Irish Left Archive Podcast

In this episode we talk to Gearóid Ó Faoleán about his research into support for the Provisional IRA in the Republic of Ireland during the Troubles. Gearóid is the author of A Broad Church: The Provisional IRA in the Republic of Ireland, 1969–1980 and A Broad Church Vol. 2: The Provisional IRA in the Republic of Ireland, 1980-1989, published by Merrion Press in 2019 and 2023, respectively. He is currently working on a history of traditional music in west Clare with support from a bursary from the Irish Association of Professional Historians. We discuss the extent of support and sympathy for the IRA in the South and its role in the armed campaign; how public support manifested in training, arms, and the legal system; and the wide, cross-party political spread of IRA sympathy, discrete from the political wing of the Provisional movement. Both volumes of A Broad Church are available from Merrion Press.

In this episode we talk to Niall McGuirk about the Hope Collective. Hope Collective originated in the early 1980s when Niall started putting on gigs to encourage bands to play in Dublin and developed into the Hope Collective in 1994. Hope facilitated dozens of bands playing gigs in Ireland and latterly has produced books recording the history and recollections of that music scene. We discuss Niall’s involvement in playing and organising gigs, creating fanzines, the development of Hope Collective, the D.I.Y. philosophy and values underpinning it, and the community that it generated. You can find out more about Hope Collective on their website, where you can also buy their most recent publication, Punks Listen, a collection of writing from musicians, writers and others about music that has inspired and influenced them.

In this episode we talk to Professor Helena Sheehan about her recent book, Until We Fall: Long Distance Life on the Left. We discuss the lead up to and impact of the break up of the Soviet Union, Helena’s experience of post-apartheid South Africa and the changing role of the University in the contemporary period. Helena is Emeritus Professor at Dublin City University (DCU) and has published and taught on culture, media, politics and philosophy. She has been active on the left in Ireland since the 1970s, with numerous campaigns and as a member, first, of Official Sinn Féin, then the Communist Party of Ireland and subsequently the Labour party.

In this episode we talk to Dr. Marisa McGlinchey about her book, Unfinished Business: the politics of ‘dissident’ Irish republicanism (Manchester University Press, 2019). Based on a series of interviews with radical Republicans from several organisations, the book discusses the development of ‘dissident’ Irish republicanism and considers its impact on politics throughout Ireland since the 1980s. It argues that, rather than being simply traditionalists left behind by the mainstream, the dynamics and trajectory of ‘dissident’ republicanism are shaped more by contemporary forces than historical tradition and that by understanding them we can better understand the emerging forms of political challenge in an age of austerity and increasing political instability internationally. Marisa is an Assistant Professor in Political Science at the Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations at Coventry University. Her PhD thesis, carried out at Queen’s University Belfast, examined the decline of the Social Democratic and Labour party in the post-Good Friday Agreement period and is in preparation for publication by Manchester University Press. She is a regular contributor to media coverage of ‘dissident’ republicanism.

In this episode we speak to Sinéad Mercier. Sinéad is a lecturer in Environmental Law & Policy and PhD Researcher in the Sutherland School of Law in UCD with the PROPERTY [IN]JUSTICE project led by Amy Strecker and Amanda Byer. We discuss Sinéad’s political background, her engagement with Trade Unionism and work with ICTU; environmental campaigning, how environmentalism has developed in Ireland, and some of the campaigns and groups that have played a role in that; Sinéad’s previous experience in environmental law and as a policy researcher with Senator Alice Mary Higgins and with the Green Party; and the contrast between an environmentalism still embedded in colonialism and capitalism and a genuinely transformative socialist environmentalism and Just Transition. Sinéad’s paper, “Four Case Studies on Just Transition: Lessons for Ireland”, can be found on the National Economic and Social Council (NESC) website . The discussion also mentions Adrian Kane’s book, Trade Unions , published by Cork University Press . Listeners can find the Not Here Not Anywhere campaign to end fossil fuel infrastructure and exploration at notherenotanywhere.com.

Spirit of revolution In this episode we discuss the recently published book, Spirit of Revolution: Ireland from below, 1917–1923 . This edited volume looks at regional and local case studies during the revolutionary period, highlighting the widespread radicalism – beyond the national independence movement – that flourished around Ireland at the time in land and housing action, labour mobilisation and trade unionism. We discuss the volume with John Cunningham and Terry Dunne, who are co-editors of the book, as well as both contributing individual chapters. John Cunningham works in the Department of History at the University of Galway and is prominent in the Irish Centre for the Histories of Labour and Class. He is a former editor of Saothar: journal of Irish Labour History, and is currently writing a biography of Tom Glynn, an Irish-born activist and theorist of the Industrial Workers of the World in Australia and South Africa. You can read an article by John on Tom Glynn on RTÉ’s Century Ireland website . Terry Dunne has a PhD in Sociology and has published widely on agrarian social movements. He also writes and hosts the podcast Peelers and Sheep: Rebel Tales From The Land. He is currently researching agrarian politics during the Irish Revolution, supported by the Royal Irish Academy. Terry previously spoke to us in episode 22 on anti-war and activist movements, historical sociology, and “Peelers and Sheep” . Spirit of Revolution is published by Four Courts Press and is available from their website . If you are listening to this episode at the time of publication in May 2024, the book will have a launch in Dublin on Wednesday 29th of May at 6pm in Books Upstairs on D’Olier Street, hosted by historian and previous guest on this podcast, Mary Muldowney.

In this episode we speak to activist and academic Camilla Fitzsimons. Camilla’s academic work focuses in particular on education and social movements, and she is an Associate Professor in Maynooth University School of Education. Her publications include two books – Community education and neoliberalism: Philosophies, practices and policies in Ireland (2017) and Repealed: Ireland’s Unfinished Fight for Reproductive Rights (2021). We discuss Camilla’s early political experience; her involvement in forming the Spectacle of Defiance and Hope in response to service cuts and austerity, which organised marches and workshops with a central focus on political education; her work on abortion rights and the Repeal referendum, and her book Repealed; feminism, and differentiating Left feminism from the right and liberalism; and Palestine solidarity activism in light of Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza, and Camilla’s work with Academics for Palestine, which seeks to build the campaign for an academic boycott of Israel and help create awareness in the higher education sector. Camilla’s website is at camillafitzsimons.com. You’ll find a video of the Spectacle of Defiance and Hope in 2011 on Youtube, and it also continues to have an active Facebook group. Other material mentioned in the discussion is linked below: The Irish Debt Crisis Community Workshop (2015) Camilla’s research on safe access zones, which generated complaints to her university: Irish healthcare workers experiences of anti-abortion protesters and the case for safe access zones Research included in the Digital Repository of Ireland (DRI), including a chapter of Repealed.

