Cork Local Interest

During the Irish War of Independence (1919-1921), Cork earned for itself a reputation as one of the most violent counties in the country. Kinsale, however, was typically identified as a pro-British town, with a population hostile …

April 1921 saw the arrival of the first internees at the newly opened internment camp in the ‘Military Prison in the Field Bere Island’. The internees comprised a diverse group of men including poets, writers, intellectuals and co…

Daragh Fleming’s honest portrayal of mental health, wellbeing and recovery opens with a quote from Seneca, Moral Letters that states: ‘I will keep constant watch over myself.’ Throughout Fleming’s ‘Lonely Boy’, loss, friendship an…

Diary of An Activist is a social activism memoir journeying through vegetarianism, anti-nuclear and CND protests, feminist and queer activism, lesbian parties, coming out and becoming a parent. It features quirky Cork locations li…

From near Bantry to Inchigeelagh, on to Macroom, Dripsey and Coachford, all the way north to Millstreet and almost as far as Mallow. Like anywhere else in Cork and Ireland for that matter it’s dotted with murder. Some murders are …

Cork City History Tour is a unique insight into the illustrious history of Ireland's second city. Local author Kieran McCarthy guides us through the streets of the 'Rebel City', showing how its famous landmarks used to look and ho…

This is the history of what is now Cork’s Glen River Park. It traces the area’s progression from a proto-industrial zone in the early eighteenth century to the public amenity space it is today. Six mills once punctuated the valley…

Stephen Redmond was the first swimmer ever to complete the Oceans Seven, a series of grueling cross-channel swims in different parts of the world, and yethis greatest challenge has been right on his doorstep - a 44-kilometre swim …

This is book is a history of the birds of County Cork from the earliest times to the present. It provides a comprehensive account of the ecology of all species known to have occurred in the county, with an emphasis on distribution…

Situated in the south-west of Ireland, the port city of Cork is right on the very edge of Western Europe and has always been open to influences from Europe and the wider world. The amalgamation of these influences has created a vi…

The Little Book of Cork is a compendium of fascinating, obscure, strange and entertaining facts about Cork City. Here you will find out about Cork's buildings and businesses, its proud sporting heritage, its hidden corners and its…

The city of Cork is a place of tradition, continuity, change and legacy. It is a place of direction and experiment by people of ambition and determination, experiences and learning, of ingenuity and innovation, and of nostalgia an…

As the home of the famous Blarney Stone it is perhaps not surprising that the stories of County Cork could fill many libraries. Among its vast archive of myth and legend are tales of the Goddess Cliona, The Hag of Beara and the Gi…

Cork Harbour is the second largest natural harbour in the world. It is a historical wonder, surrounded by villages, forts, towers and churches, all of which combine to tell the colourful story of Ireland's largest county. A reliab…

This fascinating book details the fight for Irish freedom in a relatively small area of East Cork, showing how the struggle was interwoven with the lives of the people as ordinary men and women took on the might of the British Emp…

Turning Points is an anthology of some of Ireland's best known and successful people describing key moments in their lives when the chips were down, and they managed to turn it all around. These are uplifting, inspiring stories fo…

True crime meets local history. This book contains 39 true historical murders in West Cork. From Clonakilty in the east to the Beara Peninsula and the Kerry border, murder is never more than a few miles away. Each crime is complet…

Former ombudsman, Emily O Reilly, characterised contemporary Ireland in terms of a ‘vulgar fest’ of ‘rampant, unrestrained drunkenness’ and ‘brutal, random violence’. Requiem for a City is a sometimes outrageous and sometimes hila…

Sport and sporting pastimes have always been an important part of life in Cork. What is remarkable about Cork sports men and women is their success across the entire range of sporting disciplines. There can be no true criteria for…