Portraits of Clongowes

There is a wonderful photo in the Castle of the physicists working at Cambridge University's Cavendish Laboratory in August 1920.  Taking his position amongst historical greats such as Prof. Chadwick and Ernest Rutherford is Fr C. Power S.J.  The script underneath describes the former as being famous for his discovery of the neutron while Rutherford discovered the alpha particle and was famous for his experiments on the same; while In true Jesuit understatement the same script says that Cyril Power “taught maths in C.W.C and managed the farm.”In this podcast Eoin O'Reilly OC'74 (who devised the discussion) shares memories of ‘Sickle' with MIchael Sheil SJ IC 56 and Harman Murtagh OC'62, along with CWC Archivist, John Bird. *photograph courtesy The ClongownianEoin O'Reilly with Cyril Power outside the Castle

Adam Lewis a native and is currently principal of Boston College High School.After time as principal of Loyola School in Manhattan, NY. And b4 a director of Senior Campus at Xavier College in Melbourne, Australia, a Jesuit school serving 1000 boys He was also Deputy Principal of Saint Ignatius College Riverview in Sydney, Australia, was d a Jesuit school for 1500 boys. His connection to. With CWC as a teacher and a rugy coachHe left CWC in 2008, after 8 years reaching history and Head Coach of rugby.

Peter O'Meara left Clongowes in 1988. A native of Mallow where he lives with his wife Hilary and four children, Peter was President of The Clongowes Union for the year 2023/2024.He is a Director of Savills Ireland, based in their Cork office, with whom he has worked for over 30 years.

Our guest is one of the early Alberto Hurtado Bursary graduates, who entered the Jesuit noviciate in Innsbruck this September.  Shadowing the life of Fr Cyril Power S.J. (OC 1907) Seán studied Theoretical Physics in Cambridge after leaving Clongowes.  While at Cambridge he gained his full blue in Rugby, playing in two Varsity matches, one time on losing and the following year on the winning sideHe left CWC in 2016

Adam MacNulty is President and Client Portfolio Manager, Brandes Investment Partners (Europe) based in Dublin Previously he was with with Pioneer investments , Davys and Aviva Investors A graduate of the Michael Smurfit Business School with an MBS in Financial Services following his BA Ecomomics from UCDHe left Clongowes in 1988

Blair is CFO of Vanguard Europe, which manages over $400bn in assets across the UK, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland and France; as well as having a growing presence in Ireland. Blair has held a variety of senior finance and business strategy roles.He has worked across different geographies, business sectors and in businesses at varied stages of maturity. The common thread is that he has focused on businesses requiring turnaround or those in rapid growth.A CFA charterholder, chartered accountant and qualified tax adviser. He started his career with PwC in Dublin and studied in Dublin City University (DCU). Blair is originally from Co. Meath. Blair left CWC in 2000.

Born in Galway in 1961, David Soden grew up in “Tullamore, Ring and Clongowes” and wenton to obtain a BCL at University College, Dublin. Having trained as a solicitor in Waterford, he returned to Dublin in 1989 and has been self-employed since the mid-1990s.He's one of a numbers of brothers who attended Clongowes and one. Of sets of brothers to appear on Portraits.Married with no children, David's interests include photography, music, the Camino de Santiago, wine bargains and a spot of duty in the gardenHe left CWC in 1979.

John Daly was born in Dublin on the day JFK was shot, as good an alibi as you'll get.Attended Clongowes Wood College (OC 1982 [his brother Conor OC 1985]), Dublin City University, University of Oxford (Keble College) and the Institute of Art & Law. John has worked as a lecturer in a number of third level institutions including the National College of Art & Design and at the Open University; he also spent many years as an academic editor. The visual arts have always played a significant part in his life, and John has been collecting artworks since age 16. He turned his hobby into his full-time profession when he founded the contemporary art gallery Hillsboro Fine Art in 1995. John has just written a monograph on German artist Karl Weschke (1925-2005) which will appear in June 2025. He is an enthusiastic tennis and table tennis player and consumes far too much wine.John is married to Yandan Sun and their son Daniel (age 10) is already considering CWC for his second level education believing it to be a branch of Hogwarts.

