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John and Nora Egan are the proud owners of one of Ireland’s real hidden treasures, that is Inch House, Nenagh Rd, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, now their home since 1985.
When the family bought the house, together with its surrounding rolling farmland, they really had no idea as to the real treasure that lay around this, then, old neglected Georgian Mansion.
John, a modern and progressive farmer and Nora a fully qualified Nurse, together with their eight children, began the painstaking work of restoration, slowly returning this building to its original and magnificent attractive state.
Their initial dreams and planning for Inch House would eventually came into full fruition four years later, in 1989 when they opened the doors of their dream home to their first paying guests. They have now travelled a long way along that painstaking journey of restoration, however John and Nora make no secret of the fact that they still have lots left to accomplish for the next generation to be getting on with and this house will continue to remains a ‘Labour of Love’ while it remain in the ownership of the Egan family.
Their youngest son, Joseph, has inherited his love of farming from his father John and now works closely along side him on a full-time basis. Nora’s second oldest daughter Mairin is always to be found on duty daily at the front of house, while the other siblings continue to come and go, but are always enthusiastic to assist if and whenever needed.
As stated, Inch House is surrounded by a working 250 acre farm, which as well as producing it’s own organic vegetables and assorted herbs, also grows each year a large quantity of oats, barley and wheat which is harvested in late August and early September. John and his son Joseph work hard right the way through the year to store, dry and roll the grain for re-sale to local farmers throughout the winter and spring of the year.
Inch House Is Truly A Family Affair Gladly Shared With Their Visiting Public.
With the later introduction of a restaurant, which opened its doors in 1994, there has been enormous family team support in building and achieving a solid reputation not just amongst their local customers, but from surrounding counties and from abroad. This reputation for quality has now become a by-word amongst its numerous visiting clientele.
Nora Egan makes no secret of what is the ‘Inch House success story’ to those who ask. She is quick to state:
“In our restaurant we use only locally sourced produce together with only the highest quality ingredients direct from our own farm and the heart land of the Golden Vale, latter the richest producing farmland in Europe. Our restaurant and kitchen have developed menus that can appeal to every palate. Employees in the kitchens work as a team, to build menus to suit each of our customer’s needs and in doing so, ensure and maintain only the highest standards in that task. The restaurant team, work in harmony with the kitchen in serving top quality meals both in a friendly and also in a professional manner.”
If you have eaten her sirloin or fillet steak, her Inch House Traditional Black Pudding, or tasted her secret recipes like her range of chutney dressings and sauces or her special miniature scones, then you know that Nora is a modern day Isabella Mary Beeton, producing something really special and as good food goes is just not obtainable elsewhere.
To book your special evening, please do contact Mairin or Nora at Inch House. They will be only too pleased to work with you to prepare a feast guaranteed to please and to be enjoyed by all, or to coordinate with that special ‘short break’ away from the pressures, the hustle and bustle, that is our daily lives.
Here in this peaceful unique hideaway, that is Inch House, you can quickly regain lost energies, charge batteries and become totally relaxed and refreshed.
 Winter Walking Winter walking festivals have once more begun making their welcome appearance and where better to venture, for lovers of this healthy pastime, than Upperchurch, Thurles, Co.Tipperary this coming weekend, for their Annual Walking Festival.
Winter walking is all about exploring winter wonderlands and it is in this wonderful upland area that the winter hills continue to reward each visitor especially young families. Experience its pure bracing air, its striking views of mother nature in all her winter nakedness and all without any of the heroics and hardship often associated with this healthy pastime.
One of the main reasons people love winter walking is that it is so easy to get the hang of and anyone who has ever donned a pair of walking boots can pick it up straight away without any special lessons required.
Of course good shoes and socks are essential for this kind of outing. Shoes that stand up to mud and rain will keep you from the misery of damp cold feet that could eventually become cracked and sore, thus leading you to the foolish decision that, really, this healthy outdoor life may not be for you.
From my own experience ordinary walking shoes leak while a good pair of hiking boots keep your feet dry and also keep you from sliding in the sometimes mud, snow and ice. When buying always invest in a good lightweight boot that is just a bit larger than your normal shoe size.
With regard to clothing, do put on layers of same, for walking in the cold. In order to feel comfortable as your body adjusts to the outside air, your outside clothing can then easily be shed, should you start overheating. Very heavy wool sweaters will not always allow you to cool down enough while you walk, so if the temperatures rises as you progress, with layering you can take the outerwear off and tie it around your waist.
A hat is also essential to keeping in body heat and gloves are always very desirable, as is a camera for lovers of photography. Indeed you are sure to come across a picture in this place of such wild and natural beauty.
So do head for the Upperchurch Hills this weekend not only for the walking, but also for the healthy atmosphere, the beauty and the freedom that abounds. Also experience the warmth and friendliness of the local people you will meet should you stop off in the village for any type of food or beverage.
Tel: 0504-54284 or 086-0518934 or click here for further information.
The festival begins tomorrow Nov 5th and runs for 3 days and I know from first hand experience you will truly enjoy this trip.
TV and silver screen actor Martin Sheen, star of ‘Apocalypse Now’, ‘Wall Street’ and ‘The West Wing , will be filming in Fethard, Co Tipperary, in the coming weeks in his latest movie, Stella Days.
 McCarthy's Bar Among the locations chosen for shooting this film are Fethard’s famous McCarthy’s Hotel, the local town hall and Holy Trinity Church.
