Ireland (2022) Movie Script
1
(birds singing)
- (wind whooshing)
- (leaves rustling)
(insects buzzing)
- (wind whooshing)
- (thunder rumbling)
(croaking)
Narrator: "I will arise and go now,
and go to Innisfree.
And I shall have some peace there,
for peace comes dropping slow.
Dropping from the veils of the
morning to where the cricket sings."
(honking)
(grunting)
The restless poet William Butler Yeats
found peace in wild places.
Like many great Irish writers,
he felt a spiritual current
that surges through this land.
Nowhere else does every brush with nature
feel so intense...
so full of life.
(seagulls squawking)
The poetry of Yeats, which evokes
the essence of Ireland,
still inspires many of our writers.
Manchan: I write in a house
of mud, straw and stone
with a roof of clay and grass,
created from the soil of Ireland.
If I'm speaking Irish,
my name is "Man-a-han."
If I'm speaking English, I say "Mon-con."
Who wants a banana?
You want a banana?
(pigs snorting)
(voice-over): As I tend
my pigs and vegetables,
I'm rooted in a long tradition.
For centuries, our
farmers have been coaxing
green shoots out of this rocky soil.
This land, this lush island of Ireland
has always fed us and nourished our soul.
(reeds rustling)
(woman singing in Gaelic)
Narrator: This emerald-green island,
where I was born, is a kind of paradise.
(singing continues)
When the first history
of our island was written,
it was called "The Book of Invasions."
Outsiders came here, attracted
by its beauty, and its rich soil.
The Vikings came, then the Normans.
Out of our rocky soil,
we built massive fortresses
and walls to keep us safe.
But the invaders, they came anyway...
Nine invasions in all.
Some newcomers built grandiose
mansions on the best lands,
pushing the Irish people aside.
For centuries, we fought them in vain,
skirmish after
skirmish, until an
independence movement
freed Southern Ireland.
All the while, we longed for peace
between regions, peace between religions.
Then, in 1998, all
clashing parties signed the
Belfast Peace Agreement,
changing Ireland forever.
We were finally able to look to the future
with joy in our hearts.
This was a new Ireland.
(bird calling)
To help the healing process,
a growing network of young Irish musicians
from both north and south have
joined forces to spread musical harmony.
(playing jazz)
Their adventures will be the
focus of Manchan's next book.
Manchan (voice-over):
These kids are different.
They have a whole new confidence.
This is a new generation of Irish.
It's a new Ireland.
(Noah groans)
Manchan (voice-over): Rhiannon
grew up in Northern Ireland,
which is part of the United Kingdom.
Her parents lived through the angry years.
The others are from the south,
the Republic of Ireland.
Noah wants to become a rock star.
He plays three instruments and he sings.
Noah: Ah!
Rhiannon: I think... I
don't know where we are.
Manchan: Osama is an
example of the new Ireland.
He's Irish Lebanese.
He hopes to be a computer scientist.
Molly: Osama!
- Osama!
- Yeah!
Manchan: And Molly is a linguist.
She proudly speaks Gaelic.
She wants to keep our language alive.
Through their music, these kids
are trying to push the past aside.
In ten days, they'll play a recital in
the North, for the President of Ireland.
And we're all gonna head up there together
so that I can learn more
about them for my book.
Noah: Oh, yeah.
(chattering)
Lovely.
Did you say "Kildare"?
Adare.
Adare. A-D.
Manchan: Their mentor, Patricia Treacy,
will help me on the trip.
You don't need those machines.
Everything is laid out here.
Look at that. Like,
there's nothing that isn't...
(voice-over): And for
this, I'm really grateful,
because... (chuckles)
traveling with teenagers
is kind of daunting for me.
Manchan, your map's upside-down.
(laughs)
(voice-over): Our first stop
is Ireland's capital, Dublin...
(birds chirping)
which has the largest
urban park in Europe.
Dublin is a sophisticated city of music,
great gastronomic experiences and fun.
And, you know, then
you get to the urban place
where everyone gathers,
and there's this energy.
Like, and it's no surprise
that all the great music...
(voice-over): We Irish
live and breathe stories.
Always have. They help us come to terms
with the tragedies which once plagued us.
Go.
(laughs)
Oh, you still jumped?
(applause)
(voice-over): We love our writers so much
that we even have street
parties to celebrate them.
"Alarmed face asks me."
Manchan: Today we're dressing up in honor
of the great James Joyce.
"And the garters were blue to match
on account of the transparent
and they all saw it and shouted to...
(gasps) look, look, there it was."
(applause)
Manchan (voice-over): In Dublin's center
stands the 400-year-old university
Trinity College,
treasure house of stories and learning.
Just love these wonderful
colors in the front.
Spectacular.
And, imagine, we're right in the...
(speaking indistinctly)
(voice-over): This vast collection of books
once represented a significant proportion
of the entire acquired
knowledge of the human race.
In pride of place
is one of Ireland's most valued treasures,
the Book of Kells, one of the most
precious objects in the Western world.
It's principally the
Gospels written out by
hand in the old Gaelic
script by Irish monks.
But you can see, the
monks got pretty obsessed
in decorating every inch of the pages.
(birds chirping)
These four teens were born
after the peace treaty was signed.
So all of the dark, troubled years
don't seem to weigh them down.
They seem lighthearted and carefree.
What is that you say?
Brit-Britney Spears, uh-huh
- Boo, no, Frankenstein
- Frankenstein
Frank-Frankenstein, bzz
Frankenstein, Frank-Frankenstein, bzz
Boogaloo, boo-boogaloo, whoo
Boogaloo, boo, please
My name is Joe, all right?
Are you busy? And I said
Right button, left button, head, toe
- (muffled singing)
- (laughing)
And I said yes.
