeed a medieval city.

(bell rings) ♪ I get to hear a lot of first-rate musicians as I travel across Ireland.

But every now and then, one of them really stands out.

Such as the case with Aoife Dunleavy.

Just after we taped her for the show, she became the All-Ireland under-12 champion on the mandolin and the banjo.

Is it too late to sign her for a record deal?

♪ Aoife Dunleavy, what age are you?

AOIFE: 10.

MICHAEL: 10, and when did you start playing this?

AOIFE: When I was 7.

MICHAEL: Did you always want to play the banjo?

AOIFE: Yeah.

MICHAEL: When you started, was it bigger than you were?

AOIFE: Yeah.

MICHAEL: Tell me why do you like traditional music more than pop music?

AOIFE: I just like the way it sounds.

MICHAEL: Oh, very good.

What's your favorite type of- of trad music to play?

AOIFE: Probably reels.

MICHAEL: Reels, is that because they're really fast?

AOIFE: Mm-hmm.

(Aoife chuckles) Yeah.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ MICHAEL: Lorraine, the whole of Wicklow has told me to come up and see you.

First of all they said that you're one of Wicklow's greatest characters, and second of all they said, you can't miss one of her Farm to Fork events.

So, tell me about these events.

You've hosted people from all over the world?

LORRAINE: We have, we- we started that initiative last year.

And then they grew and grew and so we do a little demo, a little talk on where we are and how we got here.

And while our scones are baking in the oven, we'll go and have a little farm walk.

MICHAEL: Now you seem to be a busy woman because everything here on the table is stuff that you make yourself.

You make your own preserves here and your own honey.

LORRAINE: Well now that's- there's no honey in that.

MICHAEL: Oh!

LORRAINE: That's a dandelion honey.

It's a traditional old, old recipe and it's made from dandelions which you have to pick when the sun comes out and the dandelion opens up.

It's at its sweetest and it has healing properties.

MICHAEL: Wow!

LORRAINE: The healing properties would be a spoonful of sunshine every day.

MICHAEL: It's all very well to have a sweet tooth, but for me it's all about the bread.

You've put all of the ingredients into a bottle.

I- I look at the instructions and it looks so easy, but surely it can't be that easy.

LORRAINE: It is, this is the brown bread.

MICHAEL: So, have you poured the bottle into the bowl?

LORRAINE: I have used this one here.

MICHAEL: Oh, very good.

LORRAINE: And this will make you a beautiful two-pound loaf.

MICHAEL: Right.

LORRAINE: So, into this I'm going to use an egg, and this is one of my own free-range eggs.

Now, into this I'm going to start adding buttermilk.

Now, if you don't have buttermilk, you can use any milk.

Always add your liquids a little at a time, because if you throw the whole lot in, you can't take it back out.

MICHAEL: Yeah.

LORRAINE: So, this mix is very simple, as you can see it's all starting to come together.

We're looking for a wet mix, we're not looking for... MICHAEL: Yeah.

LORRAINE: Something too dry.

Yeah, and that's our brown bread and that could not be easier.

We're gonna score it there and we're gonna sprinkle it with a little bit of oatmeal.

MICHAEL: Which I love on top of brown bread.

LORRAINE: Now you can add in any pumpkin seeds or anything like that... MICHAEL: Yeah.

LORRAINE: That you'd like.

Now, so this is going to go into an oven for at least 40 minutes, 30 to 40 minutes at 360 degrees.

And I'll say here's one I made earlier.

MICHAEL: Oh, here's one you made early.

Any chance of- of getting a slice of this?

LORRAINE: Yes, you need to let your brown bread cool.

MICHAEL: Oh, yes.

LORRAINE: Completely.

MICHAEL: All right, well let's have a slice of that.

I- I'm going to have a dollop of one of your preserves on top of.

LORRAINE: Oh yes, okay.

MICHAEL: Beautiful.

LORRAINE: Oh, I have tayberry.

MICHAEL: I don't even know what it is, but that's exactly what I'm going to have.

LORRAINE: Tayberry is a cross between a blackberry and a loganberry.

MICHAEL: Oh beautiful, yeah.

(whispers) Oh yeah, look at that.

All right, give us a load of that.

LORRAINE: Yeah, enjoy it.

MICHAEL: Tayberry?

LORRAINE: Tayberry.

♪ MICHAEL: Oh, yeah.

(Lorraine laughs) ♪ (birds squawking) ♪ The amazing sight behind me are the ruins of Fore Abby, founded by Saint Feichin in the 7th century.