Tanner O'Connell grew up in County Meath before attending Clongowes.He studied Commerce in UCD and completed a Masters in Accounting in Smurfit Business School.After his studies he qualified as a Chartered Accountant in KPMG's Deal Advisory DepartmentTanner joined Elkstone (a leading Irish Investment House) in 2018 and, working with Alan Merriman, has held Investment Director, Chief of Staff and Business Development roles.He left CWC in 2008

Ross Finegan started out his career in 1994 at Deloitte Corporate Finance where he advised management teams on MBO'sIn 1996 he moved to JP Morgan Partners, the private equity arm of JP Morgan. In the mid naughtiest he cofounder of Lonsdale Capital Partners and is based l in London He trained as a chartered accountant in PWC after completing a BComm in UCD Ross Finegan left CWC in 1987

George T Smith heard the call to become a Basilian as a young man headed into law school. After meeting a group of Basilians at the University of St. Michael's College, Smith discovered their unique blend of priesthood, brotherhood and dedication to teaching. In 2010 he became the elected leader of the congregation of St. Basil at 43 years of age. A role he completed and these days he is William and Helen Cavanaugh Chair of Catholic Studies, first developed in 2003, and based in. Rochester, New York.He left Clongowes in 1978, his Poetry year.

Judge Fergal M. Gaynor serves as the Reserve International Co-Prosecutor at the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC) and represents victims at the International Criminal CourtHe also served as a Senior Assistant Prosecutor at the ECCC from 2015 to 2016 and as counsel for the prosecution at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda and the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia between 2001 and 2013. Judge Gaynor holds a Bachelor of Laws from Trinity College Dublin (Ireland) and a Master of Philosophy from Cambridge University (UK). He is a member of the Bar of Ireland.Fergal left CWC in 1989.

Simon Byrne is a Sales Manager with 25 years experience in the Irish Beauty industry, specialising in cosmetics and fragrance. He is a previous winner of the Francois Coty award for outstanding contribution to the Coty Ireland business as well as being a Certified Fragrance Sales Specialist accredited by the UK Fragrance Foundation (FiFi).The third of 4 brothers from Waterford to attend Clongowes, he left the school in 1982.A keen offshore sailor, he has completed many long distance classics including two Round Ireland Yacht Races and in 2015 won the Spirit of ISORA award (Irish Sea Offshore Racing Association), akin to the Clongowes Aloysius award but for offshore racing. Although now retired from sailing (his body refused to co-operate any further) he initially started his part time media side hustle writing a regular sailing blog on the ISORA website. He can now be found providing “alternative” match day commentary on Bective Rangers TV (BRTV) live stream of matches on You Tube as well as hosting his own Bective Rangers TV video podcast “Chucks Chats”, a series of intimate fireside interviews with club luminaries.Married to Ciara and with three grown up daughters and a female dog. He resides in South County Dublin having recently moved back to the city from a near 20 year sojourn in Greystones.

On the completion of the podcast series, Portraits of Clongowes, Dec Ryan reviews the episodes with Rossa McDermott, informally bringing closure on the 100 episodes in Series I, II, III & IV recorded over the past eighteen months.The latest podcast series were made possible by the kind support of Jigsaw Youth Mental Health, Hannon Travel. Liz O'Kane Buying Agent, and GoFundMe. The generosity of spirit, the positive feedback and the sponsors support has been more than generous.Other individuals silently donated to the project along the way , offered encouragement and ensured the series continued so that most people who wanted had a chance to share their memories.The Wrap Questions …. Tune in.

Peter studied Business & Law in UCD, trained with KPMG Corporate Finance in Dublin and worked in Private Equity Investment in London with Downing Development Capital. He returned to Ireland to join his family's business, Greenscene, and managed the sale of the business to, private equity backed, MCR Group in 2023. He now advises other Irish SMEs and their founders seeking an exit or funding, through his consultancy business BCOR Advisory. www.bcor-advisory.com Peter is an elected representative for Wicklow, with Fine Gael, having successfully contested the 2024 local elections. He recently won a Wicklow Senior Football Championship with Tinahely, where he lives. Peter left CWC in 2014.

