ConorSweetman.Stories

[History Show] Joined in Butter – The Hidden History of Ireland’s Butter-Making Women

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 20:25:57 GMT

In this episode, I discovered a forgotten tradition from rural Ireland—when butter wasn’t just food, but a way of life, a source of income, and a reason for women to gather and work together.

Between the 18th and 19th centuries, Irish women would collaborate to churn, salt, and sort butter in their kitchens. They called it being "joined in butter." It was backbreaking, skilled work—but it was also a form of community, friendship, and economic survival.

Historian Claudia Kinmonth shares the hidden history behind this practice, how it worked, why it mattered, and how it faded away with the rise of industrial creameries.

This story first aired on The History Show on RTÉ Radio 1.

Listen to learn about:

How Irish farmhouse women worked together to make butter
Why they pooled their butter to sell at the Cork Butter Exchange
The grading system of butter (first, second, third class)
The simple things they bought with the money they earned
What this forgotten tradition tells us about community, collaboration, and survival

Links & Resources:

📖 Irish Food History: A Companion – Free PDF of Claudia Kinmonth’s chapter: https://arrow.tudublin.ie/irishfoodhist/1/

🧈 Visit the Butter Museum in Cork: https://thebuttermuseum.com/

🎙️ More from The History Show: https://www.rte.ie/radio/radio1/the-history-show/

Credits:

Produced and presented by myself and Lorcan Clancy

Featuring: Claudia Kinmonth

Originally broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1, The History Show on 30th March 2025

#IrishHistory #ButterMaking #WomenInHistory #FarmingHistory #RTÉ #TheHistoryShow #Podcast

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[The Poetry Hour on Dublin Digital Radio] Episode 2 - Poetry Walks

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:28:19 GMT

First broadcast 28th July 2024 on Dublin Digital Radio

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[The Poetry Hour on Dublin Digital Radio] Episode 1

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 15:26:33 GMT

First broadcast 30th June 2024 on Dublin Digital Radio

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[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] “Horizon” by Nithy Kasa

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 10:39:27 GMT

[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] “Horizon” by Nithy Kasa

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[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] "Out of the Blue" by Pat Boran

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 10:35:45 GMT

[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] "Out of the Blue" by Pat Boran

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[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] "Suantraí with Mammy" by Nessa O’Mahony

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 10:34:42 GMT

[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] "Suantraí with Mammy" by Nessa O’Mahony

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[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] “Tearmann” (Sanctuary) by Louis de Paor

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 10:31:50 GMT

[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] “Tearmann” (Sanctuary) by Louis de Paor

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[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] “Sa Bhaile” (At Home) by Aifric Mac Aodha

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 10:30:28 GMT

[Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast] “Sa Bhaile” (At Home) by Aifric Mac Aodha

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[History Show] The Song of the Peat Bog Soldiers

Mon, 20 Nov 2023 16:46:43 GMT

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[Seascapes] Fishing in Skerries with Branno Brannigan

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 18:26:00 GMT

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[Seascapes] Kite Surfing with Eoin Kernan

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 18:22:18 GMT

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[Podcast Academy] Building an Audience with Niall O Murchu

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 16:44:55 GMT

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[Podcast Academy] The Power of Storytelling with Liam O'Brien

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 16:43:54 GMT

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[Podcast Academy] The Secrets of Successful Interviewing

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 16:42:51 GMT

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[SEASCAPES] Dublin Bay Mermaids with Enda Weldon

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 16:30:23 GMT

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[HURLING AND US] Ep 4 - Behind the Scenes

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 21:14:35 GMT

First published on 7th August 2022. Here's the episode description from the original podcast:

"In this episode, co-producers Regina Fitzpatrick and Conor Sweetman talk about the GAA Oral History project and the making of 'Hurling and Us'.

Thanks to the GAA Museum and Archive at Croke Park for permission to share excerpts from the collection. The full archive is available at https://www.gaa.ie/the-gaa/oral-history/.

Produced by Regina Fitzpatrick and Conor Sweetman. Narrated by Regina Fitzpatrick.

This series is brought to you by the Heritage Office of Kilkenny County Council."

