HAPPY BLOOMSDAY! In the 1960s, American director Joseph Strick did what many felt was impossible - he brought Ulysses to screen. There was a fistfight at the Cannes Film Festival, segregated audiences in New Zealand and  complaints from the League of Decency at home.

Three Castles Burning

Joseph Strick's Ulysses (1967)

The great hope of 1960s Dublin housing, Ballymun, followed on from the 1963 tenement collapse. As homes collapsed in the city centre, killing four Dubliners, it was a time for new thinking on working class housing. There was activism and anger in the city, but Dublin itself seemed to continue expanding into new suburbia.

Building Up And Tearing Dublin Down: Housing and the 1960s

Few streets in Dublin have the history of Capel Street - and now, it seems destined for major change. This podcast explores a street with an architeictural history stretching back to pre-Georgian times, and at the heart of change in more recent decades.

Capel Street: Sex Shops, Pawnbrokers and a Revolutionary Library

With less than sixty seats, the tiny Pike Theatre still brought new life into Irish theatre, and introduced Irish audiences to internaitonal talent. Yet it all lasted less than a decade, thanks to a campaign waged against it by state forces. 

The Pike: Dublin's Bohemian Theatre

Éamonn MacThomais did much to popularise Dublin's history.  Best remembered for his television series, Dublin: A Personal View,  he wrote his book Me Jewel And Darlin' Dublin while a guest of the state in Mountjoy Prison. His life story tells us much about republicanism and Dublin in the twentieth century.

Dublin's Historian: Éamonn MacThomáis

Carmel Snow, from Dalkey, lived a remarkable life. At the helm of both Vogue and Harper's Bazaar at a transformative time in journalism, Snow was a champion of Irish writers and Irish designers. Her name is associated with Dior, Balenciaga and others closer to home like Sybil Connolly.  

From Dalkey to Vogue

In April and May 1941, Dublin bravely answered the call of Belfast, after bombs reduced much of the city to rubble. It remains an inspiring moment of human heroism, all the more important to remember against the backdrop of the current political situation in the North. This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Joe Fallon.

When Dublin Rushed North

The bicycle has been at the heart of Irish history in sometimes surprising ways. Sport, revolution and literature have all benefited from its place in our lives. This edition of the podcast is dedicated to the memory of Paddy Cahill.

A Social History of the Bicycle

A besieged party office on Great Strand Street, a planned ambush from the rooftops of Westmoreland Street, a riot in Glasnevin Cemetery and a march on Leinster House abandoned at the eleventh hour. These events are all part of the story of Dublin and the road to the Spanish Civil War. Historian Fergus Whelan joins me on this edition of the show.

Dublin and the road to the Spanish Civil War

Billy Behan came from a family steeped in Dublin's footballing tradition. He went on to become chief scout for Manchester United in Ireland, spotting all from Liam Whelan to Paul McGrath. Over several decades, players he found went on to international acclaim.

United's Irishman: Billy Behan and the Beautiful Game

From the 1830s until 1925, the Dublin Metropolitan Police patrolled the streets of Dublin. From rampaging bulls to political radicals, they were ever-busy. Surprising traces of them remain in Dublin today.

The Dublin Metropolitan Police

Parke Neville was a surveyor and engineer. He transformed Dublin in ways we still see today - the Fruit and Vegetable Market was his idea and design, the Vartry water scheme was his crowning achievement and he even paved our streets. Curiously forgotten now, he remains one of Dublin's greatest servants.

Towards A Healthier City: Parke Neville's Dublin

 The writer James Plunkett gave us one of the all-time Dublin classics in Strumpet City. He idealised Big Jim Larkin, seeing in him a living representation of a heroic time in the city in which his own father had played a part. Condemned from pulpit and defended by Behan, this is the story of James Plunkett.             The writer James Plunkett gave us one of the all-time Dublin classics in Strumpet City. He idealised Big Jim Larkin, seeing in him a living representation of a heroic time in the city in which his own father had played a part. Condemned from pulpit and defended by Behan, this is the story of James Plunkett.               

Strumpet City, Synge Street and Socialism: James Plunkett

There are curious traces of Patrick - and his legacy - around Dublin today. A mural painted during the Irish cultural revival in City Hall positions him amidst nationalist struggle, while a well hidden below Trinity College claims strong connections. How much of Saint Patrick - and our idea of him - is imported from the United States?

From Nassau Street to the Pagan O'Leary: Dublin and Saint Patrick

EPISODE 70! Thanks for your support. The O'Connell Bridge has a surprising history - from James Gandon to Father Pat Noise. It has long been a place of protest and a place of commerce. This podcast explores the bridge and its many characters.

Poetry, Protests and Pranksters: The O'Connell Bridge

Three Castles Burning is a social history podcast, dedicated to the story of the Irish capital. Dublin is a city of many stories, Three Castles Burning tells some of the more forgotten ones.

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Three Castles Burning

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