Dave Moloney works as an engineering leader in Google in California, making the camera systems that power Google Maps and Google Earth.Trained in law and software engineering, Dave's career has taken him to Ireland, UK and US: organic farmer, software & internationalization engineer, and global operations in Handspring & Palm, as the smartphone came into being. Within Google, he has led internal entrepreneurship efforts: Google Play, hardware eCommerce, Pixel phones, and a Starlink precursor. Dave advises startups in Ireland and the US, and works with Enterprise Ireland to help Irish technology companies take root and thrive. Dave lives in Silicon Valley with his wife (also a Dub) and two sons, who are in high school. They all crave the cooler weather of Ireland.He left Clongowes in 1980.

Since graduating from University College Cork, Aonghus Kelly has worked around the world in the field of human rights and war crimesOriginally from Galway he initially went to UCG to study law and he has made it his life's work to investigate war criminals – having worked in the Balkans, Cambodia and the Middle East. After UCC, he has studied in Wellington, UCC, Sarajevo, Indiana and Cambridge He left CWC 1998

Dan Sheehan signed his first professional contract with Leinster in June 2020, and made his debut for Leinster in October 2020 in the Pro14 against Zebre, scoring two tries in the match.Sheehan was honoured as Leinster's Men's Young Player of the Year for the 2021-22 season, and was also named in the URC Elite XV of the year for the 2022-23 season.On the international stage, Sheehan made his senior debut in November2021, against Japan at the Aviva Stadium. Dan earned his first start for Ireland in the February 2022 Six Nations match against Italy. Dan had been Living in Bucharest for 3 years with his parents when their work took them to Poland, which saw him sent to boarding school with his brother. Bobby. He hails from in Dublin and studied in Trinity College after leaving Clongowes in 2017

Well known to generations of Clongownians and parents, Margaret Doyle arrived in the school in 1972 from a teaching role in Maryland, in the USA.Margaret started teaching History and Geography in Clongowes on my arrival that same year, and me fresh from years preparing for my English history O'Levels in Madrid.In 2014 motivated by her keen interest in military history and had been documenting the exceptional contribution of Old Clongownians to World War One and organised a trip ringleaders led by Colonel Dick Heaslip and Captain Donal Buckley, who guided fifty-two people on the trail of the Irish Soldier and the Clongownians who served and died in the First World War.Her teaching continued for 30 years along with many other activities such as orienteering and trips abroad . After teaching Margaret then became the school Archivist, a role she held for 16 years before fully retiring. The list of her accomplishments during almost half a century in Clongowes are lengthy.

Richard Flood portrayed the role of Samuel Johanson in an episode of the series Titanic: Blood and Steel in 2012. He joined the main cast of the television series Crossing Lines in 2013, playing detective Tommy McConnel, a specialist in weapons and tactics from Northern Ireland, until 2014. That next year, in 2015, Flood joined the main cast of the series Red Rock, where he played the police superintendent James McKay.In 2017, it was announced that Flood would be cast as Ford in the Showtime series Shameless. He became a series regular ahead of the ninth season. In 2019, Flood was cast in a recurring role as Dr. Cormac Hayes on ABC's Grey's Anatomy. He was promoted to star for the 2020–21 season.Flood appears alongside Acushla-Tara Kupe in TVNZ+'s crime drama, The Gone, released in May 2023.He left Clongowes in 2001 .

Joey Kennedy was the youngest candidate to be selected by Fianna Fáil in the local elections in 2024 in the Portarlington Graiguecullen Municipal District at aged just 19 His Academy paper in Poetry was titled “Centenary of Irish Independence – 100 years on”Now a director at Willow and Green interiors and furniture he is a former school captain and one of a number of school captains featured on the podcast. He left CWC in 2023.

Barry O'Callaghan is the Chairman and CEO of AKLO Capital (a private investment office) His story is growing a small educational software company, Riverdeep, into the largest K-12 publishing company in the US educational system.After getting a law degree from Trinity College he joined an investment bank - first in the London office, then 2 Hong Kong , before moving to New York City to work at Salomon Smith Barney near the beginning of the dot-com bubble. There he helped a few internet companies to go public and realised he was good at finance.These days he's involved in a wide range of his own businesses from hospitality to not for profit enterprises in Ireland and elsewhere.He left CWC in 1987 and originally hails from Mitchelstown.