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[HURLING AND US] Ep 3 Heroes

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 21:03:49 GMT

First published August 7, 2022 on The Hurling & Us Podcast. Here's the original episode description:

The people we interviewed for this project love hurling. They love recalling matches, passages of play and their hurling heroes. Listen as they take you back in time and share the joy that hurling has brought to them.

Special thanks to our interviewees and their families. Featured in this episode are: Paddy Buggy, Martin Mulhall, Ned Quinn, David Rice and Henry Shefflin.

Thanks to the GAA Museum and Archive at Croke Park for permission to share excerpts from the collection. The full archive is available at https://www.gaa.ie/the-gaa/oral-history/.

Produced by Regina Fitzpatrick and Conor Sweetman.

Narrated by Regina Fitzpatrick.

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[HURLING AND US] Ep 2 - Journeys

Fri, 12 May 2023 07:45:03 GMT

First published August 7, 2022 on The Hurling & Us Podcast. Here's the original episode description:

"For more than a century, people have journeyed from near and far to hurling matches. From local derbies and school games to big days out in Croke Park. The GAA Oral History Oral History collection contains hundreds of accounts of these epic journeys. Tales of crossing the landscape by trains and buses, airplanes and boats, horses and carts, on lorries, on foot and on bike.

Special thanks to our interviewees and their families. Featured in this episode are: Paddy Buggy, Nicky Brennan, Jim Cantwell, Pat Delaney, Seamus Delaney, Sean Doherty, John Henderson, Dan McEvoy, Martin Mulhall and Tommy Walsh.

Thanks to the GAA Museum and Archive at Croke Park for permission to share excerpts from the collection. The full archive is available at https://www.gaa.ie/the-gaa/oral-history/.

Produced by Regina Fitzpatrick and Conor Sweetman.

Narrated by Regina Fitzpatrick.

This series is brought to you by the Heritage Office of Kilkenny County Council."

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[HURLING AND US] Ep 1 - Schools

Thu, 11 May 2023 19:40:20 GMT

First published August 7, 2022 on The Hurling & Us Podcast. Here's the original episode description:

"Schools are the lifeblood of hurling in Kilkenny. With accounts spanning over 100 years, the Kilkenny GAA Oral History collection tells the central place of hurling in school life across the county.

Special thanks to our interviewees and their families. Featured in this episode are: Nicky Brennan, Joe Dumphy, John Henderson, Dan McEvoy, Gerry O'Neil and Ned Quinn.

Thanks to the GAA Museum and Archive at Croke Park for permission to share excerpts from the collection. The full archive is available at https://www.gaa.ie/the-gaa/oral-history/.

Produced by Regina Fitzpatrick and Conor Sweetman.

Narrated by Regina Fitzpatrick.

This series is brought to you by the Heritage Office of Kilkenny County Council."

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[THE HISTORY SHOW] Frongoch Prison Camp – A Welsh Perspective

Wed, 10 May 2023 16:15:33 GMT

After the 1916 rising, many of the rebels were sent to a makeshift prison camp in Frongoch in Wales. Much has been made about this camp - it later became known as ollscoil na réabhlóide, the "University of Revolution".

But what did the locals think?

This story looks at Frongoch Internment Camp from the perspective of the people of rural North Wales.

Special thanks to Mabon Ap Gwynfor and Alwyn Jones.

(Broadcast 27 February 2022 on This History Show on RTE Radio 1)

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[THE HISTORY SHOW] A Short History of Motor Racing in Ireland

Tue, 09 May 2023 18:31:33 GMT

This story started out when I found out about the 1938 Cork Grand Prix. This event was the equivalent of a modern-day Formula 1 race. Can you imagine that on the streets of Cork city?!

When I started digging into the story, I discovered a rich tradition of motor racing in Ireland. Before world war 2, the Irish motor racing scene was thriving. After the war though, it never quite got back to its former glory. Hopefully this piece gives you a glimpse into what the scene was like.

Big thanks to historian Leanne Blaney, writer Bob Montgomery, historian Mike Cronin, and author Neal Bascomb.

(First broadcast 14th November 2021 on The History Show on RTE Radio 1)

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[THE HISTORY SHOW] The Wedding of Dan Breen and Bridget Malone

Fri, 14 Apr 2023 10:45:07 GMT

In this story, I speak to historian Sean Hogan about the romance between Dan Breen and Brigid Malone during the Irish War of Independence.

