50)Ear To The Ground (Series 24, Programme 8)
Thursday 15th December 2016
RTÉ One
8.30pm
DEXTERS
City girl, Eavaun Carmody decided to up sticks and move her young family from the centre of Dublin to the middle of the country and into a centuries old castle in Tipperary in 2009.
Hand in hand with a massive restoration project, she also ventured into beef farming -and on a grand scale.
Eavaun is now building up an impressive herd of rare breed Dexters in the very parish in which they were originally bred.
Not only is Eavaun using the meat from the Dexters, but she uses every part of them – from their horns, to their hooves.
Helen Carroll went to visit Eavaun at Killenure Castle, just outside Cashel in Co. Tipperary to find out more about this entrepreneurial farmer.
CARRIAGE DRIVERS OF NEW YORK
Leitrim native Conor McHugh has been driving a horse carriage on the streets of New York for over 30 years. He is just one of many Irish horse lovers engaged in that iconic tourist trade.
The carriage drivers have just seen off a political threat to their livelihood as New York Mayor Bill de Blasio sought to deliver on a campaign promise toban the carriages from the city streets.
However, a wave of support from the public left city councillors with no option but to leave the carriages and their drivers work away.
Darragh McCullough spent a day with Conor and visited the 100 years old cooperative owned stables where the horses sleep upstairs.
CLEW BAY COOKIES
When Lisa McCann from Limavaddy in Co. Derry met her American husband James, they moved to Michigan and pursued a high powered corporate life.
Two children later, they made a decision to move back to Ireland as they believed this was the best place to raise their young family. And so they settled into a different life in Lousiburg in Co. Mayo. But Lisa brought home with her a delicious recipe for cookies.
When the recession hit, and work dried up, she used her recipe to start her own business.
Ella McSweeney went to visit the McCann family with their thriving enterprise, to talk cookies, but also the importance of keeping jobs in rural Ireland.
Ear to the Ground is produced for RTÉ by Independent Pictures.
Series Producer – John Cummins
Presenters – Darragh McCullough, Helen Carroll, Ella McSweeney
Directors – Paula Williams, Liam Lavelle
Executive Producer for RTÉ – Michael Hughes
Press enquiries:
TVPR
Ann Coughlan 00 353 87 6778045
Pauline Cronin 00 353 87 2629967