To be found here are the Seven Wonders of Fore, including water that won't boil, a tree that won't burn, not to mention the very fact that they managed to build a monastery on a bog.

Well, apparently the place wasn't very popular with foreigners as it was set on fire an incredible 12 times.

I think maybe the 300 monks that lived here just had something our many waves of invaders wanted, poitín.

Yes, Irish moonshine, and the very first spirit ever distilled.

Today, you can try it for yourself as the craft has been taken up in a distillery just down the road that shares its name with the monastery.

And I know I'm ready for a drop of it.

♪ Joe, I can't believe that I'm sitting here in the middle of Westmeath talking to, well, you're kind of a half man from Boston and half from County Meath.

How did you end up back home here?

JOE: Seeing a lot of stories over there relating to this and brought a lot of- of ideas back with me.

MICHAEL: So what you're saying is the moonshine in America influenced you selling poitín, the Irish version of moonshine, back here in Ireland?

JOE: It did, it did is right.

And down in the southern states where the- you know, where moonshine is big down there.

MICHAEL: Yeah.

JOE: The NASCAR racing where it came about and the whole.

MICHAEL: Right.

JOE: So the story with poitín is very similar to- to the moonshine in the US.

MICHAEL: Tell me that- tell me that story of poitín here.

JOE: It's the original spirit.

You know, it's the original.

Poitín has been here before whiskey.

MICHAEL: Right.

JOE: The monks were the first ones to distill.

There was 300 monks teaching in the monastery- in Fore Monastery and 3,000 students at one stage down here.

So there was a lot of moonshine drank, a lot of poitín.

MICHAEL: I suppose.

(Joe laughs) So, is poitín easy to make?

Is it a simple- is it a simple recipe?

JOE: So it's all about how much sugar you can extract out of, you know, the- the- the- the ingredient.

If it's distilled right and sh- you should have a lovely, crisp, smooth spirit.

MICHAEL: Well, the proof is in the pudding.

Let's go taste this poitín, all right?

Let's do it.

JOE: That's it, sure thing.

Let's give it a- give it a shot.

♪ It's distilled nice and smooth.

So it- it should- it should be- You should find it smooth but- MICHAEL: Oh, okay.

JOE: I'll let you decide on that.

MICHAEL: Right, so, I'm going in for... JOE: And I'll have a little drop with you.

MICHAEL: Sláinte.

JOE: Sláinte.

(glass clanking) ♪ MICHAEL: Amazing.

JOE: Yeah, so.

MICHAEL: One more.

JOE: Yeah.

MICHAEL: Just, you know.

♪ MICHAEL: Of course it wouldn't be a mad dash episode without a stop for chocolate.

Wilde Chocolate has been making the stuff for about 25 years, and they're even going to let me try me hand at it.

This could get messy.

Trish, I've heard about Wilde Chocolate for the longest time.

All the viewers know how much I love chocolate from Ireland.

So, tell me when did you start making chocolate?

PATRICIA: We started making chocolates in 1997 which feels about a 100 years ago.

It's actually only 25 years ago, but I used to say we had three babies, a boy and a girl and a chocolate factory.

MICHAEL: But it wasn't quite a chocolate factory because you start make- you start making it in your own house.

PATRICIA: We started in our own little kitchen in a very old, old, old cottage.

MICHAEL: Did you know how to make chocolate when you started?

PATRICIA: No, no, just loved it.

Was a chocoholic since, well since birth, even though I probably didn't know it at the time, but it was always... MICHAEL: Me too.

The thing that I am most excited about coming here is that I heard as a visitor here, you can make your own chocolate bar.

PATRICIA: Indeed, you are a 100% correct.

MICHAEL: And I want to be that person because I want- you know, I love me chocolate.

♪ So Trish, this is my favorite part because I get to decide what goes in me chocolate bar right?

Now, I'm not one for loads of different flavors.

I have one or two that I really want.

I love meself a little bit of orange and I love a little bit of hazelnut.

So is that all right?

PATRICIA: Oh, absolutely, but you might be missing on other exciting things.

MICHAEL: No, no.

PATRICIA: Because there's... MICHAEL: No, no.

PATRICIA: You could go for chocolate-coated candy beans.

You could have little coffee beans.

You could have rose petals.

MICHAEL: No.

No.

PATRICIA: A bit of mint, no?

MICHAEL: You know why?

PATRICIA: No.

