Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll: Cú Chullain, the Outsider by Peter Wucherpfennig | S7 Ep5

OUR STORY

Cú Chullain is Ireland’s most renowned mythological hero, and his story comes what’s seen as the greatest of Irish epics, the Táin Bo Cualigne. And yet, we’ve never told his story on KnotWork.

Clearly we were waiting for the right storyteller. In this episode, Peter Wucherpfennig offers an outsider perspective on Cú Chullain’s early life told through a modern frame: a young Phil Lynnot, front man of the iconic 70s band Thin Lizzy conjures the elements of myth. You’ll also hear WB Yeats’s "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death."

OUR GUEST

Peter Wucherpfennig is a German harpist and storyteller based in Darmstadt. After graduating in 1986, he completed fifteen months of compulsory service in the Bundeswehr before training as a nurse — a path that would prove unexpectedly resonant with the warrior myths he would later carry as a storyteller. He has worked in intensive care units since 1991. In the mid-nineties he picked up the harp and found himself in the company of Scottish storytellers. He gave his first public performance as a harpist and storyteller in 1996 (his word: disastrous) and has spent the years since traveling between the worlds of the hospital, the workers' council, and his own calling as a bard.

IN THIS EPISODE

• Cú Chulainn is remembered as the greatest hero of the Irish epic, the Táin Bó Cúailnge, and was a powerful inspiration during the 1916 Easter Rising. Peter imagines him as the outcast hero.
• The power of the mentor: just as Cú Chulainn found Scáthach, as an adult, Peter was adopted by a landlady who said "you are my third son." Such relationships open an entirely different world.
• The significance of the island apart. Whether it's Tír na nÓg or Scáthach's island fortress, this isn’t a place to stay forever, but is a place to gather new tools. What does it mean to seek out those threshold spaces in our own lives?
• The power of fellowship. Peter and Marisa remember meeting at the Bard Summer School on Clare Island in County Mayo.

WORK WITH MARISA

• 1:1 Writing Coaching: If you are working on a novel, a memoir, or you’re seeking to weave the mythic perspective into your creative work, book a free consultation with Marisa. Learn more at www.marisagoudy.com
• Learn about our global writing communities, the Authors' Knot: www.marisagoudy.com/writing-groups
• Follow the show on Substack, Instagram, and Facebook.

Music by Beth Sweeney and Billy Hardy: billyandbeth.com

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