Susan has had international recognition with her interview on The Ryan Tubridy Show on RTÉ Radio1…The Irish National Foresters were a Friendly Society that commenced in Ireland and then started in Melbourne in 1886 … Continue reading
Filed under Irish Studies …
Community Gatherings in Ireland Old and New part one
. To this day, we have a saying in Irish ‘Bhí togha gacha bí agus rogha gacha dí le fail ann’, The finest of every food and the choice(st) of every drink was to be had there. This is believed to originally date from bards of one to two thousand years ago. As a chieftain or king, one’s reputation had to be maintained, or enhanced and these ‘songs of praise’, so to speak, were pivotal in this regard. Continue reading
Based on truth and story: the Irish ballad tradition and its relevance to today.
The other songs cut straight to the chase of the reality of war. Mrs McGrath and Johnny, I hardly knew you. They give a heartbreaking perspective on the horror and futility of war and although tinged with humour they give a firsthand account of the injuries and lifelong disabilities inflicted. Continue reading
Tóibín being Tóibín.
Book Review by Frank O’Shea A GUEST AT THE FEAST. By Colm Tóibín. Picador 2022. 305 pp. $34.99 Colm Tóibín is the current Laureate for Irish Fiction, succeeding Sebastian Barry. As part of that role, he will be expected to deliver a number of public lectures; it is not clear whether this book is part … Continue reading
English exam board removes works of Irish writers to promote diversity
Heaney’s poem ‘Punishment’ will also be removed from the OCR’s GCSE poetry anthology from September 2022. GCSEs are the basic level of qualification in British education, while A-levels are taken by secondary school students aged between 16 and 18. Continue reading
Fraud in Ireland
Former footballer gives a riveting account of the workings of the fraud squad, from an insider’s perspective. Continue reading
New Irish Fiction
Three new Irish or Irish Australian fictions reviewed by book-devourer, Frank O’Shea Continue reading
What’s On
Upcoming Melbourne Irish Studies Seminar on Heaney’s visit to Australia in 1994. Continue reading
The Irish Civil War
One hundred years ago, former comrades in the Irish fight for freedom turned their guns on each other. Continue reading
St Patrick’s Day in South Australia
From the beginning of European settlement, St Patrick’s Day in South Australia has been commemorated annually as a rallying call to express Irish identity in a new land. Continue reading
Tinteán 