MICHAEL: Because for me it's all about the chocolate.

♪ PATRICIA: We fill the chocolate mold.

(Michael gasps) MICHAEL: Look at it.

PATRICIA: And then we make sure it goes into all- all of the- the cavity of the chocolate bar.

And then we put it down here and then you get your topping and you can put it on yourself.

MICHAEL: Oh, very good.

PATRICIA: So you can put it in there.

You can put it on strategically or you can just... MICHAEL: Oh ya.

fling it on anyway you like.

MICHAEL: 'Cause it's all about the strategic orange and the little bit of hazelnut.

Look at that, it's gorgeous.

PATRICIA: We'll have a little cooler here that we can put our chocolate bar into.

MICHAEL: Oh, very good.

PATRICIA: It takes about 20 minutes.

Well, look what we have for you.

MICHAEL: This is my chocolate?

PATRICIA: This is the very one you made.

MICHAEL: I love that they're individually wrapped.

PATRICIA: Yes.

♪ (waterfall burbles) ♪ MICHAEL: You know the falls behind me aren't just really pretty to look at.

They also provide electricity for the nearby Falls Hotel here in Ennistymon, helping them be 100% carbon neutral.

Michael, I stayed in your hotel last night, your gorgeous hotel.

But for me the thing when I first arrived here that caught my attention is your sustainability story.

It's remarkable.

I know that there's only two carbon-neutral hotels here in- in Ireland, and you are certainly one of them leading the pack.

Tell us your story here.

MICHAEL MCCARTHY: So, in 2016 we started- we started putting in the turbine and 2018 it was finished, and now we generate about 75% of our electricity here via- via water.

So it's- it's fantastic.

It's part of our carbon-neutral process.

I suppose carbon neutral sustainability is at the heart of all we do here in the Falls Hotel.

MICHAEL: I saw the amazing donkeys down in the field below, but I know that you have another set of animals buzzing around the whole hotel.

Tell me about them.

MICHAEL MCCARTHY: Well now we've two beehives in the- on the grounds, but we also have- have one that's in our flat roof in the very top of the building for years.

And so there's piles of honey in the roof, they're buried in it somewhere.

But we have two wild ones, two- two of our own beehives in our orchard.

MICHAEL: I'll have honey on me toast, so.

MICHAEL MCCARTHY: Yeah, we have a little bit.

Well we- we leave most of it to the bees.

MICHAEL: Loving the nature around you.

MICHAEL MCCARTHY: Absolutely, yeah.

♪ MICHAEL: I love discovering little companies in Ireland that are doing something nobody else is.

Eoin, I pride myself in knowing who are the great craftspeople around the island, and I've been watching your work for a couple of years.

And I can't believe that finally I am here at Copperfish in the heart of Wicklow and I get to meet you.

Tell me, how did it get started?

EOIN: Well, you're very welcome.

Thanks for coming.

My family and my wife's family are both originally from Leitrim, and my wife had a thatch cottage down there and we restored it.

It was an 1800s thatch cottage and we tried to make everything for the house from what was within walking distance of the house as they would've done.

So we started making lights from what was there, which was copper pipes and old oak beams and it developed from there.

Friends said, would you make me one?

Would you make me one?

And it organically became a business.

MICHAEL: Did you have any skills whatsoever at the time or were you just winging it?

(Eoin laughing) EOIN: There was a fair bit of winging involved.

No, I'd worked for year- I used to be a musician, so I used to work with building sites to fund my rock stardom that never happened.

MICHAEL: I'm vaguely familiar.

EOIN: Yeah.

(Eoin laughs) So I worked with all these trades people and then I just put them all together and did a few lessons, taught myself and hey presto: Copperfish.

MICHAEL: What I love about your work is that you're taking old stuff that would normally be- just be thrown out and be done with, and you create something new.

Not only- not only usable, but gorgeous and beautiful.

It's like you elevate what's old.

That's probably I think the reason that you're doing it I suspect.

EOIN: Oh yeah, well we're all about the timber.

It's- it's all in there.

You know people see old timber, like those old timbers lying around here and they kinda go, "What the hell is that?"

And then you- you get into it, it's- it's always magnificent and it's always worth it.

MICHAEL: Where do you source that timber from?

EOIN: Everywhere, everywhere and anywhere and people are starting to get to know me and I get the odd call.

We got a load, this is Dublin port, just arrived last week.

These are the old greenheart beams which is a very rare South American hardwood.

