I love the childrens show about the Knights of Tir-Na-n-Og... and in a song whose name escapes me, but the chorus runs Let Erin remember the days of old... there is a mention of Malachy (spelled in real life a lot longer than that!), but I was never clear if he was a real or a mythical personage. That song also has the nicest phrasing about a common view of Ireland/England - "The emerald gem of the Western world was set in the crown of a stranger" - beautiful imagery, that...

VERY good thread!