Vincent's famous walking tour visitors
Cornafulla's Vincent Harney entertained two very famous faces on his popular walking tour of Athlone last week.
Award-winning podcaster, adventurer and travel writer Phoebe Smith and Catatonia singer Cerys Matthews, now a BBC dj, booked a private tour while on a visit to Ireland, having spent several days boating on the Shannon in Leitrim.
“It was last Thursday afternoon, the day started wet but by afternoon there was sunshine and the town looked well. It was a lovely experience, they were really nice,” Vincent, who launched Athlone Guided Tours almost five years ago, told the Westmeath Independent. “They loved Athlone and the Shannon. They were really interested in stories about the river and the town.”
During his tours, Vincent, who only started the venture as a hobby following his retirement from Cornafulla Post Office, because he missed meeting people, mixes in the history of the town, the castle, the barracks, with personal stories of noteworthy people from the area.
He said the pair were particularly taken with the story of Mary McCann from Glasson, who became a national hero in the US in 1904 when she saved several children from drowning after a ship caught fire on the East river. Vincent told the pair that the first of her family to come back to Ireland, her great grand son, heard that Mary's story was being told on his walking tour and came over this year.
Adventurer, broadcaster and author of twelve books, Phoebe Smith, got in contact with Vincent to book a private tour, excerpts of which will feature in an upcoming episode of her popular monthly 'Wander Woman' podcast. Listened to and downloaded in more than 72 countries from the UK to Australia and beyond by tens of thousands of people, the podcast offers a behind-the-scenes journey to a different destination and features interviews with locals and audio clips to make the listener feel they are part of it without leaving the house.
“When I told my daughter that Phoebe Smith was coming that she was very excited. She listens to her podcast. My son lived in Wales for nine years and is married to a Welsh girl so Cerys was really well known to them. She has a lovely voice. She loved my accent too,” said Vincent.
A founder member of Catatonia, Cerys enjoyed big success with the band in the late 1990s, with hits like 'Road Rage' and 'Mulder and Scully', and she famously duetted with the legendary Tom Jones 'Baby, It's Cold Outside'.
Now a radio presenter, TV broadcaster and dj, the Cardiff native, who received an MBE in 2014 for her services to music and culture, hosts an award-winning radio show on BBC 6 music every Sunday, the Blues Show on BBC Radio 2 each Monday at 9pm and co-hosts Radio 4’s new music show ‘ADD TO PLAYLIST’ with Jeffrey Boakye, which airs each Friday at 7.30pm.
Vincent listened to her BBC 6 show last Sunday and she mentioned her visit to Carrick on Shannon and Athlone to millions of listeners in the UK.
“They loved Athlone and said the town was lovely and they'd like to come back,” enthused Vincent, adding at the conclusion of the tour he brought his guests to sample the hospitality in Sean's Bar, and they were great fun.
The summer has been good for the walking tours, he added,. While there were less Irish people this year, probably due to the price of accommodation and poor weather, Vincent noticed more Americans, Australians, family groups and conferences.