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Fred: You are a man of many parts,
having consistently promoted Irish/Australian history, heritage,
folklore, theatre, music, song and dance. Tell us a bit about your
background.
Ormonde: I was born in Aghern, by the
banks of the Bride,
To the music of water flowing over the weir,
Where the trout dart and play, and the sweet salmon glide,
In that beautiful river so sparkling clear.
My home was a Brideweir, when I was a boy,
Just across from the castle, the ford and the mill.
Our view of the bridge was always a joy,
And beyond it, the churchyard, so quiet and still.
Time seemed to stand still on that river of youth,
Yet the water was flowing out over the weir.
This was not Tir na nog, and that's the sad truth,
'Though the Bride's mystic music ever sounds in my ear.
Fred: Now that poem must be one of your
own compositions. I'm sure that I remember reading it in your first book
"A Bit of Craic".
Ormonde: Yes, I'm afraid it is a piece
of pure nostalgia about my boyhood home. Aghern Cross is roughly halfway
between Rathcormac, Co. Cork and Tallow, Co. Waterford. It was a truly
idyllic place in which to grow up. My father had a fund of local
knowledge and a huge repertoire of stories. Travelling through the
countryside with him was always a pleasure, for he could be relied upon
"to shorten the road for you" with some tale which was relevant to the
locality. Unfortunately he died when I was only twelve years old, so I
can only remember a fraction of his yarns.
Fred: You left home at an early age?
Ormonde: Most of my teenage years were
spent at school in Dublin or Belfast. My working life began in Dublin on
my eighteenth birthday.
Fred: Yes, I've noticed that many
Dublin yarns are included in both "A Bit of Craic" and "More of the
Craic".
Ormonde: That's true. In fact most of
these were collected from my father-in-law, Martin Byrne, who was also a
great storyteller. He grew up in Dublin and worked for a time as a
reporter for 'The Irish Independent', before joining the Great Northern
Railway, where he soon became a very popular stationmaster. He was the
kind of man who would keep you up all night spinning yarns, which he
often did. He retired to live in Laytown, Co. Meath, which is where I
met him and his daughter, Mina, when all of us were working in Butlins
Mosney Holiday Camp.
Fred: Hence the Meath connection.
Ormonde: Exactly. Meath is a wonderful
county, rich in antiquity and folklore. Mosney was always a fun place to
work, and we were never short of a laugh. In some Irish villages,
despite our tradition of hospitality, the stranger, whose family has not
lived in the community for at least three generations, may be regarded
with suspicion as a 'runner'. Laytown, which must surely be the
friendliest village in Ireland, did not suffer from this problem because
we were all 'runners' — all that is except for two families, the
Delaney's, who owned most of the land, and the Mulligan's, who worked
for them.
Fred: Your next move was to Australia?
Ormonde: Yes, in 1967 we sailed on the
'Fairstar' to Fremantle. We settled in Bunbury, where I continued to
develop my interest in local history, Irish traditional music, song and
dance, whilst working as an officer in the Justice Department. By now,
of course, my two sons, Ormonde Og and Adrian were beginning to display
their musical talent, so we founded the Bunbury Folk Club and Rabbits
Ears Bush Band, which soon became popular throughout the South West.
Fred: What brought you to Perth?
Ormonde: There were a number of
reasons, but mainly we moved in order to further my career, as well as
to enable the boys to attend university. It was a good move, which
brought us into contact with the Irish Club and led to the foundation of
the Perth branch of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann. At the same time (1980)
our band took a change of direction by dropping the entire Australian
content from our repertoire and presenting only Irish traditional music,
song and dance, under a new name 'The Pure Drop'. This group played
concerts, weddings and parties, and became the resident entertainment at
the Monopole Restaurant in Northbridge every Sunday night for 18 months.
It folded after a highly successful tour of the eastern state capitals.
Ormonde Og, Adrian and I promptly reformed as 'Catalpa', which was
musically the finest, and certainly the most popular of the three
groups, with a balanced content of Irish and Australian material. We
continued in this field until the boys completed university and pursued
their careers.
Meanwhile I had become involved with the Irish Theatre Players, and
was editor of the Journal of the Australian-Irish Heritage Association
from 1985 to 1988.
Fred: The promotion of Irish culture
has obviously held a very important role in your life. Tell me why you
decided to take up writing.
Ormonde: I have always been fascinated
by tales from the past. The younger generation must find it hard to
visualize the long dark evenings of times gone by when there was no
electric light, radio or television. People had to make their own
amusement. Yet such evenings were never long enough for all the Craic,
which included games, music, singing, dancing and storytelling.
In Ireland we had the Ceilidhe House and the Seanchai; in Australia
the spinner of bush yarns. Unfortunately, the oral tradition is under
threat from the ever increasing pace of modern life. It is common for
the younger generation to show little interest in tales from the past,
which forms an important part of their heritage. By the time they
develop an appreciation, it's often too late to hear of these things at
first hand.
My books "A Bit of Craic" and "More of the Craic" were written as a
sort of legacy for my grandchildren. I knew that if I didn't record
these recollections for posterity, many of them would be lost forever.
I have been pleasantly surprised at the wider interest shown in
these collections of yarns, poems and songs, people, places and things,
tall tales, historical incidents and funny stories. Together with
personal anecdotes from my life, half of which has been spent in Ireland
and half in Western Australia.
Fred: My final question must be how do
you see yourself? Are you Irish or Australian?
Ormonde: A Corkman or a Meathman?
A Norman or a Gael?
I was born in The Rebel County,
But I've lived within the Pale.
My father came from old Tramore
With its miles of golden strand,
My mother, from the County Down,
The fairest in the land.
Am I Irish or Australian?
My thoughts could fill a tome.
When in Ireland I'm an Aussie.
In Australia — Ireland's home.
I am torn between my countries,
For I love them both, 'tis true.
Half my life belongs to each.
I cannot choose between the two!
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