The Limerick Lady Podcast The Limerick Lady Podcast

Happy April to all our lovely fools- I mean listeners. LISTENERS. You're lovely. Thank you!
This month Emma spoke to Ciara Kenny aka Ciaraíoch, cartoonist and illustrator, about her first forays into illustration through the college paper, her inspirations and influences, her upcoming exhibition in Limerick City, and her cheeky little crow friend. 
Ciaraíoch (Ciara Kenny) is a freelance cartoonist and illustrator from rural Kerry, which she refuses to leave due to a vague distrust of both motorised transport and townies. She has a keen interest in social justice, feminism, nature, and Irish history and mythology, and creates drawings, paintings and linocut prints inspired by those subjects. She also draws regular topical and humour cartoons, has provided illustrations for several books, painted public murals and street art, and contributed work to television, magazines, websites, podcasts, and an academic journal, as well as having her work displayed at cartoon festivals and art exhibitions.
Ciara can be found far too often on most social media platforms as @Ciaraioch, with more work available to view at www.ciaraioch.com
Ciara's exhibition at the People's Museum of Limerick in Pery Square, Limerick City, on the 27th of April at 5pm – all are welcome! 
The Limerick Lady is a grassroots movement based in Limerick, Ireland, with a focus on promoting conversation around gender, visibility, gender balance and the arts. It was founded in 2016 by award-winning (and losing) singer-songwriter Emma Langford, who hosts the podcast alongside fellow award-winning (and losing) Limerick woman, theatre-maker and musician Ann Blake.
Find the Limerick Lady Podcast on all your favourite streaming platforms. New episodes drop once a month, on the third Thursday (or Thirdsday, if you will).
The Limerick Lady is supported by The Limerick Post Newspaper.
Support the Limerick Post at www.limerickpost.ie 

Emma Langford and Ann Blake shoot the breeze with a chat around arts and activism; how they're inextricably intwined for any artist with a social conscience; and about the ever-conflicting expectations the public have of artists to either "do more" or to "just shut up and do your job".
We touch on topics like the Síle-Na-Gig, Eurovision, the Irish artists' SXSW boycott, RTÉ's handling of censorship around activism, and the vulnerability of artists taking any kind of socio-political stance; And there's a belated little International Women's Day message!
Oh and we talk a bit about sports too. Which, yknow, is a new thing. We're a sports podcast now I guess. 
Here's the PJ Harvey song Ann references, "Sheela-Na-Gig": https://youtu.be/Sjxr_No-yuY?si=H01FwZUNgEax1m8w 
More about Limerick's arts and climate festival, Future Limerick, here: https://futurelimerick.ie/ 
Follow Ann Blake on Twitter at annblake78, on Instagram at annblakeplay and check out  her band The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra on twitter at BPLO.
Find Emma Langford on Twitter at ELangfordMusic – on Instagram at EmmaLangfordMusic - and at her website www.emmalangfordmusic.com   
Find the Limerick Lady podcast wherever you get your podcasts, and follow for new episodes on the third Thursday every month.
The Limerick Lady Podcast is supported by the Limerick Post Newspaper, and sponsored by Ormston House Follow Ormston House at www.ormstonhouse.com
Support the Limerick Post at www.limerickpost.ie
This podcast usually goes out on the 3rd Thursday each month - the 'Thirdsday', if you will.
Follow The Limerick Lady on Facebook at TheLimerickLady, on Twitter at LkLadyHQ and on Instagram at thelimericklady
Tweet about us using #LKLadyPod so we can see what you have to say! 
 
Intro music: Demon Darling by Emma Langford
Outro music: Closed Book by Emma Langford