Would've been brought here hundreds of years ago to build the pier walls, and now we're gonna make them into beautiful lights.

So it's all about the history and the story of the timber.

MICHAEL: I know that there's a couple of retail outlets across North America, but if somebody wants what- what you make, how do they do it from there?

Do they just send you an email or?

EOIN: Yeah, well it's all, we're on Copperfish, it's all online, and we hand make everything to order.

We don't carry stocks.

Everything is made by four hands in this workshop and we send- we ship all over the world now, yeah.

MICHAEL: Anyone who can turn a lump of wood and turn it to something bright and electric and forward thinking is- is okay by me.

Well done Eoin.

EOIN: Thank you very much.

MICHAEL: Let's finish our mad dash across Ireland by heading northwest now into Northern Ireland to the town of Omagh, who's hosting one of the largest bluegrass festivals outside the United States.

It's here we find The Honey Dewdrops, over from Baltimore, and making their first splash in Ireland.

♪ You want the Sun when the Moon is in power ♪ ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ The day is born from the darkest hour ♪ ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ Butter on the bread, wine in the cup ♪ ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ You say you're done but you had enough ♪ ♪ Don't you weep no more MICHAEL: Laura, Kagey, I've just found out this is your first time.

How does it feel to be in the Emerald Isle?

KAGEY: Such a pleasure.

It feels a bit like coming home in a very mysterious way.

It's- I can't really explain it, but it just feels like, "Oh, I kind of feel at home here."

MICHAEL: Now in fairness, most people would say that.

There's something inviting about our country, but I- you have much further connections really because you are bathed in that kind of music which forms the connection between the US and Ireland.

You grew up with this kind of music, or how did it happen?

How did you become bluegrass singers?

LAURA: Mmm.

Well, I have to give some credit to my parents because they bought a lot of The Chieftains music when I was a kid.

Yes, gratitude to my parents for exposing me to Irish music as a kid through The Chieftains, and- and then also bluegrass music.

So I- I had it in my household as a kid.

♪ Baby don't you weep ♪ Baby don't you weep ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ You cried up a creek till it flooded the floor ♪ ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ MICHAEL: What instruments do you play?

I- I- I take it if you're a duo, you have to have like 17 instruments to to mix it up a bit.

LAURA: Yeah, 20 sometimes.

No, I play guitar and clawhammer banjo.

KAGEY: And I play guitar and mandolin.

So just three but it's- it's nice.

It feels like enough right now.

(Laura laughs) MICHAEL: So d- would you describe your music as- as country music or is it strict bluegrass?

I can't quite define it.

LAURA: We have largely used the term folk music because it's such a big umbrella which includes country and bluegrass and old time.

But yeah, we're- we're writing our own songs, so it- it feels like it's something uniquely our own.

♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ Oh baby don't you weep ♪ Baby don't you weep ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ ♪ You cried up a creek till it flooded the floor ♪ ♪ Baby don't you weep no more ♪ MICHAEL: Thanks for joining me on my mad dash around Ireland.

I'm Michael Londra and I hope to see you next time on Ireland with Michael.

But for now, sláinte.

Cheers.

ANNOUNCER: Want to continue your travels to Ireland?

Your choice of Ireland with Michael DVD Season One, Two, or Three, with bonus concert footage, is available for $30.

Ireland with Michael: A Musical Journey CD, with songs from Michael and his guest artists, is available for $20.

Ireland with Michael Companion Travel Guide, featuring places to visit, as seen in all seasons, is also available for $30.

This offer is made by Wexford House.

Shipping and handling is not included.

MICHAEL: To learn more about everything you've seen in this episode, go to IrelandWithMichael.com.

ANNOUNCER: Ireland with Michael was made possible by... ♪ ANNOUNCER: Whether traveling to Ireland for the first time, or just longing to return, there's plenty more information available at Ireland.com.

♪ ANNOUNCER: CIE Tours, sharing the magic of Ireland for 90 years.

♪ ANNOUNCER: Aer Lingus has been bringing people home since 1936.

If you are thinking about Ireland, Aer Lingus is ready when you are to take you home.

MICHAEL: OK, put your hands up in the air!

Come on, let's get a-waving.

♪ In my heart its rightful queen ♪ ♪ Ever loving, ever tender ♪ MICHAEL: That's it.

♪ Ever true ♪ Like the Sun your smile has shone ♪ MICHAEL: Go on, Wexford.

♪ Gladdening all it glowed upon ♪ ♪