Documentaries on KCLR

This is the last programme in the series, and it features ways in which we get joy out of Trees. To this end Monica met wood-turner Liam Kirwan who takes great pleasure in making wooden objects from different types of trees. But first she took a walk with Kilkenny man and Coillte manager Mick Power to hear about Coillte's open forest policy

The Acorn Project is a community engagement project in Kilkenny which aims to build connection with nature through developing workshops that get people out into the woodlands, saving seeds, planting seeds and growing native trees.

OSB is an example of an engineered wood product. And what is OSB- Orientated Strand Board? Well, have a listen to find out. In this programme Monica meets Neil Foot, CEO of Smartply and Medite and David Murray who oversees Technical Affairs and Ireland's Sales at both companies.

Andrew O'Carroll is Kilkenny's Representative on the National IFA Farm Forestry Committee and Monica meets him and Michael Somers, Forestry Advisor with Teagasc and regular contributor to this series, at Andrew's Sitka Spruce plantation in Ballygorteen, Paulstown to chat about all things forestry.

At the John F Kennedy Arboretum in New Ross Co Wexford there is a big collection of trees from all over the world. These trees are nice to look at and the arboretum is a beautiful place to visit but there is also research and conservation work being carried there too. The results of this work are proving to be particularly important given the weather changes we are experiencing due to global warming

This week Monica visits Lisnavagh House in Rathvilly Co Carlow to meet William Bunbury. He has come up with ways to add value to the hardwood trees that have fallen on their estate by establishing Bunbury Boards and Lisnavagh Timber Project.

In this programme Monica takes a visit to the Castlecomer Discovery Park to explore the role of Trees in supporting our mental health and wellbeing.

In this programme, recorded at Oak Park research centre in Carlow, Frances McHugh, Forestry Advisor and Ian Short, Dheeraj Rathore and Oliver Sheridan, research scientists, talk about how the work that they do and how it is translated into practical measures in the forest.

Towards the end of 2021 there was a farm walk where interested parties learned about Agroforestry - a system of combining trees and grass on the same plot of land and rearing animals around it.

Between pruning and debudding Christmas trees demand a lot of care during their ten years of growing. Michael O'Gorman of Celtic Christmas Trees, Kilkenny gives us an insight into the process

This week Monica visits Coillte's Ballintemple Tree Nursery just outside Ardattin Co Carlow. There they process seeds and rear trees from seed before being sent out to the forest for planting. In this piece we hear from Dermot O'Leary Nursery Manager and Monica Murphy, Seed and Veg Propagation Manager

In this programme hear about ash die back disease and the hope that resistant trees, growing in a wood in Kilkenny, can save the day... The loss of ash is too big to contemplate from an environmental and hurling point of view.

The presence of the Oak Tree in our life does not and should not depend on its economic value. However a new use for its wood could be emerging in the form of staves for whiskey barrels. In this programme Monica meets farmer Ger Daly who grows oak trees, Bernard Walsh of Walsh Whiskey, Audrey Gleeson of the Independent Stave Company, Ian Leonard from Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ireland and Enguerrand Vandenbossche from Tullamore Dew Distillery

Trees and Water is the topic of this episode in Trees: From Seed to Sawdust

'I have never been sorry that I planted trees'. So says one farmer in the 6th programme in Trees: From Seed to Sawdust. To plant or not to plant? Plant - it's good for the environment & your back pocket.

This programme is recorded at the Irish Wood Producer's Wood Chip Depot in New Ross and explores the role of wood chip from an environmental and economic perspective.

Trees are important in every facet of our lives. Especially in relation to music and creativity which trees have been giving us, here in Ireland, for a least 4,150 years.

Have you ever seen the letters FSC on a box of tissues or on the wrapping paper enclosing the paper for the printer. In this programme we explore the concept of sustainable forestry management and how the letters FSC and PEFC certify wood products which have been made from forests managed sustainably.

Rod and Julie Calder Potts grow apple trees at Highbank Orchard just off the Callan Road Kilkenny. In this programme we hear the secrets of how to grow healthy organic apple trees and run a successful business making Highbank Orchard Apple Syrups, Vinegars, Ciders and other products

It’s all about creating community engagement with the River Nore with the ultimate aim of establishing a long term Trust that looks after the community’s interests in the river. This is the final programme in the series and it explores the future of the project as it transitions into the Nore Vision Catchment Trust.

In Programme 8 we explore how industry has moulded itself around the geological landscape of the River Nore in the form of mining, milling, brewing and more.

The River Nore provides a great space for outdoor activities and in this programme we feature some of the people who swim, fish, walk and boat on the river.

In the 6th programme in the Nore Vision radio series we visit the uplands of the River Nore, talk about the farm walks organised by Nore Vision, discuss farm ecology and explore the role of the farmer and farm policy in improving the water quality of the River Nore

Nore Vision is a project established by Leader to create community engagement with the River Nore and to set up a river trust that looks after the governance of the river. The following programme looks at the problem of litter and it’s impact on the environment and the economy.