I made this story in 2021 when Ireland was in 'lockdown' due to COVID-19. This context makes the story even more poignant because 100 years earlier, when Dan and Bridget got married, Ireland was in lockdown for a very different reason. The War of Independence was raging and the Crown Forces were holding parts of the country under martial law.

(First broadcast 9th May 2021 on The History Show on RTE Radio 1)

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[THE HISTORY SHOW] A Burning Tide

Thu, 13 Apr 2023 15:51:06 GMT

In 1921, the Irish Republican Army attempted to land a shipment of Thompson Machine Guns in Loughshinny in North County Dublin. To facilitate the operation, the IRA had to burn down every Coast Guard station in Dublin from Skerries to Clontarf. But there was one problem, the guns never arrived...

This is one of my favourite stories. Mainly because I grew up a few kilometres from the 'action'.

Special thanks to Karen De Lacy, Enda Coyle-Green and Caroline Crowley.

(First broadcast 7th November 2021 on The History Show on RTE Radio 1)

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[THE HISTORY SHOW] Frank Lawless

Wed, 12 Apr 2023 11:09:16 GMT

This story is about the life and legacy of Frank Lawless, an Irish republican from North County Dublin.

Special thanks to historians Dr Declan Brady and Professor Diarmaid Ferriter.

I got this story from Caroline Crowley, Public Art Coordinator at Fingal County Council. As part of Fingal's commemoration programme, the Arts Office commissioned Donal Dineen to make a film about Frank Lawless. You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ODmeJR54TsY.

(First broadcast 6th November 2021 on The History Show on RTE Radio 1)

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[THE HISTORY SHOW] Rediscovery of a Four Courts Field Gun

Tue, 11 Apr 2023 14:04:20 GMT

In 1922, at the start of the Irish Civil War, the Free State Army used 18-pounder field guns to shell the Four Courts, which were held by the Anti-Treaty forces. These guns were given on loan by the British to the Free State Army.

After the war, these guns remained in service in the Irish Army. But then, some time in the 50s, they disappeared. Their whereabouts shrouded in mystery for decades.

That is, until one of the guns was discovered in the most unlikely of places...

(First broadcast 9th April 2023 on The History Show on RTE Radio 1)

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[FINGAL POETRY FESTIVAL PODCAST] A Sonnet for Isabella Lucinda Bright by Dermot Bolger

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 13:50:29 GMT

A Sonnet for Isabella Lucinda Bright by Dermot Bolger

(First published on the Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast, September 2022)

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[FINGAL POETRY FESTIVAL PODCAST] Field of Yellow Flowers with Airplane and Standing Figure by Leontia Flynn

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 12:36:01 GMT

Field of Yellow Flowers with Airplane and Standing Figure by Leontia Flynn

(First published on the Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast, September 2022)

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[FINGAL POETRY FESTIVAL PODCAST] A Pinch of Snow in a Black Velvet Glove by Mary Branley

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 12:32:50 GMT

A Pinch of Snow in a Black Velvet Glove by Mary Branley

(First published on Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast, September 2022)

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[FINGAL POETRY FESTIVAL PODCAST] Ardmore 1947 by Gerard Smyth

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 12:27:12 GMT

First published on Fingal Poetry Festival Podcast (September 2022)

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Colin Devereux

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 11:55:18 GMT

Colin Devereux founded Dawn Clouds in 2018.

Music from this episode is from Blue Dot Sessions and Jackdaw.

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] John Demartini

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 15:41:05 GMT

When Dr. John Demartini was fourteen, he left his home in Houston, Texas and hitchhiked to California to become a surfer.

This is an audio portrait of Dr. John Demartini.

You can find out more about Dr. Demartini's work by visiting his website, www.drdemartini.com

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Paola De Angelis

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 15:35:13 GMT

Paola De Angelis is a broadcast and pilates teacher in Rome, Italy.

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[POEM] Between Bridges by James Norton

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 15:25:47 GMT

I met Jim Norton through the Dublin Shambhala Centre. He gave me a copy of his book "The Fragrance of Dust", a collection of Jim's writing, written over a 20 year period. I was really struck by his poem "Between Bridges" and asked him if I could record him reading it. I recorded the ambient sound along the river Dodder in Dublin.

