Author Archives: Bodger

Susan Kiernan with a portrait of herself as a young girl. Susan was illegally adopted at four days old.

Last night.

RTÉ Investigates: Illegal Adoptions.

In case you missed it.

Laura Fitzgerald writes:

Dublin woman Susan Kiernan – who featured on last night’s programme – learned as a child she was adopted. She spent years unsuccessfully trying to trace her birth mother when out of the blue in 2018 she received a letter from TUSLA looking to set up a meeting with her.

She was told she was one of the 126 babies illegally adopted. She managed to sneak copies of some of her documents during the meeting but was later provided with redacted records when she went through official channels.

Among the documents seen last night was a demand for £85, the fee St Patrick’s Guild charged pregnant women to care for their babies until adopted – the equivalent of over €3,200 in today’s money.

But when Susan’s birth mother did not pay her fee, the Sisters of Charity went in pursuit. Two months on they threatened to send the child back to her.

The documents showed a year on Susan’s birth mother was still struggling to pay the nuns and they began phoning Arnotts, where she worked as a shop assistant. The balance due was £82-10s…

“If you do not send, my collector will call to see you. She would prefer not to have to do this as it might be embarrassing for you and we want to safeguard your reputation. We have not failed you; you have failed us“.

However, Susan’s birth mother was unaware the letters to return her baby, were nothing more than idle threats. Because Susan could not have been returned – she had in fact already long since been placed with her adoptive parents at only four days old.

Watch back here

Meanwhile….

Last night.

Update:

This morning.

Pic: RTÉ

Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney

This morning.

Further to yesterday’s move by the British government to unilaterally change how the Northern Ireland Protocol is implemented….

…Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said:

“If the UK cannot simply be trusted because they take unilateral action in an unexpected way without negotiation, well then the British government leaves the EU with no option and that is not where we want to be.”

Ireland’s European Commissioner Mairead McGuinness said

“It does open a question mark about global Britain if this is how global Britain would negotiate with other partners.”

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar said:

“This is not the appropriate behaviour of a respectable country, quite frankly.”

EU negotiating with partner it cannot trust – Coveney (RTÉ)

Ireland says UK not behaving like a ‘respectable country’ (Reuters)

RollingNews

A new €15m Dublin Bus depot at Broadstone has been officially opened

This afternoon.

Va RTE

…equipped to handle future vehicle types if required, such as full battery electric vehicles and hydrogen vehicles.

The Broadstone depot dates back to 1850. A number of original features have been retained, such as its cast iron structure and the old overhead gantry cranes.

Dublin Bus also said it has become the first semi-State organisation in Ireland to install swift nesting boxes onto a site.

The depot, which is one of eight, has the capacity for 120 buses

New €15m Dublin Bus depot opens at Broadstone (RTÉ)

Meanwhile…

Vintage.

Phwoar.

Pics: RTÉ

Last night.

Tuam Campaigner Breeda Murphy is joined by English lawyer Frank Brehany (top left), who movingly tells how he fulfilled a promise to his late father Frank Snr. (top right), a Tuam adoptee.

Eunan Duffy was unable to join us but will return next week.

This is the tenth in a series of shows with Breeda and Eunan looking at all aspects of the Mother and Baby Home Report. They can be viewed here.

This morning.

Criminal Courts of Justice, Dublin.

An Irish Prison Service truck arriving at the Criminal Courts of Justice. Jake Merriman, who was charged in connection with a firework attack on gardaí at a protest in Dublin city centre last weekend, was granted bail and will appear in court again next month.

Yesterday: You Weren’t There Man, You Don’t Know What I’ve Seen

Monday: Fireworks

Leah Farrell/RollingNews

This morning.

Unidentified location, Dublin,

Sisters Milly (above left) and Lia (above right) Rea prepare for tomorrow’s World Book Day which combines ‘the transformative power of reading with a fun-packed day of free digital events, videos and online activities’.

In fact, you could go the whole day without reading a word.

Result!

Don’t be doing that though.

WorldBookDay Ireland

Leon Farrell/Photocall Ireland

New York Herald, June 30, 1918

‘The story has created an extraordinary sensation all over north and south Roscommon. Old people who had studied the prophecies of St. Columcille say that the “Black Pig” is referred to there as an evil omen for Ireland and that she is to travel through a certain part of the country west of the River Shannon before being killed or banished.

Others say that the appearance of the pig is the forerunner of a rising in the north to fight against home rule. These wiseacres say that while the omen portends evil in Ireland the application will be confined to Ulster…

Oink.

News clipping of the day (Strange Company)

Via Undine

This morning.

Further to last night’s shenanigans in Limerick…

“I understand this is very difficult, but we cannot see scenes like that happening again.

“It is very disappointing for the people who live in that area but also for everybody else who has been trying so hard over the last year.

“I do firmly believe the end is in sight. We are introducing the vaccinations and we are at a point where we want, in particular this month, to see our numbers coming down so we can start to reopen our society but if we continue to see scenes like this that will not happen.”

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee on the Pat Kenny Show on Newstalk earlier.

Ireland will not reopen as planned if we continue to see scenes like last night’s street party (Newstalk)

RollingNews