In this episode we talk to Jim Monaghan. Jim first became politically active as a student in the late 1960s in Dublin. We discuss the increasing politicisation in Ireland at that time, and Jim’s political activity, initially with Labour and Students for Democratic Action, the League for A Workers’ Republic, and briefly the LWR-breakaway, the League for a Workers Vanguard. Jim then describes his move to Official Sinn Féin, the contrast of moving from a small left group to a larger party, and the direction of Republican politics at that time; his later involvement with the Movement for a Socialist Republic and People’s Democracy, after they merged; his involvement as Chair of the Dublin H-Block/Armagh Committee during the Hunger Strikes; and the contemporary political landscape, and the extent of the social and political change that has occurred since his early political involvement.

Throughout 2023 we have asked podcast guests if there are any cultural artefacts or events that they consider particularly influential on their politics. This episode brings together responses from historian Mary Muldowney, anarchist activist Gregor Kerr, Republican activist Des Dalton, author Michael Flavin, historian Brian Hanley, and Irish Anarchist Network activists Nestor and Saornil. Below, in the order they are mentioned, are our guest’s choices for politically influential books, films, music, events and media. (Where possible, we’ve linked to publicly accessible versions. Others are linked to further information.) Ermanno Olmi – The Tree of Wooden Clogs Frank Capra – It’s A Wonderful Life Robert Tressell – The Ragged-Trousered Philanthropists Dunnes Stores Anti-Apartheid strike 1913 Lockout 100th Anniversary Plaque in Dun Laoghaire Ernie O’Malley - On Another Man’s Wound and The Singing Flame J. Bowyer Bell - The Secret Army Caught in A Free State George Orwell - Homage to Catalonia Geoffrey Robertson - Reluctant Judas: Life and Death of the Special Branch Informer Kenneth Lennon The Jam – The Gift The Style Council – Our Favourite Shop Eamonn McCann – War and an Irish Town V for Vendetta Margaret Killjoy Robert Evans & Jake Hanrahan – The Women’s War

In this episode we’re joined by David Costelloe. Dave writes on history and politics on his website Never Felt Better, and in particular has written an extensive series of articles on Irish military history from the earliest records almost to the contemporary, Ireland’s Wars. We spoke to Dave previously in 2021, on episode 20 of the podcast, about his background and work on earlier military history, and he joins us again to discuss the period of the Troubles in particular and the comprehensive series of articles on the topic he has written since last speaking to us.

An introduction to our next series of episodes and discussion of the Irish Left Archive project and changes we’ve made in the past year. The discussion includes mention of trying to keep all aspects of the project open. As such, we’ve made the website and podcast statistics publicly accessible, as well as any source code used in the project. Website statistics: https://u.leftarchive.ie/share/6wv4MBNDrbJW52uY/Irish%20Left%20Archive Podcast statistics: https://op3.dev/show/8e88bb97-6c47-518a-8260-1cbedbd4b095 Source code repositories: https://git.aonghus.org/Irish-Left-Archive You can follow us on the Fediverse (Mastodon, Pixelfed, Peertube etc.) at @ila@leftarchive.ie.

In this episode we talk to Des Dalton. Des is a long-term Republican activist who joined Republican Sinn Féin in the late 1980s and has served on the party’s Ard Comhairle and as party President from 2009 to 2018. Since leaving the party in 2021, Des has been an independent Republican activist. We discuss Des’s political background and his Republicanism, which led him to joining Republican Sinn Féin from Ógra Fianna Fáil in his teens; the politics of Republican Sinn Féin, its position in Left politics and the role of Internationalism in Republicanism; his experience in the party as a member and later as President, and the party’s publications and newspaper, Saoirse; and finally his departure from the party and his perspective on contemporary Republicanism and its future direction. Two articles written by Des, which are mentioned in the discussion, are linked below: The 1962 IRA Ceasefire: Lessons for Today. By Des Dalton. All Republican Groups Should Call A Ceasefire

In this episode we talk to historian Brian Hanley about the new five-part documentary podcast, Dirty War in Dublin, written by Brian and produced by Kevin Brannigan. We discuss how the podcast came about and was developed, and look at the history of the Irish Civil War it covers and its wider context. Listeners will be familiar with Brian’s work from previous episodes of our podcast. If you haven’t already listened, you can hear Brian discuss the book he co-authored on the Official IRA and the Workers’ Party, The Lost Revolution, in episode 13; reactions to Bloody Sunday in the Republic of Ireland in episode 35, which marked the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday; and discussing his own political experience and background in episode 19. Dirty War in Dublin is available on Spotify, and you can find more of Brian’s work on his website, brianhanleyhistory.wordpress.com.

In this episode we talk to Emma Campbell. Emma is an artist, activist and researcher based in Belfast. She is a co-convenor of Alliance for Choice and has particularly focused both her activism and solo art work on abortion rights, with projects including When they put their hands out like scales, which included ‘Journeys’ – photographing people’s journeys to abortion clinics in England – and ‘Women on Waves’ – collages drawing on historical images and archive photos from the Women on Waves campaign. Emma is also part of the Array Collective, which won the Turner Prize in 2021 for The Druthaib’s Ball. Emma’s PhD research addresses photography as an activist tool for abortion rights, and she is a Research Associate in Social Studies at the University of Ulster. We discuss Emma’s work and how it intertwines with her activism, and look at how the campaign for abortion provision in Northern Ireland has progressed, from the lead up to the 2019 adoption of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) recommendations, the repeal of criminal sanctions and introduction of legal abortion, and the current state of provision. We also discuss how viewers respond to Emma’s work and how that has changed over time; her involvement in the Array Collective and the activist nature of the group; and the experience of being nominated and winning the Turner Prize in 2021. You’ll find Emma’s website at emmacampbell.co.uk, where you can see some of the work discussed, and the Array Collective at arraystudiosbelfast.com. The Alliance 4 Choice website is at alliance4choice.com.

In this episode we talk to anarchist activist Gregor Kerr about the Dublin Anarchist Bookfair. The bookfair was first held in 2006 and organised by the Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM) and continued for a number of years. After a hiatus of a few years, the Irish Anarchist Network (IAN) and independent anarchists have come together to organise the fair for 2023, which will take place in the Teachers’ Club on Saturday 20th May. Gregor Kerr is an anarchist activist and trade unionist who was involved with the WSM when the original anarchist bookfair started and is part of the group organising this years’ event. We discuss the panels and workshops taking place this year and the organisations and campaigns that will be taking part. We also discuss the history of the Dublin Anarchist Bookfair, how it helps to bring campaigns together and its role in campaigning and organising, and the orientation towards international anarchists and other parts of the broader left. The bookfair is on Saturday 20th May 2023. You can find more details on the IAN website or follow on Instagram @anarchist_bookfair_dublin. If you’re interested in anarchism in Ireland, we previously spoke to Aileen O’Carroll of the Workers Solidarity Movement in episode 31,Jason Brannigan of Organise! in episode 38, and to members of the Irish Anarchist Network a couple of months ago in episode 47.

