West Cork People - The Best Free Read in West Cork

07/09/2026

It's hedge season! Peter from Southwest Logging Co. is fully qualified to get West Cork's hedges looking beautiful and healthy for the season ahead. Give him a call on 085 1489390.

06/08/2026

While it’s many moons since the clanging of the hammer on the anvil last rang out around the village of Butlerstown, it’s a sound that Michael O’Brien, 81, tells Mary O’Brien he still hears as clearly as if it were yesterday. The small coastal village between Courtmacsherry and Barryroe once upon a time boasted two forges, three pubs, and five shops, all within easy throwing distance of each other. While today the sleepy village, with its pretty pastel-coloured houses and one pub, is probably best known for being located on the Seven Heads Walk, Michael remembers a time when the sound of cockerels crowing, followed by the chatter of women at the village water pump, marked the start of each day with the shuffling of footfall leaving the public houses bringing it to a close. A storyteller and songwriter, Michael has been fondly crowned locally as the ‘bard of Butlerstown’ for his many evocative and often humorous compositions that capture life, past and present, in West Cork.

Read the full interview in print now or online at https://westcorkpeople.ie/columnists/the-bard-of-butlerstown/

While it’s many moons since the clanging of the hammer on the anvil last rang out around the village of Butlerstown, it’s a sound that Michael O’Brien, 81,

15/06/2026

Stay Informed. Stay Vigilant. Clonakilty & Dunmanway Credit Union is hosting an essential community information evening where experts will share valuable insights on how to recognise scams, prevent fraud, and safeguard your finances.
DATE: Wednesday 17th June @ 7.30pm.
VENUE: Ahamilla GAA Club.
Free admission – all members of the public welcome, Light refreshments will be served.

10/06/2026

If you missed the latest issue in print, read it now online.

This interactive flipbook is created with FlippingBook, a service for streaming PDFs online. No download, no waiting. Open and start reading right away!

09/06/2026

There’s a heavy drizzle falling on the country road. Framed by the lush green of the softly humming hedgerows, a man sits on his bicycle in the mist, waiting to greet the farmer coming his way. “Soft,” remarks the cyclist with a smile, acknowledging the weather. “Soft indeed,” replies the farmer with a nod. Dreamer Fred La Haye moved from the Netherlands to Ireland almost 50 years ago, drawn by the possibility of a self-sufficient lifestyle. These are the sort of interactions that kept him here. “It’s beautiful you know,” he tells Mary O’Brien. “To be able to hold a conversation around just one word. I love that about the people in this country.”

Words, but perhaps more importantly, listening, are all-important to Fred (78), who is well known around West Cork for being a passionate proponent of dialogue, as well as for his pioneering work introducing sustainable practices into local communities.

Read the full interview in print now or online at www.westcorkpeople.ie

19/05/2026

With the popularity and enduring legacy of Michael Collins – alongside a growing interest in the history of Ireland’s revolutionary period – the recently launched ‘Michael Collins News’ should be of great interest to many. Featuring many heretofore unseen photographs, accounts, and archives – kindly made available for the first time by families of the main protagonists of this key period in Irish history – this 108-page volume is a fascinating read, adding to the considerable volume of books and journals already in circulation. Researched and compiled by the Collins 100 Committee, whose previous achievements include the establishment of the Collins statue on Grand Parade in Cork in 2023, the publication is available to purchase in local bookshops or by emailing [email protected].

Read the full article online at www.westcorkpeople.ie in the latest edition.

Pictured at the launch of the Michael Collins News book (no 2, Vol 2) by The Collins 100 committee at Collins Barracks, Cork, were Cork Sean Hales, grandson of Tom Hales and grandnephew of Sean Hales; Fidelma Collins, grandniece and Collins 100 committee and Tadhg Crowley, grandnephew of Harry Boland. Picture: Eddie O’Hare.

13/05/2026

Kathy Kirwan’s interest in flax – a plant whose cultivation and use dates back over two thousand years in Ireland – was first sparked close to her home in Clonakilty, a town whose history is inextricably interweaved with this versatile plant in the production of linen. This year, 2026, is particularly significant, as it marks 200 years since the collapse of what was once a thriving linen industry in Clonakilty.

As part of the Flax Lín (flax to linen) community, Kathy has been connecting past with present through a ‘Flax – Threads of Time’ project, organising immersive exhibitions and talks and quietly planting the seeds for the revival of flax growing in West Cork. Keep an eye out for events over the summer and, if you missed the May issue in print, read Mary O'Brien's full interview with Kathy online at www.westcorkpeople.ie.

Photo: Patrick Kerr Flax Instructor 2nd from left Cork Show c 1942

07/04/2026

Fresh off the press ✨
Discover what’s new this month across West Cork’s arts & entertainment scene; in community events and initiatives; for food & drink producers; and more in our April issue — out now!

Pick up your copy or read the full paper online for FREE at www.westcorkpeople.ie 💻

09/03/2026

If you haven't picked up a physical copy of our March issue yet you can always read the paper, in full, for free, at westcorkpeople.ie

https://online.flippingbook.com/view/846836743/