And it's no, nay, never
No, nay, never, no more
Will I play the wild rover
No, never, no more
Machan: I learned fast that
you have to keep kids exhausted.
But in Ireland, that's sort of easy.
We love all sports,
especially Irish hurling.
And there's the best golfing in the world.
I went to an alehouse
I used to frequent
And I told the landlady
My money was spent
I asked her for credit
She answered me nay
Sure, a custom like yours
I can have any day
And it's no...
Manchan (voice-over): As
we head for the Atlantic Coast,
we pass some of Ireland's 400 castles.
Many are now hotels
where Irish Americans like Ronald Reagan
and Joe Biden have stayed.
No, never
No more...
Narrator: The sleepy
little harbor of Portmagee
in County Kerry is the gateway
to an unforgettable voyage back in time.
From here, Manchan will take the teenagers
to two magical islands,
where a thousand years of Irish history
still lives and breathes.
And it's no, nay, never
No, nay, never, no more
Manchan (voice-over):
And the kids have no idea
what they're getting into.
Never
No more.
(birds calling)
The towering rocks of Little Skellig
are the first stop for migrating birds
crossing the ocean from the Americas.
These whooper swans just arrived.
(honking)
These big guys, five feet long,
are so heavy that their legs
barely support them on land.
(honking)
And this is one of the largest
colonies of gannets in the world.
(squawking)
The Skelligs are also home to
one of my favorite creatures, puffins.
(grunting)
Narrator: Male and
female puffins mate for life.
(grunting)
-(squeaking)
-(grunting)
Scientists have recently discovered
that their beaks are fluorescent.
They glow at night.
(squawking)
Puffins live in burrows.
It's really difficult to count them,
Which means it's very hard
to get population estimates.
Narrator: The scientists Mark and Martha
come here to count the puffins,
even the baby chicks
hiding in their burrows
- in the ground.
- It's got a camera.
-(squeaking)
Martha: And there we
have it, a little chick.
Rhiannon: Aw, there's a little chick.
-Aw. -(chuckles)
Martha: And puffin chicks
are actually called pufflings.
- Aw. That's lovely.
- They don't resemble their parents at all.
Rhiannon: Aw, that's really cute.
Manchan: Sadly, puffin
numbers are dwindling.
(woman vocalizing)
Narrator: The Irish playwright
George Bernard Shaw described
the main island, Skellig Michael,
as "part of our dream world."
Half monastery, half fortress,
this place guards our
deepest spiritual roots.
(seabirds calling)
You can feel it in every rock you touch.
(woman vocalizing)
Perhaps that's the reason two
"Star Wars" films were shot here.
Manchan (voice-over): The
climb to the top is so demanding.
But my mind becomes obsessed
with the people who created
this remote island sanctuary.
Here, patient monks,
like those who created the "Book of Kells,"
could feel closest to God.
We just go around that bend,
-and then we're there.
-Oh, okay.
Manchan: Yeah.
If we could pray to Saint
Michael, and everybody.
Rhiannon: And so we pray.
(indistinct chatter)
Manchan: Oh, my knees.
Almost there.
I'm gonna take a rest at the top.
(wind whistling)
(seagulls squawking)
Narrator: More than a thousand years ago,
Europe was engulfed by a cloak of darkness
called the Dark Ages.
Books were burned, wars raged,
cultures were destroyed.
But when this island was invaded,
the monks successfully hid the priceless
books, and fought the Vikings off.
Here, one passageway
called the Needle's Eye
was almost impenetrable,
offering an ideal spot to safeguard
the priceless manuscripts from the Greeks,
and from the Romans.
(woman vocalizing)
Noah (voice-over):
Something very peaceful about
being out in the middle
of nowhere, to be honest.
(chuckles)
Manchan (voice-over): At the
top, we all feel something special.
This truly is a power-place of inspiration.
Rhiannon: Manchan is right.
The island really has a touch of magic.
(seagulls squawking)
Narrator: Ireland was, for some time,
a lighthouse of ideas and
knowledge shining out,
steering people back out of the darkness.
Some historians claim
that the Irish monks here
and elsewhere bravely
saved Western civilization.
I hear some of that idealistic spirit
in the Ireland of today.
Manchan (voice-over): We
drive along the Wild Atlantic Way,
heading towards the famous Cliffs of Moher.
(woman singing in Gaelic)
Manchan: This majestic, eight-mile-long
wall of stone rises
above the Atlantic Ocean.
Noah (voice-over): Looking
down, 500 feet above,
you get an adrenaline rush
that's completely unmatched.
Manchan: Be careful, be careful.
Osama: Ooh, yeah.
Noah: Come on, jump in and see.
(Osama laughs)
Noah (voice-over): I mean, what a drop.
Manchan (voice-over): When I was young,
like every Irish child,
I learned about a hero called Oisin
and his mythical quest to find an island
beyond these cliffs.
The land of eternal youth and joy.
With stories like these,
we got through the dark times.
And now, we're rising
towards the light again.
(woman vocalizing)
Oh, my.
Noah (voice-over): To get to
Ireland's most infamous wave,
surfers descend the
cliff down a narrow path.
One of those surfers is
Fergal Smith, an Irishman.
Fergal is a shining
example of the new Ireland.
After six years on the World Surfing Tour,
with plenty of wins, he
gave up his surfing career
to come home and work on his organic farm.
Ireland's soil.
Fergal Smith: I knew
exactly what I needed to do.
I needed to get back to the land
and start doing purposeful work;
work that's of real benefit for the soil.
And if we can create this better soil,
then we have healthier
people, healthier community,
but most of all, we've got a future.
(conversation indistinct)
Manchan (voice-over): Fergal tells us about
how we're now finding nutritional and
medicinal benefits of our wild seaweed.
