Podcast · History

What Were We Like

Diarmaid Ferriter and Catriona Crowe bring us on a journey through the hidden histories, humanity and humour of our past.

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New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 40 min
Latest: 12 Oct 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

12 Oct 2026 · 53 minNew

Michael Collins - Part 2

Michael Collins is now one of the most powerful men in Ireland. But events that will tear Ireland apart and lead to his brutal assassination in Cork are already set in train. In 1921 he is sent by De Valera to London to negotiate with the British on what will become the Anglo-Irish Treaty. With his striking good looks and his fierce reputation, London is gripped by "Collins mania". But on December 6th 1921, when Collins signs the Treaty, he is said to have remarked: “I'm signing my actual death warrant.” Within months, a brutal civil war breaks out across the country, and just over nine…

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Earlier episodes 29 most recent

S2 · E30 · 5 Oct 2026 · 41 min
Michael Collins - Part 1
On the 22nd of August 1922, Michael Collins, the Commander in Chief of the National Army was shot dead. He was just 31. Almost immediately the myth making around Michael Collins began, starting with the last words he’s alleged to have uttered. But what is the real legacy of Michael Collins? He was a man who operated as a politician but was capable of ruthless violence. On this week’s What Were We Like, we talk about Michael Collins, a man that has captured the imagination of the Irish public, film makers, artists and politicians like no other figure in modern Irish history. See…
S2 · E29 · 28 Sep 2026 · 49 min
Stardust – From national tragedy to national scandal
In the early hours of February 14th 1981, a fire ripped through the Stardust Nightclub in Artane in Dublin. 48 people, aged between 16 and 27, die in the tragedy. It is one of the worst fires, in terms of loss of life and significant injury, in the State’s history. In 1982 a Tribunal controversially found that the fire was "probably caused deliberately" despite no evidence. For 43 years, the families fought for justice for the 48 people who died and to get answers how their love ones died. This is the story of Stardust. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E28 · 21 Sep 2026 · 43 min
Sean O’Casey – The Irish Rebel playwright
He was one of Ireland’s greatest and most controversial playwrights. Sean O’Casey’s remarkable life began in the slums of Dublin and took him to the biggest stages in the world, including the Abbey Theatre. His work caused riots in Dublin and caused protests around the world, from Texas to Berlin to London. O’Casey made enemies of the Church and the Censors, forcing him to choose self-imposed exile in England. Through his plays, O’Casey asked fundamental questions about violence and challenged the founding myths of the new Irish state. They were questions a new Ireland wasn’t ready for. See…
S2 · E27 · 14 Sep 2026 · 32 min
The Ballyseedy Massacre (Part 2)
After committing one of the worst atrocities in the Irish Civil War, the State attempts to cover up its role in the massacre. As “Terror Month” in Kerry continues, further atrocities are carried out with more prisoners blown up by landmines. However, the man who gave the order at Ballyseedy, Paddy O'Daly, remains unrepentant, stating: “No one asked me to take my kid gloves to Kerry and I didn’t take them.” Diarmaid and Catriona discuss the fall out from Ballyseedy, how the truth finally emerges, and why the Dáil record still contains the cover-up. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy…
S2 · E26 · 7 Sep 2026 · 31 min
The Ballyseedy Massacre (Part 1)
On the 7th of March 1923, nine anti-Treaty prisoners were taken to a field in Kerry, tied to a landmine and blown up. It was one of the most shocking events of the Irish Civil War and became known as the Ballyseedy Massacre. The State immediately tried to cover it up but incredibly, one man survived and his witness account revealed just how brutal the civil war had become. Diarmaid and Catriona recount the whole affair, and also the wider conflict in Kerry at the time, which is often referred to as "Terror Month". See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E25 · 31 Aug 2026 · 39 min
The Pope's Visit of 1979
John Paul II, the "rock star" Pope took Ireland by storm in 1979, and millions came out to see him. (Everyone except Catriona, who went to Donegal in a sulk but kept an eye on proceedings through the television). This was an iconic moment, and everyone was swept away by his good looks, his "deep baritone" voice, and his ability to connect with young people. Yet his abilities as a showman belied a deep conservatism, particularly on women's issues, and his visit turned out to be a last hurrah for the Catholic Church before it was rocked by child sexual abuse scandals, the rise of feminism and…
S2 · E24 · 25 Aug 2026 · 49 min
Best of What Were We Like (Part 2)
RTÉ's podcast intern Arran returns with the second instalment of his favourite parts of What Were We Like. This time around, grumpy Patrick Kavanagh, "airhead" Ronald Reagan, and the insertion of the Eighth Amendment into the Constitution all feature. This is Arran's last selection - he's off to Electric Picnic on Thursday where he'll be boring his pals with his newfound knowledge of history. Diarmaid and Catriona are back next Monday, 31 August. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E23 · 20 Aug 2026 · 39 min
Best of What Were We Like (Part 1)
Diarmaid and Catriona are on holidays, so RTE's podcast intern, Arran has selected some of his favourite parts of What Were We Like so far. Bobby Sands, The Contraceptive Train, and John Charles McQuaid all feature in the first part of this "Best of" series. Part 2 of Arran's selections will be out next week, and Diarmaid and Catriona return on Monday 31 August. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E22 · 10 Aug 2026 · 1 min
What Were We Like: Back in Two Weeks
What Were We Like is on holidays for the next two weeks. We'll be back with a podcast about the visit of Pope John Paul II to Ireland in 1979, and that will come out on Monday the 24th of August. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E21 · 3 Aug 2026 · 32 min
