I was born and brought up in south London which throughout my early years was a particularly strong location in terms of Irish traditional music. The Fulham branch of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann (Organisation of Irish Musicians) was set up in the late 50's and my dad, Paddy, was one of the early activists for the association (and I later spent many years as a CCE organiser). During the 60's and 70's, the area had many pubs hosting Irish music most nights of the week. Central to my experience of these was "The White Hart" on Fulham Broadway (also the Kings Head, and later Con Curtin's amazing hostelry, "The Balloon"). The show was held together there by Liam Farrell and the late Raymond Roland and 4 nights (and a Sunday lunch!) per week people travelled far and wide to see them. There were many other great players to be seen on a regular basis, plus visiting musicians and singers from Ireland and America who would make it their business to call in and play. Singers in London residence included Oliver Mulligan from Monaghan (who helped me learn a great deal) and later Dessie O'Halloran of Inisbofin. From time to time we were treated to the mesmerising singing of Treasa Ni Mhiollan

Fiddle players have always been a great family favourite and my notables in that dept. are Danny Meehan, Des Donnelly and, a frequent visitor to our home, Sean Maguire. Enough of London!

As a child and teenager, I took the seemingly endless boat and train journey back to Ireland every year that I can remember. Along with my brothers – Kevin, Chris and Paul - I would split the summer holidays between Gorman side of the family in Longford and the Boyle side in Donegal. These were times of great fun and freedom for us Battersea kids, and both sides of the family had – and still have - a great love traditional music, singing and dancing. During the 70's, our holiday plans were altered slightly to include visits to the All Ireland Fleadh - so Listowel became a familiar place.

From the time of my earliest memories, Dad's family had moved to Ballyshannon where until 1998 his sister, the late Margaret McGinley, devoted most of her life to the teaching music. Here we would stay with Margaret and John, their three sons, and my grandmother, Mary Boyle. The odd year, we would rent a caravan for a week at Rossnowlagh. Such weeks will never be forgotten.

Dad was brought up in the townland of Derryloughan, a few miles from Glenties. His mother was the local schoolteacher for many years, and also a fine singer until she had a stroke in her early 50s. My grandfather, Joseph, also a teacher, was considerably less popular with clergy roundabouts due to his dissent of their practises. So despite his unusually high qualifications, he was often forced to travel out of the county, and even out of the country (to Harrow!), to find work. However, he was at home enough to make an indelible impression on my father. His character, his stories and his opinions were strong and colourful to say the least. The young Paddy took on many of these characteristics, and also had a strong attachment and love of the writings of Patrick McGill (the navvy-poet of Glenties).

When Dad joined us in Donegal, we would usually go with him to visit his old home and neighbours in Derryloughan, though the population there had dwindled to a few small households. There was also an annual search for the whereabouts of John Doherty, the legendary tinker-fiddler, who had been a frequent visitor to the Boyle household in Dad's youth. He could usually be traced without too much trouble, and would tell stories and play for us - wherever we found him - with incredible grace and charm.

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