Directed and produced by RTÉ Nuacht journalist Grett O’Connor ‘‘Seán Ó Riada : Litir ód Mhac’ will screen on TG4 on November 7th at 9.30pm. Shot this summer in Cuil Aodha, County Cork and at locations in Dublin and Ballyferriter, the documentary shows the eldest of Ó Riada’s seven children, Peadar Ó Riada, on a journey down memory lane to the homes of his childhood as he shares his memories of life with iconic Irish traditional musician Seán Ó Riada.
Following the title of the documentary, Peadar writes a letter to his father to mark the 40th anniversary of his death, and to mark what would have been his 80th year had he lived.
Peadar, who was almost 17 years old when his father died, has detailed memories of the latter years of Seán's life, his short illness and his early death at the age of 40. He says his father’s drinking was not the main reason he died, but that a hereditary weakness in the liver meant his body could not deal with alcohol, and all too quickly his time was up.
‘Seán Ó Riada : Litir ód Mhac’ was shot with XDCAM and DVCPro. O’Connor commented 'There have been a number of documentaries about Seán O Riada over the years but I knew we could do something different,’ she said. ‘The story Peadar tells is one our audiences have never heard before ¬- it's very personal and very honest.”
The half-hour programme was edited at Open Eye Productions in Baile Bhúirne and is part of RTÉ’s annual contribution to TG4 programming.