There were times in history when we Irish
didn't have enough to eat.
Our survival depended on
just one single crop: potatoes.
We ate... (laughs) We ate them
morning, noon and night.
In the 1840s, when the potato crop failed,
a million died of disease and starvation.
Two million emigrated, mostly to America.
It copper-fastened a connection
to the United States
that has grown stronger
and more potent with every year.
Today, we're... (laughs)
we're becoming foodies.
- This looks unreal.
- Yeah.
(speaks indistinctly)
Narrator: The poet Yeats wrote,
"The world is full of magic things
patiently waiting for our senses
to grow sharper."
-(dog barking)
-(sheep bleating)
Our emerald isle seems
to have magic in its soil.
The Irish always had a
belief in the other world.
The spirit realm. The sanctity of nature.
Manchan (voice-over): Our ancestors
saw a divine presence in everything.
Every leaf, every raindrop.
Every single thorn on a blackberry bush.
And if one goes through the world
with that mindset, it
sort of affects how you do
so much of what you do.
(bleating)
(trumpeting)
On the first of May every year...
Manchan: This is what we've been doing.
People have been getting up at cock-crow,
and then you either wash your face,
or you roll your entire body
- in the early morning dew.
- A bit cold.
Well, if you want, you can strip off,
but I'm just gonna... At this hour, though,
I'm just gonna do my face.
So you find whatever dew
that's been left on the grass...
(voice-over): Ireland is alive
with an invisible presence.
Manchan: Okay, now, rub them...
(voice-over): A playful, healing spirit.
And I'm hoping that a bit of that
might rub off on the kids.
Rhiannon (voice-over): My
skin felt amazing afterwards.
There. You are now guaranteed
beauty and health for the whole year.
I already have beauty
and health. Anything else?
- (Manchan laughs)
- Money?
Don't thank me. You're
all right, you're welcome.
Least I could do.
(Noah laughs)
Manchan (voice-over): I
really love how the poet Yeats
writes about Ireland.
About its hidden magic beauty,
its wild coastline, its
mythical waterfalls.
And the pure, warped genius
and idealism of its people.
Even Yeats' grave is poetic.
"Cast a cold eye on life, on death,
horseman pass by."
Basically, like, he saw himself as
channeling the essence of Ireland.
So that was what was important, not him.
So just ignore life,
ignore death, move on by.
So the horsemen are just us, you know.
We're meant to just forget about it,
which we should do, and just move on
and find our own essence of Ireland.
The kids are finally speaking up about
which Irish places they want to see.
Like the beach that offers surfing lessons,
for beginners.
She played the fiddle in an Irish band
But she fell in love with an Englishman
Kissed her on the neck
And then I took her by the hand
Said, "Baby, I just want to dance"
I met her on Grafton Street
Right outside of the
bar, she shared a cigarette
With me while her
brother played the guitar
She asked me what does it mean
The Gaelic ink on your arm?
Said it was one of my friend's songs
Do you want to drink on?
She took Jamie as a chaser...
MOLLY (voice-over): I absolutely loved
- learning how to surf.
- (whooping)
Chatted some more,
one more drink at the bar
Then put Van on the jukebox
Got up to dance, you know
She played her fiddle in an Irish band
But she fell in love with an Englishman
Kissed her on the neck
And then I took her by the hand
Said, "Baby, I just want to dance
With my pretty little Galway girl
(kids whooping)
'Cause you're my
pretty little Galway girl
You know she beat me at darts
And then she beat me at pool
And then she kissed me like there was
Nobody else in the room
As last orders were called
Was when she stood on the stool
After dancing to ceilidh
Singing to trad tunes
I never heard "Carrickfergus"
Ever sung so sweet
A capella in the bar
Using her feet for a beat
Oh, I could have that voice playing
- On repeat for a week
- (indistinct)
And in this packed out room
Swear she was singing to me
You know she played her fiddle
In an Irish band
But she fell in love with an Englishman
Kissed her on the neck and then
I took her by the hand
Said, "Baby, I just want to dance"
My pretty little...
Narrator: Redheads are celebrated here.
We have five times
more than any other place
- on Planet Earth.
- (all cheering)
Rhiannon: A bit ago, we all kissed
the Blarney Stone.
That's it. Hold onto the bar.
Narrator: Legend says that when you kiss
the Blarney Stone, you're forever blessed
with the gift of gab.
Rhiannon: And now
the boys will not shut up.
Both: Moo!
Moo. You know me, I-I like to talk.
(laughter)
(video plays indistinctly)
(laughter, indistinct chatter)
Manchan (voice-over): Years
ago, I did a show on Irish TV
to get us all to at least try to speak
the Irish language, Gaelic, a little more
to keep it alive.
(speaking Gaelic)
I wasn't caring about my fashion.
I was trying to make a point
about the language, you know.
(speaking Gaelic)
No sprachen the...
- "No sprachen."
- "No sprachen!"
No sprachen the Irish.
Manchan (voice-over): I
tried, in a humorous way,
to show that our Gaelic
language may be dying.
Our native tongue carries ancient codes
of who we are.
In Galway, we stop to listen to a man
who is committed to
saving the Gaelic language:
our president, Michael D. Higgins.
It's a treat for the
kids to hear him speak,
as they'll play a concert for him later.
(man speaking Gaelic)
Manchan: Gaelic stories are treasures
that help heal our troubled past.
As we head north, we'll be crossing
the invisible border that splits the island
into two parts.
As we leave the Republic of Ireland,
we enter Northern Ireland.
For Noah, Osama and
Molly, it's another country.
For Rhiannon, this is home.
Rhiannon (voice-over): I wanted
to bring everyone to a rope bridge.
