Mrs Duck, I would say you're quintessentially British... hardly a mongrel at all!

My father was born in Birmingham, England of an Irish mother and an English father. Were he living, it would be his 100th birthday next Monday. His father died in 1904 and the real father figure in his life was his maternal grandfather, a man from Ennis, Co. Clare who, God bless him, sang.

My mother was born in the wilds of Co. Kerry. She used to sneak out the window and cycle to dances miles and miles away. At 86, she'd still love to.

If I understand correctly, the rest of the story will be in April's Irish Music magazine.

All the best,
Dan Milner