Conor Gilsenan was into Gaelic football as a youngster, but ultimately chose rugby as a teenager when he had to make a choice He cited his biggest influence in his profession as coming from his family and 'role-model', Irish rugby player; Brian O'Driscoll.He a former Ireland U18, U19 and U20 flanker himself, and was part of the Leinster's Academy, played for Connacht and London Irish. Freakishly by Clongowes he has won 2 SCT medalsA TV star too as In 2022 he Was one of the candidates in The Apprentice. He was unfortunately fired in week two.He left Clongowes in 2011 and went to UCD, and Northumbria University

Adrian Gahan (School Secretary, 1997) is a conservation campaigner based in London. After working for John Bruton OC'65 #RIP n the EU Delegation to the USA, he then worked in the UK parliament on environment and climate change legislation. Currently Gahan chairs a coalition of UK NGOs and has spent the last ten years working with them to create the world's largest marine conservation programme, protecting 4.3 million sq. km of ocean around the world (an area x 50 the size of Ireland) from overfishing. He left Clongowes in 1997.

Piaras Power (OC '90) is Partner in international law firm Eversheds Sutherland where he holds the role of Head of Banking & Finance and Co-Head of the FS Sector Group (Ireland). Piaras' practice focuses on acquisition finance, real estate & development finance as well as project and infrastructure funding. His clients include both Irish and international financial institutions and agencies, in addition to large corporates, PLCs and public bodies. He is a non-executive director of the mental health charity 'Aware' and is also a member of the board of The Royal Victoria Eye & Ear Hospital. Married to Niamh and they have three children, Eoin, Grace and Conor.

A Behavioural Economist by training, Colm Mulcahy's work now involves decoding the ‘why' behind economic decision-making, with some of the world's biggest companies. He is a published author with The Psychologist, has been featured by Wired UK: Business and Technology, and elected a World Economic Forum Global Shaper. His work, as a Research Specialist, at Accenture's Global Centre for R&D and innovation, specialises in re-thinking how Fortune 500 companies create value for people and society, and informing applications of emerging technology.He holds a Master's (MSc) in Behavioural Economics from University College Dublin; is a current part-time postgraduate student (MSc) at the University of Edinburgh's Bayes Centre, for Data Science and AI; and holds a Distinction Certificate in Business Strategy and Financial Performance from INSEAD Business School.As a former Irish International Rugby Schoolboy and Irish Universities' rugby player, he maintains his love of sport, as a coach in Dublin's Inner city with The Liberty Saints, and has recently been elected a Sport Ireland Innovation Ambassador. He recently completed an Ultra-marathon (just under 60km distance, at 1600m elevation) to raise funds and awareness for the 10,000 children in the Liberties area of Dublin's inner city, where he coaches, without access to sport.Link to support this great cause here: https://gofund.me/928f171c

Our guest today is a brand development manager for Bulmers, San Miguel and has worked with many other brand in the drinks sector. He has also been was a producer on BBC Radio 6 music as well as a podcaster and journalist for BBC 5 LiveHe graduated from UCG with a BCom and a Master of Arts in Broadcast Journalism from University of Salford, Manchester.Gerard Mannion left CWC in 2012

Dara Neligan is a Project manager with 3 Ireland. He studied in Maynooth and then did postgraduate in innovation, enterprise and entrepreneurship in UCD and comes from Greystones.He is one of 5 brothers who went to CWC and a son of an impressive man I met during my recovery from stroke in Royal Hospital in Donnybrook, Maurice, who went to Synge Street the same years as my Father and imputation for Portraits of Clongowes podcast. Father of Kiva and son of Maurice and Dympna,Dara is Currently back in Dublin having worked overseas in 25 Different Countries since 2000Dara left Clongowes in 1989.

