Aedin Ni Thiarnaigh

Aedín Ní Thiarnaigh is a prominent Irish journalist, television presenter, and cultural advocate, perhaps best known for her deep connection to the Irish landscape, language, and the folklore of wildflowers.

Her life and career reflect a modern "Gaelic revivalist" narrative, bridging traditional heritage with contemporary media.

The Move to Inis Meáin

A central part of Aedín’s personal narrative is her choice to live on Inis Meáin, the middle and most traditional of the Aran Islands.

The Islander Life: Originally from Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford, she relocated to the island to immerse herself in an Irish-speaking community.

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• Folklore & Nature: She is the creator of the popular social media platform Bláthanna Fiáine (Wildflowers), where she documents Irish wildflowers through the lens of their Irish names, history, and medicinal uses. She also leads wildflower walks on the island.
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Broadcasting & Media Career

• RTÉ & TG4: Aedín is a familiar face on Irish television. She hosted the RTÉ series Faoi Bhláth (In Bloom), a 13-part documentary exploring Ireland’s biodiversity and the folklore surrounding its native flora.
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• The Tommy Tiernan Show: In early 2025, she gained significant national attention following a captivating interview on The Tommy Tiernan Show. Her articulate and passionate discussion about island life and the "spiritual" relief of nature earned her widespread praise.
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• Aran Island Discs: She was a featured guest on the Aran Island Discs podcast (November 2025), where she ironically discussed the music that shaped her journey while actually living on the islands the show uses as a metaphor.

Academic & Professional Background

• Education: She holds a rich multidisciplinary background:
  • BA in Gaeilge & Journalism from the University of Limerick.
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  • MA in Irish Folklore and Ethnology from University College Dublin (UCD).
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  • Postgraduate Certificate in Irish Translation Studies from the University of Galway.
• Professional Roles: In addition to presenting, she works as a freelance translator (English to Irish), a columnist, and a voiceover artist.
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Narrative Summary

Aedín Ní Thiarnaigh’s story is one of intentionality. Rather than viewing the Irish language or island life as artifacts of the past, she has positioned them as vital, modern ways of living. Her narrative is defined by "The Wildflower Effect"—finding beauty and complex history in the small things (like the flora of the Burren or the Aran stones) and translating that passion for a broad, multi-platform audience.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to Iron Island Desk, a podcast series where we talk to Irish people from different walks of life as they reflect on their own journeys. Join me, Dr. McDermott, as we explore the many aspects of Irish Disc and what it means to each of our guests through life's ups and downs. Adean Niheni, welcome to Iron Island Discs.

SPEAKER_01 0:24

Thank you very much.

SPEAKER_00 0:25

And it's a trick question normally, but in your case it's even trickier. When was your first time to Iron Islands?

SPEAKER_01 0:31

Well, my first time to the Iron Islands was when I was a young journalist working with T. G. Cahher. I flew over to Inishmeon to record a piece about a special Saint Fridge tradition on the island. It was just a flying trip, one day in and out, but it sort of stayed with me then for years as a very happy memory. So years later, when I went back and I did a master's in Irish folklore, I decided to go back over my old footage from that day, and I was inspired to return to Inishmeon for a month to do field work, which turned into almost four years as I actually made the big move. And I still live in Inishmeon today. So a fantastic journey.

SPEAKER_00 1:09

And how'd you make that move then, Dap? From you're from Enniscote Wexford, aren't you?

SPEAKER_01 1:14

I am indeed. So because I came in sort of 2021, life was all a bit covety still. And that was lucky for me because it meant that some of the holiday houses on the island weren't open for tourism yet. And I was able to get a s a longer let and um it gave me the opportunity to just try a different way of living and move to the Goyelturcht, which wasn't very important for me as an Irish speaker. You know, I'm from Innis Gorthy, but even though I've worked in Irish ever since I got my degree, I haven't ever actually until then got the opportunity to live in the Goelth in a fully Irish-speaking area. So um that was a big draw for me as well. Of course, anyone who's been to Innishmia knows the beauty of the island is just something else for anyone who's interested in nature, like I am. And also it's wonderful to be part of such a small community. Yeah. And that was another big draw for me.

SPEAKER_00 2:02

And do you have a sense of isolation out there or not? No, no, not really. Like everything. So it's why out in the wild at Atlantic, and you know, it's obviously not the way we imagine is our heads.

SPEAKER_01 2:13

No, well, I don't think so, anyways. Like people do say, aren't you all lonely out there? But because we're so isolated from the rest of the world as a community, I actually find the complete opposite. Like you'd be so much lonelier in a city. Like I lived in Galway City for years, and I found it awful hard like to make a friend because cities are so transient, and especially somewhere like Galway, even though it's a fabulous city and a lovely place to live, unless you're actually from there and grew up there, a lot of the coming and going is tourism. It's hard to lock someone down who like be your friend, you know, be a new friend. Whereas if you move to a small community, you're kind of in the pockets of everybody quite quickly, which I like. Mightn't be for everybody, but it suits me down to the ground.