It was built long ago by a fisherman.
Manchan: Hold on for dear life.
I don't know about you, Rhiannon,
but I'm not liking this.
Patricia: Nearly there.
Nearly there.
I'm not liking it one bit.
Narrator: The fisherman
who built the bridge
did so to store his boat in a safe spot.
Sometimes, the way ahead is precarious,
but we go anyway.
Manchan (voice-over):
Today we're on our way
to UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Aw, dude, I love Giant's
Causeway. Oh, I love it.
Manchan: The mist
rollin' over the sea...
(voice-over): The Giant's Causeway is said
to have been built by our greatest hero,
Fionn Mac Cumhaill, to
protect us from an evil giant.
Rhiannon: Our guide
tells a different explanation.
Jennifer explains that
the basalt rock formations
were created by volcanic eruptions
about 60 million years ago.
Jennifer: These eruptions
erupted into a lava lake.
So imagine it's contracting as it cools.
And because it's a homogeneous composition,
as it contracts, it forms
these 90-degree angles.
So you can probably see them here.
- Yeah.
- It either formed a six-sided shape,
a five-sided shape, or I think there's some
seven- and eight-sided shapes.
Noah: The slower it cools,
the more hexagonal the shape of it.
Jennifer: Yeah, the more time it has,
and form its shapes.
Osama (voice-over):
Jennifer said there are about
40,000 of these basalt columns.
This place is huge, and it's amazing.
You're gonna have to
just go for it. (chuckles)
Now, Osama. Now, now, now!
Quick, quick, quick. Go, go, go.
Yay!
I am shocked.
Manchan: In the past, we used our mythology
to explain things that
we didn't fully understand.
(indistinct chatter)
Ancient stories help make sense of life.
Music and song can do that, too.
I'd love to welcome you today
to our little band of musicians.
We're gonna play a tune for you.
(playing "Danny Boy")
Rhiannon (voice-over):
I'm really excited to
show my friends where I grew up.
But come ye back
When summer's in the meadow
Or when the valley's hushed
And white with snow
Narrator: During the
Northern Ireland conflict,
a wall was built through Belfast city
to protect rival
communities from each other.
Though she was raised here,
Rhiannon has never seen the wall until now.
Danny boy, oh, Danny boy
I love you so...
Rhiannon: The Troubles
are a distant memory for most,
but the wall is a reminder of
the constant scar that they've left.
Narrator: Today, Northern
Ireland is at peace.
In the city of Derry,
there's now this elegant
bridge connecting what were
once warring communities.
It's a curved bridge.
Why? Because the road to peace
is never easy or straight.
The place where I am lying
And kneel and say
An "Ave" there for me
And I shall hear...
Narrator: We've had a
long history of conflict,
but now the whole island of Ireland is
embracing peace as one
people, united by our youth.
And all my grave
Will warmer, sweeter be
For you will bend
And tell me that you love me...
Rhiannon (voice-over):
A very important thing
we learned is how to
listen to each other, closely.
And that's true of everything in life.
We can't work together
as one if we don't listen.
And I shall sleep in peace
Until you come
To
Me.
Osama (voice-over): Even
though we all come from
these different backgrounds,
it really feels like a family.
Narrator: The Irish family is coming home.
You can feel it in the air.
For Manchan and his young friends,
Belfast is the natural end point
of their pilgrimage.
This once-bleak city,
so full of strife and turmoil, is now alive
with a new spirit of harmony.
Manchan (voice-over):
This is the first time
I've been to Belfast in years,
and it feels like a new city.
Younger. More vibrant.
Narrator: I grew up roaming these fields
and forests, where "Game
of Thrones" was filmed.
As more people discover her
secret places, Northern Ireland
blossoms, which, I have to
tell you, does my heart good.
Manchan (voice-over):
For these four musicians,
playing for the president of Ireland
was the highlight of the whole trip.
Narrator: Over the past month,
the four kids and their mentor,
Patricia Treacy, have inspired people
with their music all over our island.
These kids are building toward the future.
As the poet Seamus Heaney would say,
a future where the new and the old,
where hope and history can rhyme.
Like the tenacious Irish farmers of old,
these idealistic young musicians
have made little green shoots of hope
start sprouting.
Manchan (voice-over):
Seeing them play Irish music
for our president, it just
hits me out of the blue
that I am so proud of
my four young friends.
(applause)
Just being with these kids has shown me
that when your heart
breaks free of the past,
love can actually grow inside.
("Dreams" by the Cranberries playing)
Whoo!
- (cheers and applause)
- That's good.
Oh, come on, Moko.
Narrator: Manchan spent his youth
traveling the world, and writing books
about the experience.
own my food, and then it'd be lovely
to have enough food that you could just...
Before this we'd seen the
forest was being cut away
more and more by local farmers,
and we were scared. But this area...
Narrator: Now, as he's gotten to know
these four musicians...
the theme for his book has become clear.
The young are creating a new Ireland.
(indistinct chatter)
And, oh, my dreams
It's never quite as it seems
Never quite as it seems
(indistinct conversation)
I know I felt like this before
But now I'm feeling it even more
Because it came from you
Ooh!
Then I open up and see
The person falling here is me
A different way to be
(vocalizing)
Narrator: The poet Yeats urged us
to find our own essence of Ireland.
And the young in
Ireland are doing just that.
And now I tell you openly
You have my heart so don't hurt me
You're what I couldn't find...
Narrator: And like the
monks of Skellig Island,
these kids and their fresh spirit
have become a beacon of hope for the world.
You're everything to me
Dream to me
(cheering)
(clapping in time)
(indistinct chatter)
(singer vocalizing)
(indistinct chatter)
(singer vocalizing)
(indistinct conversation)
Look at you.
One, two, three.