John Soden is CEO of Death Valley Whiskey. After his time in Clongowes he studied in Trinity, an MBA at UCLA and has spent his career in the drinks industry.Soden's previous roles include business unit director at Pernod Ricard, managing director at Castle Brands, and vice-president of strategy and development at The Macallan owner Edrington.One of a number of brothers who went CWC , he left in 1983


Hannah Evans is a Pastoral Coordinator in Clongowes and holds a range of qualifications ranging from Business Degree to A Master's in Theology and has studied at DCU, UL, UCG and St Patrick's Maynooth 
Hannah also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Music





Pat Nolan has spent a life time in publications, many related to tourism which evolved from a long standing and wide interest in family history He started his own organisation Irish Origins Research Agency. (IORA) as focus on providing a professional service to legal and corporate clients, often relating to estate and legacy matters. Has also developed sources useful for those undertaking their own family or local research anywhere in Ireland especially focused on the South East of Ireland. He has lectured in America, Australia, New Zealand, many parts of Europe and the UK and Ireland A Graduate of NUI Maynooth, and recipient of the Kilkenny Chamber of Commerce Lifetime achievement award. He left Clongowes in 1959

Andre Severi has over 35 years experience in investment banking and FinTech. After leaving Clongowes he studied at UCD earning a BA in Pure Economics as well as a Diploma in Business Studies. An international banking career spanning Paris, New York, London and Toronto both in FX trading and FX sales managing teams in various locations. A history of driving profitable growth and leading through times of change, he built and successfully managed growing and reputable businesses. Primary responsibilities managing teams with a focus in driving growth with institutional investors, large corporates, central banks. debt offices and sovereign wealth funds. Andre lives in London and is married to Nathalie and has 2 adult sons. He is a keen long-distance runner, running on average 250km a month and enjoys long-distance sea swims. He left Clongowes in 1985.

Ed Byrne is a former Leinster and Ireland prop who moves to Cardiff later this summer. The Carlow native had been heavily linked with an interprovincial transfer to Ulster, but instead moves to Wales He has made over a 109 appearances for his home province and also won six caps for Ireland since 2020. His first taste of Rugby was Carlow R.F.C, encouraged there by his older brother Mark. Ed and his twin brother Bryan, himself a professional with Newcastle in In Clongowes he won a Junior Cup and competed in a remarkable 3 consecutive Senior Cup finals, winning two of them.  He left Clongowes in 2012

Originally from Dublin, Robert now lives in Bannow, Co Wexford, with his wife, Angela, and their six children. Together, Robert and Angela founded the Kiltra School of Music (KSM), in 2009. KSM provides specialist music tuition to over 200 students every week, both in person to local students and virtually to students further afield. Previously, Robert has worked as a violinist with the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, and also freelancing with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, Irish Film Orchestra and many other ensembles. He is currently a member of the Wexford Festival Opera Orchestra. Robert is really enthusiastic about music, loves teaching and also works as a conductor, composer and arranger across all genres of music Robert and Angela currently have a son in Clongowes.

Oran O'Kelly is the first Irish competitor in over a decade on the Dakar Rally making his debut in the bikes category. The 30-year-old was born to Irish parents in Dubai and grew up racing motocross in the UAE with his four brothers. But when he was 12, the family moved back to Ireland and he stopped riding for the best part of 15 years. It was only in 2020 that Oran decided to get back into the sport and really sink his teeth into rally-raid. He sold a small car cleaning business back home and returned to Dubai, going “all-in” to pursue his Dakar dream. The original plan was to go within five years, but with help from the Vendetta Racing UAE team, Oran has needed only three to prepare himself He likens his first experience on a rally bike to being “on a boat in the ocean”, but he's had the opportunity to sharpen up his skills at events like the Abu Dhabi Desert Challenge, which his father John also rode several times in the 1990s. Oran is set to join a very select group of only around 15 Irish athletes to have done the Dakar; the most recent participant was Stan Watt in 2013, and the last finisher was Philip Noonevin 2010 He left CWC in 2012

Martin arrived in Clongowes in 1979 for a few years teaching having just qualified - he thought. In 2013 the Board of Management appointed him Assistant Headmaster of Clongowes succeeding Martin Nugent. He joined the academic staff originally in 1979 and became a stalwart of the English and Latin departments ever since. He has contributed to many other areas of school life including drama, soccer and chess and also served as Academic Year Head in the Higher Line. In more recent years he was very instrumental in the success of the Alberto Hurtado Programme While Clongowes is known as a fee-paying private school, 10 per cent of the student cohort are part of the Alberto Hurtado Bursary programme, named in honour of a Chilean Jesuit Saint who himself received a scholarship in a Jesuit school. “This is not about charity - this is about changing the school and making it better by having a more diverse community and a socio economically diverse community. Their presence benefits everyone in the school because otherwise you end up with a ghetto of affluence and that's not a good educational environment either,” he says. Courtesy Irish Times --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Peter Campion grew up in Offaly before moving to to Dublin. After finishing school he moved to London securing a place at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) and graduated from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2010. Perhaps best known for tv roles in RTE's Love/Hate and Channel 4s London Irish and Derry Girls Peter left Clongowes in 2005 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Jim Deegan is CEO of Railtours Ireland First Class Ltd, Ireland's only dedicated rail tourism operator and operate a variety of one day tours to eleven day tours - inclusive of rail, coach, accommodation, throughout Ireland. Where you also get to sleep in castles. Now Ireland's most sustainable incoming tour operator - as they use scheduled trains which ensures a low carbon footprint. Jim left CWC in 1974 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

