Storyteller Eamon Kelly recounts the tale of John the Man, thirsty farm workers, an order for porter and a hat.
Seanchaí Eamon Kelly needs no other prop than a hat when telling a story.
My father never took off his hat except when he was going to bed and into mass and my mother says that he slept in the two places.
The hat has many uses according to Eamon Kelly, to protect the head, for use as a receptacale for collecting apples or eggs. A hat also represents authority when worn by popes, kings and bishops.
They always cover their heads when they have something important to say.
Eamon Kelly tells the story of the farmer's servant boy who was sent to the pub to bring porter to the farm labourers. The story involves a broken earthenware jar and a hat filled which is emptied again.
'Stories from Ireland' was broadcast on 30 December 1987.