In this episode we talk to Dublin City Council historian-in-residence Mary Muldowney about left approaches to history. Mary discusses her research and public dissemination of history; her advocacy of oral history and its particular utility in bringing out working class histories and history ‘from below’; attitudes to history in Irish academia and how they have changed; and some of the events of the left and trade union movements that merit greater analysis and recognition. We previously spoke to Mary about her own political background and experience as an activist and trade unionist in episode 7 of the podcast. Mary mentioned the Robert Tressell Festival, which is taking place in Liberty Hall on 6th May, and includes panels and talks on Tressell, his novel The Ragged Trousered Philanthropists, and on contemporary organising, as well as music and drama. You can find out more on the website at tressellfestival.ie.

In this episode we speak to two members of the Irish Anarchist Network, Nestor and Saornil. The Irish Anarchist Network was formed in 2022 by a number of independent anarchists. We discuss the formation and growth of the network and how they went about organising and structuring it; their orientation towards direct action and the balance between practical activism and theoretical discussion; their own individual backgrounds and attraction to anarchism; and contemporary issues in Irish society and approaches to the far-right. You can find out more about the Irish Anarchist Network on their Instagram @irish_anarchist_network or Twitter @acrataireland. Our guests also mentioned a trans squat in Dublin, which you can support by getting in touch on Instagram :@macabratz.

In this episode we talk to Mickey Moran. Mickey is a member of Éirígí and is the party’s representative for the midlands. He has been politically involved since his late teens, initially in activism in Limerick and Cork with animal rights, anti-war, anti-fascist and anti-globalisation campaigns. Moving to London in 2008, he was involved with the anti-fascist movement and then joined the Revolutionary Communist Group (RCG). He subsequently joined Éirígí and returned to Ireland where he has been active with the party since. We discuss Mickey’s background and the left political scene in Limerick and Cork in the early 2000s; experiencing the European anti-fascist movement when playing gigs with a punk band in various countries; working with anti-fascists in London and countering the EDL; joining the RCG and what drew him to party organising; joining Éirígí and the politics and campaigns the party focuses on; and how Republicanism informs his politics. This interview was recorded in November 2022.

In this episode we talk to academic and author Michael Flavin about his novel, One Small Step. Published by Vulpine Press, the novel tells the story of a young boy from a Northern Irish catholic background growing up in Birmingham in the 1970s and the impact of the 1974 Birmingham bombings. We discuss Michael’s own background, coming from an Irish family in Birmingham, which he drew on for the novel, and his research into the Troubles, which also led to publishing the academic article, “Four Typologies of Leadership Applied to a Survey of the Provisional IRA and Sinn Féin in the Troubles”.Michael Flavin is a Senior Lecturer in Global Education at Kings College London. As well as his novel, his academic publications include two books on technology enhanced learning and two on nineteenth-century literature, as well as several articles, with a focus on Disruptive Innovation theory and the study of leadership.One Small Step is available from Vulpine Press.The article from Terrorism and Political Violence discussed in the episode is an open access publication and available to read here: “Four Typologies of Leadership Applied to a Survey of the Provisional IRA and Sinn Féin in the Troubles” The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #45: One Small Step, by Michael Flavin.

In this episode we talk to Vincent Doherty. Vincent has been politically active since the early 1970s, having grown up in Derry during the Civil Rights marches and outbreak of the Troubles. He joined the Official Republican movement in 1972 and was involved in Derry until moving to England in 1973. There he was briefly involved in the Socialist Labour League (SLL) before joining the International Marxist Group (IMG), and was centrally involved in the Troops Out Movement.Returning to Ireland in 1979, he joined People’s Democracy (PD), which by that time was the fraternal organisation of the IMG through the Fourth International. As a PD member, he was heavily involved in the National H-Block/Armagh Committee. He stood as a general election candidate on the H-Block issue in 1981 in Dublin North Central. Having worked with Sinn Féin (SF) in the campaign, he argued PD should orientate towards SF, and eventually joined SF in 1982. Leaving SF in the late 1980s, he has subsequently been involved independently in campaigns and in Trade Unionism, for example as co-ordinator of Trade Union Friends of Palestine.We discuss Vincent’s background in Derry and the events which led to his politicisation, his role in the Derry Republican movement and perspective on the Officials and the divisions which led to the formation of the IRSP; his work with the IMG and Troops Out Movement in England; his central role in the H-Blocks campaign during the 1981 hunger strikes; his move towards Sinn Féin and the influence of People’s Democracy; and his perspective on the contemporary left in Ireland.This episode was recorded in October 2022.Many thanks to Vincent for taking the time to talk to us, and for kindly providing some images of his political experience, which we have reproduced below.An IRA Colour Party in Derry, Easter 1972. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Vincent Doherty).A Press Conference in Belfast the day after Bobby Sands funeral. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Vincent Doherty).Vincent Doherty leaving Haughey's office with Liz O'Hara the day before Patsy O'Hara died during the Hunger Strikes. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Vincent Doherty).Vincent Doherty in Coyoacán, Mexico, where Trotsky was assassinated. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Vincent Doherty).Vincent Doherty marching in opposition to the invasion of Iraq with Sinn Féin. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Vincent Doherty).Vincent Doherty on stage at the 50th Anniversary of Bloody Sunday. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Vincent Doherty). The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #44: Vincent Doherty: Offical Sinn Féin, International Marxist Group, Troops Out, People's Democracy, H-Block Committee, Sinn Féin.

In this episode we talk to Orla Egan and Megan Luddy O’Leary about their recently published book, Diary of an Activist, an illustrated memoir of social activism in the 1980s and 90s. The book draws on Orla’s experiences “journeying through vegetarianism, anti-nuclear and CND protests, feminist and queer activism, lesbian parties, coming out and becoming a parent”, and aims to bring to light and make accessible the history of activism in Ireland in that period. It is published by Cork City Library, and is available from DiaryOfAnActivist.com.Diary of An Activist, by Orla Egan and Megan Luddy O'LearyOrla Egan is the Founder and Director of the Cork LGBT Archive and the author of Queer Republic of Cork: Cork’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Communities 1970s-1990s (Onstream Publishers 2016). She wrote the short play, Leeside Lezzies, in 2018 and is Director of the short Cork LGBT film I’m Here, I’m Home, I’m Happy (2021). She has been active in social change and LGBT activism in Cork since the 1970s/1980s. We previously spoke to Orla about the Cork LGBT Archive project in episode 8.Megan Luddy O’Leary is an Irish artist, illustrator and poet. She draws, animates, writes, and makes things out of clay, collage and embroidery. She is interested in handmade aesthetics, particularly women’s craft work. Her themes include: the domestic, queerness, love and magic. Her work has been featured by Gill Books, Vibe Magazine, GOMA Gallery, Vittles Magazine and UsFolk. Her work can be seen on her website, meganluddy.cargo.site.The video animated by Megan of Orla discussing Loafer’s Bar, which is mentioned in the conversation, can be viewed on the Cork LGBT Archive website. Also mentioned are the clocks page and the back cover illustration of Orla and Megan meeting to discuss the project, which are shown below.A page from Diary of An Activist.The back cover of Diary of An Activist. The illustration shows the writer and illustrator meeting for the first time to discuss the project. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #43: Diary of An Activist, by Orla Egan and Megan Luddy O'Leary.

