Posted by FOS …

The Foggy Dew

The Foggy Dew

This is an extract from a paper given by Andrew Scott to the 23rd Irish Australasian conference in Adelaide in December 2016.  The use of folk songs to help teach Irish history has not been sufficiently developed in Australia. The evocative power of historical Irish ballads can spark people’s interest in that history and can … Continue reading →

A Legacy of Myths

Book Review by James McCaughey Colm Toibin House of Names, Picador. May 2017 RRP: $29.99 h/b 261 pp ISBN: 978 1760 551421 The ancient Greeks have left us a legacy of myths. Some of them are still current – the stories of Oedipus or Antigone, for instance. Others, though less known, the story of Pygmalion say, have … Continue reading →

The Belfast Jacobin

The Belfast Jacobin

A Book Review by Hugh Vaughan Kenneth Dawson: The Belfast Jacobin: Samuel Neilson and the United Irishmen, Irish Academic Press, Dublin, 2017. ISBN: 9781911024750 RRP: €22.99–€45.00   While living in the eastern Sydney suburb of Waverley I cherished the cliff-top walk along the eastern beaches. The walk runs along the famed Waverley cemetery and, as I also enjoy … Continue reading →

ONLY NINETEEN

Rosanna Flemming, an Irish Famine Orphan, had serious medical and psychological issues. It is not known what triggered them. We know that she lost at least two children in infancy, but perhaps her earlier experiences in Ireland played a part…. Continue reading →

Playing with the Cats

Tadhg Kennelly’s job is to find young Irish lads who are likely to make it in the highly competitive world of Australian Rules football. Mark O’Connor is one such. Continue reading →

John Clarke and his grandparents

Written on hearing of the sudden death of John Clarke, April 2017 By Val Noone Like many, many people, I am terribly sad to hear the shocking news of the death of our wonderful friend John Clarke. Our sympathies go to his wife Helen and their family. John will be missed by Australians and New … Continue reading →