The Financial Stability Board (FSB) in Switzerland recently named Martin Moloney the new Deputy Secretary General starting next September He has just served as Secretary General of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), a position he was appointed to in September 2021. Prior to IOSCO, he was Director General of the Jersey Financial Services Commission (JFSC) and also worked as a Special Adviser on Risk and Regulation to the Central Bank of Ireland before that during Ireland financial crisis. He left clongowes in 1978 Portraits of Clongowes is now in Series 4, and is sponsored by Hannon Travel, Irelands largest independent travel manager and Liz O'Kane, named Buyers Agent of the Year at the recent National Property Awards 2024 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Paddy Dominguez is President of Professional Football Agents Association (PROFAA) has been involved in elite sport worldwide since 1991.  Having worked with and represented athletes/coaches across many sports including, but not limited to, Football, Rugby Union/League, Olympic sports, Tennis and Motor sports. Paddy has also consulted and advised many of the world's most renowned clubs, organisations and governing bodies. He talks to us from Sydney where he is based Paddy left CWC in 1990 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Des Groome grew up on Ballinderry Stud, Carbury, Co. Kildare, attended primary school in Edenderry and boarded in Clongowes 1981-1987. Des began study in the UCD Veterinary College in 1987 and graduated as a Veterinary Surgeon in 1993. He rode as an amateur NH jockey throughout school and university , had Summer jobs with John Oxx, Jim Bolger, John Hammond and combined his love of racing and equine medicine throughout his early career as a Vet. He was resident Vet to Champion trainer Martin Pipe and afterwards to Emir Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, Crown Prince and King of Saudi Arabia. Des settled in his native Kildare, founding Kildare Vet Surgery where his three boys Daniel, James and Tom have grown up. Des developed the first online vet service in Ireland, Videovet and then GymDog  the first of its kind fitness and wellness centre for pets, alongside the vet practice. His latest venture, A Pets Life is an online community of pet owners and a pet food ecommerce platform.  As Des had to drop Biz-Org to do Chemistry, he later had to study in the IMI under another OC, Mr Cormac Lucey and gained some knowledge of Finance and an MBS.in 2012. A love of athletics was fostered by cross country running in Clongowes and has completed all the big city Marathons. These days Des follows Clongowes and Leinster Rugby, still rides out on the Curragh and leads a peloton of mamils in Kildare Cycling Club notwithstanding two new hip joints. He hosts a weekly animal welfare radio slot on KFM Radio and podcasts A Pets Life on spotify. His son Daniel attended Clongowes until 2020 where his art talent was encouraged and he now studies in the NCAD. Tom is in poetry and working on his academy. Des has one remaining ambition which is to speak in the Past Vs Present Debate --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

After leaving school Nick qualified as a Solicitor in the Asset Management and Investment Funds Unit of Arthur Cox in Dublin and AL Goodbody. He now runs his own business dog care company, Barkley, and is a startup Politician running in the 2024 local elections Delehanty studied a B Comm in UCD and his experience includes advising the promoters of, and service providers to, Irish domiciled investment funds ncluding investment managers, fund administrators and depositaries. Advising Irish fund platforms regarding ongoing legal and compliance Establishing qualifying investor alternative investment funds making use of a super QIF structure, by holding investments through Irish Section 110 companies. Nick left Clongowes in 2008 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