This episode introduces a new project from Irish Election Literature and the Irish Left Archive. Snapshots of Political Action aims to bring together material distributed at individual demonstrations, marches, rallies and protests in Ireland, providing a view of the different political strands and groups that come together in campaigns. We’re joined by Alan Kinsella of Irish Election Literature — whose collection has provided all the material included so far — to discuss public demonstrations in Ireland, the issues and groups involved, and the insight into politically activity we can get from protest materials.You’ll find the Snapshots of Political Action materials on our website. There are several protests added there already, and a lot more to come.Many thanks to Alan for including the Irish Left Archive in this project. If listeners have collected materials from protests that could be included, we’d be delighted to have them. You’ll find Alan’s email and social media links on his website: Contact Irish Election Literature.Alan also spoke to us in Episode 5 of the podcast about the Irish Election Literature project, his collection of political ephemera, and his podast, The Others, in which he tells the stories of some of the smaller groups and parties to have stood in elections over the years. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #42: Snapshots of Political Action: Documenting Protest.

In this episode we speak to Pádraig Mannion. Pádraig has been a member of Official Sinn Féin and then The Workers’ Party since joining as a student in Galway in 1974, and has had several roles within the party, including on the Ard Comhairle / Central Executive Committee. He is also Secretary of the Peace and Neutrality Alliance (PANA).We discuss Pádraig’s background and early involvement in student politics as a Student Union rep and later Education Officer with the USI; joining Official Sinn Féin, the political issues at that time, and his experience of the many elections and referendums since; wider campaigns such as the Resources Protection Campaign and international solidarity work; and also his involvement in publications from the party. We discuss how core issues such as housing, civil rights and separation of church and state have changed since Pádraig became involved in politics; and also the politics and development of The Workers’ Party, its electoral advances in the 1980s, the emergence of Democratic Left in the early 1990s, and the party’s continued political work since then.This interview was recorded in June 2022. Many thanks to Pádraig for talking to us for this episode.Pádraig mentions some pamphlets from the early 1970s in the course of the episode. The Resources Protection Campaign pamphlet on Navan is linked below:Navan and Irish MiningAnd The Workers’ Party pamphlet, Tony O’Reilly’s Last Game, is also available in the archive thanks to Pádraig, from whom we originally received a copy:Tony O'Reilly's Last Game: A Case History of Irish CapitalismYou’ll also find a large number of periodicals and documents from Official Sinn Féin and The Workers’ Party on their respective pages. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #41: Pádraig Mannion: Official Sinn Féin and The Workers' Party.

A quick update on the Irish Left Archive project and the podcast as we start back after a break with more interviews with activists on the left.We’ll be switching to putting out interview episodes once per month in future and hope to keep that rolling without the series gaps we’ve had before. As always, thanks to everyone who has been a guest on the podcast, made suggestions and contributed to the Irish Left Archive project. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #40: Podcast Update.

This episode is a quick round up of the current podcast series and future plans for the Irish Left Archive. Thanks to all of our guests so far, and to everyone who has listened, contributed material to our document collection, and got in touch with information and feedback.We appreciate all the contributions we receive - the accuracy of the information on our site about organisations, publications and the timeline of the Left is greatly improved by the knowledge and experience of people who have got in touch or been directly involved. Sometimes our knowledge of a group or document is limited, so if you can expand on the information we have, or have spotted an error, we’d be delighted to hear from you!As ever, if you yourself or someone you know has been involved in Left activism or organising in Ireland and can contribute documents to our collection or would be willing to talk to us as a guest on the podcast, please do send your suggestions.You can get in touch with us via the contact form, send us an email to contact@leftarchive.ie, or find us on Twitter (or Mastodon, if you’ve been converted to the open and decentralised web!). The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #39: Break Time - More to Come!.

In this episode we’re joined by Charles Tuba to discuss the book Ruairí Ó Brádaigh: The Life and Politics of an Irish Revolutionary, by Robert White (Indiana University Press, 2006). The discussion looks at Ó Brádaigh’s strand of Republicanism, and in particular the policies of abstentionism and the Éire Nua policy outlining a federal Irish state. This is one of a series of episodes centred on particular books, to discuss key issues in the history of the Irish Left and Republicanism. We’ve spoken to Charles previously in episode 25 when we discussed Official Irish Republicanism, by Seán Swan, and also heard about Charles’ own political background and interest in Irish Republican history, including visiting Ireland and finding himself inadvertently on a Republican Sinn Féin march. The discussion mentions the Éire Nua policy which you’ll find in the archive: Éire Nua There are further editions, including from Republican Sinn Féin, listed under the Éire Nua subject heading. Listeners may also be interested in the Sinn Féin Ard Fheis ’86 Clár agus Rúin: Sinn Féin Ard Fheis ’86: Clár agus Rúin Update: The discussion looks at the issue of abstensionism at national level while participating in local government. Thanks to listener Gearóid Clár for noting that the position of Ó Brádaigh, outlined in White’s book, was that local government does not claim sovereignty over the area administered, whereas the Dáil does. Update 2: Since this episode was released, we moved to a new podcast platform to which existing comments couldn’t easily be migrated. We don’t wish to remove considered and critical responses to the podcast and have made the original feedback available on our website.

In this episode we talk to Mags O’Brien about her political background; the divorce referendum campaigns of 1986 and 1995; her experience with the Freedom Flotilla to Gaza in 2011 - which was captured at sea and the crew held in an Israeli jail - and subsequent Palestine solidarity work with Gaza Action Ireland; her work as a tutor with the SIPTU College and combining her activism and trade unionism; and Left Lives in 20th Century Ireland Vol. 4 – Women, which was published last year and is edited by Mags.Mags is a trade union activist and tutor at SIPTU College. She has been involved in many campaigns, including as Chair of the Divorce Action Group during the 1995 divorce referendum. She is part of the ICTU Global Solidarity Committee and has served as Chair of Trade Union Friends of Palestine. She has formerly been in Labour as part of Labour Left, and briefly in Democratic Left.You’ll find the Left Lives series of books on the Umisken Press website. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #37: Mags O'Brien: Divorce Action Group, Gaza Freedom Flotilla, Women and Trade Unionism.