SPEAKER_00 2:58

And you're not down there waiting for the ferry to come in to meet somebody. It's more, it's not that desperate. There's a community there for you.

SPEAKER_01 3:05

I think so, yeah. I really enjoy it.

SPEAKER_00 3:07

And Irish has always been important to you. It's in your family, the language, the culture, and your study. You've studied folklore, haven't you?

SPEAKER_01 3:14

So Irish is very much in my family. Like we weren't raised through Irish, but my my mum and my dad do speak Irish. They're both um trained as teachers. But even my mother, even though she was born in Ennisgorthy County, Wexford, my granddad, her father, was very proud Kerryman. So she was sent to an Irish language boarding school for a secondary school in Klosh, Eden, Dingle. So Mom has beautiful Kerry Irish, and then my dad as well, his side of the family in Limerick City were very involved always in the sort of Kultur Gailach and would have been um attending Irish language events and been very much a part of the Irish language community in Limerick City. So there is an interest there on both sides of my family, so it's trickled through.

SPEAKER_00 3:56

I've heard, I don't know anything about Irish, but I've heard it's regional, different dialects, different sounds. So how does that compare Limerick and Dingle Irish, for example?

SPEAKER_01 4:07

Well, certainly. So Limerick and Dingle and Kerry, they would all be what's called Goig and the Moon, which is Munster Irish, um, absolutely beautiful Irish. I love it, and that's what I would have had more so that would have been my my main connoite, as they say. But then when I moved to Inishmeal, I kind of found like where I was going around the place with my big Kerry Irish, the real old school islanders, like we'll maybe have trouble understanding you because the Connamara Irish, the Irish in the Aaron Islands is they can tell where you're from, like can they yeah. So now that I live here, you know, I've got I've got a real kind of Innismail twang, and that's heightened because I teach Irish here to people who move to the island, you know, because it's a Gaeltox Island, if you decide to move, like it's important to embrace the culture and the language is a massive part of that. So when people move here, they can come to Irish classes with me in the community centre, and we exclusively deal with the local dialect, so it's no wonder that I'm after picking up a bit of it.

SPEAKER_00 5:06

But you're still an outsider there, are you?

SPEAKER_01 5:09

Well, I suppose I can't answer that now, can I? Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 5:14

And I'm sure you're not. I describe myself an agent in terms of all the things you've done. If you met somebody and lift on the ferry, you describe yourself as a broadcaster.

SPEAKER_01 5:23

Yeah, I I have trouble with this, all right? Because I'm kind of I don't really have like one job and I'd be doing different things at different times of the year. So I suppose the byline at the moment is broadcaster, writer, and folklorist. And this time of year I'm also a tour guide. I do guided folklore and wildflower tours. So a couple of strings to my bow makes for a very long byline.

SPEAKER_00 5:48

Would you like doing the tours or the broadcasting? What for the future, where do you see that uh going?

SPEAKER_01 5:53

Well, I'm kind of spoiled for choice really because I'm blessed the last couple of years, I have had the flexibility of working freelance that throughout the year I work on different things. So in the winter time now, I tend to really embrace like hibernation in a way. And I've I've also done a degree in translation, so I get translation work and I'm writing, and it's much quieter, like slower pace. And that's really important for me because then like a lot of my work is really involved with nature. So as soon as the flowers start growing again, king the birds start singing, my phone starts ringing again, and that's when my broadcasting work starts to pick up. And then also again with the tours here in Inishmoon, and I do like um talks and I do training days and things like that as well, all to do with nature and folklore. So my busy season is really like personality intensive. So I'd be wrecked. Be wrecked, and I kind of need that time to embrace my inner hedgehog and just batten down the hatches in the winter and recharge.

SPEAKER_00 6:55

And this time of year, I remember you saying uh with uh Tommy, it is a beautiful time on the islands, and it's meon really stunning at the moment, like all the flowers are coming back, and we've had a little bit of heat now as well recently.

SPEAKER_01 7:12

So, really things are starting to burst out, and like the birds are singing, the swallows are back, the cuckoo is here, we're seeing whimbrils in the fields again. Like every time you go out for a walk this time of year, there's something new popping up, and it's like meeting an old friend, you know, it just it's a fantastic feeling and really brings you back into your body, brings you back into the here and now, and it's a lovely way to live, to be more in tune with the seasons.

SPEAKER_00 7:39

Yeah, I've only been there a couple of times, but I mean good weather, and it's an amazing place when the weather is as you've just described, this time of year when the summer, the long nights open, lovely freshness, smells, sounds. Mm-hmm. It's really special. And the winter, it's a bit different.

