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The Mystery of the Missing Postman: Silence in an Irish Village
- History
On Christmas Day 1929, postman Larry Griffin disappeared from Stradbally, Co. Waterford. His bicycle was found abandoned outside the village. While evidence suggested his disappearance was suspicious, the case became an enduring mystery. In this episode, I’m joined by Fachtna Ó Drisceoil, author of The Missing Postman: What Really Happened to Larry Griffin?, to explore a case that became a national scandal. From an illicit Christmas party to a troubled Garda investigation, dramatic arrests and retracted testimony, the story challenges the often idealised image of village life in post-independence Ireland. At its heart lies an uns...
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B2 · Upper-intermediate
Comfortable if you already follow TV news
- 75% of the words are B1 or easier.
- 161 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
- 180 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.
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it had been placed on the road. Furthermore, Larry himself was nowhere to be seen.
,
testimony from one member of the local community and several arrests, Larry Griffin's body
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Is this episode right for you?
B2 · Upper-intermediate
Comfortable if you already follow TV news
- 75% of the words are B1 or easier.
- 161 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
- 180 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.
Transcript
The opening of the episode. The whole transcript is in the player.
harder words (B2+)
Christmas 1929 were proved to be a fateful day in the history of a small Irish village, Stradbally in County Waterford. Because on that day the village postman, Larry Griffin, a popular man by all accounts, disappeared. His bicycle was found abandoned on the road outside the village, and there were indications of possible foul play. The bicycle appeared
to have been tampered with, while Manny found its positioning suspicious. It looked like it had been placed on the road. Furthermore, Larry himself was nowhere to be seen. The postman's disappearance prompted a major investigation by the Gardee, but despite testimony from one member of the local community and several arrests, Larry Griffin's body
has never been found. Griffin's suspicious disappearance has for nearly a century been the centre of a tragic controversy. Despite a massive Garda investigation in late 1929 and 1930, they were faced with a wall of silence in a village where many people professed to no one like Larry Griffin. Indeed, that investigation and the reactions of the people of Stradbally
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