As part of the Westmeath County Council Decade of Centenaries programme, Mount Temple resident, Ian Kenneally, has been appointed Historian in Residence for the period from August until November 2020.
The residency is supported by the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht’s Decade of Centenaries 2012-2023 initiative, in partnership with Westmeath County Council.
Ian Kenneally is an author, historian, and documentary maker. His publications include ‘The Paper Wall: Newspapers and Propaganda in Ireland, 1919-1921’, ‘From the Earth, a Cry: The Story of John Boyle O’Reilly’, and ‘Courage and Conflict: Forgotten Stories of the Irish at War’.
Ian has also contributed to a variety of books including the ‘Atlas of the Irish Revolution’. He was editor of the very popular weekly series, ‘The Revolution Papers’, and he has contributed articles to numerous newspapers and magazines.
He has researched and scripted many documentaries, which have been broadcast on stations such as Midlands 103 and RTÉ Radio One, among others in Ireland and abroad. He has also contributed to television documentaries on BBC and TG4.
Among his radio documentaries are ‘The Cry of the Dreamer’, ‘You are to be Shot at Daybreak’, ‘The Story of Custume Barracks’ and ‘A Tale of Fenian Dreams’. Recently, an American film production company purchased the movie rights to his work on John Boyle O’Reilly.
Ian has a master’s degree from UCC and is a doctoral student in NUI Galway. He has studied and written about Westmeath during the War of Independence and he will ensure that, while the commemorative programme will align with national policy, it will focus on County Westmeath and its environs.
Ultimately, the goal of the residency is to provide the public with a trustworthy and enlightening source of information on Westmeath during 1920.
More details on his work can be found at www.iankenneally.com
Follow the historian in residence programme at https://www.westmeathcoco.ie/decadeofcentenaries/
