Fiddler on the Road

Tinsmith, storyteller, and traditional fiddler, John Doherty, travels the hills of Donegal. Here he talks to Sean O'Haughey of the Irish Folklore Commission. John Doherty was born into a very musical travelling family in February 1900 in the Ardara area of Co. Donegal as the youngest of 9 children. The film follows John’s travels and explores the Doherty family’s place in the musical traditions of the countryside. John’s parents were Mickey Mór Doherty and Mary McConnell. Mickey Mór Doherty had a musical inheritance of a couple of generations of both Doherty and Sweeney musicians on his father’s side. Also, Mary McConnell was a sister of Alec and Mickey McConnell, who were very well-known travelling tinsmiths and fiddle players in their day.