Irish Mythology Podcast

This time it's war!

We've been leading up to this battle since episode three and well, here it is.

The Tuath Dé face the Fomóir at Moytura and Lugh will finally face his grandfather, Balor of the Destructive Eye.

Starring: Lugh, Balor, Indech, Ogma, Airmed, Loch Half-Green.

Co Starring: The Dagda, Macha, Nuada, Elatha, Bres, Gobniu, Dian Cecht, Luchta, Ochtriuil, Miach.

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

The walking dead, a talking corpse, a journey to the otherworld! 

Join Nera as he accepts a Halloween challenge that ends up being a lot more than he bargained for. 

We talk horror in Irish mythology, the good people, the restless dead and time travel!

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

All other sounds Creative Commons

The episode contains some explicit content. 

The Dagda is on a mission. He travels to the west to scout the invading Fomorian armies, but it's not all business for the supreme father. On his way, he meets up with The Morrígan for their annual tryst and later on, he hooks up with an unlikely lover. All's fair in love, war and sorcery. 

We talk censorship, sex in mythology, the Tao of The Dagda, Ancient Mesopotamian smut and the Greek god Pan. 

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

We examine the curious folklore around the figure of St. Sheelah who isn't mentioned in Patrick's writings or in the works of his hagiographers. We travel to Newfoundland, Canada and Australia in search of answers.

Written, presented and produced  by  Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh and Marcas Ó hUiscín.

With special thanks to Theresa O'Keefe and Dymphna Lonergan.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence)

We talk about that old Irish harbinger of death, the Banshee, her connections with Badbh and the Morrigan, the tradition of keening at funerals and Professor of folklore, Patricia Lysaght's extensive research on the topic.

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Written, presented and produced  by Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh and Marcas Ó hUiscín.

Music – Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Bres and the Fomorians are raiding Ireland but Nuada doesn't want to drag the Tuath Dé into another war. Lugh and Bodbh Dearg take matters into their own hands and organise the riders of the sidhe into a resistance militia.

We also talk placelore, Lughnasadh and what archaeology can tell us about the worship of Lugh.

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Vikings! Fish! Goat headed men! Sliding into DM's Medieval style! A clue to the biggest mystery in Irish Mythology!

Bres has lost the kingship of the Tuath Dé and now he's throwing a strop, but he has a plan. Maybe his estranged father and his people the Fomorian's can help him. He already knows one of them, a sinister figure known as Balor.

Before anything can happen, he has to find his dad and the only one who can help is his mother, the Goddess Éire (EIriu).

We talk Viking influence on Irish Mythology, misinterpreted poetry and the creation of deities, a disused Irish word that might reveal the identity of...

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

It's time for Midir to face the music. He and Étain have been enjoying an extended honeymoon at Brú na Bóinne as guests of Aengus, but now he must return to Brí Leith where Fuamnach, the wife he left behind waits. Did we mention that Fuamnach is a powerful sorceress? 

Starring: Midir, Étain, Fuamnach.

Co-Starring Aengus, The Dagda, Ogma, Lugh. 

We talk polygamy in early medieval Ireland, Brehon Law, sorcery , flies in mythology, story adaptation and what the Tao te Ching has to say about water.

A cautionary tale on you should consult your first wife before bringing home a second one.

Oh, and you might want to listen to the very end.

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

A look at what's ahead this summer on the Irish Mythology Podcast. 

The conclusion of subtale 1 of The Wooing of Etain

The Fate of the Sons of Tuireann

The Second Battle of Moytura

Lugh, Balor and the Formorians, plus more from The Morrigan, The Dagda and Ogma.

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Midir loses an eye while trying to break up a fight; Dian Cecht works some healing magic; Aengus goes up to Down to woo Étaín for Midir; The Dagda fights an Octopus; WB Yeats is CANCELLED!

We ask if Aengus really was a god of love and/or a god of poetry and how he came to be associated with these things and we talk about family and networks of mutual aid.

There's a lot to unpack in this episode, the penultimate chapter in the first sub-tale of The Woing of Étain. 

Patrick has had a lot of success spreading the word of God in Ireland, but one native deity and his followers are not going without a fight. Who will win this epic confrontation? Patrick versus Crom Cruach; This time it's biblical!

We talk Patrick, Cromm Cruach, hagiography, human sacrifice, Lóegaire mac Néill, and the different ways Christianity and native Irish Paganism interacted. We also make a bit of time to talk old St. Patrick's Day customs. 

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Aengus believes he is the son of Midir, his foster father, but gets a rude awakening when a jealous Fir Bolg youth tells him otherwise. On finding out his father is actually The Dagda, the King in the Sidhe, he sets out to meet him and claim a Sidhe of his own. There's one slight problem though; Someone already occupies the mound The Dagda had in mind for his son. That someone is the husband of Aengus's mother, the one The Dagda had already duped when he had an affair with Boann. 

A cautionary tale on why you should read the fine print of any contract. 

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

The Dagda has got his groove back, but though his power is restored, he longs for Boann, goddess and wife of his steward, Elcmar. He makes use of his control of the Sun and time to not only make a tryst possible, but to hide the conception and birth of a son.

Despite the title, Étain doesn’t appear in today’s story as she isn’t introduced until later in the Saga.

We ask:

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

The Dagda has had enough of Bres's demands of his labour and Cridenbel's demands of his hospitality. Now, with the help of a magical child and a satirist, The Dagda Strikes Back.

A cautionary tale outlining why you should always give your guests something decent with their cuppa.

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Marcas and Stephie talk about the various tales from Irish Mythology that reference Samhain and the ghastly cast of ghoulish entities associated with them. We also talk folklore, customs, games, robbing pallets for the bonfire and dressing up in bin bags to go out and scare your neighbours. 

No main story this week but we do have one on our patreon, info below. 

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Dian Cecht receives Ogma’s message and sets out to find a way of fighting back against Bres’s tyranny. He recruits the blacksmith Gobniu and the silversmith Credne to help him create a new arm for the former High Chief of the Gods, Nuada.

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Ogma suffers under the reign of Bres, but from this suffering comes a great revelation.  We talk about Ogma, ogham script, attitudes to work in myth, and the Irish language.

We ask:

What was Ogma's role in myth and in the old pagan religion?

What is Ogma's relationship to other deities?

What was the Ogham system of writing?

What attitudes to work in medieval Ireland are represented in this story?

Are metaphors about the origins of language encoded in tales from mythology?

Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence

Have you heard about the Druid, Mog Ruith and his most famous deed? 

I thought not. It’s not the sort of tale you would hear from a teacher or a priest.

In this episode we hear about the druid Mog Ruith and his daughter Tlachtga travelling from County Kerry to the Middle East to study the magic of Simon Magus, and how on the way, Mog Ruith becomes the executioner of John the Baptist. We ask:

Who was Mog Ruith?

Why did he and his daughter, Tlachtga travel to the Middle East? 

Does this story have a hidden meaning that points to the early Irish Church’s struggles with both imported heresy and native paganism?

Why aren’t Mog Ruith and Tlachtga as well known as some other Irish Mythological figures?

Why did Mog Ruith behead John the Baptist?

Why were he and Tlachtga associated with Simon Magus?

We also talk about heresy, Roman influences in Iron Age Ireland, the oared wheel, and Kerry UFO sightings . 

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Written, presented and produced  by Marcas Ó hUiscín and Stephanie Ní Thiarnaigh.

Music - Celtic Warrior by Damiano Baldoni (licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 public licence