Ireland with Ardal O'Hanlon

Episode 1

Faith & Superstition

47 mins

Ardal spent five years playing a curate in Father Ted and knows better than most what makes an Irish stereotype and when it comes to Belief in Ireland there are a lot of pre-conceptions. But what are they and why do they exist? From Fairies and Leprechauns to Ghost Hunting and Tidy Towns, not to mention a deep reverence of the Church, Ardal is determined to find out if the people of Ireland are predisposed to fate and faith? In County Clare he tracks down Ireland's last great matchmaker, Willy Daly, responsible for over a hundred marriages but does he and his matchmaking book, handed down through generations, really have magical powers? 10% of the Irish population are redheads What does it mean to have fiery hair? Ardal meets members of the Red Head movement in Crosshaven village pub for a ceilidh - and to find out why they are certain the colour of their hair makes them different. On a visit to a secret location, Ardal questions the power of unfaltering faith when he hears one woman's story of how she believes a Holy relic saved her life. And on his first ever visit to Blarney Castle, Ardal discovers that there may be a sting in the tail to the most famous Irish superstition of the lot.