Waterford man Alan Corcoran's film about how he swam the length of Ireland gets its TV premiere this Sunday on RTÉ One at 11:15pm.
Nobody could accuse Alan Corcoran of not thinking big - or outside the box. After his beloved father Milo suffered a stroke in 2011, Waterford man Alan ran 35 marathons in 35 days to raise funds for the Irish Heart Foundation.
Sadly, Milo, a former president of the Football Association of Ireland, then passed away just three weeks after he was diagnosed with cancer in 2016. It was time for his son to come up with a new and novel way of raising funds and awareness so he undertook an extraordinary feat - swimming the length of Ireland. That’s 500-kilometres from the Giant’s Causeway to Tramore in his home county.
Up the Déise with bells and a wetsuit on.
This short but eventful film charts his journey and it isn’t just a tale of a young man and the sea. As well as unpredictable tides, jellyfish, giant waves, treacherous swells and dreadful weather conditions, Alan has to juggle the logistics of undertaking such a brave endeavour.
There is also the impact it has on his relationship with his girlfriend Karolina, who learns that she has earned a first-class degree in neuroscience as the kayaks alongside him on his epic journey.
Throw in ice baths, sinking boats and cold-water training and Alan’s preparation for the adventure is just as gruelling. As soon as he enters the icy waters of the North Sea and begins his journey home, you can feel the rawness and the freezing cold with every stroke he takes.
Alan has now raised €30,000 for cancer and stroke charities in memory of Milo and this is really a journey through grief and the hope that lies on the horizon. Inspiring stuff. Who knows what’s next for Alan Corcoran - maybe he’ll attempt to swim the whole length of the slightly trickier other side of Ireland.
Alan Corr @CorrAlan2
Unsinkable airs on RTÉ One this Sunday (11:15pm) and on the RTÉ Player. Alan Corcoran’s Unsinkable memoir is available on Amazon.