SPEAKER_01 7:59

Well, I like the winter, like in fairness, the one thing about the winter is you have to be really organized and you're like a slave to the weather app because rain, like who cares? But the rain is fine. But the strong winds and stuff here, it can there's not a bit of shelter. Like if there's depends, the wind direction can really make a change to your day when there's strong winds in the island. But most importantly, for travel, you need to keep an eye on the weather forecast. Like if you're going into the mainland for a few days, you need to check the weather on either side because if it happens that there's a particularly strong gale blowing in, or there's a big swell, or god forbid they might come at the one time. You might need to go a day early, or you might need to to plan an extra night's accommodation on the mainland if you're not able to get back on a day. And that doesn't happen too often, but you need to keep an eye on things. So it definitely requires a particular set of skills.

SPEAKER_00 8:51

And you find a place bleak looking in winter, the stone walls, rugged. Well, it depends.

SPEAKER_01 8:57

Like if it's a beautiful blue sky, and sometimes you can be really lucky here in the winter, and like because it is so windy, sometimes the clouds will just blow over. And like you've got a blue sky, you don't care how cold it is, you can go out and walk, and it's still an incredible landscape to enjoy. But um, certainly if it's very cloudy or if it's foggy, fog is the worst because, like you say, the ground is grey, the rocks are grey, the sky is grey, like that can that can definitely start to eat away at you. And if you're in the city, like you don't notice that because you've got big tall buildings, you've got lots of distractions, and like even if it is absolutely miserable, you can go away like to the cinema or go to a restaurant or something, whereas here you're just you're in the thick of things.

SPEAKER_00 9:44

With your mind and being peaceful, yeah. Yeah. And talk to us about the flowers. Are there rare things over there and plants that are not on the main island of Ireland?

SPEAKER_01 9:54

There yes, there certainly are. So the the three Iron Islands are actually part of the Burren landscape, which of course is world-famous as a geological landscape of karst landscape and the limestone pavement. A lot of unusual things grow there, like some alpine plants, as well as your native Irish plants, all kind of come together in this really unusual biodiverse, rich landscape. So Innishmion is part of that landscape, and because of that, we have lovely things like the spring gentian, and we have some lovely Irish saxifridge, but really my favourite flowers are just the weeds, like because in terms of folklore, the games that children play with flowers, the the plants that have the funniest nicknames, the plants that were used for cookery, for medicine, for everything, like the richness of the language that describes the plants, they're all associated with the most common flowers, which are the weeds, like it's the dandelions, it's your your ribwork plantain, it's the nettles. Those are the things that really get me excited. Even though they're not rare, they mightn't be the most beautiful to look at. They're the richest in folklore. And um, that's what I love to delve into and to hear people's stories and to to spread the joy of the nettles.

SPEAKER_00 11:04

And where did that come from? The the whole wildflowers nature in.

SPEAKER_01 11:09

Though I suppose it definitely is very much, again, for me, rooted in the Irish language. Like because I learned all my Irish, there came a point where I was in with my I was in Kerry one day with my with my granny, and she has she has an interest in wildflowers as well. So it would have been something that we would do when we go on holidays to Bally Bunyan and Kerry, that we'd go on this little walk down to the coast to the Cash and River, and we'd look and see all the wildflowers we could see on that walk, and we'd come home and we'd look them up in the wildflower book and see if we could identify them. But one summer, like I was 20 definitely, when this happened, but I opened the wildflower book and it was the first time that I would have looked at that book that I could understand the Irish name. So for instance, um, one of the flowers that I love is like it's called Lesser Century, which is a very boring name in English and tells you nothing. It's a fabulous little pink flower that grows in wastelands. But in Irish it's called Dreamerda Widda, which means Holy Mary's ladder. And I was like, oh my God, what's this like? And even things like the fuchsia is a really quintessential Irish flower. It's called Deora Day, which means God's tears. And I was like, hold the phone, what is going on here? Like, where are these stories coming from? So it just became a hobby, became a total fascination. I was buying every book I could get my hand on and just trying to learn every new flower that I came across. And I don't know, maybe it's just because I'm I'm such a visual learner. Because the flowers are so beautiful and so colourful, the information that I was learning about them just completely stuck in my head. And from then I began to share it online and then um I got into television, you know, making nature programs and things. So it's just been snowballing ever since.

SPEAKER_00 12:51

Yeah, but the Irish language is obviously like that, as you say, because the way I mean, I don't speak it. I grew up abroad, but I know the way we speak English is very flowery compared to the way other people speak English. We always say, Would you mind? Would you do? We're always very flowery. Whereas Germans say, Would you do it now?

SPEAKER_01 13:12

Perhaps, yeah. There is, there's a there's a lot to be learned from the Hiberno English. But like for me, looking at the the Irish names of the flowers again, like it's very, very important because the English names are lovely, you know, and even we have like special nicknames in Ireland as well that are in the Hiberno English tradition, and they're so valuable. But really, our Irish names, those are the names for these plants that have existed since the beginning of the language. You know, we're going, this is connecting us with our way, you know, so so long ago. So when you look at the Irish name, you're not just looking at a name, you're you're delving into our cultural heritage and we're understanding how people viewed the world around them by looking at these plants and seeing what was important to them. And in terms of like, you know, the kind of anti-colonial mindset, we use these English words and they do have a place in our culture now. But if we want to reconnect with the true Irish heritage going way, way, way back, we need to go and dig deeper into the roots of those names. So I just love that connection and I love that it has survived through till the current day, and it's still there. The stories are still to be found, the traditions are still in the oral tradition, and like kids are still playing the same games, like with the flowers, going back thousands of years, which I think is the most fantastic connection, and I love to share it and to try to keep those traditions alive.

