Weekend Break: Getting to the heart of things in Athlone

Two decades after a memorable visit to the midlands, Martin Claffey returns to the Hidden Heartlands.

Some 25 years ago, I applied for a job in Athlone. My late father was from the townland of Killogeenaghan 8kms outside Athlone, while my grandparents are buried in the nearby ancient monastic settlement of Clonmacnoise, once at the heart of Ireland’s golden age, leading Europe out of the dark ages. It would be a perfect fit, surely?