THE POWER AND THE STORY

Legacy series looks at Office of Public Works' iconic sites

- BY LARISSA NOLAN

A NEW TV series is set to turn the spotlight on our country's wealth of historic properties, castles, country houses, memorial sites and gardens.

Legacy, which airs on RTE next month, is a four-part documentary on the portfolio managed by the Office of Public Works.

It features 15 of the 30 key sites which are open to the public.

The show tells how many of these properties, sites and gardens were given to the State as gifts, some were bought, and others, including Aras an Uachtarain and Dublin Castle came into the State's possession when Ireland gained independence in 1922.

Each episode has a specific theme, starting with Centres of Power, and also covers Writers and Collectors, Memory and Commemoration and The Art of the Portrait.