[Walking tour of Kilkenny City, Ireland]

Discover Kilkenny’s Epic History on Your Own Terms! This self-guided audio walking tour is the perfect way to explore The Marble City.

• 15 Historic Stops: Cover all the key landmarks, from St. Canice’s Cathedral to Kilkenny Castle.
• Go at Your Own Pace: Pause the audio anytime to explore, eat, or drink.
• Gripping Stories: Hear incredible tales of witches, Vikings, Norman knights, and Cromwell’s conquest.
• Listen Anywhere: Walk the route in person or enjoy the tour as a podcast from home.

Open the Route Guide Map:

https://tinyurl.com/yarn-tour

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Stop 1: steps of St. Canice’s Cathedral in Irishtown

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/tFB9grWxn7gVxd7u9⁠

[00:01:54]

Stop 2: Abbey quarter

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/nqrtQVyH9juBD71d6⁠

[00:12:10]

Stop 3: The Ring

https://maps.app.goo.gl/LfSKybo1bHGMyuKZ9⁠

[00:16:13]

Stop 4: Black Friars Gate / Black Freren Gate

https://maps.app.goo.gl/iJ2cRVPpNBpN51vX6⁠

[00:18:14]

Stop 5: Black Abbey

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/F43fb1BYyvnhEVrJ8⁠

[00:20:32]

Stop 6: St. Mary’s Cathedral

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/NpqB9g3cnwjRsqaW6⁠

[00:24:14]

Stop 7: Kyteler’s Inn

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/CpX21wgjC4AaioMg9⁠

[00:30:20]

Stop 8: The Tholsel

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/bpfhWW76A7kuoDnPA⁠

[00:42:37]

Stop 9: Mary’s Lane

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/jQfkkdeozmWAwr2B9⁠

[00:44:38]

Stop 10: Bateman Quay

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/z4x79au6ByLF1cCz8⁠

[00:50:16]

Stop 11: Rose Garden at Kilkenny Castle

https://maps.app.goo.gl/qWcKBhcKy1xnWa6G7⁠

[00:56:10]

Stop 12: Kilkenny Castle (Park side)

https://maps.app.goo.gl/rP14FGfGyvsJJQEA9⁠

[00:59:52]

Stop 13: Design Centre

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/bh21R3usFu6FRZQr5⁠

[01:04:02]

Stop 14: Hole in the Wall

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/eZvU4toZJeMWGd647⁠

[01:07:56]

Stop 15: Courthouse

⁠https://maps.app.goo.gl/uJ3xiVbTqjSNXeMP6⁠

[01:10:26]

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Produced and narrated by John Roche 

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Comments and feedback very welcome!

Instagram: @YarnStoryPod

email: yarnstorypodcast (at) gmail.com

[Documentary]

[Signal Awards Winner 2025: Best Indie Podcast - Individual Episode - Bronze]

Take a trip to Inishbofin island off the west coast of Ireland. A beloved family-run hotelis making some changes.What will their regular guests think?

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I've been going to Inishbofin, with a group of friends every Easter for years. 

It's our annual secular pilgrimage to the island, where we stay at Ireland's most westerly hotel—The Doonmore, or Murray's, as the locals call it, named after the family who have run it for over half a century. 

During the Winter months, changes have been afoot at the hotel. There have been rumours the hotel has made some major renovations, and today will be the first time the general public will experience the new and improved Murray's Doonmore hotel.

Come with us as we explore the hotel and the island. We'll delve into the linked history of both. We'll ask the question; what keeps people coming back year after year, generation after generation? And we'll meet some of the characters that make up the customers and staff of The Doonmore Hotel.

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Produced and narrated by John Roche 

Thanks to Andrew Murray, Declan Shaw, Róisín Lafferty and all the guests and staff who talked to us.

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Special thanks to Des Kavanagh for  the specific music made for this episode. As well as a musician, Des makes and restores musical instruments. Check him out at Kavanagh’s Irish Instruments on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kavanagh.irishinstruments/

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The rest of the music in the episode was recorded live at Murray's Bar, Inishbofin courtesy of YouTube via:

Andrew Murray @doonmore1

Owen Murray @owenmurray6472

Trad TG4 @tradtg4

Lugh the master craftsman @fultonHousesNYC

Pascal Jouneau @pascaljouneau3608

LiveTrad @livetrad

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Clips courtesy of RTÉ archives:

https://www.rte.ie/archives/

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Full transcript available here:

https://mrjohnroche-42475.medium.com/yarn-29-hotel-on-the-edge-of-europe-f11834c6bbf9

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Comments and feedback very welcome!