From 1984-1992 Worked as a plant engineer in IMI Yorkshire Alloys, Birmingham, UK and later Redland Bricks, Horsham,UK In 1992-1995 Kevin was a Technical teacher in Burkina Faso, West Africa, Aid work with International Service, York, UK. In 1996 named Lecturer on the Mechatronics Programme, IT Sligo. Kevin left Clongowes in 1979. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Andrew Carlos is currently a prefect in Clongowes Wood College- poacher turned games keeper! Andrew attended Clongowes from 1997 to 2003 then went to UCD and studied English and History. After attaining his degree Andrew worked in banking with Deutsche Bank for a few years before getting a teaching diploma in San Diego State University, and teaching in Italy, Mexico and Saudi Arabia over the span of 12 years. In 2021 he returned from whence he came: Clongowes, where he prefects in Third Line, teaches Spanish and SPHE, and coaches rugby and athletics. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Rory spent 20+ years in the video games industry based in Japan, Germany and subsequently in France, where he is now settled for the past 30 years. He amassed a wealth of knowledge in the videogames industry setting up distribution networks throughout europe. Following his 23 years in video games, he decided to go down the entrepreneurial route and co-founded a tech start-up in the personal data space in the UK which he sold in 2022. After 30 years working with and successfully leading various fast-moving international businesses, Rory recently decided it was time to leverage those experiences, as a business coach, by helping entrepreneurs and their teams scale their businesses. Continuing his path as an entrepreneur, Rory also recently acquired an escape game business in Paris and at the same time he is also a Member of the Board of Directors for a number of companies around Europe. Rory is based in Paris where he is married to his wife Emer and they have three children. Rory's brothers (Grattan '78 and Diarmuid '87) , father (Michael '50) and grandfather (Henry Grattan '02) all went to CWC. By his own admission, he is not a rugby fan but is a rugby 'fanatic'! He is also a keen golfer, skier, jogger and horse-rider when time permits --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Des Groome grew up on Ballinderry Stud, Carbury, Co. Kildare, attended primary school in Edenderry and boarded in Clongowes 1981-1987. Des began study in the UCD Veterinary College in 1987 and graduated as a Veterinary Surgeon in 1993. He rode as an amateur NH jockey throughout school and university , had Summer jobs with John Oxx, Jim Bolger, John Hammond and combined his love of racing and equine medicine throughout his early career as a Vet. He was resident Vet to Champion trainer Martin Pipe and afterwards to Emir Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz, Crown Prince and King of Saudi Arabia. Des settled in his native Kildare, founding Kildare Vet Surgery where his three boys Daniel, James and Tom have grown up. Des developed the first online vet service in Ireland, Videovet and then GymDog  the first of its kind fitness and wellness centre for pets, alongside the vet practice. His latest venture, A Pets Life is an online community of pet owners and a pet food ecommerce platform.  As Des had to drop Biz-Org to do Chemistry, he later had to study in the IMI under another OC, Mr Cormac Lucey and gained some knowledge of Finance and an MBS.in 2012. A love of athletics was fostered by cross country running in Clongowes and has completed all the big city Marathons. These days Des follows Clongowes and Leinster Rugby, still rides out on the Curragh and leads a peloton of mamils in Kildare Cycling Club notwithstanding two new hip joints. He hosts a weekly animal welfare radio slot on KFM Radio and podcasts A Pets Life on spotify. His son Daniel attended Clongowes until 2020 where his art talent was encouraged and he now studies in the NCAD. Tom is in poetry and working on his academy. Des has one remaining ambition which is to speak in the Past Vs Present Debate.  --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Frank Waldron-Lynch is a globally recognised Physician-Scientist with over two decades of experience in leading research and clinical development in autoimmunity, transplant immunology, and rare diseases across academia, biotech, and pharmaceutical sectors. Frank is a distinguished Consultant Clinician with multi-layer expertise in Immunology, Translational Medicine, Internal Medicine, Endocrinology, and Metabolism. A strategic leader and independent thinker with a proven track record in hiring talent, forming, developing, and mentoring high performing teams that consistently deliver transformative therapies for patients. Most recently, Frank held the position of VP, Cell Therapy, and Immunology Research at Vertex, in Boston, USA. Prior to this Frank held the position of Translational Medicine Expert and Global Inflammasome Lead at Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research, Basal, Switzerland, and spent several years on faculty at University of Cambridge, where he was a Senior Clinical Trials Fellow in the Division of Experimental Medicine and Therapeutics, as well as being an Honorary Consultant in Endocrinology and Internal Medicine at Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge, UK. Dr. Waldron-Lynch, BSc, MA, MB, BChir (Cantab), PhD, FRCP (Lond), FRCPI, trained in academic and clinical medicine at Yale University, University of Cambridge, University College Cork, and University of Galway. He has published numerous scholarly articles in his research areas of interest and holds fellowships from the Royal College of Physicians of the United Kingdom and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland. Frank (OC 89) is married to Maeve and has two sons who both currently attend Clongowes Wood College. Both his father Derrick (OC 54) and brother Tom (OC 87) also attended Clongowes. In his spare time, he enjoys snowboarding, sailing, and gardening. Frank left Clongowes in 1989 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Noel McNamara once advised students at Clongowes Wood College to “make your obsession your profession”. It's fair to say that he's lived that philosophy, leaving a permanent, pensionable position as a teacher to adopt, full-time, a different vocation as a professional rugby coach. The Clare native has taken to a road less travelled, to North Harbour in New Zealand, the Sharks in Durban and, since the summer, a new role as attack coach with Bordeaux-Begles in the French Top 14; one that has made all the difference. In Ireland McNamara helped develop players in a previous life as head coach with several national squads, including the 2019 Under-20 Grand Slam winners. Former Toulouse and French international hooker Yannick Bru spent last season as breakdown coach at the Sharks but was then offered the head coach job at Bordeaux. He persuaded McNamara and forwards coach Akvsenti Giorgadze to swap Durban for the west coast of France. @The opportunity to come a little closer to home was a big driver in the decision. I could have stayed with the Sharks for another two years but ultimately the challenges of travel were pretty significant. It [the offer] aligned [with a decision to move back closer to home]. I have always been intrigued by the French way.” (Courtesy Irish Times) Noel was teaching and coaching in Clongowes from 2005-2016 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

