Newsreels Part 2

History

A Million People Kneel in Worship

4th June 2019

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The Eucharistic Congress, one of the largest public events to ever take place in Ireland, occurred between the 22nd and 26th of June 1932.  As part of the 31st Congress clergy and lay people from all over the world came to celebrate the ‘Holy Eucharist’ in Dublin. The vast scale of the final Congress mass […]

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History

A Bygone Craft

4th June 2019

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This 1931 newsreel depicts Irish men making a coracle, a hide-covered boat used for salmon fishing. The boat-making process is demonstrated to camera, from creating a base with twigs, to weaving the structure and covering it in animal hide for waterproofing. Men then push the coracle out onto the River Boyne and lay fishing nets. […]

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Documentary

Wonderful Western Islanders

4th June 2019

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This short documentary depicts the lives of the inhabitants of the Aran Islands off the coast of Galway in 1924. This short film, made about ten years before Flaherty’s epic Man of Aran, is probably the earliest surviving film of the islands. It presents a multi-faceted portrait of island life showing locals going about their […]

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History

Irish Co-Operative Gathers Peat

4th June 2019

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In this 1920s newsreel, an Irish co-operative digs, stacks and gathers turf. It is an activity involving the whole community – even the local priest is involved in overseeing the sacks of turf loaded onto a barge before being transported by canal. ‘Rathangan’ is inscribed on the side of the barge and a man waves […]

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Ireland 1924-1930

Over Sixty Manufacturers

22nd May 2019

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Over sixty Dublin manufactures take part in the Civic Week Pageant of Industry in September 1929. The Parade makes its way through O’Connell street, Corporation Fire engines and brands like ‘Jacob’s Biscuits’ and ‘Guinness’ trucks entertain the crowds as they pass through on floats and trucks. The first Irish Civic Week Pageant launched in September […]

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Independence

The GPO – After 13 Years

28th March 2018

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This newsreel marks a momentous occasion in Irish history: the formal reopening of the General Post Office on O’Connell Street. President William T. Cosgrave stands alongside T.D.s and Senators on a platform in front of the newly rebuilt GPO. The President addresses the huge crowd that has gathered and the Irish tricolour is raised. Only […]

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Ireland 1924-1930

Irish Catholic Ceremony at Cashel Castle

28th March 2018

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This newsreel shows the Catholic Emancipation Centenary Celebration which took place at the Rock of Cashel in June 1929. This was the first time mass was celebrated on the Rock in 300 years. Count John McCormack, a famous Irish tenor, can be seen performing to the enormous crowd during the Mass. The Rock of Cashel […]

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Ireland 1924-1930

Preparing for the Electricity Era

28th March 2018

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In this newsreel from 1929, the dawn of a new Ireland can be seen with the Shannon Scheme paving the way for new kind of energy. In a dramatic fashion, Master Vincent Bowen presses a plunger to detonate explosives to blow up the 120 foot chimneys of the Carrick-on-Suir Creamery. The Shannon (hydroelectric) Scheme was […]

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Ireland 1924-1930

The Shannon Scheme

28th March 2018

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The Shannon (hydroelectric) Scheme was a huge development by the Irish Free State in the 1920s. The aim was to harness the power of the River Shannon (Ireland’s longest river) and, through the Ardnacrusha Power Plant in County Clare, produce electricity across the country. The Shannon Scheme was officially opened on July 22nd 1929. One […]

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Ireland 1924-1930

Connemara’s Appeal

28th March 2018

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This newsreel shows the hardship endured by the people of Connemara following the economic recession that came in the wake of political turmoil. Ireland was in a ruinous state, following the War of Independence, the Civil War and economic depression. Between 1923 and 1924, wages were cut by 16%, the old age pension was reduced […]

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Ireland 1924-1930

The Seat of All The Trouble

28th March 2018

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This newsreel shows the first images of the ‘much debated’ Ulster border wall. A member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary stands guard, looking over the dry stone wall in Belleek, County Fermanagh. Another stands guard at the top of a turret under an Irish National Flag. The border wall was a delicate issue and the […]

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Modernisation

Sandycove Gala

28th March 2018

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It is Summer, Dublin, 1923 and this newsreel shows the footage of annual Sandycove Gala and Dun Laoghaire Regatta in full swing, with some additional shots of Pembroke Cricket club in Sandymount. The crowds are dressed in their finest attire to cheer on participants, a man conducts a group of boys playing instruments and swimmers bravely […]

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