In the Bureau of Irish Military History for the years from 1913-1921 is a statement by a witness, marked Document No. W.S. 1511. It’s the testament of Dubliner, Gerald Doyle, Gaelic footballer and a member of B Company of the Fourth Battalion of the Irish Volunteers. Barely eighteen years of age, Gerald Doyle was more interested in football and chasing girls at céilís than anything else. But soon he was swept up in the seismic events of Easter Week, 1916 and saw firsthand action against the occupying English troops, arrest, attack from the hostile native populace, internment, imprisonment, the firing squads of Pearse, Ceannt and so many more, night terrors in Kilmainham jail, his own Court Martial and sentencing to hard labour, exile and penal servitude. Terrible Beauty, a hybrid of radio drama, memoir and sound design, is his story. Compiled and presented by Bernard Clarke (First Tx. 29th December 2016)
RTÉ lyric fm, Friday 14 th April, 7.02pm-8pm