On 8 March 2024, Irish citizens will be asked to vote in two referendums to change our Constitution. The first Referendum concerns the concept of Family in the Constitution. The second Referendum proposes to delete an existing part of the Constitution and insert new text providing recognition for care provided by family members to each other.
You have two separate votes on whether you wish to make the proposed changes to the current text of Article 41 of the Constitution.
Ailbhe Smyth, an activist in women's rights and the rights of LGBTQIA+ people, is actively campaigning for a yes vote on both amendments, and we chat with her about why that is.
She was the founding head of Women’s Studies at UCD (University College Dublin) where she began lecturing at the age of 21. She has been campaigning on feminist, LGBTQI+ and socialist issues for decades. She played a key role in the victorious Marriage Equality referendum in 2015. A pro-choice activist since the late 1970s, Ailbhe co-founded the Coalition to Repeal the 8th Amendment and went on to become Co-Director of the Together for Yes 2015 referendum campaign which won the right to abortion for women in Ireland in 2018.
A Dublin resident, Ailbhe is currently Chair of Women’s Aid Ireland, and Honorary Patron of the Women’s Collective Ireland (previously National Collective of Community-based Women’s Network). She is a founder member of Climate Justice Coalition, and also of Le Chéile: Diversity not Division which campaigns against the growth of far right extremism.
In 2019, Ailbhe was listed as one of Time Magazine’s ‘Most Influential People’. She was conferred with an honorary Doctorate of Laws by NUIG in 2021, and was conferred with the Freedom of the City of Dublin.
Follow Ailbhe Smyth on Twitter at AilbheS
Follow Ann Blake on Twitter at annblake78, on Instagram at annblakeplay and check out  her band The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra on twitter at BPLO.
Find Emma Langford on Twitter at ELangfordMusic – on Instagram at EmmaLangfordMusic - and at her website www.emmalangfordmusic.com   
Find the Limerick Lady podcast wherever you get your podcasts, and follow for new episodes on the third Thursday every month.
The Limerick Lady Podcast is supported by the Limerick Post Newspaper, and sponsored by Ormston House Follow Ormston House at www.ormstonhouse.com
Support the Limerick Post at www.limerickpost.ie
This podcast usually goes out on the 3rd Thursday each month - the 'Thirdsday', if you will.
Follow The Limerick Lady on Facebook at TheLimerickLady, on Twitter at LkLadyHQ and on Instagram at thelimericklady
Tweet about us using #LKLadyPod so we can see what you have to say! 
 
Intro music: Demon Darling by Emma Langford
Outro music: Closed Book by Emma Langford

Unfortunately there is no episode this month as Emma is on tour in the USA and Ann is in the middle of a big (good) life episode that she will be letting people know about soon.
Find out more and get ticets for Emma's USA shows at www.emmalangfordmusic.com/tour 
The Limerick Lady is a grassroots movement based in Limerick, Ireland, with a focus on promoting conversation around gender, visibility, gender balance and the arts. It was founded in 2016 by award-winning (and losing) singer-songwriter Emma Langford, who hosts the podcast alongside fellow award-winning (and losing) Limerick woman, theatre-maker and musician Ann Blake.
Find the Limerick Lady Podcast on all your favourite streaming platforms. New episodes drop once a month, on the third Thursday (or Thirdsday, if you will).
The Limerick Lady is sponsored by Ormston House and supported by The Limerick Post Newspaper.
Follow Ormston House at www.ormstonhouse.com Support the Limerick Post at www.limerickpost.ie 

HAPPY CHRISTMAS! This month we spoke to Molly Cantwell about her charity cover of ‘River’ which was released on Wednesday the 20th of December in aid of GCN (Gay Community News), in memory of her late friend Joe Drennan who was killed this year in a hit-and-run incident in Limerick. We also chatted about her time dressing as a medieval lady to sing at banquets in Knappogue and Bunratty, her work in journalism, and some hidden talents that she has not adequately exploited recently.
Molly Cantwell is a 25-year-old Irish/Valenciano/Madeiran queer multimedia journalist and student at the University of Limerick - as well as an award-winning shower singer to-be.
Currently sitting as managing editor of Limerick Voice and editor-in-chief of An Focal, Molly is passionate about platforming human rights and equality stories as well as writing about music, arts and culture, news, politics, and much more. She freelances for Hot Press and Overblown, with previous work in The Clare Echo, GCN, The Irish Examiner, The Limerick Leader, and more. 
During her time as a student in Limerick College of Further Education (2018 - 2020), Molly solo-produced and created her National Student Media Award nominated radio documentary “Cyber Killer - Qu'est - Ce Que C'est?”. In 2022, Molly also sat as editor-in-chief of CURIOUS - a UL magazine created by second year students. She has been nominated for the Smedias eight times - winning two of these categories.
Molly has already lived another lifetime as a professional entertainer with Shannon Heritage, which she thoroughly enjoyed, but she is excited to finish college in 2024 and get her journalism career properly started. She is inspired by the dedicated work of her colleagues at Hot Press and female journalists like Zara King, Sarah McInerney, Claire Byrne, Louise McSharry, Aoife Moore, and more. 
Follow Molly Cantwell on Instagram at @WhatMollyDoesNext and on Twitter/X at @whatmolsaysnext 
Buy "River" on Bandcamp NOW here: https://mollycantwell.bandcamp.com/track/river 
GCN is a free, vital resource by the LGBTQ+ community for the LGBTQ+ community since 1988. You can find them and support their work here: https://gcn.ie/ 
Tickets for The Brad Pitt Light Orchestra on the 23rd of December in Dolans, Limerick are available here: https://www.dolans.ie/gigs-events-live-music-listings/2023/12/23/the-brad-pitt-light-orchestra 
The Limerick Lady is a grassroots movement based in Limerick, Ireland, with a focus on promoting conversation around gender, visibility, gender balance and the arts. It was founded in 2016 by award-winning (and losing) singer-songwriter Emma Langford, who hosts the podcast alongside fellow award-winning (and losing) Limerick woman, theatre-maker and musician Ann Blake.
Find the Limerick Lady Podcast on all your favourite streaming platforms. New episodes drop once a month, on the third Thursday (or Thirdsday, if you will).
The Limerick Lady is sponsored by Ormston House and supported by The Limerick Post Newspaper.
Follow Ormston House at www.ormstonhouse.com Support the Limerick Post at www.limerickpost.ie 

