Blindboy Boatclub says there’s a possibility that ‘hell is based on Cork’

His groundbreaking podcast has over a million worldwide listeners monthly.

The former Rubberbandits member is edging close to his 400th episode of the meditative audio hit - over seven years on from putting out his first episode.

The weekly series involves the MA in Creative Theory graduate discussing eclectic topics, such as the unlikely benefits of lion urine or the link between heavy metal and futurism.

These self-titled 'hot takes' unspool like a short story over the space of an hour, taking the listener on a journey like no other.

His well-constructed detours of the imagination involve personal anecdotes and the kind of dark humour and intellect that made The Rubberbandits so boundary-pushing over a decade ago.

He also addresses topics like mental health that Irish news media outlets rarely touch, and brings a millennial sensibility to political discussions.

Ahead of his visit to the Cork Podcast Festival next month, the man with the bag on his head reflected on one of his more extreme and popular podcast episodes, in which he outlines how our modern perception of Hell comes from tales of a 12th century knight from the Rebel County.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner, Blindboy explained: "There’s a very plausible case to be made that the modern Western understanding of Hell is based on Cork. There’s no real description of Hell in the Christian Bible — what’s mentioned is a place where the soul is separated from the love of God. But this idea of Hell as being a fiery destination full of torture and demons is a much later European invention, and I reckon it comes from Cork."

The comedian turned author continued: "There’s a manuscript called The Vision of Tnugdalis, which was written down by Irish monks sometime around 1149 in Germany. It follows the structure of Irish vision literature, which probably predates Christianity. The story is very similar to The Vision of Adamnán, which was written down in the 8th century.

"Here’s the gist of the story: There was a knight from Cork, by the name of Tnugdalis. He was an arsehole — rude, violent, and frequently drinking himself into a stupor. He was filthy with sin, by all accounts. One weekend, he got such a powerful hangover that he went fully unconscious for 48 hours and couldn’t be resuscitated.

"Everyone assumed that he was dead, and a coffin was prepared," Blindboy added. "But before he could be buried, Tnugdalis woke up, terrified. He told everyone that he had visited the afterlife, a fiery landscape of torture inhabited by wicked divils. Sinners were burned, frozen, eaten by demons, and thrown into rivers of fire—punished according to their sins. He himself was tortured but rescued each time by a guardian angel. The angel eventually took him to Heaven, where he witnessed eternal bliss.

"Tnugdalis urged the people of Cork to repent their sins or face eternal fire. That’s the story. It’s brilliant. And when people read it in the 1100s, The Vision of Tnugdalis became the equivalent of an early medieval bestseller. It was copied in monasteries all over Europe. It influenced Dante’s Inferno, and by the 1500s, it was being read by the Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch, who is famous for painting the vivid visions of Hell that are now our standard definition of the place.

"There’s no mention of Hell in the Bible. Hell is based on Cork. I love that about Cork, fair play to ye."

The Blindboy Podcast is available to stream on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Acast, with new episodes dropping every Wednesday.