‘People are less defensive about being Irish now,’ wrote Bob Scally in The New York Times, back in the 1990s. That obviously referred to America, but applied to Australia also, now as then. Although ‘Irish’ was the third highest reported ancestry in the 2016 Australian census, at 10.2%, only 0.4% of the population in 2016 … Continue reading
Posted in April 2021 …
A Brief History of the Irish in Australia
A summary of Irish role in history and literature of Australia, written prior to more recent research and publications in the area. Continue reading
Delia Murphy ‘Ballad Queen’ 1902-1971
Everywhere Delia Murphy went she collected – from the servants at home, from the travellers in the lane, from fishermen, from the blacksmith. Continue reading
Ghosts of Irish-Australia
A voice from the next life recalls his time with use Continue reading
The Irish Travellers
Travellers have been acknowledged as a distinct ethnic group within the Irish population. Continue reading
Irish-speakers at Trafalgar
The battle of Trafalgar in 1805, in which Nelson defeated a combined French and Spanish fleet, was considered an astonishin Continue reading
From the Papers
Snippets from the Irish newspapers. Continue reading
Celtic Surprise: A Visit to Jersey
Neolithic passage tombs and remnants of Celtic languages to be found in Jersey. Continue reading
Socialist Countess
Meg McNena’s new play about Constance Markievicz constitutes an epic story of women’s engagement in politics. Continue reading
New Irish Fiction
Three more novels from Irish women writers, the first one set in Sydney Continue reading