So much of what’s on TV is aggravation and conflict ridden so it’s great when you find something calming and uplifting. Monty Don’s Adriatic Gardens (BBC Two, Fridays) is not just about gardening – there is history, spirituality and a host of interesting characters. Monty Don’s visit to the area started in Venice, where we…
Frank Litton The Tyranny of Merit. What’s become of the Common Good? by Michael J. Sandel (Penguin Random House, €25.00/£20.00) Oh let us love our occupations, bless the squire and his relations, live upon our daily rations, and always know our proper stations, so the servants were taught to sing. Democracy put paid to that. Aristocratic…
Changing of the Guard: Jack Marrinan’s battle to modernise An Garda Síochána by Tim Doyle (Currach Books, €20.00 / £17.99) In the 1950s a revolt was stirring in the lower ranks of An Garda. Although a much sought after permanent job, especially in rural Ireland, working conditions were tough, especially for the younger members who…
Prison Journal: vol. 2 The State Court Rejects the Appeal by George Pell (Ignatius Press, £14.50 / $19.95) The context in which this journal (one of three) was written is a sobering morality tale. Cardinal George Pell was born in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia, on June 8, 1941. He was educated at the Loreto convent school…
In his Master’s Footsteps: The Way of the Cross in the Company of St Oliver Plunkett, Archbishop and Martyr (St Paul’s Publishing, €5.50 / £4.60) This aid to making the Stations of the Cross has been written by Canon Benedict Fee, the parish priest of Clonoe, in Co. Tyrone. It is built around the example…
Stolen Moments by John Quinn (Veritas, €16.99 / £14.50) Over recent years John Quinn’s books have proved popular and for good reason. This new book is a sort of sequel to an earlier book Moments (which appeared back in 2011). In this book I can see why. These days I find I do not sleep quite as…
As I rarely ‘read the deaths’ in the daily newspapers, notable departures sometimes escape me. This happened recently with the death on November 9 of the doyen of our composers, John Kinsella. We first met in the 1970s serving on the organising committee of Dublin’s ‘20th Century Music Festival’. At the time John was RTÉ’s…
One of the welcome things about the extended holiday period is that we get a greater variety of presenters, on the radio shows in particular. And so it was that Katie Hannon stood in for Joe Duffy on Liveline (RTÉ Radio One) last week. Thursday’s show was dominated by a discussion of Pope Francis’ words…
When you cut off sound, everything you hear afterwards becomes more precious. Maybe that’s why A Quiet Place resonated with so many people. Or why we laughed so much when mime artist Marcel Marceau spoke the only line of dialogue in Mel Brooks’ Silent Movie. Tilda Swinton has all but cornered the market on quirky…
Maybe it’s a bit of a grim start to the first media column of the year, but the topic of domestic violence never ceases to be important. It has been highlighted recently in adult dramas such as Angela (ITV), The Maid (Netflix) and The Other Girl (BBC One) and plot-wise can be both gripping and…
Brendan O’Regan
Peter Costello
Aubrey Malone