SPEAKER_00 14:36

Yeah, fascinating. And Irishness is important to you?

SPEAKER_01 14:40

Massively important to me. Yeah, I suppose. I mean, is it the chicken or the egg? Like all of my work that I do, all of my hobbies now are very much um sort of associated with the with Irish or Irishness in one form or another. So it's definitely important to me and brings a lot of richness to my life.

SPEAKER_00 15:00

And is there an Iron Islands kind of culture or a different way of seeing things within the Irishness or not?

SPEAKER_01 15:06

Oh, for sure, there would be like, and I suppose, well, the Iron the Iron Islands are very different from from everywhere. Like all the all the offshore islands of Ireland are fascinating places and so rich in culture. But I don't have as much experience now the other islands, you know, places like Tory and things like that. They're they're a world unto themselves. But even the three Iron Islands, people group them together the whole time. And like people come out here to me sometimes for Irish courses and that, and I'll say, Oh, have you been to the have you been to Enishmeon before? And they'll say, Oh, I don't know. And I'm like, What do you mean? What do you mean you don't know? And they'll say, Well, I came to the Aran Islands on a school trip, but I don't know which island I was on. And like, it's such an injustice in a way to club them all together like that because they're completely unique from each other. Travel between the islands wasn't that easy until very recently. So, you know, the islanders might only get to go between the three in very good weather when they were able to go over in the curves in the summer and that. But for a massive portion of the year, they were very isolated and because of that, developing their own traditions. And in Enishmeon, especially, it was the most difficult island to get to logistically, because the pier here, it was always more difficult to get into. There's not a lot of shelter. Like, we didn't have a new pier here that could take even in the 70s and 80s. Anyone that came to Inishmeon were they were coming in in curves like off of the steamboat. Like people don't realize how new the new technology and things are in Inishmeon. They didn't even get electricity till like 75 or something.

SPEAKER_00 16:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:46

Um, running water, there was no running water here in 73. Like, modernity is very modern in Inishmeon. So it's natural that they have their own worldview, that they're particularly independent, resourceful, and um yeah, proud people.

SPEAKER_00 17:04

Is there a different ethos or thought process between the three islands? You know, you don't get defensive about your island or is there subtleties there is what I'm looking for.

SPEAKER_01 17:14

I think so. I think anyone who has experiences in the islands will notice subtle differences. And um I suppose someone who'd be a native of the islands would be more suited to answer that question. So I don't want to say too much in case I get myself in trouble.

SPEAKER_00 17:28

No, but what happens? We, as you say, we on the mainland just call them the Iron Islands. We think they're all the same, and we don't really realize how different they are. Each one of them other people may view them. That's all I'm uh thinking of. So I was wondering, even uh, even though you're a blow-in inverted commas, you know more than us about it, so it's fascinating to hear that way. And have you been lived abroad or you always lived in Ireland?

SPEAKER_01 17:53

Um, I have always lived in Ireland. I did live in the Netherlands for just three months. Oh, and I lived in Scotland actually. I lived in the Isle of Sky for four months as well for my Erasmus in the Scottish Islands. That was my first island experience, even though it doesn't really count because the Isle of Sky is connected by a bridge. It's not like Ackle, but I'll I'll take it.

SPEAKER_00 18:11

And how is that different in terms of the way they viewed their life as islanders?

SPEAKER_01 18:16

Well, again, I couldn't really say because as I was in and I was on my Erasmus and we were living myself and my friend, we went over to a fantastic institution called Saul Morustik, where they do um immersive education in Gaelic Nahalapon, which is Scots Gaelic. So we went over there in an exchange, but because of that, we were surrounded by other students and like that, the Isle of Sky. We we were kind of in the college the whole time, you know, we were in a little world of our own. We do get to go out on trips and things like that. And some of our classmates were from the islands who were from, you know, the the real Hebrides, and they would have had a very different existence. But sure, we were like 19, we weren't getting into the cultural nitty-gritty. I'd love to talk to them now about it. But at the time we were like, how do we get to the pub on Thursday night?

SPEAKER_00 19:03

No. Thursday, we're on Friday. My God, what a life. And terms of resilience, the word resilience, does that resonate with you?