Instagram: @YarnStoryPod

email: yarnstorypodcast (at) gmail.com

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Murray's Doonmore Hotel website:

https://www.doonmore.com/

Roisin Lafferty website:

https://roisinlafferty.com/

Declan Shaw instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/solar_bones/

[Short form interview with immersive audio]

2025 marks the 55th anniversary of the Samaritans’ presence in Ireland.

Lucy’s grandmother, Judy, dedicated 30 years as a volunteer with the organisation, offering support through their phone line. Although Lucy has always been curious about her grandmother’s experiences on those calls, Samaritans volunteers are bound by a pledge of confidentiality regarding their callers. However, there was one call Judy could share with Lucy—and the reason why will soon become clear.

Produced and narrated by Lucy Nuzum.

Edited by John Roche.

Cover artwork by Ed Taylor.

Music: Epidemic Sound.-Comments and feedback very welcome!Email: yarnstorypodcast (at) gmail.com.Insta: @YarnStoryPod

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Struggling to cope and need someone to talk to?

Samaritans Ireland:

email [email protected] or call on 116 123.

[History documentary]  

Pablo De Miguel tells the little known story of how Turkish diplomats saved the lives of 1,000 refugees during the Spanish Civil War’s longest siege. It involves espionage, international negotiations and murder but above all else it's a story about the will to survive and fight to get home.

Pablo's research website:

zurbano21.com

Special thanks to Martin and Sofía.

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Clips taken from:

• British Pathé films
• British Movietone
• While at War (2019)
• The Spanish Civil War (1983)
• The Spanish Earth (1937)

Music: Epidemic Sound---Full episode transcript available here:https://mrjohnroche-42475.medium.com/escape-from-madrid-the-untold-story-of-how-turkish-diplomats-saved-the-lives-of-a-thousand-cadf2f156e4b---Yarn is produced and edited by John Roche---Comments and feedback very welcome!Email: yarnstorypodcast (at) gmail.com.X: @YarnStoryPod

As an extra bonus here are 3 complete music tracks that our composer Drembot created for the episode "The Highest Cyclist in the World". Enjoy the tracks in full and uninterrupted.

You can get more of Drembot's music on Spotify here:

https://open.spotify.com/artist/5PjdfdGAzsxgAX3GFuMWR4?si=uYMGzZWFQJyaF0YwwhlQxQ

[Audio drama collection]

We've released 25 and a bit stories for Yarn. To celebrate we're going to take a look back in this omnibus episode. Lately most of our episodes have been documentaries so I decided to dig out some of our fiction stories and pull them together into a neat bingable collection for your listening pleasure. I've selected 4 stories and recorded new introductions for each.

Episodes include:

• The Absence of Gary
• Lefty
• Chancin' me Arm
• Brick Lane

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Comments and feedback very welcome!
Twitter: @YarnStoryPod

[Documentary]

"I had no contact with this man. All I ever said was hello to him. It's stalking. And it builds and builds."

These are the words of my mother, Eileen Byrne. She’s going to recount her ordeal with a stalker. 

I was just a kid at the time. I knew very little about it, until lately when she started talking about the incident. It was a recent Irish news story that triggered her memory. The murder of Aisling Murphy in broad daylight, sparked a national conversation not just about violence against women but also about the level of harassment and intimidation women are forced to endure on a daily basis. Aisling’s murder added fuel to a prominent campaign to make stalking a criminal offence in Ireland.

For more information about this campaign see Stalking.ie

Full episode transcript here:

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Yarn is produced and edited by John Roche

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Comments and feedback very welcome!

[Documentary]

Inside stories from the jury room.

I wanted to see inside this secretive world and get a sense of what it feels like to serve.

I also talked to a practicing criminal law barrister for his thoughts on the jury system.

Then we'll do a deep dive into a few cases and hear them told from a juror's perspective in their own words.

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Thanks to Barrister Seamus Clarke SC

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Produced and edited by John Roche

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Comments and feedback very welcome!