On Christmas Day 2009, the town of Longford awoke to the devastating news that their historic and much-loved St Mel’s Cathedral had been gutted by a fire during the night, destroying many of its priceless artefacts save for an 18th Century painting which miraculously survived the flames and 1,100 degree heat.
The cathedral will reopen on Saturday 20th December after a €30 million restoration project, one of the largest anywhere in Europe.
RTÉ Midlands correspondent Ciaran Mullooly joined Wendy on the phone to talk about the challenges and setbacks of this 5-year-long project, and what the fully restored cathedral means to the people of Longford.
Ciaran will present The Longford Phoenix: A Would You Believe special documentary which covers the painstaking reconstruction of St Mel’s Cathedral and will air on Tuesday 30th December at 6.30pm on RTÉ One.
Available until Wednesday December 31st, 2014 at 12:00am
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