(laughter)
(birds singing)
- (wind whooshing)
- (leaves rustling)
(insects buzzing)
- (wind whooshing)
- (thunder rumbling)
(croaking)
Narrator: "I will arise and go now,
and go to Innisfree.
And I shall have some peace there,
for peace comes dropping slow.
Dropping from the veils of the
morning to where the cricket sings."
(honking)
(grunting)
The restless poet William Butler Yeats
found peace in wild places.
Like many great Irish writers,
he felt a spiritual current
that surges through this land.
Nowhere else does every brush with nature
feel so intense...
so full of life.
(seagulls squawking)
The poetry of Yeats, which evokes
the essence of Ireland,
still inspires many of our writers.
Manchan: I write in a house
of mud, straw and stone
with a roof of clay and grass,
created from the soil of Ireland.
If I'm speaking Irish,
my name is "Man-a-han."
If I'm speaking English, I say "Mon-con."
Who wants a banana?
You want a banana?
(pigs snorting)
(voice-over): As I tend
my pigs and vegetables,
I'm rooted in a long tradition.
For centuries, our
farmers have been coaxing
green shoots out of this rocky soil.
This land, this lush island of Ireland
has always fed us and nourished our soul.
(reeds rustling)
(woman singing in Gaelic)
Narrator: This emerald-green island,
where I was born, is a kind of paradise.
(singing continues)
When the first history
of our island was written,
it was called "The Book of Invasions."
Outsiders came here, attracted
by its beauty, and its rich soil.
The Vikings came, then the Normans.
Out of our rocky soil,
we built massive fortresses
and walls to keep us safe.
But the invaders, they came anyway...
Nine invasions in all.
Some newcomers built grandiose
mansions on the best lands,
pushing the Irish people aside.
For centuries, we fought them in vain,
skirmish after
skirmish, until an
independence movement
freed Southern Ireland.
All the while, we longed for peace
between regions, peace between religions.
Then, in 1998, all
clashing parties signed the
Belfast Peace Agreement,
changing Ireland forever.
We were finally able to look to the future
with joy in our hearts.
This was a new Ireland.
(bird calling)
To help the healing process,
a growing network of young Irish musicians
from both north and south have
joined forces to spread musical harmony.
(playing jazz)
Their adventures will be the
focus of Manchan's next book.
Manchan (voice-over):
These kids are different.
They have a whole new confidence.
This is a new generation of Irish.
It's a new Ireland.
(Noah groans)
Manchan (voice-over): Rhiannon
grew up in Northern Ireland,
which is part of the United Kingdom.
Her parents lived through the angry years.
The others are from the south,
the Republic of Ireland.
Noah wants to become a rock star.
He plays three instruments and he sings.
Noah: Ah!
Rhiannon: I think... I
don't know where we are.
Manchan: Osama is an
example of the new Ireland.
He's Irish Lebanese.
He hopes to be a computer scientist.
Molly: Osama!
- Osama!
- Yeah!
Manchan: And Molly is a linguist.
She proudly speaks Gaelic.
She wants to keep our language alive.
Through their music, these kids
are trying to push the past aside.
In ten days, they'll play a recital in
the North, for the President of Ireland.
And we're all gonna head up there together
so that I can learn more
about them for my book.
Noah: Oh, yeah.
(chattering)
Lovely.
Did you say "Kildare"?
Adare.
Adare. A-D.
Manchan: Their mentor, Patricia Treacy,
will help me on the trip.
You don't need those machines.
Everything is laid out here.
Look at that. Like,
there's nothing that isn't...
(voice-over): And for
this, I'm really grateful,
because... (chuckles)
traveling with teenagers
is kind of daunting for me.
Manchan, your map's upside-down.
(laughs)
(voice-over): Our first stop
is Ireland's capital, Dublin...
(birds chirping)
which has the largest
urban park in Europe.
Dublin is a sophisticated city of music,
great gastronomic experiences and fun.
And, you know, then
you get to the urban place
where everyone gathers,
and there's this energy.
Like, and it's no surprise
that all the great music...
(voice-over): We Irish
live and breathe stories.
Always have. They help us come to terms
with the tragedies which once plagued us.
Go.
(laughs)
Oh, you still jumped?
(applause)
(voice-over): We love our writers so much
that we even have street
parties to celebrate them.
"Alarmed face asks me."
Manchan: Today we're dressing up in honor
of the great James Joyce.
"And the garters were blue to match
on account of the transparent
and they all saw it and shouted to...
(gasps) look, look, there it was."
(applause)
Manchan (voice-over): In Dublin's center
stands the 400-year-old university
Trinity College,
treasure house of stories and learning.
Just love these wonderful
colors in the front.
Spectacular.
And, imagine, we're right in the...
(speaking indistinctly)
(voice-over): This vast collection of books
once represented a significant proportion
of the entire acquired
knowledge of the human race.
In pride of place
is one of Ireland's most valued treasures,
the Book of Kells, one of the most
precious objects in the Western world.
It's principally the
Gospels written out by
hand in the old Gaelic
script by Irish monks.
But you can see, the
monks got pretty obsessed
in decorating every inch of the pages.
(birds chirping)
These four teens were born
after the peace treaty was signed.
So all of the dark, troubled years
don't seem to weigh them down.
They seem lighthearted and carefree.
What is that you say?
Brit-Britney Spears, uh-huh
- Boo, no, Frankenstein
- Frankenstein
Frank-Frankenstein, bzz
Frankenstein, Frank-Frankenstein, bzz
Boogaloo, boo-boogaloo, whoo
Boogaloo, boo, please
My name is Joe, all right?
Are you busy? And I said
Right button, left button, head, toe
- (muffled singing)
- (laughing)
And I said yes.
