Céad Míle Fáilte
Todd here again. Don’t forget to back the Kickstarter for the Celtic Podfest. This is your last chance. This week we have new episodes of our own Irish & Celtic Music Podcast & Celtic Christmas Music Podcast. The other podcasts we feature are The Scottish History Podcast as well as Gerry Quinn’s Irish Radio Show. The articles included are about Dolores Keane being inducted into the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards Hall of Fame, a new exhibition about Mary Queen of Scots, an interview with Sheila Buglar, and the mark Vikings left on Ireland. We have a list of new albums. The festival spotlight shines bright on CelticFest Mississippi taking place October 10th and 11th, with a kickoff on the 9th. The festival takes place at Bobby Cleveland Park at Lakeshore Brandon, MS. We hope you enjoy this issue. Until next time, Sláinte mhaith!
Back the 2027 Celtic PodFest! (Closes Friday, Oct 2)
- Live concert recordings, only for supporters
- A full Celtic PodFest podcast episode for everyone
- Interviews with the bands
- A rare chance at our podcast pint glasses
- The whole festival mailed to your doorstep
- Featuring Olivia Bradley, The BorderCollies, May Will Bloom, and The Celtfather
- Pledge now: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/marcgunn/2027-celtic-podfest
IRISH & CELTIC MUSIC PODCAST: HIGHLIGHT REEL #5.4: 758-764
- Here’s the Highlight Reel of 2026. You have three weeks to vote for your favorites tracks from shows #758 – 764
- You can vote for as many tracks as you like. And the more you vote, the more your vote counts.
- Thank you to all of our amazing patrons!!
CAST YOUR VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20
- Every year, I publish the Celtic Top 20. This is your pick of the best, most-popular songs of the year. But to make the show great, I need you to vote for your favorite songs in each episode.
- Just list each of the bands performing those favorite songs to quickly and easily cast your vote.
WHAT'S NEW WITH CELTIC MUSIC
& CULTURE ONLINE?
CELTIC CHRISTMAS MUSIC PODCAST #92: INSTRUMENTAL CHRISTMAS MUSIC FOR CELTS
- What if Christmas had no lyrics? Just fiddles, whistles, pipes, and dulcimers dancing through your speakers? That's episode 92. And it is spectacular.
- It’s Celtic Christmas Music #92
- The Fire, The Rogues, The Jig is Up!, Cedar Dobson, The Lilies of the Midwest, Ashley MacIsaac, Maggie Sansone, Irish Christmas in America, Gaelynn Lea
NEW CELTIC ALBUMS
- Harfenrundfahrt – by Irregang
- Between the Worlds III – by David De Michele
- Returning Home – by Kenn Gordon & Raven
- Knight of Flowers – by Ebunny
- Celtic Acoustic: Picnic Beyond the Festival Walls – by YUNOKIA
- Ladies Loe – by Ladies Loe
- Land of My Youth – by Donald Lindsay
- Caoin Abhainn – by Mara Caol
- Sean Chnoic – by Bracken Veil
- Woman Of The Earth – by Spiral Dance
Attn Bands: Go to 4celts.com to submit your band to the podcast.
THE SCOTTISH HISTORY PODCAST: 140 – TWISH – THE BATTLE OF THE CLANS
- This Week In Scottish History sees the anniversary of “The Battle of The Clans”.
- A battle between 60 men – 30 on each side – sanctioned by the King, Robert III and fought in Perth.
- Very interesting story so it's just one long story for TWISH this time.
DOLORES KEANE SET TO BE INDUCTED INTO MUSIC HALL OF FAME
- DOLORES KEANE is to be posthumously honoured for her contribution to Irish folk and traditional music.
- The Galway native, who died in March, will be inducted into the RTÉ Radio 1 Folk Awards Hall of Fame this autumn.
- “Dolores Keane was one of the defining voices of Irish folk and traditional music, celebrated for her rich, expressive singing and her lifelong commitment to preserving Ireland’s musical heritage,” an RTÉ spokesperson explained as they confirmed the honour this month.
To read more, go here!
GERRY QUINN'S IRISH RADIO SHOW SEPTEMBER 27 2026
- Tom Curran and Bill Johnson in studio.
MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS EXHIBITION TO OPEN IN EDINBURGH
- A new exhibition presenting Mary Queen of Scots as a Renaissance queen and giving a flavour of what it was like to be in her “vibrant” court is to open in Edinburgh next year.
- Curators said that while many think of Mary dressed in black and see her through the lens of her death, the exhibition aims to challenge perceptions and show a contrasting side, when she was a sophisticated figure moving between palaces…
To read more, go here!
LISTEN: IRISH CRIME WRITER TAKES AIM AT THE WICKED STEPMOTHER MYTH IN GRIPPING NEW THRILLER
- Eleven novels into her career, Irish crime writer Sheila Bugler still sits down at her desk with no idea what the next chapter holds, or even the next word. Speaking on the Irish books podcast Natter with Kate and Michelle, the Ballinasloe native discussed her latest psychological thriller “The Stepmother”, which turns one of fiction's most enduring and misogynistic tropes on its head.
- Crime writer Sheila Bugler has published eleven novels, but she still sits down to write without knowing what is going to happen next…
To read more, go here!
IRISH DNA MAP REVEALS VIKINGS LEFT A FAR DEEPER MARK ON IRELAND THAN THOUGHT
- The Vikings raided Ireland for two centuries before Brian Boru broke their power at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014, and it turns out they left behind far more than ruins and artifacts. A detailed “DNA map” assembled by genealogist Gianpiero Cavalleri of the Royal College of Surgeons shows the Norse intermingled with local women on a scale historians never suspected, with the closest genetic matches found along the north and west coasts of Norway.
- A “DNA map” of Ireland reveals that the Viking raiders intermingled with local women far more than was previously thought. Genealogist Gianpiero Cavalleri of the Royal College of Surgeons pieced together a detailed map after studying the DNA of over 500 Irishmen and women…
To read more, go here!
CELTICFEST MISSISSIPPI
- A Traditional Irish & Scottish Music, Dance, Athletics & Cultural Festival held in Central MS on the Barnett Reservoir the 2nd Weekend in October.
- Entertainers performing are Albannach, The Harbor Trio, Jenny & the Weazels, Flutilla, Mind The Dresser, The Old Ways, RAW Primal Performance Troupe, and many more!!!!!
WHAT ARE YOU DOING WHILE LISTENING?
You can send a comment or a picture of what you're doing. You can also send a photo from one of your trips to a Celtic nation or anywhere around the globe.
Slainte!
Todd Wiley (he/him) & Marc Gunn (he/him), The Celtfather
October 1, 2026
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