Then and Now: How the lives of women in Ireland have changed over 30 years

When Mary Robinson was elected the first female president of Ireland in November 1990, it represented a shift in Irish society and sent a message of hope to the women of Ireland. For author and social researcher Íde B. O’Carroll, the appointment of a woman to a once male-dominated role, “signalled a seismic change in terms of possibility”.

At the time O’Carroll was living and working as an academic in the US, but following the uplifting election result, she felt the pull to return to Ireland. The country was basking in the glow of Robinson’s historic win and the Offaly woman wanted to “capture something of the moment”.

On the latest episode of The Irish Times Women’s Podcast, O’Carroll explains how she did this - by interviewing 67 women in various parts of Ireland about their lives, their ambitions and their perspectives on Irish society as it was back then.

The interviews took place in 1992 and 1993 and included some familiar faces, such as Mary Banotti, the late politician and grandniece of Michael Collins; Garry Hynes, co-founder of Druid Theatre and former artistic director of the Abbey; and singer and theologian Nóirín Ní Riain.

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In 2023, O’Carroll felt compelled to interview some of the women again. Given how the country had transformed over the years, she was interested in learning how the lives and perspectives of the women had changed along with society. The result of which is her new book Thirty Years of Change Through Women’s Eyes: Ireland, 1993-2023.

“I felt a real responsibility to the women who had entrusted their narratives to me to do something to complete the work”, she tells podcast presenter Roisin Ingle.

In this wide-ranging conversation, O’Carroll delves deeper into the huge societal changes that have impacted women in the three decades since her project began, including access to abortion, marriage equality and the legalisation of divorce. She reflects on the progress made and the work that still needs to be done.

You can listen back to this episode in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.