I enjoyed it very much, especially the way it put the music in its social and political context (I don't agree, Greg, I think the same could be done in England, although the connections would be different. There are sound reasons for the "ghetto" aspects of the modern folk scene, but that's another story ...).

Loved all the archive footage of old ceilidhs etc (all those jackets and ties, and women in neat frocks!). And I wish I had taped the show just for that final step-dancer.

The history of how some successful Irish bands have evolved, e.g the introduction of the bodhran and the bazouki, and the increasing sophistication of the arrangements, was interesting too. But my main criticism is that the programme concentrated too much on the commercial success of certain bands and types of Irish music, especially towards the end. We heard nothing of, say, Sean Nos Irish song (indeed, you'd never have known there was such a thing as the Irish language), or about the origin and popularity of the "Irish Session" as a social and musical phenomenon on both sides of the Irish sea.

But I suppose what I'm really saying is that one programme wasn't enough to do justice to such a complex subject. Anyone who still has only dipped into it, do go back and see the whole programme, there's lots of fascinating stuff.

The best moment, for me, was hearing Martin Hayes describe Willie Clancy's piping as the playing of "a man with nothing to lose". What he meant was that it was done with no thought for the next gig, the next contract, or the expectations of any listeners or promoters or agents - he simply lost himself in the music and played it entirely for its own sake. That's something I'll hold on to and chew over for some time.