And it's no, nay, never
No, nay, never, no more
Will I play the wild rover
No, never, no more
Machan: I learned fast that
you have to keep kids exhausted.
But in Ireland, that's sort of easy.
We love all sports,
especially Irish hurling.
And there's the best golfing in the world.
I went to an alehouse
I used to frequent
And I told the landlady
My money was spent
I asked her for credit
She answered me nay
Sure, a custom like yours
I can have any day
And it's no...
Manchan (voice-over): As
we head for the Atlantic Coast,
we pass some of Ireland's 400 castles.
Many are now hotels
where Irish Americans like Ronald Reagan
and Joe Biden have stayed.
No, never
No more...
Narrator: The sleepy
little harbor of Portmagee
in County Kerry is the gateway
to an unforgettable voyage back in time.
From here, Manchan will take the teenagers
to two magical islands,
where a thousand years of Irish history
still lives and breathes.
And it's no, nay, never
No, nay, never, no more
Manchan (voice-over):
And the kids have no idea
what they're getting into.
Never
No more.
(birds calling)
The towering rocks of Little Skellig
are the first stop for migrating birds
crossing the ocean from the Americas.
These whooper swans just arrived.
(honking)
These big guys, five feet long,
are so heavy that their legs
barely support them on land.
(honking)
And this is one of the largest
colonies of gannets in the world.
(squawking)
The Skelligs are also home to
one of my favorite creatures, puffins.
(grunting)
Narrator: Male and
female puffins mate for life.
(grunting)
-(squeaking)
-(grunting)
Scientists have recently discovered
that their beaks are fluorescent.
They glow at night.
(squawking)
Puffins live in burrows.
It's really difficult to count them,
Which means it's very hard
to get population estimates.
Narrator: The scientists Mark and Martha
come here to count the puffins,
even the baby chicks
hiding in their burrows
- in the ground.
- It's got a camera.
-(squeaking)
Martha: And there we
have it, a little chick.
Rhiannon: Aw, there's a little chick.
-Aw. -(chuckles)
Martha: And puffin chicks
are actually called pufflings.
- Aw. That's lovely.
- They don't resemble their parents at all.
Rhiannon: Aw, that's really cute.
Manchan: Sadly, puffin
numbers are dwindling.
(woman vocalizing)
Narrator: The Irish playwright
George Bernard Shaw described
the main island, Skellig Michael,
as "part of our dream world."
Half monastery, half fortress,
this place guards our
deepest spiritual roots.
(seabirds calling)
You can feel it in every rock you touch.
(woman vocalizing)
Perhaps that's the reason two
"Star Wars" films were shot here.
Manchan (voice-over): The
climb to the top is so demanding.
But my mind becomes obsessed
with the people who created
this remote island sanctuary.
Here, patient monks,
like those who created the "Book of Kells,"
could feel closest to God.
We just go around that bend,
-and then we're there.
-Oh, okay.
Manchan: Yeah.
If we could pray to Saint
Michael, and everybody.
Rhiannon: And so we pray.
(indistinct chatter)
Manchan: Oh, my knees.
Almost there.
I'm gonna take a rest at the top.
(wind whistling)
(seagulls squawking)
Narrator: More than a thousand years ago,
Europe was engulfed by a cloak of darkness
called the Dark Ages.
Books were burned, wars raged,
cultures were destroyed.
But when this island was invaded,
the monks successfully hid the priceless
books, and fought the Vikings off.
Here, one passageway
called the Needle's Eye
was almost impenetrable,
offering an ideal spot to safeguard
the priceless manuscripts from the Greeks,
and from the Romans.
(woman vocalizing)
Noah (voice-over):
Something very peaceful about
being out in the middle
of nowhere, to be honest.
(chuckles)
Manchan (voice-over): At the
top, we all feel something special.
This truly is a power-place of inspiration.
Rhiannon: Manchan is right.
The island really has a touch of magic.
(seagulls squawking)
Narrator: Ireland was, for some time,
a lighthouse of ideas and
knowledge shining out,
steering people back out of the darkness.
Some historians claim
that the Irish monks here
and elsewhere bravely
saved Western civilization.
I hear some of that idealistic spirit
in the Ireland of today.
Manchan (voice-over): We
drive along the Wild Atlantic Way,
heading towards the famous Cliffs of Moher.
(woman singing in Gaelic)
Manchan: This majestic, eight-mile-long
wall of stone rises
above the Atlantic Ocean.
Noah (voice-over): Looking
down, 500 feet above,
you get an adrenaline rush
that's completely unmatched.
Manchan: Be careful, be careful.
Osama: Ooh, yeah.
Noah: Come on, jump in and see.
(Osama laughs)
Noah (voice-over): I mean, what a drop.
Manchan (voice-over): When I was young,
like every Irish child,
I learned about a hero called Oisin
and his mythical quest to find an island
beyond these cliffs.
The land of eternal youth and joy.
With stories like these,
we got through the dark times.
And now, we're rising
towards the light again.
(woman vocalizing)
Oh, my.
Noah (voice-over): To get to
Ireland's most infamous wave,
surfers descend the
cliff down a narrow path.
One of those surfers is
Fergal Smith, an Irishman.
Fergal is a shining
example of the new Ireland.
After six years on the World Surfing Tour,
with plenty of wins, he
gave up his surfing career
to come home and work on his organic farm.
Ireland's soil.
Fergal Smith: I knew
exactly what I needed to do.
I needed to get back to the land
and start doing purposeful work;
work that's of real benefit for the soil.
And if we can create this better soil,
then we have healthier
people, healthier community,
but most of all, we've got a future.
(conversation indistinct)
Manchan (voice-over): Fergal tells us about
how we're now finding nutritional and
medicinal benefits of our wild seaweed.
