Culture That Made Me: William 'Hammy' Hammond of Cork Folk Festival 

William Hammond includes Timmy the Brit, Paddy Galvin and the Leenane Trilogy among his touchstones

William Hammond is about to oversee the 46th Cork Folk Festival.  Picture: Diane Cusack

Born in 1959, William ‘Hammy’ Hammond, grew up in Fermoy, County Cork. He volunteered with the Cork Folk Festival in 1986, becoming its co-director three years later. 

In 1988, he published the first of three set-dancing books. He was a founding member of the Spirit of Mother Jones Festival in 2012. Last year, he published Cork Folk Festival 1979 to 2024: Reeling Down the Years.