Each visit to Ireland runs deeper than the last. Back in the 1980s, I met distant relatives before hitching around The Republic. When I felt the Atlantic’s chill, I retreated south towards the equator and finally home to The Great South Land. From August to early October 2022, I crisscrossed Ireland, listening to RTÉ and … Continue reading
Analysing the Results by Jeff Kildea Most of the reporting on the outcome of the elections in May for the 90-member Northern Ireland Assembly (NIA) has concentrated on Sinn Féin’s winning the highest number of seats and the highest proportion of first preference votes (FPVs). Some have called it ‘historical’ and have referred to a … Continue reading
Ironically, the Northern Ireland Assembly elections will resolve nothing, but they will set the parameters for what will happen next in this troubled land. Continue reading
It was a sunny afternoon when 10,000 – 15,000 people joined together to take part in the march. The march began in the housing estate of Creggan and then made its way down the Bogside, which is the largely Catholic area just outside of Derry’s Old City walls. Continue reading
With 83% of those surveyed expressing a sense of belonging to Northern Ireland, the rise in a Northern Irish identity is more a reflection of an attachment to one’s homeplace, than a political statement. Continue reading
Written and directed by Branagh,Belfast is a touching story of lost innocence, with an outstanding cast and soundtrack by Van Morrison, has already won festival awards and is considered a major Oscar contender. Continue reading
BrigidFest speaker, the Hon. Gabrielle Williams, provided much graphic evidence of women’s involvement in the IRA, and in particular their roles as prisoners, and wives, lovers and mothers, and in the no-wash protests and hunger strikes in Armagh Women’s Prison. Continue reading
the House of Commons voted a customs border between UK and NI. Meanwhile, goods can freely cross the border between NI and the Republic. Continue reading
Short items from past four weeks. Continue reading
If you ever wondered why Anne Enright was chosen as first Laureate for Irish Fiction, this book will explain. Continue reading
Tinteán 