Beyond the cable car: Local podcast highlights life of Dursey's islanders

A BEARA tour guide has released a podcast series featuring some of the people who keep Dursey Island running.

The Dursey Island Discs series was created by local writer and manager of Beara Baoi Tours Carina McNally.

Ms McNally was inspired by BBC Radio 4's long-running 'Desert Island Discs' programme and originally released the podcast as part of the Beara Arts Festival.

To create it, she interviewed a number of Dursey locals and others who have close associations with the island.

All of the interviewees were asked to imagine what records, book, luxury item and companion they would take with them if they were ever stuck on the island.

The series, available on Soundcloud, was recorded by Cormac O’Connor and produced by Marc O’Sullivan Vallig.

Dursey, which is the only Irish island connected to the mainland by cable car, has featured in headlines recently following the announcement of a temporary closure of the Dursey Cable Car.

Cork County Council expects that the service will pause from April to November in order to facilitate essential works.

“The works relate to the towers which suffered during recent adverse weather events including Storm Barra in December 2021,” the council stated.

“Cork County Council has been informed that considering their age, condition, and likely future exposure to strong winds, these towers must now be reinforced or replaced."

Separately, the decision to approve planning for a €10m visitors centre and new cable car for the island is set to face a judicial review after Friends of the Irish Environment (FIE) were granted permission to bring a review of An Bord Pleanála's decision.