There were times in history when we Irish
didn't have enough to eat.
Our survival depended on
just one single crop: potatoes.
We ate... (laughs) We ate them
morning, noon and night.
In the 1840s, when the potato crop failed,
a million died of disease and starvation.
Two million emigrated, mostly to America.
It copper-fastened a connection
to the United States
that has grown stronger
and more potent with every year.
Today, we're... (laughs)
we're becoming foodies.
- This looks unreal.
- Yeah.
(speaks indistinctly)
Narrator: The poet Yeats wrote,
"The world is full of magic things
patiently waiting for our senses
to grow sharper."
-(dog barking)
-(sheep bleating)
Our emerald isle seems
to have magic in its soil.
The Irish always had a
belief in the other world.
The spirit realm. The sanctity of nature.
Manchan (voice-over): Our ancestors
saw a divine presence in everything.
Every leaf, every raindrop.
Every single thorn on a blackberry bush.
And if one goes through the world
with that mindset, it
sort of affects how you do
so much of what you do.
(bleating)
(trumpeting)
On the first of May every year...
Manchan: This is what we've been doing.
People have been getting up at cock-crow,
and then you either wash your face,
or you roll your entire body
- in the early morning dew.
- A bit cold.
Well, if you want, you can strip off,
but I'm just gonna... At this hour, though,
I'm just gonna do my face.
So you find whatever dew
that's been left on the grass...
(voice-over): Ireland is alive
with an invisible presence.
Manchan: Okay, now, rub them...
(voice-over): A playful, healing spirit.
And I'm hoping that a bit of that
might rub off on the kids.
Rhiannon (voice-over): My
skin felt amazing afterwards.
There. You are now guaranteed
beauty and health for the whole year.
I already have beauty
and health. Anything else?
- (Manchan laughs)
- Money?
Don't thank me. You're
all right, you're welcome.
Least I could do.
(Noah laughs)
Manchan (voice-over): I
really love how the poet Yeats
writes about Ireland.
About its hidden magic beauty,
its wild coastline, its
mythical waterfalls.
And the pure, warped genius
and idealism of its people.
Even Yeats' grave is poetic.
"Cast a cold eye on life, on death,
horseman pass by."
Basically, like, he saw himself as
channeling the essence of Ireland.
So that was what was important, not him.
So just ignore life,
ignore death, move on by.
So the horsemen are just us, you know.
We're meant to just forget about it,
which we should do, and just move on
and find our own essence of Ireland.
The kids are finally speaking up about
which Irish places they want to see.
Like the beach that offers surfing lessons,
for beginners.
She played the fiddle in an Irish band
But she fell in love with an Englishman
Kissed her on the neck
And then I took her by the hand
Said, "Baby, I just want to dance"
I met her on Grafton Street
Right outside of the
bar, she shared a cigarette
With me while her
brother played the guitar
She asked me what does it mean
The Gaelic ink on your arm?
Said it was one of my friend's songs
Do you want to drink on?
She took Jamie as a chaser...
MOLLY (voice-over): I absolutely loved
- learning how to surf.
- (whooping)
Chatted some more,
one more drink at the bar
Then put Van on the jukebox
Got up to dance, you know
She played her fiddle in an Irish band
But she fell in love with an Englishman
Kissed her on the neck
And then I took her by the hand
Said, "Baby, I just want to dance
With my pretty little Galway girl
(kids whooping)
'Cause you're my
pretty little Galway girl
You know she beat me at darts
And then she beat me at pool
And then she kissed me like there was
Nobody else in the room
As last orders were called
Was when she stood on the stool
After dancing to ceilidh
Singing to trad tunes
I never heard "Carrickfergus"
Ever sung so sweet
A capella in the bar
Using her feet for a beat
Oh, I could have that voice playing
- On repeat for a week
- (indistinct)
And in this packed out room
Swear she was singing to me
You know she played her fiddle
In an Irish band
But she fell in love with an Englishman
Kissed her on the neck and then
I took her by the hand
Said, "Baby, I just want to dance"
My pretty little...
Narrator: Redheads are celebrated here.
We have five times
more than any other place
- on Planet Earth.
- (all cheering)
Rhiannon: A bit ago, we all kissed
the Blarney Stone.
That's it. Hold onto the bar.
Narrator: Legend says that when you kiss
the Blarney Stone, you're forever blessed
with the gift of gab.
Rhiannon: And now
the boys will not shut up.
Both: Moo!
Moo. You know me, I-I like to talk.
(laughter)
(video plays indistinctly)
(laughter, indistinct chatter)
Manchan (voice-over): Years
ago, I did a show on Irish TV
to get us all to at least try to speak
the Irish language, Gaelic, a little more
to keep it alive.
(speaking Gaelic)
I wasn't caring about my fashion.
I was trying to make a point
about the language, you know.
(speaking Gaelic)
No sprachen the...
- "No sprachen."
- "No sprachen!"
No sprachen the Irish.
Manchan (voice-over): I
tried, in a humorous way,
to show that our Gaelic
language may be dying.
Our native tongue carries ancient codes
of who we are.
In Galway, we stop to listen to a man
who is committed to
saving the Gaelic language:
our president, Michael D. Higgins.
It's a treat for the
kids to hear him speak,
as they'll play a concert for him later.
(man speaking Gaelic)
Manchan: Gaelic stories are treasures
that help heal our troubled past.
As we head north, we'll be crossing
the invisible border that splits the island
into two parts.
As we leave the Republic of Ireland,
we enter Northern Ireland.
For Noah, Osama and
Molly, it's another country.
For Rhiannon, this is home.
Rhiannon (voice-over): I wanted
to bring everyone to a rope bridge.
It was built long ago by a fisherman.
