‘On Raglan Road’ is officially Ireland’s favourite folk song

What a beautiful song.

The people of Ireland have chosen 'On Raglan Road' as Ireland's Favourite Folk song, following a series on RTÉ. The song was performed on Friday night's episode of The Late Late Show on RTÉ One by Luka Bloom, following the news that it had been chosen. A series entitled Ireland’s Favourite Folk Song series was presented by folk legend Mary Black, who spoke about how pleased she was with the decision. She said: "I’m delighted to hear that the public voted for the wonderful On Raglan Road as Ireland’s favorite folk song. It’s always been a favourite of mine and deserves this great accolade!" The history of the song shows that it was first written in the 1940s as a lyric poem written by Patrick Kavanagh, following his doomed infatuation with Hilda Moriarty, a young medical student from Dingle. Kavanagh befriended Hilda in 1944 when they both lived on Raglan Road. She enjoyed the famous poet’s company but at twenty-two she was not interested in having a romantic relationship with this forty-year-old man. It was first published in The Irish Press in 1946 under the title "Dark-haired Miriam Ran Away". You can watch the series in its entirety on the RTÉ player here, or enjoy Bloom's performance of the song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=5KCB11xkHH0 Clip via The Late Late Show