Bawn in Windmill

Explorer Tom Deerpark House has a verandah that looks like it wants to take a shortcut through the landscape. The gabled end bays are doing their best to hide the fact that the house is just showing off its timber shutters. Don't let it trick you into thinking it's actually useful.

Explorer Tom Saint Patrick’s Hospital in Ashwell’s-Lot is throwing a tantrum over its Tudor Revival gables and fancy stone mouldings. The seagulls are telling everyone it’s just a very posh pigeon roost with delusions of grandeur. You might spot the gates doing their best impression of royalty if you look from the road.

Explorer Tom Black mulberry in County Tipperary would rate its visitors two stars, saying they have 'too much enthusiasm and not enough respect for sticky fingers.' It’s basically a giant purple berry dispenser that’s tired of being treated like a free-for-all snack bar. Perfect detour when the satnav has a meltdown.

Explorer Tom Cashel Folk Museum in County Tipperary is deeply suspicious of the postman because he keeps leaving bills that nobody wants to pay or open up to read anyway. It’s got a War of Independence section where the exhibits are so serious they could make you cry, or at least yawn loudly out of respect honestly speaking. Ideal for a moody photo you'll pretend wasn't posed.

Explorer Tom Hore Abbey sits below the Rock of Cashel looking as if somebody dropped a second great ruin into the picture for good measure. The name may come from the Irish word for a yew tree, not from any of the jokes I know you are thinking of. Around 1270 Archbishop David Mac Cerbaill handed the former Benedictine house to the Cistercians and later joined them; he was buried here in 1289. Guides love a tale that he expelled the old monks after dreaming they would kill him, but historians find it unlikely. I could tell it more dramatically and still be wrong. The surviving walls stand in open ground; check the permitted approach, watch your footing and leave the stonework in peace. Look up from the abbey toward Cashel's skyline. Two huge histories are trying to get into one photograph.

Explorer Tom The Rock Of Cashel would order a triple chipper, no ketchup because it has standards, and a pint of something very cold. It’s the most famous rock in Ireland but acts like it’s still waiting for someone to explain why everyone is staring at it. Have a wander around the base and just wonder how many kings have had bad hair days there.

Explorer Tom St. Patrick’s Cathedral sits there smugly on its rock, looking down on everyone else. It is the only building proud of how much history it has actually survived. Go at sunset and thank me later for the view.

Explorer Tom Saint Patrick and the Shamrock: Rock of Cashel gives Patrick a tiny plant for a very big idea. Legend puts his first shamrock lesson here. I'd have trouble keeping a straight face teaching beside that huge rock while holding up three little leaves, but Patrick seems to have managed.

Explorer Tom Ballynahinch Castle has a dancing statue up high that’s definitely judging your outfit as you walk past. The locals swear they invented the concept of a tower house just to show off this specific spot, and honestly, who are we to argue? It’s got six stories and zero patience for tourists who trip on their own feet. Have a sandwich here and call it a heritage lunch.

Explorer Tom Castle in Baurstookeen would tell a teenager that the 1800s were basically a long, damp Tuesday. It’s guarding a river pass with zero enthusiasm these days. Go in good boots and better humour for the soak.

Explorer Tom Pedunculate Oak in County Tipperary would probably have 'Finally Rested' on its tombstone, because it has been standing here for so long that it is exhausted. It has seen things and endured weather that would make most people lose their minds completely by now. Tell it a joke, it's been a long time since anyone did.

Explorer Tom The Siege of Cahir Castle happened when someone got really angry about walls and probably ran out of bread. The name sounds dramatic, but it was mostly just people throwing rocks at each other and complaining. The castle is still there, pretending it didn’t get a bit of chipping. Pick a stone, any stone, and invent its biography.