The Discovery Series: The Bog Bodies

In this chapter of The Bog Bodies, our journey takes us beyond the mysteries of Old Croghan Man and Clonycavan Man to stop and consider the landscapes that shaped them – and how we can connect with these places today. 
Travel writer Fionn Davenport pauses the archaeological trail to ask a quieter question: if these places still hold meaning, how do we approach them with curiosity, care and a sense of wonder? From the royal landscapes of Tara, Rathcroghan and Uisneach to lesser-known hilltops and mounds, this episode explores how a simple short break into Ireland’s ancient terrain can be less about ticking sites off a list and more about slowing down, noticing connections and feeling part of a longer story. 
Alongside reflection comes practical insight, exploring the realities of visiting today: guided-only access, open hilltops, interpretation centres and the balance between managed and untouched spaces. Sometimes, the places with the simplest settings can offer the deepest encounters. 
Explore more of Ireland’s ancient past, from the Neolithic to the early Christian era, at https://www.discoverireland.ie/the-discovery-series

In the final episode of The Discovery Series: The Bog Bodies, it’s time to bring everything together. 
Travel writer Fionn Davenport is joined by Anthony Murphy of Mythical Ireland to sift through the evidence and explore the three leading theories behind the deaths of Old Croghan Man and Clonycavan Man. Drawing on archaeology, belief systems and landscape, they weigh what we know - and what remains unknowable. 
As the journey comes to a close, there’s space for reflection. Fionn revisits the sculpture by artist Ciaran Byrne atop Croghan Hill, first encountered in episode one, and reflects on why it has stayed with him as a powerful expression of the mystery at the heart of this story. 
The episode ends where it feels most fitting – with a quiet visit to the Kingship & Sacrifice exhibition at the National Museum of Ireland, sitting once more with Old Croghan Man and Clonycavan Man, and considering what their lives and deaths may still be telling us. 
Explore more of Ireland’s ancient past, from the Neolithic to the early Christian era, at https://www.discoverireland.ie/the-discovery-series

Episode 3 takes us to Loughcrew in County Meath, where travel writer Fionn Davenport witnesses the autumn equinox at one of Ireland’s most extraordinary ritual landscapes. It’s a moment when the rising sun meets ancient stone and the beliefs of the ancestors feel very close indeed. 
Here, Fionn speaks with archaeologist Dan Maher about Loughcrew’s significance on the celestial calendar and the myths woven into the land. Later, he hears from Eimear Burke, Druid and Chosen Chief of the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, who explores the power and purpose of these rituals in the lives of the Iron Age Irish. 
With every new insight, we edge closer to understanding the belief systems that might explain the brutal deaths of Old Croghan Man and Clonycavan Man and why they were chosen for such a fate. 
Explore more of Ireland’s ancient past, from the Neolithic to the early Christian era, at https://www.discoverireland.ie/the-discovery-series

In this second episode, travel writer Fionn Davenport heads to the Hill of Tara, ancient Ireland’s seat of power, to confront the central mystery of the bog bodies: why did Clonycavan Man and Old Croghan Man kneel before their killers? 
To understand their world, he begins where the high kings of the Bronze and Iron Ages were crowned. With insights from Hill of Tara guide Margaret Brady, archaeologists Dr Jacqueline Cahill Wilson and Dr Rena Maguire, and former National Museum Keeper Eamonn Kelly, this episode pieces together what life – and death – looked like in Iron Age Ireland. 
Explore more of Ireland’s ancient past, from the Neolithic to the early Christian era, at https://www.discoverireland.ie/the-discovery-series

Two bodies emerge from the bog – their skin preserved, their secrets intact.
In this first episode, travel journalist Fionn Davenport retraces the extraordinary discoveries at Croghan Hill in Offaly and Ballivor in Meath, where two Iron Age men were pulled from the peat after 2,500 years. With experts Amanda Pedlow and Noel French, he pieces together those first startling details – the manicured nails, the carefully styled hair, the brutal wounds – that revealed these were no ordinary burials.
Each clue brings us closer to understanding who these men were, and why they were chosen for sacrifice.
 Explore more of Ireland’s ancient past, from the Neolithic to the early Christian era, at discoverireland.ie