SPEAKER_01 19:12

I think so, especially in the last few years, like in terms of being on the island, you do need to be resilient, you do need to be prepared, um, you need to be able to think on your feet, you need to be able to cobble dinner together with something from the freezer when there's absolutely nothing and the boat can't get in. You're shopping for super value. And then just I suppose in terms of getting older as well, like um, I'm 29 now, I just had a birthday, but I can like I'm telling stories now from when I was in college, and I'm shocked because it's like a decade ago. So even in that short decade, I do definitely feel a change in my worldview, and resilience has been a big part of that.

SPEAKER_00 19:54

And is it tougher on the island than it was in Galway or in were you a member of NSCORT? It's do people look at it differently? Self-sufficiency and resilience go together.

SPEAKER_01 20:06

I think so, definitely. Well, in my experience, there's an inner.

SPEAKER_00 20:10

We have a narrative about ourselves, a culture, and a people, and we're tough and resilient. But obviously, when you get to the island, it's a different form again of resilience.

SPEAKER_01 20:21

Well, in a way, I mean that's that's definitely true. And you do, you do need to be tough, like in a way. But also here, in a way, for me, I'm actually less independent and more independent. I'm more independent because I made the big move away from home. You know, I had to to work out a new way of life and and learn a kind of a new culture as well. But also I'm less independent because I'm so much more involved in the community than I ever have been, like at home or anywhere that I've lived. So if I ever need help, like it's so much closer now to me than it ever was before. Because when you're in a small community, and especially the community of Inishmeon, like people are so kind, they're so helpful, and everyone's in the same boat. Like when you're on an island, it's very much like Erska, Yala, or Nadina, which means the people live in each other's shadows, and being a good neighbor is more important than it would be anywhere else, perhaps, because we rely on each other more. So that help is there and knowing that it's available is very comforting and um makes me feel maybe less stressed a lot of the time than I might be if I was truly independent somewhere else.

SPEAKER_00 21:36

And the traditional things like weddings and funerals, how are they viewed or celebrated or otherwise there? Are they are they more uh energetic, more intense for that reason?

SPEAKER_01 21:49

Well, I tell you, I can't really say too much that there hasn't been any traditional island weddings on the island since I've been here. And like with the funerals and that even. Like I'm very blessed that I haven't had a massive experience of funerals in my life, even on the mainland. So it would be hard for me to compare the culture.

SPEAKER_00 22:10

But as a culture, we have that belief that funerals are important. You haven't noticed anything different about the way they might take place for other people on the Iron Islands. Because we have this view in our heads of what life might be like.

SPEAKER_01 22:25

There's definitely an awful amount of respect showed here on the day of a funeral. Even if if it's a body being brought back to the island, you know, as I say, that the people who live on the island, they're so connected. And when a person from the community passes away, it's very, very important to show respect to that. So for instance, if there is a funeral, like everything would be cancelled that day. Like we have an Inishme on Park Run on a Saturday, but if someone on the island has passed away, that will be cancelled. And we have a local swimming group that swim twice a day, but as a mark of respect, like people wouldn't really have kind of happy social gatherings like that. Everything like that would be paused if there's a funeral happening. And even the local shop and things would close if there's a funeral as a mark of respect. So that I guess is something that maybe you wouldn't see on the mainland and I have forgotten.

SPEAKER_00 23:17

And Shane Lassini describes the Iron Isles in gross context, I suppose, as a group. The timeless waves, but sifting, broken glass, came dazzling into the rocks. Is that a kind of series of words that captures what you see out your window most days?

SPEAKER_01 23:37

Well, I don't think I'd be able to put it that beautifully.

SPEAKER_00 23:40

I know. None of us can. We'll see in his words for the short term.

SPEAKER_01 23:44

Well, I'm looking out the window here now, and I can definitely see the glistening sea. I can also see the um the fantastic Inishmeon airstrip, which is wonderful, and lots of beautiful stone walls for kilometers and kilometers, all the browns and greens and the blue sky. So it's not bad at all as a view.

SPEAKER_00 24:03

And do you have an iconic moment, a selfish moment where you felt you'd kind of done well or were happy or high that keeps you going?

SPEAKER_01 24:12

Well, I suppose something recent that was like a massive milestone for me was something you've mentioned already, Russell, was that I was invited earlier this year to be a guest on the Tommy Tiernan show. So I'm not sure your listeners would be um familiar with the show, but it'd be probably like the second biggest um program in the whole country. And for me it was especially um I was especially lucky because the program that I was on was the first episode of a new season just back after Christmas. So everyone was still at home, like eating the selecting boxes, watching the telly. So a couple of hundred thousand people watched my interview. I was invited to speak about my work as a folklorist on Anishmeon and to talk about the the folklore of the wildflowers and my my experience and things. Um, so that was a massive career highlight and a big shock to get that invitation. Um, so I felt really proud because like I've been tipping away, just sort of pursuing this as a passion project for years, and I never believed it would it would it would grow in the way that it has, and to enjoy it as much as I do, and then to have that opportunity to share it on a larger scale. But it felt like recognition as well. It felt like I'm doing something important, it felt like I'm doing something special, and especially like with my kind of conservation work of the language and the local words for flowerism and in schmeong, like that was, even though it seems like a small local project to some people, it is actually like hugely important on a world scale when we think about like the globalization of culture, making sure that our small local traditions and languages are conserved and celebrated is massively important.

