S8 Ep1038: The "Hungry Summer" and the Stench of Rot. Guest: Patrick Scanlan. Scanlan describes the unique horror of the blight's progression, noting that it struck potatoes both in the ground and in storage. Typically, the summer was the "hungry time" in Ireland

The John Batchelor Show · Jun 22, 2026 · 7m

The "Hungry Summer" and the Stench of Rot. Guest: Patrick Scanlan. Scanlan describes the unique horror of the blight's progression, noting that it struck potatoes both in the ground and in storage. Typically, the summer was the "hungry time" in Ireland as stocks ran low before the new harvest. However, P. infestans ensured that even harvested and stored potatoes rotted, removing any buffer for the starving peasantry. Witnesses described a distinctive, nauseating odor emanating from the blighted fields, which some likened to the smell of rotting human flesh. In previous crises, weather-related…