Manchan: Hold on for dear life.
I don't know about you, Rhiannon,
but I'm not liking this.
Patricia: Nearly there.
Nearly there.
I'm not liking it one bit.
Narrator: The fisherman
who built the bridge
did so to store his boat in a safe spot.
Sometimes, the way ahead is precarious,
but we go anyway.
Manchan (voice-over):
Today we're on our way
to UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Aw, dude, I love Giant's
Causeway. Oh, I love it.
Manchan: The mist
rollin' over the sea...
(voice-over): The Giant's Causeway is said
to have been built by our greatest hero,
Fionn Mac Cumhaill, to
protect us from an evil giant.
Rhiannon: Our guide
tells a different explanation.
Jennifer explains that
the basalt rock formations
were created by volcanic eruptions
about 60 million years ago.
Jennifer: These eruptions
erupted into a lava lake.
So imagine it's contracting as it cools.
And because it's a homogeneous composition,
as it contracts, it forms
these 90-degree angles.
So you can probably see them here.
- Yeah.
- It either formed a six-sided shape,
a five-sided shape, or I think there's some
seven- and eight-sided shapes.
Noah: The slower it cools,
the more hexagonal the shape of it.
Jennifer: Yeah, the more time it has,
and form its shapes.
Osama (voice-over):
Jennifer said there are about
40,000 of these basalt columns.
This place is huge, and it's amazing.
You're gonna have to
just go for it. (chuckles)
Now, Osama. Now, now, now!
Quick, quick, quick. Go, go, go.
Yay!
I am shocked.
Manchan: In the past, we used our mythology
to explain things that
we didn't fully understand.
(indistinct chatter)
Ancient stories help make sense of life.
Music and song can do that, too.
I'd love to welcome you today
to our little band of musicians.
We're gonna play a tune for you.
(playing "Danny Boy")
Rhiannon (voice-over):
I'm really excited to
show my friends where I grew up.
But come ye back
When summer's in the meadow
Or when the valley's hushed
And white with snow
Narrator: During the
Northern Ireland conflict,
a wall was built through Belfast city
to protect rival
communities from each other.
Though she was raised here,
Rhiannon has never seen the wall until now.
Danny boy, oh, Danny boy
I love you so...
Rhiannon: The Troubles
are a distant memory for most,
but the wall is a reminder of
the constant scar that they've left.
Narrator: Today, Northern
Ireland is at peace.
In the city of Derry,
there's now this elegant
bridge connecting what were
once warring communities.
It's a curved bridge.
Why? Because the road to peace
is never easy or straight.
The place where I am lying
And kneel and say
An "Ave" there for me
And I shall hear...
Narrator: We've had a
long history of conflict,
but now the whole island of Ireland is
embracing peace as one
people, united by our youth.
And all my grave
Will warmer, sweeter be
For you will bend
And tell me that you love me...
Rhiannon (voice-over):
A very important thing
we learned is how to
listen to each other, closely.
And that's true of everything in life.
We can't work together
as one if we don't listen.
And I shall sleep in peace
Until you come
To
Me.
Osama (voice-over): Even
though we all come from
these different backgrounds,
it really feels like a family.
Narrator: The Irish family is coming home.
You can feel it in the air.
For Manchan and his young friends,
Belfast is the natural end point
of their pilgrimage.
This once-bleak city,
so full of strife and turmoil, is now alive
with a new spirit of harmony.
Manchan (voice-over):
This is the first time
I've been to Belfast in years,
and it feels like a new city.
Younger. More vibrant.
Narrator: I grew up roaming these fields
and forests, where "Game
of Thrones" was filmed.
As more people discover her
secret places, Northern Ireland
blossoms, which, I have to
tell you, does my heart good.
Manchan (voice-over):
For these four musicians,
playing for the president of Ireland
was the highlight of the whole trip.
Narrator: Over the past month,
the four kids and their mentor,
Patricia Treacy, have inspired people
with their music all over our island.
These kids are building toward the future.
As the poet Seamus Heaney would say,
a future where the new and the old,
where hope and history can rhyme.
Like the tenacious Irish farmers of old,
these idealistic young musicians
have made little green shoots of hope
start sprouting.
Manchan (voice-over):
Seeing them play Irish music
for our president, it just
hits me out of the blue
that I am so proud of
my four young friends.
(applause)
Just being with these kids has shown me
that when your heart
breaks free of the past,
love can actually grow inside.
("Dreams" by the Cranberries playing)
Whoo!
- (cheers and applause)
- That's good.
Oh, come on, Moko.
Narrator: Manchan spent his youth
traveling the world, and writing books
about the experience.
own my food, and then it'd be lovely
to have enough food that you could just...
Before this we'd seen the
forest was being cut away
more and more by local farmers,
and we were scared. But this area...
Narrator: Now, as he's gotten to know
these four musicians...
the theme for his book has become clear.
The young are creating a new Ireland.
(indistinct chatter)
And, oh, my dreams
It's never quite as it seems
Never quite as it seems
(indistinct conversation)
I know I felt like this before
But now I'm feeling it even more
Because it came from you
Ooh!
Then I open up and see
The person falling here is me
A different way to be
(vocalizing)
Narrator: The poet Yeats urged us
to find our own essence of Ireland.
And the young in
Ireland are doing just that.
And now I tell you openly
You have my heart so don't hurt me
You're what I couldn't find...
Narrator: And like the
monks of Skellig Island,
these kids and their fresh spirit
have become a beacon of hope for the world.
You're everything to me
Dream to me
(cheering)
(clapping in time)
(indistinct chatter)
(singer vocalizing)
(indistinct chatter)
(singer vocalizing)
(indistinct conversation)
Look at you.
One, two, three.
(laughter)