In this episode of Celtic Soul, we sit down with former Wexford hurling champion Diarmuid Lyng for a conversation that weaves together sport, story, and spirit. From the intensity of the Irish sport of hurling and the mythic echoes of mythical warrior, Cú Chulainn, we open into a deep exploration of language, land, and the courage it takes to step beyond familiar comfort zones.

Diarmuid shares how crisis can become opportunity, and how the vision for the Wild Irish Retreat, with his partner Siobhan de Paor, grew from a longing to create a living cultural space—one rooted in the Irish language, seasonal ritual, and ancestral wisdom to a magical partnership with the spirits of the land.

The richness of the Irish language, too often taught as a burden rather than a gift, becomes here a portal into beauty, belonging, and spiritual inquiry. At the heart of it all is Diarmuid’s invocation to live courageously—what he calls “a man willing to walk in nature’s dream of him”—a reminder of what it means to truly nourish the Celtic soul.

Who is Diarmuid?

Diarmuid “Gizzy” Lyng is a former Wexford hurling captain who now lives in Mullinavat, County Kilkenny, with his partner Siobhán de Paor and their three young children. Together, they run Wild Irish Retreat – seasonal gatherings rooted in the Irish language, land-based ritual, and ancestral wisdom. Having recently launched a community-driven fundraising campaign to buy the home and land they currently rent, their vision is to establish a permanent cultural and Irish-language centre: a living space for story, spirituality, and connection. 

Links:

www.wildirish.ie

www.treacyoconnor.com

www.treacyoconnor.substack.com