1980s Ireland: Moving Statues
Ireland was gripped by a bizarre phenomenon in the summer of 1985: sightings of moving statues of the Virgin Mary. Tens of thousands of people flocked to villages in Kerry - and elsewhere - to catch a glimpse of these monuments, which eyewitnesses claimed would move, beckon and even undergo strange facial transformations. Diarmaid and Catriona chart this crazy story, look at how it challenged the Catholic Church, and also trace the history of holy apparitions in Ireland. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E20 · 27 Jul 2026 · 44 min
1980s Ireland: The Kerry Babies Case
In 1985, the body of a newborn baby washed up on a beach in Cahersiveen, Co Kerry, stabbed to death. What followed was one of the most infamous incidents in the history of An Garda Síochána. Diarmaid and Catriona trace the botched Garda investigation into the baby's death, carried out by the notorious Heavy Gang, the shocking Tribunal of Inquiry which followed, and how it became a watershed moment in the treatment of women in Ireland. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E19 · 20 Jul 2026 · 37 min
1980s Ireland: The Eighth Amendment
Today, Diarmaid and Catriona kick off a new series focusing on Ireland in the 1980s. This was a decade of great political instability, with three general elections alone happening between 1981 and 1982. Unemployment and emigration were high. Heroin took hold in Dublin and spread around the country. But one of the most polarising issues of all was abortion. In the first of this series, What Were We Like looks at how the extremely controversial Eighth Amendment came to be inserted into the Constitution in 1983 - and remained there until its repeal in 2018. See omnystudio.com/listener for…
S2 · E18 · 13 Jul 2026 · 45 min
The brilliant poetry and turbulent life of Patrick Kavanagh
Monaghan born Patrick Kavanagh was a notorious presence in Dublin for much of his life. Broke, drunk and often bitter, he boozed in the bars around Grafton Street, clashing with the likes of Brendan Behan and railing against the literary establishment. Always an outsider, he nonetheless transformed Irish poetry by focusing on the ordinary aspects of rural Ireland, paving the way for the likes of Seamus Heaney, and writing perhaps the greatest love song of all time, Raglan Road. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E17 · 6 Jul 2026 · 46 min
Bobby Sands, Margaret Thatcher, and the 1981 hunger strikes
On 5 May 1981, 26-year-old Bobby Sands became the first of ten IRA hunger strikers to die at the Maze Prison, changing the course of history in Northern Ireland. In this episode, Diarmaid and Catriona assess his life, his status as a Republican icon, and how he impacted the career of his chief antagonist, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher among others. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E16 · 29 Jun 2026 · 34 min
All aboard the contraceptive train
The Irish Women's Liberation Movement, Mary Magee and the fight for contraceptive rights in Ireland. It was the 1970s and in many ways, things were grim for the women of Ireland. Marital rape was permitted, women had to stop working in the public service when they got married, and most relevantly for this podcast, contraception was illegal. Here, Diarmaid and Catriona tell the stories of the brave women and men who fought to change that. Two key events feature: the famous "Contraceptive train" of 1971, in which a group of women bought contraceptives in Northern Ireland - where they were…
S2 · E15 · 22 Jun 2026 · 49 min
The 1926 Census - LIVE at Listowel Writers Week
In this special recording, What Were We Like appears before a live audience at this year's Listowel Writers Week, to discuss the 1926 census. Diarmaid and Catriona talk about what the census tells us about Irish society in the early part of the 20th century - both in Kerry, and in Ireland in general. Catriona takes umbrage at the performance of Garda Daniel Rooney, who was responsible for some of the less-than-impressive record keeping at the time. But nonetheless, the census provides a remarkable insight into Ireland back then - and a great opportunity for us to snoop on our neighbours. See…
S2 · E14 · 15 Jun 2026 · 40 min
The jealous rage that inspired a key chapter of Ulysses
To mark Bloomsday, Diarmaid and Catriona tell the remarkable story of how two of James Joyce's friends made false allegations of infidelity against Nora Barnacle, something which sent Joyce into a jealous rage. The impact on Joyce was severe, and caused him to question the paternity of his son, Giorgio - but it also had major literary consequences, forming the basis of one of the key chapters of Ulysses . Joyce's political beliefs are also explored, as well as the social history of Dublin at the time. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E13 · 8 Jun 2026 · 47 min
The Fearsome Ruler of Catholic Ireland: John Charles McQuaid (Part 2)
In the 1960s, John Charles McQuaid faced a number of serious challenges that saw his influence over Ireland wane. The advent of television and the women's movement were major problems for him - and Vatican 2 presented the biggest threat to his authority. But McQuaid still wielded considerable power, and went after people who crossed his path, including novelist John McGahern, various Protestants and more or less anyone interested in sex. McQuaid gradually came to be regarded as out of touch with the country. He resigned in 1972, and died the following year. See omnystudio.com/listener for…
S2 · E12 · 1 Jun 2026 · 45 min
The Fearsome Ruler of Catholic Ireland: John Charles McQuaid (Part 1)
The powerful and fearsome John Charles McQuaid was the archbishop of Dublin from 1940 to the early 1970s, and was described as the ruler of Catholic Ireland. He was obsessed with protestants, communists and "moral purity", and ran a huge spying operation on the Irish population, both at home and abroad, to keep everyone in check. In the first part of this series, Diarmaid and Catriona chart his early life, his ascent to power, and his often difficult relationship with Eamon De Valera. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E11 · 23 May 2026 · 36 min
By Elections That Shaped Ireland (Part 2)