SPEAKER_00 25:58

Yeah, I'm I saw the program, and I think you're very impressive, may I say, simply for what you say. One is the depth of knowledge you have of about the fauna, then the language, and you opened up windows for post-COVID for many who were trapped for years about a life and a way of things that maybe we'd lost appreciation for or didn't know anything about.

SPEAKER_01 26:22

Well, I think there is a massive resurgence in interest in our Gaelic heritage, if you like, in Ireland at the moment. People are they're seeing like usher McDonald's and Starbucks popping up all over the place, and this constant Americanization of world culture is frightening. And people they're looking at it and they're thinking, well, what makes us unique as Irish people? What are our traditions? We want to celebrate them and not be slaves to the masses of these other big brands. Let's look at our own cultures and celebrate them. And definitely, because of the biodiversity crisis and things as well, people want to do their bit, they want to reconnect with what's in front of them. They want to know the flowers, they want to know.

SPEAKER_00 27:06

They understand it, but yeah, you're right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 27:08

Mm-hmm. So it's lovely work to be involved in.

SPEAKER_00 27:12

Please tell me you don't have a Starbucks out there.

SPEAKER_01 27:15

No, we don't.

SPEAKER_00 27:17

For all the lovers of Starbucks, I do apologize, but don't need that. And terms of music then, what are the songs or music that's traveled with you, Aidine?

SPEAKER_01 27:27

Well, again, I suppose music for me is is very much something that changes in periods of my life. Like I've always been interested in traditional Irish music, and that's what we would have had growing up. And I I play music as well, I play the flute. But like when I think of like this conversation, for instance, and when I think of a song perhaps that would like lift my spirits or always moves me, it's one that's become a staple of my life since I moved to the island. And it's I've got um great friends here that um sing in the pub together on a Friday night in our one and only pub in Enchmelion, the Tachoste, fantastic establishment. And um my favourite song, and it's always my birthday request, is a version that my friends Colette and Ray Blackmore sing together. They're a married couple who just would really make you believe in the power of true love. And they sing together the duet, their version of Come by the Hills by the Clancy Brothers. And the coreful, shall we say, the the bit that comes again and again in the song is this line that says, For the cares of tomorrow must wait till this day is done. And I just think like whatever you were going on, whatever you had going on in your life, to think, you know, everything passes, tomorrow will still come, or we'll just take a little break from this trouble now and leave it until tomorrow. There's something about it, and hearing them sing together and all of us friends then joining in in harmony, it just makes it so powerful and it's a very happy memory for me. And in times of trouble, it will be something that would keep me going.

SPEAKER_00 29:03

And are you always positive, Aiden? No. Because you always come across the few times I've seen you speak and heard you, it always energizing. You're always very sound positive.

SPEAKER_01 29:15

Well, as a rule, I think that there is enough negativity out there in the world. So like it'd be different now if you met me at the end of a Harry Long Day of Russia over a cup of tea. Like there'd be plenty of Klaus on and you know, giving out. But when I am speaking publicly, I think I am going to bring anything to a conversation in the public eye by giving out. You know, I think it much more can be achieved by focusing on the positives and um trying to spread that. And even on social media, like my whole work is to do with empowerment and positivity. And it doesn't mean that I'm always positive, it just means that that's what I choose to expend my energy on, and that's what I want to share. It doesn't mean that I'm not like crying in the bed when something goes wrong. It just means that that's what I choose to put more energy in with my work specifically.

SPEAKER_00 30:13

But the depression or those windy, wet days in winter, you don't, it doesn't get you.

SPEAKER_01 30:20

Well, like sometimes I mean the weather again, like everyone's like, God, you must be off depressed, like jagged off the rain. Like it's not that bad when you have good friends and you have an electric blanket and you have, you know, a pet cat, things are very manageable. Everyone has bad days. It doesn't matter if we live on the Iron Islands or not, everyone hates bad weather. Yeah. Um, but no, it wouldn't be something that would really send me into the despair, thank God, or I wouldn't be living here.

SPEAKER_00 30:50

Yeah, and when you look back on the young 18 in Wexford and you see where you are now, are you surprised?

SPEAKER_01 30:57

I do get like a ha, you know, from time to time, especially when I'm like sometimes I'd be like, you know, putting foot down, getting to the boat to Russell, or especially, you know, if you're getting the plane perhaps with their oar and into Colemara, you're looking down over the Atlantic and you're like, geez, this is my life. Like, this is unreal. Um, or with especially with my broadcasting work, like working on nature programs and traveling around Ireland and getting to work in Irish and going to the most beautiful places, talking to the most fascinating people and constantly learning and upskilling. And then someone giving me money for it, like I genuinely can't believe.

unknown 31:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 31:38

So there's a lot of pinch me moments that I think, you know, young Aiden doing her leave and sir will be like thrilled to bits if she knew this would be ahead of her.