I thoroughly enjoyed my school days in CWC – however, it may come as a surprise to many to learn that, while in the Holiday Camp – I hated rugby [it was compulsory for all] and loved cricket and soccer! I am often asked when did I decide to join the Jesuits …….. I could not name a particular date or an event – it simply seemed the most-natural-thing-to-do when I came to take that last journey down the main avenue – and out into the waiting world! And so, on leaving Clongowes in 1956 – I joined another Family which took me to its heart – the “Js”. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

David Sharkey is the director of Team Architecture Ltd, a communication consultancy in sport and business. Specialising in the use of themes and stories, Team Architecture Ltd has accrued a range of high profile clients across professional sport in Rugby, Soccer, Olympic Sport, GAA & Aussie Rules over the past few years. David is a former English and History teacher who spent 16 years working across Australia, Ireland and the UK. He returned to Clongowes, spending two years there as a Prefect in the Third Line and teaching Leaving Certificate English from 2012-2014. Hailing from Mullingar, David followed his older brother Ronan (OC 2001) to Clongowes and their family have many associations with the college through his grandfather, Denis Lawler (OC 1938), his granduncles, Fr Ray Lawler SJ (OC 1939) Willy Lawler (OC1941), his cousin Garvin Lawler (OC 2008) and uncle, Liam Lawler (OC1967), all having attended the school. David left Clongowes in 2003. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message

Paul Beddy attended Clongowes from 1970-76. After Clongowes he studied Commerce at night in the College of Commerce Rathmines while working in the family business. With a very young family, the family business closed in 1989 and Paul set up his own PPE manufacturing business with 10 ex-employees and money borrowed from friends. The Clongowes Benevolent Fund was of great assistance during that turbulent year. In 1999 with the demise of manufacturing in Ireland as the Celtic Tiger years approached, Paul transitioned his manufacturing operation from Ireland to Bardejov in western Slovakia where he set up a joint-venture with local people. In 2017 he began transitioning the manufacturing from Slovakia to Ukraine where there are now over 100 people employed between the 2 operations. Maintaining employment in Ukraine is a humanitarian priority for his company in this troubled time. Today his company is a principal PPE supplier to the largest Commercial Laundries in Ireland and the UK, who provide lease/rental options for garments to Food Industry, Pharma, Healthcare, and Catering Industries --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/portraitsofclongowes/message