Skibbereen student's 1916 tribute song goes ‘viral'

By Kieran O’Mahony

A SKIBBEREEN student’s self-composed tribute to the 1916 Easter Rising has been viewed over 180,000 times on Facebook.

Former St Fachtna’s de la Salle student, Ciarán O’Donovan from Skeagh, Skibbereen, has been overwhelmed by the reaction to This is Ireland, which features former Mercy Heights student Hannah Collins on piano.

‘The reaction to the video has been unbelievably positive. It’s honestly hard to get my head ‘round,’ Ciarán told The Southern Star. 

‘It was my older brother Fachtna that really drove the promotion of the video, as he sent emails and messages to lots of different media outlets, doing anything he could to bring it more into the public eye.’

It’s almost a year since Ciarán started writing the composition, but had to put it aside due to his Leaving Cert last year and it was only in recent weeks that he resurrected the song and decided to record it properly.

‘It is so important on the centenary of this event to commemorate properly the people who led and instigated it. We have them to thank for the free country in which we live and for the opportunities we now take for granted. I decided to join in the festivities by writing a song in honour of the event,’ explained Ciarán.

Ciarán is currently in his first year at UCC studying Biological and Chemical Sciences, after receiving 8 A1s, or 625 points, in his Leaving Cert last year. Readers may recall that he featured on the front page of The Southern Star at the time, with his results in one hand and his beloved banjo in the other. 

He is currently in Verona, Italy, with the UCC Choral Society, taking part in an international choir competition.