In this episode we talk to Jason Brannigan. Jason is an anarchist activist in Belfast and member of the anarcho-syndicalist group Organise!, as well as being involved in Just Books, which encompasses a library of radical material, meeting space and education project.We discuss Jason’s background in Belfast, his involvement with Just Books and Organise! and the development of both since the 1990s, political organising in workplaces and communities in the context of the North, and the current focus and prospects for anarchist organising in Ireland.The Organise! website is at organiseanarchistsireland.com, where you’ll find their publications, Black Star and The Leveller, as well as background on the organisation and Just Books project.Just Books provides an open-access library of anarchist and Left publications. If you have books or materials to donate, get in touch with Just Books via the Organise! website. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #36: Jason Brannigan: Organise!, Just Books, and Anarcho-Syndicalism.

In this episode, to mark the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, we’re joined by historian Dr. Brian Hanley to discuss the reaction in the Republic of Ireland to the events in Derry on 30th January 1972, when British soldiers opened fire on civil rights marchers, killing 14 and injuring several others. The reaction in the South saw walkouts and strikes, a national day of mourning, the burning of the British embassy in Dublin, and mass protests around the country.Brian Hanley is the author of The impact of the Troubles on the Republic of Ireland, 1968–79: Boiling Volcano? (Manchester University Press, 2018) which details the effect of the Northern conflict on the South, responses to Bloody Sunday and other events, mobilisations of support, the experiences of refugees, and the debates in the public discourse throughout that period.We recommend the excellent Museum of Free Derry for anyone who wants to explore the history of the events of Bloody Sunday. The museum is run by the Bloody Sunday Trust, which includes victims’ families, and civil society and political representatives in Derry.You can also hear Brian Hanley on these previous episodes of the podcast: #13: The Lost Revolution - The Story of the Official IRA and the Workers’ Party #19: Socialist Workers’ Movement, 1980s and 90s The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #35: Bloody Sunday: Reactions in the Republic of Ireland, with Brian Hanley.

In this episode we talk to Mark Fitzpatrick. Mark is an animal rights and vegan activist originally from Cork and now based in New Zealand, where he is on the board of the Vegan Society of Aotearoa.We discuss Mark’s politicisation in the anarcho-punk scene in Cork in the late 1980s, his involvement in hunt sabotage in Ireland and the UK, his perspective on the animal rights movement and its relationship with the Left, and his newly launched website project to document the history of animal rights in Ireland, The Humanity Trigger.If you are or were involved in animal rights in Ireland and can contribute information to the history of that movement, you can contact Mark about the project by email at markhumanity@thehumanitytrigger.com.Listeners can also hear Mark discuss hunt sabotage and the police response in more detail on episode 17 of the Policed podcast, from February 2021.Artwork by Mark Fitzpatrick from TheHumanityTrigger.com The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #34: Mark Fitzpatrick: Anarcho-punk, Hunt Sabotage, and Animal Rights.

Our guest in this episode is Tony Novosel. Tony is a historian at the University of Pittsburgh and the author of Northern Ireland’s Lost Opportunity: The Frustrated Promise of Political Loyalism (Pluto Press, 2013).Northern Ireland's Lost Opportunity: The Frustrated Promise of Political Loyalism (Pluto Press, 2013)We discuss Tony’s own background and how meeting Irish people in the US in the early 1970s led to developing a life-long interest in the politics of Northern Ireland, and how he came to study progressive unionism in particular, leading to the publication of his book Northern Ireland’s Lost Opportunity. We then discuss his research itself, tracing the development of a left analysis within the UVF and the Progressive Unionist Party through the 1970s and 80s, and the key figures and political documents in that process.A minor correction noted by Tony, is that Gusty Spence was in the Royal Ulster Rifles and not, as stated in the discussion, its successor the Royal Irish Rangers.The Sharing Responsibility document from the Progressive Unionist Party in 1985, discussed in this episode:Sharing ResponsibilityFurther information: An Alternative Ulster? Political Loyalism: 1973 to 1987 - a talk given by Tony for the Linenhall Library, which is mentioned in our discussion The text of Pete Shirlow’s speech at the Sinn Féin Ard Fheis in 2017 is available in PDF here The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #33: Tony Novosel: Northern Ireland's Lost Opportunity - The Frustrated Promise of Political Loyalism.

Our guest in this episode is Jess Spear. Jess is an eco-socialist and socialist feminist activist based in Dublin. She is National Organiser of RISE, a revolutionary Marxist network of People Before Profit (PBP). She is the editor of the eco-socialist quarterly magazine, Rupture, and co-authored the pamphlet What is eco-socialism?. She was a research scientist at the US Geological Survey and Burke Museum of Natural History before moving to Dublin in 2017.We discuss how Jess came to political activism in the US, and particularly, as a climate scientist, to environmental activism; her experience campaigning with Socialist Alternative (then part of the Committee for a Workers’ International) in Seattle, and as an electoral candidate there in 2014; moving to Ireland, the foundation of RISE, and decision to join PBP; and the development and aims of Rupture as a broad eco-socialist magazine and means to explore contemporary Marxist and socialist ideas and strategies.Find out more: RISE Network - The RISE website Rupture - the website of Rupture Eco-Socialist Quarterly and the Rupture Radio Podcast What is Eco-Socialism?, by Jess Spear and John Molyneux The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #32: Jess Spear: RISE.

In this episode, we talk to Aileen O’Carroll of the Workers Solidarity Movement (WSM). Aileen first became politically active via Student Union and pro-choice politics, and joined the anarchist WSM in the early 1990s and remains a member, having been involved in several prominent campaigns. She is a trade union activist, and chaired the Maynooth branch of IFUT for three years and remains on the branch committee.As a sociologist she has written a history of Dublin dockers, about working time in the software sector and she is a board member of the Four Day Week Campaign. She currently works for the Digital Repository of Ireland and is a project lead on a Wellcome Trust funded project which is archiving material from the Repeal campaign.We discuss Aileen’s politicisation and path to anarchism and the Workers Solidarity Movement; her involvement in campaigns including water charges, abortion and the Repeal referendum, Shell to Sea, Reclaim the Streets protests and her role as the Dublin Grassroots Network media spokesperson for the 2004 May Day protests, which resulted in the first use of water cannon in the south of Ireland. We also discuss the approach of the WSM to organising, how it has developed, how it works with the broader left in campaigns and Aileen’s own view of the role of activism. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #31: Aileen O'Carroll: Workers Solidarity Movement.

