Michael Collins Audio

damienom

Hi all,

Anyone know of sources where one might find audio recordings of Michael Collins?

SpitfireIV

I was just thinking the very same thing myself last night when watching 'Seven Ages', there's plenty of early clips of Dev and Cosgrave speaking, but is there any actual recording of Collins voice? Theres plenty of clips of him giving speeches, but where they silent films?

I think someone asked a similar question here a number of months back and as far as I can remember there wasnt much input.

boneless

As far as I know there are no recordings of Collins in the public domain... I will inquire in the School of History and Archives, UCD if there are any in private hands.

Listen out!!

damienom

Presuming this is a no show so??

SpitfireIV

damienom wrote:

Presuming this is a no show so??

I'd say so, yes.

I have never heard of there being any audio clips of Collins, and if there were I'm sure I'd have heard it, something like that wouldnt be kept secret.

TerrorFirmer

I would be very interested in this, actually, if such information was available...

MC-1

Listened recently to a piece on RTE I think where Tim Pat Coogan & others were talkin bout MC and it was said at that time there is no known audio of the great man speaking, unless there is a private recording somewhere his voice will only be in our imagination.

O'Leprosy

There are very few film clips of him either. The only film clip I can think of him is a few seconds of him at Croke Park with Dev, CAthal Brugha etc and giving a pro Treaty speech in O'Connell St.

luckat

You could ask the traditional music archive in Merrion Square - if there's anything, they'd have heard of it.

You might also write a letter to the Irish Times, see if anyone has one in d'attic.

Dontico

My theory is that he has a loud booming voice thats carries, like mine but with a slight Cork accent.
I'm pretty confident I'm the resurection of the Big Fellah.

SpitfireIV

O'Leprosy wrote:

There are very few film clips of him either. The only film clip I can think of him is a few seconds of him at Croke Park with Dev, CAthal Brugha etc and giving a pro Treaty speech in O'Connell St.

Theres also the famous clip of him outside O'Donovans hotel in Clonakility, where bygod he looks as if he's letting fly! ...it was that same speech where he was smaking two fingers into the palm of his left hand that the statue is Clonakility is based on.

There is also the clip of him in his brand spanking new Free State uniform, wheres he walking about, but one part shows him up close, smirking and saying something.........who knows what it was eh.

I think theres another clip, in late 1921 I think, where he went back to visit his family in Cork, visited the burnt out ruins of his home at Woodfield and talked to local people, an old woman, a farmer etc, he was talking in them too.

MC-1

CroppyBoy1798 wrote:

Theres also the famous clip of him outside O'Donovans hotel in Clonakility, where bygod he looks as if he's letting fly! ...it was that same speech where he was smaking two fingers into the palm of his left hand that the statue is Clonakility is based on.

There is also the clip of him in his brand spanking new Free State uniform, wheres he walking about, but one part shows him up close, smirking and saying something.........who knows what it was eh.

I think theres another clip, in late 1921 I think, where he went back to visit his family in Cork, visited the burnt out ruins of his home at Woodfield and talked to local people, an old woman, a farmer etc, he was talking in them too.

Try the archives at Pathe as thats where Ive seen most of the footage but heres defo no audio on anything I viewed...

finodon

yip britishpathe - an amazing archive of all old reels and films

tac foley

My father used to say that he sounded just like he did himself, but with the 'town edges' taken off [my dad was born in #19 Geraldine Place, Cork City.] He was almost exactly the same height and build as General Collins, BTW.

He could charm the birds out of the trees, he said, and could convince you that black was indeed whiter than the whitest thing that ever was.

tac

Jesus.