In 2025 a song called ‘Killeagh’, by the band Kingfishr, went to number one in the Irish charts – written for this small East Cork village and its hurling club. It’s a fair introduction to a place whose identity runs deeper than its spot on the map suggests. Killeagh sits on the N25 between Midleton and Youghal, about 32km east of Cork city, and most traffic passes straight through. The reason to pull off is the woodland behind it.
Glenbower Wood and May Sunday
Glenbower Wood is a short walk from the village. The community-owned woodland follows the Dissour River, with paths beside the water and traces of the former estate. It was once the demesne of the De Cappell Brooke family, and that connection survives in May Sunday. Greywood Arts traces the festival to the nineteenth century, when the family opened the estate for a village gathering, and the arts centre revived the celebration after a long gap. The 2026 programme took place in the wood and at Greywood Arts. Check the organiser for future dates and bookings.
The greenway
Killeagh has a signed trailhead on the Midleton–Youghal Greenway, which follows the former railway. From here you can head towards Mogeely and Midleton or east towards Youghal. Check the map for the route between the trailhead and the village and allow time to return.
A bit of history
Killeagh – Cill Ia, usually read as ‘grey church’ or ‘church of Aedh’ – grew up around an early church; a Saint Abban is said to have founded a 7th-century nunnery near where the Church of Ireland church now stands. There was a medieval castle here too, said to have been built by the Carews and recorded in 1364 as owing an annuity to William Skiddy, a mayor of Cork. Recent roadworks turned up more of that past: archaeologists from Rubicon, digging ahead of village improvements on the N25, uncovered evidence of the medieval settlement, since written up as ‘The people of medieval Killeagh’. The village’s protected buildings include the old Killeagh mills, the two churches, and the ruins of Dromdihy House, built by the Davis family in the 1830s and now a shell north of the village.
Around the village
Greywood Arts is based in a Georgian house on the main street, with exhibitions, events and workshops. Check its programme before planning a visit around an event. Otherwise it’s a working main street rather than a tourist strip. The hurling is taken seriously here (the GAA club won the Cork Intermediate Championship in 2001), and that, more than anything, is the Killeagh the song is about.
Practical
Killeagh is on the N25, a few minutes from Castlemartyr. Use the signed greenway trailhead parking or check village signs for parking. For bus connections, use the TFI Journey Planner. Check the Greenways page and local notices for current path conditions before you set out.