Leitrim celebrates life story of Irish tunneller at book launch

Last month, Drumcoura City in Ballinamore hosted the launch of Michael McGovern’s memoir From Irish Fields to London Tunnels on October 10. The event was officially launched by Cllr Paddy O’Rourke and Nicola Kearns, CEO of Butterfly Books Publishers.

The book tells the remarkable story of Michael’s life, beginning on a small farm in west Cavan in 1958, when, at just seventeen years of age, he left home to seek work and opportunity in London. 

There, he became one of the so-called “tunnel tigers,” the name given to Irish labourers who undertook some of the most perilous underground construction work of the time. He would spend fifteen years in London, working in extremely dangerous conditions, including tunnelling on the Victoria Line underground.

During those years, Michael met and married his wife Mary, and together they raised six children. Despite the busy and demanding nature of his work, he always dreamed of returning home to Ireland.

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That dream became reality in 1972 when he and Mary returned, not to Cavan, but to Leitrim, where they bought a farm and a large house for their growing family. The couple went on to have three more children, and all of them received a good education and made their own way in the world.

Cllr Paddy O’Rourke, who launched the book, spoke warmly about its appeal, “The book makes for an ideal Christmas gift particularly for someone who identifies with that period in Irish history, when there was little option only to emigrate. But somehow the pull to return when sufficiently financially strong for many became so strong, they couldn’t resist and made the move.”

He also noted a memorable detail from Michael and Mary’s early farming days, “An interesting side note was that when Michael and Mary were setting about stocking their newly acquired farm back in the seventies, they were buying in at a time when cattle prices were at an all time low.

Purchasing cattle at as low as 10pounds a head while recently when disposing of their herd on retirement cattle prices were at an all time high. As one neighbour put it, it couldn’t happen to a better pair.”

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