We’re visiting the lovely town of Skibbreen in county Cork, in the extreme south west of the country.
A lot of work goes into these videos as you can well see! You can now buy me a pint as a means of appreciation for my work on Naked Ireland, no obligation, obviously - only if you can afford it... I appreciate it. Cheers.
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The Skibbreen Heritage Centre tells the tragic story of the impact of the Irish Famine on the town. Perhaps some of you watching from England, the US or Canada may well have had ancestors who emigrated during the Great Hunger. They were probably the lucky ones. There were between 8 and 10 thousand people buried in famine burial pits in the town’s cemetery during that period between 1845 and 1852.
Now we all probably know that the famine in Ireland was completely avoidable and was exacerbated by British rule. Food was being taken out of the country while the horrific events were unfolding. Perhaps I’ll do a separate film about that at some point if I can bring myself to face it. But for the moment, I’d like to focus on a more positive walk around this nice town.
The name of the town ‘Skibbereen’ (sometimes shortened affectionally to Skibb), is thought to have originated from the small boats (skiffs or Scibs) that were used on the river here.
The town’s charter was granted back in 1657, but it was a functioning village before that, and in fact in 1641, it received an influx of refugees from what was known as the “sack of Balitimore”. I’ll say no more about that for the moment as Baltimore will be the subject of a later film.
I visited an old deconsecrated Methodist Church that had been restored and was converted into a restaurant which originally opened in 2005. Unfortunately it was totally destroyed in an arson attack in 2006 and again had to be completely restored.
The previous night I'd had a meal there and it had a great ambiance and lovely food. I must say they’ve done a great job with the second restoration too, given that the fire had completely gutted the building. The fire in 2006 apparently was in grave danger of spreading and I think there was damage to some of the other buildings, including a masonic hall just around the corner.
Now we’re in luck today as every Saturday morning, in the grounds behind these buildings there’s a spectacular farmer’s market. This market takes place every Saturday from 9.30 until 2pm. It’s packed full of local produce everything from fruit and vegetables, herbs, plants, flowers, honey, eggs, jam, preserves, bread, cakes, organic meat, cheese, and fish and artisan goods as well. If you get a chance to visit West Cork on a weekend, then I’d recommend this place. Pick up something nice for lunch or dinner, or just check out some of the local crafts. Actually it’s funny because a minute ago we were in empty streets, and now suddenly we’re in a vibrant food hub. The market is surprisingly big too, for the size of the town. The population of Skibbreen is just around 3000.
We look at the Statue of the Maid of Erin. Which has been a feature of this square since 1904. What’s it for? Well the dates inscribed around the four sides of its plinth commemorate the four failed Irish uprisings against British rule. If at first you don’t succeed as they say. 1803 was the occasion in which republicans tried to seize Dublin Castle, the British seat of power in Ireland. And following that in 1848 we had the Young Irelander's rebellion a struggle encouraged by some of the grievance I mention earlier as a result of the famine. And previously in 1798 of course we had the United Irishmen’s stuggle, and in 1867 there was the Fenien rising organised by the Irish Republican Brotherhood. So throwing off the shackles of the British Empire was no walk in the park for the Irish.
There’s an Annual Skibbereen Arts Festival at the end of July, that might be something you’ll want to co-ordinate your holiday around. July’s a busy month here, it also has an agricultural festival which includes everything from pet shows to horticulture. And in terms of celebrities – no other that the actor Jeromy Irons has a fishing cottage here. So who knows, maybe you’ll bump into him in the pub boasting about the salmon he’s just caught!
And then we visit Skibbereen Roman Catholic Cathedral, and what’s it called? St Patricks of course. But actually, this place lost its cathedral status when after a diocese merger with Cork. It dates from 1825 and as you can see is in a neo-classical style.
Finally we take a look at the new West Cork Arts Centre. It's an incredible building with its impressive cantilever holding it out over the river. This place is a far cry from the Skibbereen that I passed through 30 years ago.
