America celebrated Martin Luther King Day this past week – and unveiled a new sculptural tribute to the African-American civil rights leader and his wife Coretta, named Embrace. Reactions were mixed to the bronze itself, created by Hank Willis Thomas, which depicted hugs without depicting human faces. But sometimes art has to be controversial or…
It would have been hard to avoid media coverage of Prince Harry’s all-too-revealing autobiography, Spare, out this week. Aside from the un-sparing details from his private life, there is serious official concern at his apparent boast that he killed 25 Taliban fighters in Afghanistan. British security sources are dismayed that he may have made himself,…
It is 50 years since Ireland joined the European Union – then called the European Economic Community, (EEC) and subsequently, just the European Community (EC). I remember it because I was reporting from Brussels at the time, and fireworks and parties were laid on for the accession of Ireland, Britain and Denmark. Key role But…
Many sad things happened in 2022 and there are many glum predictions for 2023, but there’s always something to be grateful for. And the re-opening of Dublin’s Leopardstown Races on St Stephen’s Day – first time since 2019 – cheered me up. Ecumenical agent I’m a great supporter of the horse as ecumenical agent: throughout…
Charles Dickens is sometimes described as having ‘invented’ our modern Christmas with his story A Christmas Carol. His compelling tale of the money –grubbing Ebenezer Scrooge – Dickens was a genius at his characters’ names – and his loathing for Christmas, pitted against the poor but loving family, the Cratchits, merrily celebrating the Saviour’s birth…
“Is it true that people in Ireland may no longer have turf fires?” asked my cousin, who has lived in England for some years. Yes, I said, that was how things were going, ever since Eamon Ryan introduced the Solid Fuel Regulations Act in October this year. Peat, we are told, pollutes the atmosphere, and…
I’m rather ashamed of an episode of my life that has recently come to mind, but I think it’s instructive. I was in my early twenties, and, in an effort to break into journalism, I was working as a secretary for The Guardian in London, previously called the Manchester Guardian. Society today has more sympathy…
Under a new protocol, religious symbols across State-run primary and secondary schools in the Republic (see page x), must be reflective of the “entire community”. If I were a Catholic parent with a child at such a school, I’m sure I’d have no objection to a school mirroring the faith diversity of the local community.…
There’s a new musical group who are expected to sweep to success in 2023 bearing the name of ‘The Mary Wallopers’. They are a trio of guys from Dundalk, and are already being compared, in the folk music tradition, to The Pogues and the Clancy Brothers. And they’re not just about music. They also have…
Is the institution of marriage doomed? According to a leading British think-tank, ‘Civitas’, wedlock is declining possibly beyond repair – it is now subject to “exponential decay”. About one in 100 couples are currently married; in 40 years’ time, the researchers predict, the numbers will be one in 400. The statistics apply to England and…