For our November episode, we're joined by Eilís Walsh, a graduate of MSc in Marketing, Consumption and Society. Eilís is a blogger, photographer, and burgeoning social media marketer from Co Kilkenny, now living in Limerick.
She is one of three project leaders of The Night Doesn't Belong To Us, alongside Maria McSweeney and Julie McLoughlin. 
In the wake of tragic events of the last few years, "The Night Doesn't Belong To Us" emerges as a timely and vital project, addressing the concerns and experiences of women navigating the streets of Limerick after dark. Born from a pre-pandemic idea, the project took root during lockdowns, with its full realization delayed due to necessary restrictions.

Initiated by Eilís Walsh who has an interest in photo-journalism, and sparked by a prior project
delving into men's mental health, "The Night Doesn't Belong To Us" pivots to shed light on the
unease felt by women during nighttime activities in Limerick. The project gained momentum
following the tragic murders of Ashling Murphy and Urantsetseg Tserendorj, reinforcing the need to confront and discuss women's safety in public spaces.

Collaborating with artist Maria McSweeney, the project aims to amplify the voices of women from diverse backgrounds and age groups living in Limerick. Through a comprehensive survey distributed on social media, the team, with invaluable assistance from William O'Neill of The People's Museum of Limerick, received over 150 responses detailing locations and activities that evoke feelings of vulnerability and danger.

Navigating logistical challenges and fueled by a grant from the Arts Council of Ireland's Agility Award, the team, including photographer Julie McLoughlin, is now set to capture the stories of nearly 50 women. Their aim is to authentically represent the experiences of women of all ages and backgrounds, ensuring inclusivity across communities.

As "The Night Doesn't Belong To Us" continues to unfold, the project seeks further engagement from members of Trans Limerick and the 65+ age group, aiming to enrich the narrative and reflect the diversity of experiences within the community. An exhibition is scheduled for the summer of 2024. 
Follow The Night Doesn't Belong To Us on Instagram at thenightdoesntbelongtous or reach Eilís by email at eilismwalsh@gmail.com 
Tickets for a Night For Palestine in Dolans, Limerick are available here: https://dolans.yapsody.com/event/index/791489/a-night-for-palestine 
Read more about Limerick's "Particles Or Waves" project in 2014: http://www.connolly-cleary.com/Home/particles.html 
The Limerick Lady is a grassroots movement based in Limerick, Ireland, with a focus on promoting conversation around gender, visibility, gender balance and the arts. It was founded in 2016 by award-winning (and losing) singer-songwriter Emma Langford, who hosts the podcast alongside fellow award-winning (and losing) Limerick woman, theatre-maker and musician Ann Blake.
Find the Limerick Lady Podcast on all your favourite streaming platforms. New episodes drop once a month, on the third Thursday (or Thirdsday, if you will).
The Limerick Lady is sponsored by Ormston House and supported by The Limerick Post Newspaper.
Follow Ormston House at www.ormstonhouse.com Support the Limerick Post at www.limerickpost.ie