Irish people on holiday

One of the more startling discoveries from RTÉ’s Home documentary series (2007) was an illuminating look at Irish summer holidays from the late 1960s. Fr Peter Lemass presented a report from Ballybunion and talked about people leaving their “factory, farm or kitchen” and coming to the seaside resort to enjoy all the good things it had to offer. However this relaxed and carefree buzz is quickly killed when the tone changes to one of concern. He wonders out loud:

“Do Irish people tend to let down their hair a little too much when they come on holiday?”

Such earnest concern about morality is also reinforced by the parish priest – Fr Murphy – as he sternly dishes out advice to prospective holidaymakers from the presbytery’s garden.

Not one commandment but the whole lot!

(by nlgbbbblth)

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4 thoughts on “Irish people on holiday

  1. Lisa Carey says:

    That is AMAZING.

  2. carterlegacy says:

    A thing of beauty.

  3. Mary Clarke says:

    “do the girls and the young people in general……” Note the bias against the females as though they are leading innocent males astray. Typical of the bias against women at the time. Why are the Catholic Church so intimidated by females that they feel the need to subjugate them. It is their own inferiority that makes them fear the female.

  4. D. O'Connell says:

    I would encourage anyone to look at the entire feature of c.20 mins. It is available on Youtube. The short clip 1m23s shown here appears to be edited to give exactly the opposite impression to that of the original film.
    The film gave a favourable impression of Ballybunion as a holiday destination and of most holidaymakers as well behaved as anywhere else in Ireland.
    The reference to immorality was not in fact about sexual morality (a non issue in 1962) but about excessive drinking by some visitors ,who has saved for 50 weeks of the year and went on a spree for two.

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