More giants of Irish politics feature in this episode. Enda Kenny – was he lucky, was he devoid of strong convictions, was he Fine Gael's most successful Taoiseach? Probably all three. Prickly Des O’Malley won his famous uncle’s seat in a by election and went on to found the influential Progressive Democrats. And two trailblazers of Irish politics, Maire Geoghegan-Quinn, the first woman to hold a seat at cabinet since the foundation of the state, and the Susan Sontag-esque Eileen Desmond also feature. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E10 · 18 May 2026 · 37 min
The By-Elections That Shaped Ireland (Part 1)
With by-elections in the air, Diarmaid and Catriona look back at some of the most significant ones in Irish history. Part one features big beasts Sean Lemass and Sean MacBride, as well as Ireland's most handsome communist. Lemass succeeded Dev and is credited with modernising Ireland, as well as smoking vast amounts of tobacco through a pipe. The more “exotic” MacBride founded Clann Na Poblachta and Amnesty International, but his abilities as a politician are questioned, and the roots of his unusual French accent considered. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E9 · 11 May 2026 · 49 min
The History of The Tricolour (Part 3)
This episode charts the Tricolour's 20th Century evolution: its formal adoption in 1937; getting the Brits to return the Tricolour that flew over the GPO in 1916; all the way up to Italia '90. The gruesome digging up of Roger Casement's body features, as does John McGahern's most famous novel, Amongst Women, which came out in 1990 with a Tricolour splashed across its cover. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E8 · 4 May 2026 · 34 min
The History of The Tricolour (Part 2)
Patrick Pearse’s dramatic ‘The fools, the fools’ speech at Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa’s funeral was a key moment in the story of Ireland’s flag. Pearse made the oration alongside a Tricolour draped across the veteran Fenian’s coffin. The Green White and Gold was then flown over the GPO during the Easter Rising, and it was Sinn Féin’s skill as propagandists, alongside the monumentally 'stupid’ British reaction to 1916, that helped the Tricolour ascend, leaving Parnell’s green flag in its wake. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
S2 · E7 · 27 Apr 2026 · 29 min
The History of The Tricolour (Part 1)
Who owns The Tricolour? Over the last year it has appeared on polls and lampposts all over Ireland – put there by anti-immigration campaigners, causing fights and debates all over the country. This happened in Catriona’s neighbourhood, and when she and other residents brought this to the attention of the Council, they were told officials were too afraid to take them down. In this episode, Diarmaid and Catriona trace the early origins of the flag, including the key moment when the dashing Thomas Francis Meagher was given a prototype of the Irish Tricolour by three mysterious women in…
S2 · E6 · 20 Apr 2026 · 52 min
A President Comes to Town - Reagan in Ireland
June 1984, and Ronald Reagan, the controversial, transformative Republican President of the United States visits Ireland. Opposition is widespread, and an unexpected alliance of lefties and priests man the barricades, with Reagan’s foreign policies the focus of their anger. Diarmaid and Catriona unearth all kinds of paddy-whackery, with the Americans asking the Irish Government if the Pope would say mass (lol), British journalists paying people in Ballyporeen to bring a donkey into a pub and feed it Guinness, and one man is arrested for throwing a tomato. Catriona herself was one of the…
S2 · E5 · 13 Apr 2026 · 37 min
Fianna Fáil: "The Devil" Takes Power (Part 3)
General election campaigns in the early years of the State were utterly vicious, with fresh cow dung, sticks, and nasty insults being hurled about as Fianna Fáil attempted to wrest power from the pro-Treaty Cumann na nGaedheal. Despite the shouts of “traitor”, “murderer” and “Spanish bastard” on the campaign trail, Dev and the Soldiers of Destiny take power for the first time in 1932. The Brits are not happy – Winston Churchill famously refers to Dev as the “devil”. But he assumes control of Ireland, dismantles the Treaty, introduces a new Constitution – yet his ultimate goal of uniting…
S2 · E4 · 6 Apr 2026 · 33 min
Fianna Fáil: Take your seats, but no drinking in the Dáil bar (Part 2)
Having won instant success in their first election, the Soldiers Of Destiny are faced with an intractable dilemma – how to take their Dáil seats while also swearing a mandatory oath to the hated King of England. Cunning old Dev solves this by getting a letter from a friendly bishop, which he claims allows his TDs to take the oath without actually meaning it. They enter Leinster House in farcical and dramatic fashion in 1927. But Sean “No Craic” Lemass puts a major downer on things by banning his deputies from drinking in the Dáil bar. Diarmaid and Catriona have all the details from this…
S2 · E3 · 30 Mar 2026 · 41 min
Fianna Fáil: Hard Men and Blood Sacrifices (Part 1)
Since the crash, Fianna Fáil has become 'just another political party'. But for nearly a century it was THE leading force in Irish politics, synonymous with power, influence and flash suits; and dominated by outsized personalities like Pee Flynn, Charlie Haughey and Bertie Ahern. In this series, From the Civil War to the Crash, marking the centenary of Fianna Fáil, Diarmaid and Catriona trace how The Soldiers Of Destiny built up one of the most successful election machines in the world, and how it fell apart. Part 1 looks at its foundation, when a gang of idealistic young men lead by Eamon…
S2 · E2 · 23 Mar 2026 · 36 min
Political insults: F*ck you Deputy Stagg, F*CK YOU! (Part 2)
Political insults part 2/2. The civil war is well in the past, but Irish politicians are still roaring at each other. From Paul Gogarty’s viral, foul-mouthed outburst during the economic crash, to Brian Lenihan Sr. being derided as the ‘13th stroke of Irish political clock’, and the ‘Bismarck of lobster pots’, Diarmaid and Catriona unearth more angry gems from the Dáil archive. What Were We Like is a podcast from RTÉ about modern Irish history co-hosted by Diarmaid Ferriter and Catriona Crowe. It comes out every Monday morning on the RTÉ Radio Player app, and wherever else you get your…

