In the aftermath of World War Two, Ireland slowly begins to open up to the world. Episode one looks at how the formative experiences of our leading minds were interwoven with key events both at home and abroad: economic protectionism and emigration in the Fifties; Ireland joining the United Nations; the war in the Congo; the foundation of the IDA; JFK’s visit to Ireland; the missionary tradition; Vatican II; Biafra; 1968; the Civil Rights Movement in Northern Ireland and across the world; and, finally, Ireland’s admission to the EEC in 1973.