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Mens Rea: A true crime podcast

123 - Death in the Sun: Celine Conroy

Mens Rea: A true crime podcast

GoLoud

Society & Culture

4.71.4K Ratings

🗓️ 1 May 2023

⏱️ 40 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In the summer of 2005, Celine Conroy decided to pack up her three kids to spend the summer in Spain alongside her partner Paul Hickey. But rather than a relaxing escape from her life back in Dublin, the holiday ended in horror. This episode was researched and written by Aileen Spearin. ******** Find us on Facebook or Twitter! With thanks to our supporters on Patreon! Donate today to get access to bonus and ad-free episodes! Check out the Mens Rea Merch Store! ********* Theme Music: Quinn’s Song: The Dance Begins Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ Additional Music: Allemande (Sting) by Wahneta Meixsell. Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ ********* Sources: “Murder suspect in court over villa death”, Evening Herald, August 30th 2005 Jane Walker and Conor Mulally, “Dubliner to face charges over partner’s killing”, Irish Times, August 30th 2005 Cormac Looney and Mick McCaffrey, “Mum ‘axed to death in row’”, Evening Herald, August 30th 2005 “Scene of the killing played host to boozy parties”, Evening Herald, August 30th2005 Cormac O’ Keefe, “Villa death suspect refused bail by Spanish court”, Irish Examiner, August 31st 2005 Cormac O’Keefe, “Celine died in Spanish escape from ‘Little Beirut’”, Irish Examiner, August 31st 2005 Owen Conlon, “Irish man charged with villa death on suicide watch”, Irish Examiner, September 3rd 2005 Evelyn Ring, “If I told her I was sick, she might be alive now”, Irish Examiner, September 15th 2005 for a full list of sources, please see mensreapod.com

Transcript

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0:00.0

You're listening to the Men's Raya podcast, and this is the story of Celine Conroy.

0:30.0

Sean Tracy House is a social housing apartment complex located on Buckingham Street, Upper

0:45.6

in Dublin's North inner city. The original three building complex was built in the 1960s,

0:51.3

amid a wave of mass social housing construction in the center of the capital. The movement

0:56.7

was brought about by the concern over squalid living conditions after three tenement buildings

1:01.8

collapsed and separate parts of Dublin in the summer of 1963, resulting in a number of deaths.

1:08.6

The government responded to public concern by pulling down the old buildings, replacing them

1:13.5

with purpose-built social housing units. However, in their rush to get people out of the dangerous

1:19.1

tenements, the focus was mainly on building housing at scale and often the sites lacked social

1:25.5

amenities and services such as shops and playgrounds. As the heroin epidemic ripped through pockets

1:31.9

of Dublin's inner city in the 1980s, complexes like Sean Tracy House became hotbeds for

1:37.7

anti-social behavior related to drug use. High levels of unemployment along with poor housing and

1:44.2

a lack of facilities for young people resulted in spiraling drug use in the community. And although

1:50.5

this plateaued towards the end of the 80s, the trend saw a resurgence in the mid-1990s.

1:57.0

As the turn of the century rolled around, a regeneration of Dublin's inner city began.

2:01.6

Dublin City Council had started to demolish troublesome apartment complexes to make way for new

2:07.4

accommodation units with improved social conditions and adequate leisure facilities. Sean Tracy House

2:14.2

was earmarked for this urban renewal scheme but the plan was hampered by delays and despite the

2:19.8

aim to demolish the building in 2003, it was still standing in 2005, although only a handful of

2:26.6

people still occupied the building. Among these residents were Selene Conroy, her partner Paul Hickey

2:33.3

and their three children. Selene had been brought up in Dublin's north inner city. Family members

2:39.3

described her as a quiet and sweet child who never asked for much. However, Selene's childhood was

...

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