McCarthy’s Hotel is well known the world over and has been filmed by Channel 4, BBC, Good Morning America, Sky News to name a few. Many well known personalities have visited McCarthy’s over the years including President Eamon De Valera, General Michael Collins, Mick Doyle, John Magnier, Vincent O’Brien, Robert Sangster, Julian Wilson, Lester Pigott, Richard Dunwoody, Adrian Maguire, Martin Pipe, Charlie Swan, Tommy Stack, Tommy Carberry, Alex Ferguson, Dr. A. J. F. O’Reilly, Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and his brother Julian, Sir David Frost, Alan Parker, Rod Taylor, Angela Rippon, Peter Curling and of course Paul Carberry, latter the only jockey to ride into McCarthy’s Hotel on a horse.
McCarthy’s Hotel is also a place of interest for those who believe in ghosts and the supernatural. A sign was given before the deaths of the last generation of the McCarthy family, usually a picture falls from the wall for no apparent reason. Ghosts were spotted recently by Mark Lonergan and John O’Connor at night and by Ciarán Hayes in the afternoon. So if Martin Sheen should see somebody sitting quietly sipping a pint in the corner, he just might be the only one who can see him.
Crowd Scene Casting
Meanwhile, casting will takes place today, in Fethard, for the extras needed for some of the church and hall crowd scenes.
So all you aspiring thespians out there, as well as those out for a bit of craic, you are advised to attend the local ballroom today between 2pm and 8pm.
Break a leg everyone.
Now aged in his seventies, Ramón Antonio Gerard Estévez, better known by his stage name Martin Sheen returns to his Irish ancestral county of Tipperary, as cameras are set to roll on the set of Newgrange Pictures’ new feature film ‘Stella Days’ on Sunday, November 7th.
Tipperary will play host to this Golden Globe winner from ‘The West Wing’, ‘Apocalypse Now’ and also Oscar nominee Stephen Rea of ‘The Crying Game’ and ‘Ondine’ fame, both of whom will lead the film’s impressive cast.
Martin Sheen was born in Dayton, Ohio, the son of Mary Ann Phelan, 1903–1951 and Francisco Estévez 1898–1974, who were a factory worker and machinery inspector respectively at the National Cash Register Company at the time. Both parents were immigrants; his mother was born in Borrisokane, County Tipperary, Ireland and his father in Parderrubias, Galicia, Spain.
Written by Antoine O’Flathartha and directed by IFTA winning Irish director Thaddeus O’Sullivan of ‘Into the Storm’ and ‘December Bride’, fame, the Newgrange Pictures production will see Martin Sheen play parish priest, Daniel Barry, whose love for the cinema leads him on a path to help set up a local cinema in the town. But Daniel comes up against opposition from doubtful local parishioners who question his faith and a Bishop who is more interested in raising funds for a new church.
‘Stella Days‘ is scheduled to shoot for about five weeks under the photographic direction of John Christian Rosenlund and will be edited in a Dublin post house following its shoot. The drama is being produced by Jackie Larkin and Maggie Pope and funds of €600,000 have been awarded by the Irish Film Board towards the making of the film.
So let’s show Martin and company a true Tipperary homecoming welcome.
Search engine Google are at pains to assure people their privacy is being fully protected when the search engine launched its new Irish Street View facility on Thursday last.
This Street View facility allows Internet or smart phone users to view streets, roads, houses and buildings throughout the State. The images showing were gathered by cameras on Google’s specially adapted vehicles which have travelled 82,000km (51,000 miles) around the country since March 2009.
The service, which originally began with five US cities in 2007 and now includes 25 countries, allows users to switch to a panoramic street level view, moving up and down streets with the double click of a mouse. It is an without doubt an exhilarating slice of real science fiction and the initial impact on individuals when it went live on Thursday last was to check what their house looked like. Here in Thurles the images show details of real everyday urban life and footage were obviously captured about the time of the last Urban District and County Council elections. This facility is likely to encourage business and private property owners alike, to ensure that building facades are in future kept clean, inviting and attractive.
Ireland is the 25th country to launch Street View and no doubt this facility will be of particularly interest to tourists checking out an area in advance, before booking their accommodation and also for prospective house buyers looking at an area’s amenities if not the proposed house to be purchased.
The “Street View Ireland” facility in general is currently available on maps.google.com. You can view Thurles hereunder and do click on View Larger Map under the image for best quality image clarity.
However, concerns have been expressed that it could also breach people’s privacy. For example there are fears that criminals could use it to target houses for burglary. Other countries such as Germany, Switzerland and Greece have been critical of the overall project. However Goggle’s exactness in blurring faces and car number plates, should eliminate most peoples privacy concerns.
Launching the new service,Thurles born Minister for Tourism, Mary Hanafin said that ‘Street View’ had “huge potential” for Irish tourism, and also for business and education. However Thurles people might not agree fully with this statement since (Google Please take note) St.Mary’s Lane between Kickham Street and Mitchel Street which incorporates St.Mary’s Famine and War Museum has once again been overlooked. Still Fáilte Ireland doesn’t acknowledge we exist so why should Google.
The initiative is fully supported by Fáilte Ireland, the Arts Council, and various property websites. Fáilte Ireland plans to have it available on touch screens in all its tourist offices and regard it as the best form of free advertising that any country can enjoy.
The programme contains imagery that for the most part is already visible from public roads and it displays footage that is taken at a particular point in time and does not display live images. Over all Thurles, which represents a true, hidden, unspoiled Ireland, will welcome this new initiative.
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