John Ryan, Age 72, Balincanty, Tullamore

This interview with John Ryan describes how a rural postman carried out his work in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, delivering the mail to many homes in a vastly different rural Ireland. He describes how closely-knit the local population was and he was able to trace many of the family names. He recalls delivering telegrams on his bike, and remembers cycling 25 miles each day to deliver the post.