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Níall & Josie Ó Murchú - In Cold We Trust

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 15:19:14 GMT

Níall & Josie Ó Murchú were stressed, tired and sick... then they learned the Wim Hof method and their lives were transformed...

(This was first published in my 'Everyday People' Podcast in 2018. This was another first for me as an audio-maker: it was the first time I recorded a scene and conducted vox pop interviews. It was daunting at the time but I think it turned out well. It was also my first interaction with Niall and Josie. I have since gone on to work with Niall on his own podcasts - the Breathe with Niall Podcast and Finding the Others.)

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Niall Doherty - Travelling the World Without Using a Plane

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 15:10:37 GMT

For a 44-month stretch between 2011 and 2015, Niall Doherty traveled around the world without flying, visiting 37 countries and crossing three oceans on a complete circumnavigation of the globe.

Niall is originally from South Kilkenny, Ireland but has called dozens of countries his home. Here's what he's doing now: https://ebizfacts.com/now/.

(I first published this in 2018 on my old podcast 'Everyday People'. This is one of the first pieces where I tried a 'traditional' approach to audio storytelling - using narration as links between interview clips. I remember it took me ages to edit. And I was very self-conscious about my writing)

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Andrew Considine

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 14:56:03 GMT

If you had told Andrew Considine at age 15 that we would be the first one of his class to get a job, he would not have believed you... But it was happened.

If you had also told him that he would join the priesthood at 20, move to Ireland, fall in love and then leave the seminary all by age 28, he would of thought you were cracked all together... But that happened too.

Nowadays Andrew is a personal and professional development coach. He works with businesses and individuals as a speaker, trainer and coach.

(First released on my old podcast 'Everyday People' in 2017)

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Des Mullally - The Hidden History of Dublin 8

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 14:39:33 GMT

Des Mullally runs Facebook page called Dublin 8 where he collects and share stories about Dublin richest historic quarter.

Ever since the Vikings first saw its potential, Dublin 8 has been the heartbeat of the city. And there's a lot there! Dublin 8 is home to museums, theaters, monuments, Cathedrals and a world famous brewery; not to mention Ireland's oldest street, pub, library and fish & chip shop.

In this episode, Des takes me on a walking tour of Dublin 8. And what's amazing is that the sites he shows me are sites that I have been ignorantly walking past for years. Des sees the world differently to most people. While most of us have our heads in smartphones, Des looks up. He notices what's interesting. And then he goes a step further - he shares what he notices. And in doing so he connects people with the past, provides joy through nostalgia and inspires the rest of us to look up.

(This is one of the first times I ever tried to edit a story together with scenes, music and narration. I first released it on my old podcast Everyday People back in 2017)

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[ARCHIVE] Liam O'Brien - one of my first interviews

Sun, 09 Apr 2023 14:25:44 GMT

This is an interview I recorded with Liam O'Brien back in 2017. Liam O'Brien is the Series Producer of Documentary on One on RTE Radio 1.

This interview is a gem. Full of great advice and insight on audio storytelling. For example: "Scene is picture. Picture is memory. It's about imprinting memories and engaging your listener". Good mn, Liam!!

I do cringe a little when I listen back to myself in this one - it was one of the first times I ever interviewed someone. I even forgot to record my own microphone! But it's OK - Liam does the heavy lifting. He was very patient with me and very generous with his time.

(First published on my first podcast 'Everyday People' in 2017)

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Anne Driscoll - Hugging my Mugger

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 12:46:20 GMT

Anne Driscoll has dedicated her life to helping people who have been wrongfully convicted of crimes. In 2013, she came to Ireland as a Fulbright Scholar to teach law students how to investigate wrongful convictions.

On her last day in Ireland, Anne became a victim of crime for the first time in her life.

(Recorded Summer 2019)

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[AUDIO PORTRAIT] Tomi Reichetal Holocaust Survivor

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 12:38:35 GMT

In 1944, when Tomi was nine years old, he and 13 members of his family were arrested by the Gestapo in Bratislava and sent to Bergen-Belson concentration camp.

(Recorded December 2019)

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[FINGAL POETRY FESTIVAL PODCAST] Ardgillan Poetry Walk

Wed, 05 Apr 2023 09:12:26 GMT

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