Date of Birth: 15th December 1938

Place of Birth: Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford

Date Interviewed: 28th June 2011

Summary: John Codd was the second youngest of seven children. His mother was born in America and, orphaned at a young age, was brought to Co. Wexford to live with relatives. John started school in Rathnure in 1944. He then attended Good Counsel College in New Ross as a boarder. John loved hurling and football and played on the college hurling team in the Leinster Colleges Final in Croke Park in 1954. After completing his Leaving Certificate he took up a novitiate with the Augustinians and spent some time at Clare Priory in Suffolk. He decided not to continue with his studies and returned to Wexford to work on the home farm. John also talks of his singing, the formation of the popular showband The Herdsmen, and his involvement in dramatic productions. He also worked on the plantation and road layout of nearby Slievebaun.