Abair “haigh”—agus gabh leat! 🤣 @damiensdoodles

Just had my first Guinness in Ireland… I’m about to have a take that will get me fucking killed

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Let's visit a century-old wonder of modern Ireland, Ardnacrusha hydroelectric plant. In the aftermath of independence the Irish Free State found itself in dire need of modernisation. Being a largely rural country dependent on imported coal for power, the answer lay in the mighty River Shannon. The Shannon Scheme, as it became known was a bold unprecedented initiative that reshaped the nation’s infrastructure. The government enlisted the German firm Siemens-Schuckert to design and construct a hydroelectric power station at Ardnacrusha in County Clare. When work began in 1925, the project was nothing short of monumental. The state allocated £5.2 million to its completion, an astonishing sum then amounting to a fifth of the entire national budget! At its peak, the workforce numbered 5,000, many of them Irish labourers, though specialist German engineers also played a crucial role. You can actually see these lads represented in the 1926 census. The scale of the undertaking was immense. The drama of the project was captured in iconic paintings like 'Night Candles are burnt out' by Sean Keating, which nearly feels like Socialist Realism. Our largest river had to be diverted, its waters channelled through vast turbines housed in a powerhouse of modernist ambition. By the time the station became operational in 1929, it generated 96 megawatts, more than enough to power the entire country. At a stroke Ireland, which had largely been bypassed by the industrial revolution, had entered the age of electrification. The impact was transformative. The Electricity Supply Board (ESB) was established in 1927 to manage the national grid, rolling out power to homes, businesses, and farms. For the first time, rural Ireland could be lit by electric light. Me Da told me once that it was the ESB, not the exorcists that killed all the ghosts in Ireland! Ardnacrusha remained the country’s largest power station until the mid-20th century, though thermal plants eventually overtook it in scale. The station still operates, a functioning monument to the ambitions of the fledgling state. Though its output is now dwarfed by modern energy demands, Ardnacrusha remains a proud landmark of Irish engineering and a testament to the nation’s drive for self-sufficiency in its formative years. Personally I think we need to rethink nuclear power... Buy the Dublin Time Machine a pint and support the DTM Book ko-fi.com/buchanandublintime…