Exploring Lovely Leitrim, Ireland 1981

A documentary exploring Leitrim through the eyes of some of its locals.
‘None But Devils’ opens with the Bard of Breffni Contest, the highlight of the Ballinamore Festival, when the people of the Leitrim village vote for their favourite group or performance.
The festival began 23 years ago. Ballinamore had lost its railway connection and the festival began as a way of boosting the town’s shattered morale.
For a week at least there’d be some laughs, exiles would return home and maybe even a few tourists would stay long enough to watch the publican’s obstacle race or the contest between Ballinamore’s best rick tossers.
Every year at the festival historian priest Fr Dan Gallogly takes a grand tour of county Leitrim.
The purpose of this tour is to take people, especially visitors, around our native county. To show them places scenic and places historical.
At Fenagh Abbey we meet stonemason Jim Joe McKiernan who goes about his work cleaning and restoring the stonework. A self-taught monumental mason, Jim Joe has lived all his life in Fenagh. For him, the cemetery is like an art gallery of his work and an exhibition of his craft. Jim Joe takes a tour of the graveyard, pointing out the many family names that are buried there. Jim Joe has his own plot marked with a stone border carved with his name.
‘None But Devils A Leitrim Documentary’ was broadcast on 29 July 1981.
None but Devils would live in such a hell.
So said those who first attempted the plantation of County Leitrim but history has shown otherwise. This film looks at Leitrim through the eyes of a miner who is also a farmer, a civil servant who is also a dancer, a priest who is also a historian and a monumental man, who would like to spend more of his time playing the fiddle.
‘None But Devils’ was broadcast on 29 July 1981.

[@geoffowens9770]

Lovely leitrim. I will be there in a few weeks fishing beautiful. Place

[@hangedups2608]

PLAICE

[@seanohare5488]

I love lovely Leitrim

[@johnmcilrath3637]

Had a boat holiday at carrick on shannon once. Very nice indeed. Lough key forest. Beautiful place

[@LEITRIM007]

A smashing County.

[@pellakilbane]

My Great Grandmother Mary Owens came from Leitrim I'm sure she will still have relatives there looks a lovely part of Ireland 🇮🇪

[@Paul5520]

Jim joe stop walking over them graves lad! Great little county lived ther for 3 years

[@georgel74]

The Ballinamore balls-up.. 1980s

[@cocobean7519]

Hello CR, lovely videos & lovely memories. Thank you m.
Would you happen to have a video of the 1984,Jan. Today Tonight Rte program where the reporter Brendan OBrien spoke with a group of men sitting on wall outside Corraleehan Church & said the infamous phrase “no comment” to his questions.... in aftermath of Don Tidey kidnapping.

[@rubsey1]

Hes probably in the plot now.

[@hangedups2608]

😂

[@shawnrahoon6789]

I heard there are still some Irish people in Leitrim.

[@dechannigan2980]

Ballinamore.. Don Tidey country

[@davewatson309]

Leaky Leitrim