Tullynally Castle link to new Bob Dylan song

Bob’s your uncle; or in this case, Edward is.

The new Bob Dylan song ‘I Contain Multitudes’ features a reference to the north Longford town of Ballinalee, but also refers to a Gaelic poem translated by Edward Pakenham, the 6th Earl of Longford, and uncle to the current owner of Tullynally Castle (Castlepollard), Thomas Pakenham.

Edward Pakenham (1902-1961; pictured above, with his future wife, Christine Trew), also known as Éamonn de Longphort, was an Irish nationalist inspired by the 1916 Easter Rising, which made him unpopular during his studies at Eton College.

He succeeded his father Thomas, who was killed in Gallipoli in 1915, as the earl of Longford at the age of 13. He later ran the Gate Theatre in Dublin, and translated several volumes of Gaelic poetry into English, all of which remain in the book room in Tullynally Castle.

The Irish poetry references in Dylan’s song are speculated to have been the result of a 2017 dinner with The Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan where poetry was the main item on the menu.

The Ballinalee reference in the first verse comes from ‘The Lass of Ballynalee’ by the blind Gaelic poet Antoine Ó Raifterí (1779-1835):

Today and tomorrow and yesterday, too,

The flowers are dyin’ like all things do,

Follow me close, I’m going to Ballinalee,

I’ll lose my mind if you don’t come with me.

A line in the final verse of the song, “Keep your mouth away from me”, is borrowed from Edward’s translation of the seventeenth century poem, ‘Keep Your Kiss to Yourself’.

“It’s great news for both north Westmeath and north Longford to be referenced in a work by Bob Dylan, particularly in these very difficult times for the tourism industry,” said Bartle D’Arcy, Tullynally tour guide, adding: “‘Keep your mouth away from me’ also has unfortunately a new meaning in these strange times!”