Uploaded October 2023 | Updated September 2026, 18 hours ago

---

Eugene Dunphy explores the origins and changes of a sorrowful ballad.

0:00 Intro
01:30 William J Scanlan, ballad writer
02:00 Scanlan’s original words
03:30 Early life
04:00 Friends and Foe (play)
04:45 Sheet music published
05:00 Scanlan’s health
06:00 Scanlan in asylum
07:00 Ballad comes to Ireland
08:45 My Eileen is Waiting for Me (song)