About What Were We Like

Diarmaid Ferriter and Catriona Crowe bring us on a journey through the hidden histories, humanity and humour of our past.

What Were We Like is a English history podcast from RTÉ. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: RTÉ
Language: English
Category: History
New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 40 min
Latest episode: 12 Oct 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1845439909

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What Were We Like

Latest episode

Michael Collins - Part 2

Earlier episodes 29 most recent

Michael Collins - Part 1

Stardust – From national tragedy to national scandal

Sean O’Casey – The Irish Rebel playwright

The Ballyseedy Massacre (Part 2)

The Ballyseedy Massacre (Part 1)

The Pope's Visit of 1979

Best of What Were We Like (Part 2)

Best of What Were We Like (Part 1)

What Were We Like: Back in Two Weeks

1980s Ireland: Moving Statues

1980s Ireland: The Kerry Babies Case

1980s Ireland: The Eighth Amendment

The brilliant poetry and turbulent life of Patrick Kavanagh

Bobby Sands, Margaret Thatcher, and the 1981 hunger strikes

All aboard the contraceptive train

The 1926 Census - LIVE at Listowel Writers Week

The jealous rage that inspired a key chapter of Ulysses

The Fearsome Ruler of Catholic Ireland: John Charles McQuaid (Part 2)

The Fearsome Ruler of Catholic Ireland: John Charles McQuaid (Part 1)

By Elections That Shaped Ireland (Part 2)

The By-Elections That Shaped Ireland (Part 1)

The History of The Tricolour (Part 3)

The History of The Tricolour (Part 2)

The History of The Tricolour (Part 1)

A President Comes to Town - Reagan in Ireland

Fianna Fáil: "The Devil" Takes Power (Part 3)

Fianna Fáil: Take your seats, but no drinking in the Dáil bar (Part 2)

Fianna Fáil: Hard Men and Blood Sacrifices (Part 1)

Political insults: Fck you Deputy Stagg, FCK YOU! (Part 2)

About What Were We Like

More from RTÉ

More English history

Take it with you