A chara, – Regarding John McEntee’s enjoyable piece on carnivals (An Irishman’s Diary, November 12th), I can reassure him that this intriguing slice of rural life in Ireland is attracting the attention of some cultural historians.
As part of my research project, interviews with dancers in Co Roscommon have recorded their vivid and colourful memories of dancing at the carnivals, halls and house dances of north Roscommon between 1940 and 1960: surely a golden period for recreational dance in Ireland. I can also recommend the work of Barbara O’Connor and Luke Gibbons in this general area. – Yours, etc,