In this episode we talk to Dr. Jack McGinley. Jack is the Principal of Umiskin Press - a not-for-profit publishing house focused particularly on labour and trade union history. He has been active in the Trade Union movement since joining the Workers’ Union of Ireland in the 1970s, which later formed part of SIPTU. Among other roles, he was on the National Executive Council of SIPTU for several years, and is active in the SIPTU Cuba Solidarity Campaign.We discuss Jack’s political background and involvement in trade unionism; his participation in the Divorce Action Group campaign and Cuba solidarity; and his work with Umiskin Press and how the publisher has developed.You can find out more about Umiskin Press on their website at umiskinpress.wordpress.com, including the recently published fourth volume of their Left Lives in Twentieth Century Ireland series, which is a collection of ten essays on leading women in Ireland, edited by Mags O’Brien. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #30: Jack McGinley: Umiskin Press.

In this episode we talk to Adrienne Wallace. Adrienne is an activist and local councillor for People Before Profit (PBP). She has been active with PBP since the early 2010s and is the party organiser for the South East. She was elected to Carlow County Council in 2019. She also stood as a Dáil candidate in the 2015 Carlow/Kilkenny by-election and subsequent general elections, and in the South constituency for the 2019 European Parliament election.We discuss how Adrienne came to political activism and joined People Before Profit; the campaign to repeal the eighth amendment and water charges campaign; her experience as a local councillor; and her views on activism and electoralism, and maintaining a radical anti-capitalist perspective. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #29: Adrienne Wallace: People Before Profit.

In this episode we talk to Roger Cole. Roger has been involved in politics in Ireland since joining Labour as a student in the late 1960s. He was involved in the Liaison Committee of the Labour Left, and subsequently became General Secretary of the Socialist Labour Party (SLP). After the SLP, he re-joined Labour and remained a member until leaving in recent years in response to their lack of support for neutrality when in government. He is currently a member of Sinn Féin.In 1996 Roger founded, with Carol Fox, the Peace and Neutrality Alliance (PANA), which describes itself as seeking to “advocate an Independent Irish Foreign Policy, defend Irish Neutrality and to promote a reformed United Nations as the Institution through which Ireland should pursue its security concerns”, and to which several political parties, unions and organisations are affiliated.We’ll discuss Roger’s political background, his experience of political parties, and his identification with the values of Republicanism; the issue of Irish neutrality, the PANA organisation, and EU and international militarism; his involvement in organising the huge march against the war in Iraq in Dublin in 2003; and his involvement in centenary commemorations in recent years and the effect of the centenary on people’s assessment of Republicanism and Ireland’s history.To find out more about the Peace and Neutrality Alliance, you can visit pana.ie.Please note this episode was recorded prior to the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #28: Roger Cole: Peace and Neutrality Alliance.

A quick update on the podcast and forthcoming episodes. We’ll be back with new episodes every fortnight from next Monday, and we have several activists lined up from across the Irish Left to talk to us about their experience of organising and campaigning.Thanks to everyone who has listened so far, and thanks to all our guests who have taken the time to talk to us! The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #27: New Episodes Coming!.

This is a quick round up on the current series of the podcast and plans for the future. We’ll be back with more guests in the early Autumn. Thanks again to everyone who has spoken to us so far.Also, thanks to those who have provided documents for inclusion in the Irish Left Archive over the years; they are all listed in the acknowledgements on our content submissions page. If you have any documents relevant to the archive, we always appreciate receiving new material - you can contact us on the website. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #26: Round Up! More to Come.

In this episode, we’re joined by Charles Tuba to discuss Seán Swan’s book, Official Irish Republicanism, 1962 to 1972, and the issues it raises around changing views of Republicanism, and the period leading to and following the Republican split in 1969. The book was published in 2007, and listeners who haven’t read it will find a chapter available for free on the CAIN website.Before turning to the discussion of the book, we asked Charles about his own political background in Trade Unionism and the Industrial Workers of the World in the United States, and his interest in Irish Republican history.This is one of a series of episodes we hope to do centred on particular books, to discuss key issues in the history of the Irish Left and Republicanism. For people who want to delve in further, there are numerous documents in the Irish Left Archive from the period. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #25: Official Irish Republicanism, 1962 to 1972, with Charles Tuba.

In this episode we talk to Allan Armstrong. Allan has been an activist on the Left in Scotland since the late 1960s. He was a member of the International Socialists (later the Socialist Workers’ Party) during the 1970s and was a convenor of Scottish Rank & File Teachers, leaving the SWP when it sought to dissolve the latter group. As a part of the Red Republicans, he was involved in the foundation of the Scottish Socialist Alliance, which became the Scottish Socialist Party. Within the SSP, he was part of the Republican Communist Network, which disaffiliated from the SSP in 2012. With the RCN, Allan is active in the Radical Independence Campaign, and the recently formed Republican Socialist Platform.Along with several articles, Allan has published two books: From Davitt to Connolly, and The Ghost of James Connolly.We’ll discuss Allan’s experiences and political trajectory in Left activism in Scotland, from socialist groups as a student in Aberdeen in the 1960s to the contemporary Republican Communist Forum; the politics of Republicanism and Internationalism from Below, and linking movements in Scotland, Ireland and across these islands; his perspective on Scottish Independence and the 2014 referendum; and the current political landscape.Allan’s website is Internationalism from Below, available at intfrobel.com. The Republican Communist Forum (until recently known as the Republican Communist Network) has its ‘Emancipation & Liberation’ website at republicancommunist.org. In particular, listeners may be interested in these pages to explore further: Allan’s obituary of Brian Higgins, mentioned in the episode Emancipation & Liberation on What Is Communism Emancipation & Liberation on Ireland The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #24: Allan Armstrong: The Scottish Left, Republican Communist Forum and Internationalism From Below.

