Claare Ny Gael - Manx Radio

We look at a tradition of going to the mountains in early August, and how it came to be associated with the first Sunday after 12th August, known as the First Sunday in Harvest - which was this week. That takes us to the mountains, so it's also appropriate to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the opening of the Snaefell Mountain Railway on 21st August 1895. Our story in Manx is a science fant...

We go to the heart of Douglas, to Cheu y Phurt - the North Quay. Old St Matthew's stood at the open-air market place until the late 19th century brought the cast iron meat and fish market and the brick-built butter, fruit and vegetable market. For a short time, the old chapel still stood as the new church came into use on 10th August 1897. And our story is about apples - and a 'fairy'...

The middle section of the programme presents the third and final part of Mollyndroat, the musical written by Aalin Clague and Annie Kissack and performed by the Bunscoill Ghaelgagh in lockdown. On either side of that we open the pages of the first edition of the Mona's Herald newspaper, published on 3rd August 1833, and we also hear translations in Manx of five pieces of flash fiction. As nyn...

We hear the second part of the Bunscoill Ghaelgagh fo ghlass musical production, 'Mollyndroat', written by Aalin Clague and Annie Kissack. We also have some more examples of flash fiction, with five very short stories, four of them in about 130 words and the final one in only 62 words. It's been Yn Chruinnaght in the past week, so all our music this time can be found on the website, ynchruinnaght....

It's Yn Chruinnaght's Celtic Gathering 2020 from Monday 20th-Sunday 26th July, so we hear all about that, with plenty online - search for celticgathering.im or go to ynchruinnaght.com or look for it on Facebook. We hear the first of three parts of 'Mollyndroat' the musical production by the Bunscoill Ghaelgagh in lockdown, and also five very short stories - flash fiction. As nyn giaull : MANDY GRI...

We haven't had an out-and-out tragedy in Claare ny Gael for some time. A boating accident in Douglas Bay in July 1833 claimed the lives of a mother and her three sons aged 20, 15 and 11. A ten-year old daughter was rescued, and her three sisters were taking tea with friends at the time. Our story takes us to the world of fairy tale and the unexpected outcome for the longtail who drove Cinderella's...

Looking at the ceremony of Tynwald Day, an office was created of Yn Lhaihder, meaning The Reader to promulgate (read aloud) the laws in Manx from Tynwald Hill. This was in the early twentieth century, from 1910 onwards. The programme traces the changes that have taken place since then. Our story in Manx is based on the idea of the famous Sword in the Stone - in this case, it's a talking one. As ny...

We come to the end of William Kennish's autobiographical poem, 'Mona's Isle', the title poem of his collection published in 1844 and hear another short autobiographical poem, 'The Manxman's Farewell'. Our story in Manx is about Vanessa. Who is she and what sort of partner is she in this relationship? As nyn giaull : NORWEGIAN-MANX PROJECT - Nordic brunch : LES OURS DU SCORFF - Jean Renaud a sept p...

William Kennish takes us back to the Corrany in Maughold, describing how, in the wild winter weather, stories of the supernatural were told which he, as a young lad, believed and still recalls, despite his Christian upbringing. Our story in Manx takes us once again to Queensland, Australia, and tells us all about Old Peg Leg - Shenn Chass Vaidjey. As y kiaull ain : PLANXTY - The good ship Kangaroo...

The Maughold parish fiddler is revealed as Illam Nelly, as Peg Kennish brings the Corna Chesgia mheillea celebrations to an end. But there are more celebrations for sailors at mother Quayle's in Ramsey at their journey's end. In our story in Manx, Jason is a grudging returnee to his dreary home town in Florida, where his friend Alan has a surprise in store. As nyn giaull : PLETHYN - Oes yn y ty 'm...

The singing at the Corna Chesgia harvest home after the 1809 mheillea continues with two songs in Manx. The applause wakes the fiddler, who is very annoyed to find that the singer of those songs is also mocking the fiddler's playing by aping his actions with a poker and the firetongs. And we have a story from Australia about a young girl's boldness after her brothers mess about with the paper and...

