42:I[185,["/_next/static/chunks/3xnt26d00_zk-.js","/_next/static/chunks/1s-yni1uf2lwd.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/06x30xgfe6iur.js","/_next/static/chunks/3b4qrzgkt_l12.js","/_next/static/chunks/15lgs8s22dk5l.js"],"SendEmailButton"] 44:I[63625,["/_next/static/chunks/3xnt26d00_zk-.js","/_next/static/chunks/1s-yni1uf2lwd.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/06x30xgfe6iur.js","/_next/static/chunks/3b4qrzgkt_l12.js","/_next/static/chunks/15lgs8s22dk5l.js"],"AddToLibraryButton"] 45:I[29721,["/_next/static/chunks/3xnt26d00_zk-.js","/_next/static/chunks/1s-yni1uf2lwd.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/06x30xgfe6iur.js","/_next/static/chunks/3b4qrzgkt_l12.js","/_next/static/chunks/15lgs8s22dk5l.js"],"ShareButton"] 46:I[58016,["/_next/static/chunks/3xnt26d00_zk-.js","/_next/static/chunks/1s-yni1uf2lwd.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/06x30xgfe6iur.js","/_next/static/chunks/3b4qrzgkt_l12.js","/_next/static/chunks/15lgs8s22dk5l.js"],"ProcessEpisodeButton"] 47:I[45269,["/_next/static/chunks/3xnt26d00_zk-.js","/_next/static/chunks/1s-yni1uf2lwd.js","/_next/static/chunks/42spz6paskvb6.js","/_next/static/chunks/06x30xgfe6iur.js","/_next/static/chunks/3b4qrzgkt_l12.js","/_next/static/chunks/15lgs8s22dk5l.js"],"SignupCTA"] 3a:["$","time",null,{"dateTime":"2026-07-28T07:00:00.000Z","children":"July 28, 2026"}] 3b:["$","span",null,{"aria-hidden":true,"children":"·"}] 3c:["$","span",null,{"children":"01:23:31"}] 43:T4e9,

This week we continue our series on the Irish Potato Famine. We are really getting into the thick of it. This episode starts in 1846, when the harsh reality of a second year with so much crop failure catches up to everyone.

The new prime minister John Russell has a tough time filling his predecessor's shoes and Trevelyan is still there, mailing people books about scarcity and talking about the plans in generalities while ignoring true human suffering. The UK government continued to believe they didn't want to create a dependency on government, while the Irish struggled to simply stay alive.

The public works programs were changed and many less men were hired, while thousands of other people put aside their pride and went to the workhouses in droves. Mass famine is upon a huge population in Ireland, and winter is ushered in with a whole week of snow.

It's getting bleak here folks, but I think we're all learning a lot!

Sources: The Graves are Walking: The Great Famine and the Saga of the Irish People by John Kelly

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