Singer/songwriter and author who grew up in Tipperary finds solace in music

A singer/songwriter who grew up in Killenaule says that one of the two albums she released recently has finally helped her to come to terms with her inability to have children.
Lullaby Lay and Sweet Old Mill were recorded by Jacqueline Geoghegan Mangan, who lived in Killenaule from the age of three until she was 16.
“As a result of a medical procedure that went wrong a number of years ago, I found out that natural motherhood was permanently out of my reach,” she says.
“It took me many years to come to terms with this reality and when my three nieces were born I was filled with so much love for them and felt so proud to be part of their lives.
“I also came to realise what I had missed out by not having children.
“I used my grief productively in focusing on songwriting and the Lullaby Lay album became a big part of the healing process.”
The album is dedicated to the memory of Pat Costello, presenter of the Gentle Folk programme on Clare FM and Tipp FM, who died in 2019, and who was a close friend of Jacqueline and her husband Denis Mangan.
The second album, Sweet Old Mill, is named after a song written by her father, retired prison officer Tony Geoghegan.
“The song is about his early days as a farm hand at the age of 15 years before he emigrated to Manchester. When he returned to west Limerick there were many noticeable changes. The Old Mill, a well-known old dance hall there, and the old ball alley were completely gone. The creamery, the pivotal place of socialising for the locals, was also closed down.”
Jacqueline, who has lived in Carrigkerry in west Limerick for the past 30 years, near her father’s home place, used her time productively during the Covid lockdowns and restrictions to also write The Gnome On My Toe, a children’s book that so far has sold almost 900 copies and has reached such far-flung destinations as Australia, the United States and Dubai.
“To be honest I was shocked with how well it sold,” she says.
“It’s not a frightening story of fantasy and I was careful about this because I believe children are exposed to a lot of misinformation via social media. The physical act of holding a story book is definitely better than a child staring at a screen. ”
Jacqueline is now working on The Man With The Hairy Nose, another book this time for older children, which has inclusion as its central theme.
With over 30 years experience working with children as a Montessori teacher, and having worked as a group psychotherapist, Jacqueline is now training as a child and adolescent psychotherapist.
Her parents met and married in Manchester, where she was born, and moved back to her mother Theresa’s native Killenaule in the early 70s, where they still live .
“My late grandmother Babs (Mary) Kelly came from Killenaule and played a significant role in my life,” she says.
“She worked in St Mary’s national school for 30 years. She had huge affiliation with and respect for children and is still fondly remembered to this day for her kindness and generosity to the children at Killenaule primary school.
“As a child my grandmother read to me at bedtime and my grandfather Mick Kelly used to listen to various plays on the radio, which I couldn’t help but listen to as well. He was visually impaired so the radio was his social outlet every evening.
“I have a vivid memory of watching Rosaleen Linehan on TV reading The Matchless Mice. All of these different childhood memories and experiences definitely shaped my imagination and a love for creative writing.”
Despite securing a course at the Limerick College of Art and Design after her Leaving Cert, Jacqueline trained with St Nicholas Montessori College in Dublin.
Hailing from a musical family, it came as no surprise when, in 2005, she completed a music MA under the direction of professor and Clonmel man, the late Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin, who she describes as “a gentleman who always encouraged me musically.
“In 2009 I began my journey training as a Humanistic Integrative psychotherapist at Limerick University and I’m currently finishing Msc training as a child and adolescent psychotherapist.”

On Sweet Old Mill, her husband Denis (vocals and accordion) and Jacqueline (vocals and arrangements) are joined by an impressive cast of supporting musicians who include Nicholas Long from London on violin; Caoimhin Ó Fearghail (from the band Danú) on guitar, bouzouki and uilleann pipes; Derek Hickey (De Dannan) on accordion; James O’Connor on bodhrán; Máire Breatnach (a musician on the original Riverdance) on violin, viola and ukulele; singer/guitarist Sinead Egan, who performed on Boy George’s last album; and Claire Egan, a well-known classical and traditional violinist from London. The album was produced by Pat Donegan, who also played piano, ukulele and guitar.
Lullaby Lay, an album of contemporary and folk songs, includes four tracks that Jacqueline wrote herself and is dedicated to her nieces - 11-year-old Anna Doheny, who lives in Fethard; and 9-year-old Saoirse Geoghegan and her 7-year-old sister Orla, who live in Limerick.
“I’ve been working on the album for the past ten years. Instead of wallowing in my grief or being bitter, it has helped me move forward,” she says.

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