Podcast Corner: Gaeilgeoirs and Blindboy to the fore at the Cork Podcast Festival
Louise Cantillon and Doireann Ní Ghlacáin of How to Gael. Picture: Nina Val
Cork Podcast Festival is in full flow and continues next weekend. Blindboy returns to Cork Opera House on Thursday, Nicola Tallant's takes over on Friday, and things round out with on Saturday night.
The latter is Ireland’s number one bilingual podcast and has quickly amassed a cult following at home and abroad since its 2023 launch. They've just kicked off a limited six-part series, How to: Unite Ireland?.
They will chat with leading figures and academics from across communities on the island of Ireland to discuss this multi-faceted issue of unification, including Taoiseach Micheál Martin, GAA president Jarlath Burns, PhD candidates Andrew Clarke aka Tanistry and Róisín Nic Liam, editor Sam McBride, and economist Stephen Kinsella.
Co-host Doireann Ní Ghlacáin says: “We've found ourselves in the middle of this conversation around an Irish language and cultural 'revival' but I'm still not really sure what that means.
"I suppose ultimately it's the response to a new generation of young Irish people engaging with these things in the mainstream. But what use is a language if people can't afford to live in Ireland, buy houses and set up a life for themselves?"
Ní Ghlacáin says the revival in the language is running concurrently with a renewed interest in Irish unity.
"The prospect of building a new state for ourselves where our language and people are at the forefront is undoubtedly an attractive one and this series is an examination of this question. Can it be done? Can we have a new Ireland where everyone feels welcome? What would that look like?”
Martin is an engaging first guest - and what a flex for to nab him. He says: “The young people are interesting, the way they look at it, they’re not looking at it through the same lens as historically people looked at it.”
On a united Ireland, he adds: “My philosophy is it has to be about the unity of people, in so far as you can go, it’s not just about territory.”
Blindboy, meanwhile, is also tackling one of the big issues of our times. Episode 448 is plainly titled: Artificial intelligence is disgusting and it will never replace artists.
Over 90 minutes, he explains why the research phase is more valuable than the time saved by simply asking ChatGPT, how Apple AI, "without my consent, had destroyed the listening experience of my podcast", and concludes that "the people who are pushing these AI things don't understand art".
Two very Irish podcasts creating something very powerful - catch them both in Cork this weekend.
- For details, see corkpodcastfestival.ie