SPEAKER_00 31:48

So you still pinch yourself. Very much so. And when people on the wall walks with you there, what are the things that surprise them the most?

SPEAKER_01 31:55

Well, I think people who are traveling that are interested in the island love to hear about the traditions that are unique to Inishmeeon. So, of course, we speak Irish in Ennismeeon, but um, the Irish names for the wildflowers that would exist in most of the country, there are actually a lot of wildflowers in Inishmeon that have their own unique local name. There might be 10 or 11 flowers that have their own unique name. So people love to hear about that and like that. They're so surprised that um, even though the three islands are so close together and quite near to County Clare and quite near to County Galway, that they did develop so um so uniquely to each other. They love to hear that. And then as well, just like the different games you can play with plants, for instance. I love that. Anything that kids play with flowers, that sort of folklore will live on forever, and there's a bit of crack to be had. And the Irish names for the flowers too, and looking at what we can learn and the tips and tricks that are hidden within the Irish names that we can reconnect with if we just um pay attention to them and approach things with an open, an open mind, I suppose, and see what information sticks that we can enjoy.

SPEAKER_00 33:03

And people take that on board, do they think more?

SPEAKER_01 33:05

I think so. Well, like especially like one of my plants that I love is it's called Ribwork Plantain or Plantago is the um Latin name. Really, really common flowering grass, like it's all over the country, or you call it soldiers. If you play um this particular game with it, kind of like conquerors, you you knock the head off the other person's flower head, or you can turn it into a little slingshot. Um, but the leaf of that plant is a really powerful antihistamine, so you can use it to cure any kind of a sting, like a nettle sting, or a bee sting, or a wasp sting, or a jellyfish sting, or a horsefly bite. Like the uses are endless. So I do often get messages from people being like, oh my god, I got stung on our way home from the tour, and I was able to find this leaf and chew it up and spit it out and put it on my skin, and it actually worked. Like it's amazing. And this this sort of thing blows people's mind because this is a plant like that they see every single day and have done for their lives, and they never knew this use, but their grandparents probably would have, or maybe their great-grandparents. So, again, reconnecting with that and with our landscape and how we can use it in our daily lives, people love.

SPEAKER_00 34:15

And your outlook on the future in terms of climate change and those things is very depressive or negative, or how do you reconcile that with what you see every day and balance out?

SPEAKER_01 34:27

Well, I suppose for me, and it's the same with things like the language, there's a lot of doom and gloom and oh hone, oh, and as they say in Irish, like the things are looking looking bad. Like I can't, I can't get too deep into that, or I wouldn't get out of bed, you know. So for me, for those big problems that mean a lot to me, all I all I focus on is little changes and actions that I can do in my life, and that's what I can control. So that's what I do. Also, my my good friend Una Nilanagon, she's um a professional harpist. We live together, and Una, in her many guises in this world, is a huge um eco nerd. So we have like Can you say that? Can you say that? I can't, of course. We have so many bins in this house for different things. Like we are so good at recycling. Um, so like all of our electronics get put to one side and we'll bring them into the recycling center in Galway. We have the compost bin, we have a plastic bin, we have a cardboard bin, we have, you know, like we really, we really try. And like as well, we live here and we we share a car and we go on our bikes if we can, rather than using the diesel and things. Like nobody's perfect, but I feel like I'm doing my bit, you know, and I can't do more than that. So I I'm able to sleep at night.

SPEAKER_00 35:49

Yeah, and if each of us did our bit, it would add to a bigger hole, but that's where it falls apart. Not everybody thinks the same way, Aiden. Is the truth.

SPEAKER_01 35:58

As I say, I'm just keeping my head in my own lane, and that's what I'm going to focus on. I can't be dealing with the stress of the bigger picture.

SPEAKER_00 36:07

And is there any quotes that you use or turn to?

SPEAKER_01 36:11

Yeah, funnily enough, now a couple of years ago I spent very well, money well spent. It's not that it was very expensive, but I got this one of the uh the best self-help book I ever got was about sort of looking at your own self-esteem and things. And there was this quote in it, um, a variation of a Marcus Aurelius quote. And it's like if you think of what you have in the world rather than what you lack, and then select the best of those things and think about how eagerly you would have sought them if you didn't have them. So I love that because it's not like toxic posity. Like sometimes I people go into an awful anxious spiral when they're feeling a bit down or they're feeling stressed and they're like, Oh, I shouldn't be stressed, I shouldn't be depressed, I shouldn't be anxious. Look at all this good stuff that I have going on, I shouldn't be feeling so bad. Like that's not helpful at all, like at all, at all. But this sort of version of the quote, you know, if you think about what you have, pick the best things and then just go back to a time in your life or imagine a time when you didn't have them. And like it just allows you, I find, to reconnect with the joy of things you have achieved or people you have in your life, or even like going to the most basic thing, like your health. Like, I to know to know what the perfect example of this is when you have a cold and you can't breathe through your nose for days, and you're like, oh my God, I never appreciate being able to breathe through both my nostrils, and like you think I'll never take this for granted again, being able to breathe easily through two nostrils, you know, and then your cold goes away and you forget all about it. But if you take a bit of time and actually think, oh my god, look at me breathing easily today, like things don't feel so bad, you know?