In this episode we talk to Lynda Walker. Lynda has been a political activist in Belfast since moving there from her native Sheffield in 1969. She is a long-standing member of the Communist Party of Ireland, and served as National Chairperson of the party from 2006 to 2017. She was active in the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association, and was instrumental in founding the Northern Ireland Women’s Rights Movement in 1975 and the establishment of Belfast Women’s Centre. Lynda is also an active Trade Unionist, on Belfast Trades Council, and represented ICTU as a Commissioner in the Equal Opportunities Commission. In the 1990s she was a founding member of the Northern Ireland Women’s Coalition, and stood as a candidate. In 2010 she helped form Reclaim the Agenda, a women’s organisation committed to radical change.Lynda’s publications include Living in an Armed Patriarchy, published in 2017, and the edited volumes, Madge Davison: A Revolutionary Firebrand in 2011, and Breaking the Chains: Selected writings of James Connolly on Women in 2016.We discuss Lynda’s political activism in the Communist Party, and the challenges of political activity during the Troubles; her work in civil rights and women’s rights, and some of the international connections made as part of the women’s movement; Lynda’s work in education and role in establishing the Women’s Studies course in what is now Belfast Met; the activity of the International Brigades Commemoration Committee; and some of the publications she has been involved in.A more detailed biography of Lynda is available on the website, A Century of Women - which provides a wealth of information documenting women who have had an impact on the social, economic, cultural and political history of society.Listeners can also read a blog post Lynda mentions, which she wrote for the Linen Hall Library, on the International Women’s Day Concert in Belfast in 1981 here: Music Making Change HappenLynda kindly allowed us to reproduce these photos from her political activism:Lynda Walker at an anti-war demo in Manchester, 1968. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Lynda Walker).Protesting against Maggie Thatcher's school milk cuts at Belfast City Hall, 1971. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Lynda Walker).Lynda Walker with Gertrude Shope, South African Trade Unionist and head of the ANC Women's League. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Lynda Walker).Left-Right: Angela Davis, Lynda Walker and Bernadette Devlin. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Lynda Walker).Lynda Walker & Ann Hope carry Belfast Trades Council Banner, May Day, 1980s. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Lynda Walker).Joe Law, Universo Lipiz Rodríguez (Cuban International Brigades), and Lynda Walker, SItges, 2008. (Image reproduced with kind permission of Lynda Walker). The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #23: Lynda Walker: Communist Party of Ireland, NICRA, Women's Rights Movement, Northern Ireland Women's Coalition, and International Brigades Commemoration.

In this episode we talk to Terry Dunne. As an activist, Terry has been involved in anarchist groups, and the anti-war, environmental and social justice movements. Terry has a PhD in sociology and an interest in the historical sociology of social movements. He has written particularly on agrarian social movements, and his work has been published in journals such as Saothar, Critical Historical Studies and Rural History. Terry also writes and hosts the Peelers and Sheep: Rebel Tales from the Land podcast.We first get an overview of Terry’s own activism, from the anti-war movement, the non-hierarchical environmental and social justice movement, Gluaiseacht, and the broader activist context at that time. We then discuss Terry’s research in the area of agrarian agitation during the Irish revolutionary period, which is explored in Terry’s podcast, Peelers and Sheep, and how that fits with more traditional narratives of Irish history.Terry’s podcast explores a fascinating history - look up Peelers and Sheep in your podcast app or you’ll find it at peelersandsheep.ie.Terry mentions the influence of Peoples’ Global Action and their hallmarks - you’ll find their archived website here.Listeners will find an overview of the Grassroots Gatherings and movements around that period in this article from Laurence Cox: The Grassroots Gatherings Networking a “movement of movements”To explore Irish labour history further, two good sources of material are the Irish Labour History Society and Irish Centre for the Histories of Labour & Class. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #22: Terry Dunne: Anti-war and Activist Movements, Historical Sociology, and "Peelers and Sheep".

In this episode we talk to Ciara Galvin. Ciara is a Labour party councillor in Kildare for the Celbridge Local Electoral Area. She has been a member of Labour since 2010, and was involved in Labour Youth, serving as Trade Union Co-ordinator. She was elected to Kildare County Council in the 2019 local elections. Outside her local council role, Ciara works for SIPTU in the Workers’ Rights Centre.We’ll discuss how Ciara got involved in politics and the Labour party; her experience as a member through the period of coalition government; standing in the local elections and the role of local politics; and the political and personal challenges of being a local councillor. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #21: Ciara Galvin: Labour.

In this episode we talk to David Costelloe. David writes on history and politics on his website Never Felt Better, and in particular has written an extensive series of articles on Irish military history entitled “Ireland’s Wars”, which spans from the earliest recorded conflicts on the island right up to the revolutionary period.We discuss with David his background and interest in history and in writing, and what led him to create the site and write about military history, before delving in to that history itself and David’s perspective on Irish revolutionary history in particular.The Ireland’s Wars series of articles is indexed here The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #20: David Costelloe: Irish Military and Revolutionary History.

In this episode we talk to Brian Hanley about his experience of Left activism as a member of the Socialist Workers Movement (SWM) in the late 1980s and early 90s. We discuss the cultural and political influences that led him to join the SWM as a teenager in Limerick; the nature and political position of the organisation at that time; the experience of being an active member; and how the SWM changed and grew during that period.Brian is a historian in Trinity College Dublin. We’ve spoken to him previously in that capacity on the podcast in episode 13, where we discussed The Lost Revolution: The Story of the Official IRA and the Workers’ Party, which Brian co-authored.Below are some links that might interest listeners in the context of this episode: The Council Collective - Soul Deep, performed in 1984 during the Miners’ Strike We Are Red Action, which includes a history of the British Left, including the SWP Direct accounts of the dock workers’ strike in 1972, which include some then SWP members. Brian provided a few additional clarifications to the discussion below: Thanks again to Aonghus and Ciarán for the opportunity to do this. A couple of things struck me afterwards which maybe I wasn’t very clear on. The first one is that while the SWM in general was quite poor on Irish working class history, one big exception was a concentration on James Connolly. Bookmarks republished an edition of Labour in Irish History in 1987, with an introduction by Kieran Allen and in 1990 Kieran Allen’s own The Politics of James Connolly was published. In between public meetings on the politics of Connolly were routine. Amazing that I’d forgotten that really. One other home produced pamphlet that I recall was Goretti Horgan’s Why Irish Women must have the right to choose [see here for the 2002 reprint of this in the archive] which we sold loads of during the X Case period. A couple of technical points, that might be lost on a ‘younger’ audience was that postering involved going out with buckets of paste and plastering up posters on anything that didn’t move. You postered until the paste or posters ran out, or you were stopped by the Guards. Generally they took the posters and your name, though I was never fined. Uniformed Guards usually couldn’t care less what the posters were about (as long as it wasn’t about them), but the Special Branch could give you more hassle. The various trips to Marxism in London were by bus and boat, which if there was a few of you could mean a good drink on the ferry and trying to sleep until you got to Victoria. The Irish Marxism weekend was held in November at the Institute of Education in Mountjoy Square. Again it was a chance for people from across the country to get together. One year there was a football match between Dublin and a ‘rest of Ireland’ selection on one of the all-weather pitches across the road from the event. That was never repeated either because it was considered too frivolous or because we were all (with a couple of exceptions, including a current TD) fairly crap. It probably comes across anyway, but there was a high turnover of members with lots of people joining and leaving fairly consistently. On a less nostalgic note, if you were considered a dissident or critic your every failure would be pounced on, while people considered useful or loyal could get away with a lot more. I think that’s the nature of these type of parties to be honest. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #19: Brian Hanley: Socialist Workers' Movement, 1980s and 90s.

