Tuesday TV Tips: The search for our missing children — and the truth about what happened
Kathy and Andrew on The Missing Children. Picture: RTÉ/ True Vision and Nevision 2021
Lucy is agitated to discover Cleo is away for the day, but finds the support she needs elsewhere. A concerned Cristiano tries to take the pressure off a very busy Bronagh. Erica’s romantic plans for Doug are interrupted by a surprise guest.
Exactly one year ago, the first Covid 19 vaccines were approved. A year is a long time in science. What will the next year bring? Future Island, airing across three nights during Science Week on RTÉ, attempts a look ahead. With Liz Bonnin, Professor Luke O’Neill, Colm O’Regan, Ger Fleming and Brian Cox.
Extraordinary and moving stories of some of the children who survived life at Tuam mother and baby home in Ireland — and the search for the truth about what happened to those who disappeared.
At the notorious institution, run by the Bon Secours nuns, 796 children born to unwed mothers have disappeared. The bodies of some have been found in a sewage tank.
The scandal of Ireland’s mother and baby homes made headline news in January 2021 when the final report from the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation was released.
The report concluded that approximately 9,000 children died in 18 institutions under investigation, and Taoiseach Mícheál Martin apologised and described the events as a ‘dark, difficult and shameful chapter’ of Irish history.
Some of the children kept there still recall the cruelty of the nuns. Others were adopted to America and are only now discovering relations in Ireland and Britain.
Relatives and survivors want access to the files that have so far been kept secret. They want the babies’ remains exhumed and their DNA used to identify each child.
Personal narratives of survivors, adoptees, and the women who pieced together the evidence that has shaken Ireland to its core, leading to an unprecedented apology from the Irish State.
Contributors include Catherine Corless the historian who helped uncover the scandal; Irish Examiner columnist and former government advisor, Fergus Finlay; and archaeologists Dr Niamh McCullagh, Dr Linda Lynch, and Aidan Harte who were involved in the test excavation of the site.
Irish Whiskey, RTÉ Radio 1 Extra, 8pm: Presented by Pat McGrath and originally broadcast in 2005, this four-part series traces the history, tradition, craftsmanship, and manufacturing processes that combine to produce Irish whiskey.
The Alternative, 2FM, 10pm: Your regular dip into the RTÉ sessions archives: a 1990 Fanning Session catches Whipping Boy at the very outset of their journey; while a 2020 Studio 8 session serves as a reminder of the power and heft of power-trio Bitch Falcon.
Book on One, RTÉ 1, 11.20pm: Features journalist, travel writer, and poet Rosita Boland, reads from her latest book .
