Interview with Dr. Siobhán Morrissey Rethinking Enid Blyton I thank Dr Siobhán Morrissey, University of Galway, School of Education, for her participation in this interview on Enid Blyton, primary school reading, reading practices, AI, Irish Indigenous literature and for sharing her personal reading experiences. Siobhán Morrissey specialises in studies on Enid Blyton and is busy… Continue reading Rethinking Enid Blyton
Tag: Ireland
Dante to Joyce
Museum of Childhood Ireland’s 5 year ‘Dante to Joyce’ Project began in 2023, and continues annually until 2027 To celebrate both Dante Day or Dantedi and Bloomsday the MCI developed another world first, a lovely Irish-Italian project on Dante Alighieri and James Joyce for younger children (4-12 years). The project is a collaborative concept and… Continue reading Dante to Joyce
Why We Don’t Dream Like That: Rethinking Childhood and Fantasy in India
By Dr Supriya Baijal, Museum of Childhood Ireland’s Literature and Media Team member Introduction Growing up in India, I never stumbled upon enchanted wardrobes or magical portals in the books I read. Instead, I found lively fables, moral lessons, and clever folk tales—often featuring talking animals, wily tricksters, or noble kings. Stories like those from… Continue reading Why We Don’t Dream Like That: Rethinking Childhood and Fantasy in India
When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road: Santana Petrenaite
Childhood Photo of Santana aged 17, in Dublin My journey to school I left Lithuania and came to Ireland when I was seventeen years old. I didn’t plan it really, at least not in any formal sense, it was just my best friend and I seeking a new adventure, a new chapter in our lives.… Continue reading When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road: Santana Petrenaite
When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road: Michael Farry
7 year old Michael Going to and from School 1952-1961 According to Google Maps it’s 1.9 kilometres and takes 25 minutes to walk from where we lived in the railway cottage, through Carrowleam and Shancough, to Rockfield National School. So our daily route to primary school was just over a mile. I think it usually… Continue reading When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road: Michael Farry
St. Patrick’s Day Memories: Joanna Hill
For most of my early childhood my family of 6 lived in a one-bedroom flat on the 9th floor of a tower block in Inchicore. When I was 9 we moved to a new 3 bedroom house in Ballyfermot. Our new home was one of 5 new builds at the end of Rossmore Road. There… Continue reading St. Patrick’s Day Memories: Joanna Hill
Snapshots of our Childhood
Áine Furey, 1970s Áine Furey and Gillian Power, dressing up in mum’s clothes and make up, 1970s Do you remember getting milk in school? Back in the 1970s Gillian Power and myself were absolutely the best of friends, from when we first met at the age of three, for the next almost fifty years. Gillian… Continue reading Snapshots of our Childhood
St. Patrick’s Day Memories: Delvin, Westmeath
A big thank you to the committee of the Delvin St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Westmeath for sharing some fantastic photographs of their past parades from their archives and parish magazines, from around 2006-2010. The Delvin Parade runs from 3-5pm on the 16th March 2025, and you can see more information on their parades and… Continue reading St. Patrick’s Day Memories: Delvin, Westmeath
St. Patrick’s Day Memories: Mary Gaffney
Mary Gaffney has allowed us to share some fantastic photos of St. Patrick’s Day from her native Delvin in Westmeath. On behalf of the Museum of Childhood Ireland, we would like to say a huge thank you to Mary for allowing us to share her memories of St. Patrick’s Day in Delvin. Have you got… Continue reading St. Patrick’s Day Memories: Mary Gaffney
Ann’s ‘Bread for the Birds’ basket
Manchester, England, 1960s M Ann McNulty went for walks daily to the local park in Fallowfield, Manchester with her beloved grandfather from Tipperary, Michael Barry. Her family were Irish and lived on Egerton Rd, in Fallowfield. Her near neighbours were another Irish family, the Aherns. Their little girl Caroline was one of her and her… Continue reading Ann’s ‘Bread for the Birds’ basket