S6E8: Kate Kerrigan asks, Am I Irish Yet?
Writer, performer, and force of nature, born Morag Prunty, but best known by her pen name Kate Kerrigan whisks us from London where she grew up with an Irish identity to Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way where she’s living with an English accent.
In this episode, Kate spins tales of idyllic childhood summers in Mayo, the dynamics of being Irish in England during the turbulent 70s and 80s, her challenges in navigating the complex terrain of her Irish identity, and her late-in-life recognition of the obstacles and superpowers in her ADHD.
An in-demand London magazine editor despite dropping out of school at age 15, Kate became a successful novelist with the New York Times bestseller Ellis Island to her credit. Now she’s taken her act to the stage, earning raves for her acclaimed one-woman show, Am I Irish Yet?, which dives into her “feels Irish but sounds English” dilemma in a performance resonating with audiences in Ireland, the UK, and from anyone not living where they were born.
Kate’s next goal is to bring this tour de force to the world’s capital of people not living where they were born—New York City.
Join us for a deeply personal exploration of identity, belonging, and cultural heritage, along with more than a bit of craic with the irrepressible Kate Kerrigan!
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00:00 - Intro
03:45 - Mayo Childhood Summers
06:08 - Child of Irish Teachers
08:41 - Educational Challanges
10:12 - ADHD and Neurodiversity
14:11 - Executive Function Meets Creative Whirlwind
19:15 - Being Irish in London
25:37 - An Irish Hierarchy of Rejection
29:21 - Being a Plastic Paddy
31:58 - Ireland Before the Celtic Tiger
36:35 - Writing and Performing: Am I Irish Yet?
45:10 - Geography and Reaction to: Am I Irish Yet
51:28 - Seamus Plug
53:00 - Irishness Blind Spots
59:12 - John and Martin Recap
01:00:46 - Credits
Kate Kerrigan
Author and Playwright
Kate's real name is Morag Prunty and she worked for many years as a magazine journalist and editor of magazines such as Just Seventeen where she helped 'discover' Take That! In the early 2000's she turned to writing fiction and wrote four 'chick lit' titles before her first Kate Kerrigan book, Recipes for a Perfect Marriage was published in 2006. The dual timeline novel was an international success, shortlisted for the Romantic Novel of the Year, translated into 25 languages and optioned for film. Her next novel The Miracle of Grace, was also turned into a screenplay, but it was her Ellis Island Trilogy, featuring feisty heroine Ellie Hogan, that made her a New York Times bestseller. The Lost Garden and The Dress - shortlisted at Irish Book Awards - followed to critical acclaim. In 2016 It Was Only Ever You won a RONA. Kate has a loyal following of readers in the U.K, Ireland, the U.S. and, increasingly, Australia. Kate is a ‘writers writer’ whose advocates include popular Irish writers Cecelia Ahern, Marian Keyes and Cathy Kelly.
Kate lives and works in Killala, County Mayo on the Wild Atlantic Way. She lives in a house overlooking the sea with her artist husband, Niall Kerrigan, and their two young sons, Leo and Tom. Kate writes every day in a small cottage in her mother’s back garden, in the nearby town of Ballina.
A writing evangelist, Kate teaches and mentors at National University College Galway (NUIG).
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