SPEAKER_00 38:04

Makes sense. But isn't that the problem about life today? Is that time, the lack of it, the social media pressure, keeping up with what everybody else is doing, you don't have that time to sit back and think.

SPEAKER_01 38:18

Well, I suppose that's a choice that we make definitely.

SPEAKER_00 38:23

As a 29-year-old, you can say that, but if you're 21 or 17, understanding that you have the ability to make that choice isn't clear to you because there's pressure to be whatever else is doing.

SPEAKER_01 38:35

Well, I think actually, I'm not sure, you know, but in a way I think older the older generations are maybe less aware of it. Everyone, everyone has a blind spot here or there, but I suppose it's a good message to to share. Like you don't, if you even just like another um kind of piece of advice that I've got in terms of mindfulness, and it's it's not that I do it all the time, you know. I'm everyone has their periods when they're dreadful and they're on their phone the whole time, and like it is the first thing we do in the morning, you know, it's desperate. Check the phone. But we breathe thousands of times in the day. And if you can just focus on your breath, like four or five of your breaths in a day, to actually just follow them in and follow them out and be like, what is actually happening? Like you're you're gonna benefit from it. Um even if you don't do it every day, every small time that you do it is a step forward. So but these are things that like I have looked into and that I try to do because you know I have a busy life, so you need to carve out times of quiet. You everyone has their own coping mechanisms, so these are some of mine, and I find them really helpful. But that doesn't mean to say that I practice them perfectly as I should either.

SPEAKER_00 39:43

Hey, but it's a start. In terms of people who don't uh speak Irish like myself or understand the language, how would you explain what we're missing out?

SPEAKER_01 39:53

Well, I suppose it depends.

SPEAKER_00 39:55

Like for me, I love language, I love use of words and all that, but the whole Irish thing, because I I wasn't grew up as an immigrant outside, I don't understand it. And to for me to look at Irish now is a challenge. I say, why would I? How would you sell it to me? What I'm missing out.

SPEAKER_01 40:16

Well, first of all, it is a challenge, you know, and well, I just I suppose for me the reason that I really went into the deep end with Irish always it comes back to me is when I was in a great course, which is an Irish language course for teenagers, when I was young, like maybe 13 or 14, and one of our teachers just said it so simply. He was like, the French speak French, the Italians speak Italian, Germans speak German, but the Irish are speaking English. And I was just like, oh my god, the injustice of it, and it's because of colonialism. You know, this isn't a choice that was made. This was this was something that was done to the Irish people. It was our language was stolen from us, and it it happens all over the world. So we do have the power to reclaim it and we own it, it is ours. That doesn't mean that it's not difficult to do, but for me, that was a big sort of reason for why I really wanted to and why I was happy to spend the hours studying my irregular verbs and that. But that's not to say, Rossa, that someone who's not Irish shouldn't be learning Irish. Languages are modes of communication and they are available to everybody who's interested in them and who wants to connect with a culture. They don't have to be part of that culture to engage with it and to enjoy it. So I think if anyone has a reason to be interested in or to want to enjoy Irish, then they should feel welcomed and empowered to do so.

SPEAKER_00 41:47

Yeah. And I was just reading the there's a sing quote about Irish. There is no language like the Irish for soothing and quieting. That to me sounds like something I should be reading up on.

SPEAKER_01 41:59

Well, it sounds like they didn't spend too much time studying his irregular verb. It's not really that soothing, but when you do get into it and when you do start to be able to speak and enjoy it, um, it is a beautiful language and it's lovely to be able to use it on a daily basis.

SPEAKER_00 42:18

And the work for you now is continuous television, is it?

SPEAKER_01 42:22

Well, I have um I'm filming a a new TV series at the moment, and then after that, I I don't have aside from that, I mean I don't have much TV stuff booked that's it's it's gig work, you know, but I'm loving the project that I'm working on at the moment. And then um, yes, I'm I'm writing away. I do a weekly column and then I'm translating and I'm doing wildflower tours and I'm gonna do a wildflower webinar actually that maybe some of your listeners might be interested in in English and a version in Irish as well about the folklore of the plants and what's blooming at the moment. And sure who knows what else I could end up doing. It's all ahead of me.

SPEAKER_00 42:56

And how do you handle fame?

SPEAKER_01 42:57

Oh, I don't want, it doesn't exist.

SPEAKER_00 43:00

Not yet. Adrian, thanks very much. My pleasure talking to you on Iron Island This today.