After the mheillea at Corna Chesgia there is dancing, but the fiddler gets drunk, so the party fall to singing instead. William Kennish provides some lyrics for love songs, one sung by Ewan Looney to William's sister, Kitty, and another reaper serenades Etty of Renwee so touchingly that he gets an encore. Our story in Manx is all about a young girl who, knowing her grandmother is a witch, asks for...

William Kennish's poem, 'Mona's Isle', is autobiographical. As he tells us of the harvest customs and celebrations, it includes a family celebration as his parents arrange a marriage portion for Kitty or Kate Kennish who is to marry that year's champion reaper. Maughold parish records show that Catherine Kennish married Ewan Looney in November 1809. Our story in Manx is of a surprise success for a...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. William Kennish has seen a change in his native Maughold on his return after 20 years in the Royal Navy. However, he looks back to his early days, playing truant in his favourite haunts, with a surprising history of his schoolmistress. Our story in Manx is also a reminiscence, as a young widow looks back,...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. The Buggane of Gob na Scute is silenced! But William Kennish's reminiscences of his early days at the Corrany are marred by his realisation that, on his return in the 1840s after a 20 year absence, things aren't the same. We have a story about Cottage Cheese by American writer Ray Malus, who uses it to ex...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. William Kennish's honest, bold mountaineer - full of brown ale from Ramsey Fair - is en route to tackle once and for all the Buggane of Gob na Scute on Barrule. We have another short story set in America - but no embarrassing attempt at the accent! This is called 'Ny reaghyssyn resoonagh' [Logistics], myc...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. William Kennish remembers the pleasures of the Sabbath day of rest, before telling us about rather more superstitious matters about the buggane of Gob ny Scute on (North) Barrule. Somehow, another of the stories that we were looking at for quite some time in Claare ny Gael managed to escape, so we finally...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. We hear more about William Kennish's early life as he tells it in verse : some of the jobs he had, and how he enjoyed the Sabbath day of rest. We return to The 900 Club for a story that somehow got missed, though this is a fictionalised account of a genuine event, when writer Stuart Lake talked to Wyatt E...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. After hearing the autobiographical Preface to William Kennish's 1844 poetry collection, 'Mona's Isle, and Other Poems', we find that his poetry is autobiographical, too, as we start Canto I of the title poem. And we come to the final instalment of 'Gowaltys ny Beiyn', as the other animals eavesdrop on the...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. We look at the autobiographical information supplied by William Kennish in the Preface to his 1844 collection, 'Mona's Isle, and Other Poems' and start to hear the autobiographical nature of his poetry as well. In 'Gowaltys ny Beiyn', the pigs, by now wearing human clothes and carrying whips, have invited...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. At this time of year in the nineteenth century, the Manx fishing fleet made ready and sailed en masse to the three-month Kinsale mackerel fishery (returning in June). We hear about it in rhyme from Ambrose Maddrell, who first went as a 12 year old cook on a nickey. We also hear John Quilliam reciting Ambr...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. Dr John Doran, the editor of 'Bentley's Ballads', published in 1858, has some background information about a story in verse which appeared, 'The Manxman and his Visitor'. We find the source from which a London publisher obtained local detail. Following the death of Boxer in 'Gowaltys ny Beiyn', Squealer e...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. We finish off the tale in rhyme about 'The Manxman and his Visitor' which appeared in the magazine, Bentley's Miscellany, round about the middle of the nineteenth century, as the Manxman's guilty memories are punished by a robin which pecks him beneath the eye. In Gowaltys ny Beiyn, Boxer has collapsed an...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. An anthology was published in 1858 of stories in rhyme which had appeared over about fifteen years of a magazine called Bentley's Miscellany. One of those pieces was 'The Manxman and his Visitor', which is not ascribed to anyone, but seems to have been someone with at least some local knowledge. And Boxer...

Bob Carswell delivers a weekly programme of great Manx Gaelic broadcasting and entertainment. With this weekend containing a leap day, we look at the legislation which introduced the Gregorian Calendar - in retrospect here in the Island. In 'Gowaltys ny Beiyn', whilst the other animals are on short rations, the pigs are getting fatter, on a diet which now contains beer. They also get other perks o...