RTÉ Nationwide explores the heritage and communities of Dublin Port in a special week long series
All next week RTÉ Nationwide features Dublin Port, the largest freight and passenger port in Ireland with over €165 billion worth of trade flowing through it each year. Inextricably linked with the city, the port is over 300 years old and plays a critical role in our supply chain system as almost two thirds of the goods we use in our homes come through Dublin Port.
In the first programme of the Nationwide series beginning this Monday 28th April at 7pm, Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh discovers how this working port functions from day to day. She accompanies one of the pilots as he travels out to Dublin Bay to board a ship in order to help navigate it into port and visits Vessel Traffic Service known as VTS which is the marine equivalent of air traffic control. With an increase of freight coming from Europe, Bláthnaid witnesses one of the larger ships nicknamed as Brexit Busters, unload eight kilometres of containers and she visits Customs and Revenue to see a sniffer dog at work.
The second programme in the series at 7pm on Wednesday night focuses on the history and heritage of Dublin Port, as Anne Cassin discovers how the port is directly linked with the shaping and development of the city, both economically and physically. “Dublin” Jimmy Murray welcomes Anne on board the old Liffey Ferry as they head downriver from the original port side near wood quay to where the modern port is today. She walks the Great South Wall and the North Bull Wall with the port’s Heritage Director Lar Joye to hear how these great feats of engineering made Dublin Port safe. She visits Pigeon House Harbour to see one of the finest examples of our industrial heritage, the Pigeon House Power station; And in the Dublin Port Memory and Story Project, she hears some former port workers reminisce about working at Dublin Port.
The third programme on Friday evening examines Dublin Port’s part in the social heritage of the city, as traditionally generations of families from areas like East Wall and Ringsend would have worked at the port. Today the port continues to have close connections with local communities as they welcome over four thousand visitors a week to their new greenway. Through their community engagement programme the port also supports various clubs and community groups from Clontarf to Sandymount. Right in the midst of the working port Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh meets people on the Construction Skills Course run by St Andrews Resource Centre. This has been one of the big community success stories and to date 2,500 people been trained to work as general operatives on building sites. Inspired by real people and real stories from Dublin Port’s history, writer and theatre director Louise Lowe talks about some of her work she has produced and staged in the port itself including a play about an IRA unit of dock workers and a film about the women who worked at the Dublin Dockyard War Munitions Factory operating in the port during WW1.
Speaking ahead of the week long series of programmes, Nationwide presenter, Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh said;‘’This bustling port is full of wonderment and great characters, this port that has been our eyes to the world, custodians of our island and the first friendly voice the sea farers of the world will hear and yet it all grew from a small community of families and dockers in Dublin.’’
Nationwide presenter, Anne Cassin added; ‘’In Wednesday’s episode ofNationwide I delve into the history and heritage of Dublin City and Port and meet some fascinating people such as former dockers who describe Dublin Docks In olden days and look at ‘Dublin Port Memories’ where hundreds of retirees have been interviewed about their time working at the port. ‘’
WatchRTÉ Nationwide‘s special series on Dublin Port all next week, beginning Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7pm on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player
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Friday 25thApril 2025
RTÉ Communications: Tara O’Leary