Nore Vision is a Kilkenny Leader Partnership initiative that is encouraging community engagement with the River Nore with the aim of establishing a River Trust which will act as a liaison between all those who have an interest in the river. In this programme we focus on the Oral History strand of the project and hear from Patrick Lydon and from the people who participated in the Oral History Workshops

Invasive species are the second biggest cause of biodiversity loss in the world and we have quite a few living in and around the River Nore like Himalyan Balsalm and Crayfish plague for example.

In this programme we hear about the Nore Vision Citizen Science project and it’s role in keeping an eye on the water quality in the Nore and it’s tributaries.

In this the first programme we hear about why the Nore Vision Project was established, what is has achieved and it’s aims for the future

Trees! The Celts worshipped them and now we value them for their timber and for environmental reasons.

The late Tom Foley (trainer) and Dan O'Neill (owner) recall the life and times of Danoli, The People's Champion, and one of the greatest racehorses Ireland has ever seen.

Angela Mahon documents her journey to Bangladesh going to a refugee camp there and hearing the plight of the people who have fled violence, rape and the murder of relatives in their homeland. The documentary touches on the positive effects of integration by recording the experiences of some of the Rohingya refugees who came to Carlow in 2009 as part of the UNHCR resettlement programme.

Next in the Documentaries on KCLR series is The Story of a Rohingyan Journey, presented in full by Angela Mahon as she documents travels to refugee camps in Bangladesh.

Monica Hayes goes behind the scenes of the 2015 Abhainn Ri Festival in Callan, Co. Kilkenny which produced the 'Bridge Street Will Be' project which aimed to breathe new life and creativity into street that had lapsed into a ghostly monument to a dim past.

Producer Monica Hayes introduces 'Bridge Street Will Be', a 2015 production that transformed Bridge Street in Callan, Co. Kilkenny. Once a bustling thoroughfare, the street has lapsed since the opening of the Callan by-pass, but was set to be transformed through an interactive street theatre experience.

The one certainty of life is death and that marks the focus of our seventh and final instalment of As We Like It.

Old age! What is old age? Do we respect our elders? These and other philosophical questions are discussed in this episode of ‘As We Like It’.

Our ‘As We Like It’ series moves on to the next phase, Middle Age or Justice.

The Soldier phase of life is the working phase, the time for earning and focusing on what profession makes you happy.

Love! What is love? We grapple this and other questions in this the third stage of life – Lover.

In the second program in our ‘As We Like It’ series we feature the second stage ‘Schoolboy’.

The first stage of life – Infancy. In this program we explore the miracle of birth and the development of the infant.

As We Like It is a radio series that explores the seven stages of life according to Shakespeare’s quote from ‘As You Like It’ - "All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages."

‘Carlow Hops to Luxembourg’, is a documentary that traces the journey of a pilgrimage group, mainly from Carlow, who travel to Luxembourg to take part in the annual Hopping Procession in honour of Saint Willibrord, Patron Saint of Luxembourg.

Get a preview of 'Carlow Hops To Luxembourg', next in the Documentaries on KCLR series.

Producer Monica Hayes introduces The Skinny on The Schism, a new 4-part documentary series exploring the Callan schism.

In the final programme we tell the story of the closure of the mines, its impact on the town, the community fight back and the establishment of the Castlecomer Discovery Park.

Programme 4 delves in to the industrial relations in Castlecomer in the 20th century. We hear about the main characters of the time, the mine owner Captain Wandesforde and his adversary, union leader and later ally Nicholas Nixie Boran. We hear about the strikes, the miner's health struggles and the fight for compensation.

The third programme is all about impact the mines had on life in Castlecomer. We hear about the life over ground, the miners social life and hear from the wives and daughters of the miners.

In programme two, we hear about the the life of the miners underground and hear from some of former miners who tell their stories of life at the coal face and from their families.

In the first programme we hear about the history and indeed the pre-history. We hear about the unique geology of the are in the Leinster coalfield the story of mining from the Iron age to the closure of the mines in the late 1960s.

Hear from producer Martin Bridgeman as he introduces his documentary Three Miles Over, Three Miles Down, exploring the mining life of Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny

In our final programme, we hear about how the Fr. Robert O'Keeffe affair went on to influence proceedings in the English Parliament and explore why the English decided not to get involved.

The Catholic Church suspend Fr O'Keeffe as parish priest of Callan, manager of the National School and chaplain of Poor House. The suspension comes from Cardinal Cullen and is published! Fr. O'Keeffe says its libel and takes Cardinal Cullen to court.

The story unfolds in our docu-drama 'The Skinny on the Schism', and in Part 2 we hear that the priest Fr. Robert O'Keeffe begins to take court cases against his bishop and curates. The town of Callan is split between loyalties to the priest and bishop, while rioting and fighting break out in the town.

The Skinny on the Schism is a four part docu-drama that tells the story of Fr Robert O’Keeffe and the Callan Schism. In this episode, we are introduced to Callan Parish Priest, Fr Robert O’Keeffe. You will hear about the argument he had with his Bishop as the story of the schism unfolds.