About this episode

The episode discusses the shocking story of Kevin Halfpenny, known as 'the hen house boy', and the neglect he faced 70 years ago.

In September 1956 a Crossgar schoolboy made a shocking discovery after peering into a hen house and locking eyes with a child. The eyes belonged to seven-year-old Kevin Halfpenny – but he has been better known ever since as ‘the hen house boy’. Robbed of human interaction – he seemed to have learned his behavior from the chickens around him. His widowed mother Margaret Halfpenny was arrested and pleaded guilty to neglect.  70 years later, the heartbreaking story has been surrounded by folklore.  Olivia Peden is joined by Belfast Telegraph Journalist Kurtis Reid.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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