In this episode we talk to Danny Morrison. Danny is a writer and Republican political activist from West Belfast. He was national director of publicity for Sinn Féin in the 1980s, and editor, first, of the Sinn Féin paper Republican News in Belfast, and then of An Phoblacht when the two papers were merged. He is the author of several fiction and non-fiction works. He is also secretary of the Bobby Sands Trust, and was chair of the West Belfast festival, Féile an Phobail, until 2014.Danny was spokesperson for Bobby Sands during the 1981 hunger strikes and subsequently called for a dual strategy of armed struggle and electoral politics in Sinn Féin. He was elected on an abstentionist ticket to the 1982 Northern Ireland Assembly. In 1990, he was charged and imprisoned in connection with the abduction of an IRA informer, and released in 1995. The charges were later overturned in 2008.Danny’s books include Then the Walls Came Down, based on his prison letters, and the novels West Belfast, On The Back of the Swallow, The Wrong Man, which he later adapted as a play, and Rudi. He is also a regular reviewer and political commentator in newspapers.We discuss Danny’s background and analysis of the political landscape during the Troubles; his work with Sinn Féin and as editor of Republican News and An Phoblacht; and his work as a writer, and how his creative work is informed by his experience and politics.You’ll find more information on Danny’s writing and regular articles on his website at dannymorrison.com. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #18: Danny Morrison: Sinn Féin, An Phoblacht / Republican News, and Political and Fiction Writing.

In this episode we talk to Sarah Clancy. Sarah is a poet and activist from Galway, and currently based in Clare. Her published collections include Stacey and the Mechanical Bull in 2011, Thanks for Nothing, Hippies in 2012, and The Truth and Other Stories in 2014. Sarah has often performed her work both at literary and at political events.We discuss Sarah’s background and how she came both to political activism and to poetry, how the two inflect each other, her experience of activism and analysis of the political Left. We also discuss the challenges for the contemporary Left in Ireland during the pandemic crisis.During the episode you can hear Sarah recite her poem, “And Yet We Must Live in These Times”.You’ll find a video of Sarah performing “Cherishing For Beginners” at the Stand for Truth rally during the visit of the Pope in 2018 on Youtube (thanks to the WSM).Lyrikline.org has the text and a recording of the Rita Ann Higgins poem, “Some People”, which Sarah discusses. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #17: Sarah Clancy: Poetry, Activism, Politics, and the Contemporary Left.

In this episode we talk to Laura Broxson. Laura is an activist focused on animal rights and founder of the National Animal Rights Association (NARA). NARA is a non-hierarchical organisation, taking a radical animal rights and vegan perspective. We’ll discuss how Laura came to activism and founding NARA; the anti-fur and hare-coursing campaigns in which she’s been involved; different methods of campaigning, from street protest to legislative change; cooperation and interaction with Left parties and organisations; and how Laura integrates animal rights campaigning in a wider anti-fascist, anti-capitalist and Left perspective.For more information on the National Animal Rights Association, you can visit their website at naracampaigns.org.Here are some NARA leaflets included in our collection:Ireland's Official Animal Rights March to Close All SlaughterhousesTell your TD to Vote in Support of the Prohibition of Fur Farming BillIt's Time to Ban Hare Coursing in IrelandSome additional resources on animal rights suggested by Laura in the discussion: Animal Justice Project - UK-based non-profit organisation Animal Equality - International Animal Protection Organisation Animal Aid - UK animal rights group The Animal People - documentary on animal rights activism The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #16: Laura Broxson: National Animal Rights Association (NARA).

We’re back after a taking break for a few months, so this is just a quick update on the podcast and the Irish Left Archive project.We’ll have full episodes with more guests coming out fortnightly, starting next week.One of the new elements we’ve added to the site in recent months is to start a collection of personal accounts and recollections from people who have participated on the Left in Ireland. We hope these will provide an interesting context to Left activity, in addition to the document collection. If you have participated in Left political activism or organisations on any level, we’d be grateful if you would add your experience to the collection: you can send us your account on the website. The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #15: We're back! More Podcasts for 2021.

In this episode we talk to John Goodwillie. John is a long-time political activist, who has been involved in a number of progressive parties and organisations. He was a member of Labour in the 1960s and belonged to the Young Socialists, Socialist Labour Action Group and subsequent Socialist Labour Alliance. He was involved with the Socialist Workers’ Movement (SWM) in the 1970s, and joined the Socialist Labour Party (SLP) when the SWM merged with that party as a tendency, and remained on the National Executive until the SLP’s dissolution.John was on the editorial board of Gralton magazine. He has also participated in a number of campaign groups, including the Dublin Clean Seas Group, the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) - on the executive of which John served in various roles - and the National Lesbian and Gay Federation. Since 1990 he has been a member of the Green Party, and was the party’s candidate in Dublin South Central for Dáil and local elections through the 1990s. He has been involved in policy formation and served as Secretary of the Party’s Policy Council.We discuss the history of Irish Left organisations since the 1960s and John’s own political trajectory: from Labour in the 1960s, through organisations seeking to form a party of the Left. We also discuss Gralton magazine and John’s political activity in the 1980s and in the Greens since 1990.John created a ‘family tree of the left’ diagram, which provided an overview of the splits, merges and relationships between organisations on the Irish Left, printed in Gralton in 1983. It was an online copy of this which inspired the creation of the Timeline of the Irish Left on our own website - John’s diagram gave us a starting basis for it, and we are indebted to John both for that and for subsequent suggestions and corrections to the initial version.The Gralton Family Tree of the Left, by John Goodwillie. From Gralton magazine, 1983. (Image from DublinOpinion.com)Some materials in the archive may be of interest to listeners in the context of the discussion.From the fourth issue of The Worker, the aims of the Socialist Workers’ Movement (SWM):The Fintan Lalor branch of the Labour party mentioned in the podcast was expelled in 1971. Listeners may be interested in this article from Labour News Bulletin announcing the expulsion:Labour News Bulletin, July 1971, on the dissolution of the Fintan Lalor branch and expulsion of Paddy Healy for membership of the Socialist Labour Alliance.Gralton magazine was published in 1982-83. This is the first issue of the magazine:Gralton, No. 1 The Irish Left Archive Podcast looks at Left politics in Ireland, talking to activists, writers, historians, politicians and others involved in Left organisations and movements about their experiences of participating in Left parties and campaigns. The podcast is hosted by Ciarán Swan and Aonghus Storey. View this episode on our website: #14: John Goodwillie: Young Socialists, Socialist Labour Alliance, SWM, Socialist Labour Party, Gralton magazine and the Green Party.