In 1994, then Minister for the Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht, Michael D. Higgins, set up a review group – Provision and Institutional Arrangements Now for Orchestras and Ensembles (PIANO) – to examine among other things “the roles as they evolved of the performing groups in RTÉ with particular reference to which the broadcasting and…
Returning Light: 30 Years of Life on Skellig Michael by Robert L. Harris (Harper Collins Ireland, €13.99 / £14.99) This is a tale about a remarkable location, a remarkable monastery and a remarkable person. The remarkable location consists of two huge pinnacles of rock reaching skywards from the sea-bed of the North Atlantic 11 and…
Ulysses: a reader’s odyssey by Daniel Mulhall (New Island Books, €15.95) This book is a delightful, chatty introduction to the wonderful world of James Joyce’s Ulysses. It is written by Daniel Mulhall, an Irish diplomat for more than 40 years and now Ireland’s ambassador to the United States of America. In the prologue to his…
February 2 was the centenary of the publication of James Joyce’s Ulysses. You might be interested in seeing the film version if you haven’t done so already. It was directed by Joseph Strick in 1967. Ten years later, Strick directed A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Joyce’s earlier novel. Opinions differ on…
Last week was Catholic Schools Week, so hopefully it will have a positive impact on students in those schools. The event was bookmarked in the media by two Masses. On the Monday it was the regular 10.30am Mass on the RTÉ News channel, with Fr Michael Toomey from the Holy Family Church Ardfinnan, in Co.…
Anthony Redmond My Theology: Personal Idealism by Keith Ward (Darton, Longmann & Todd, (£8.99 / €12.59) Keith Ward was Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford University. He is an ordained priest in the Church of England. He has written over 20 books on various aspects of philosophy and theology and is regarded as an important…
Last weekend the spirits of the nation lifted, but they were heavy at the start of last week. I tend to complain a fair bit about the Pat Kenny Show (Newstalk, weekdays), so it behoves me to give credit when it’s due. On Tuesday of last week when discussing the vigils related to the sad…
As I write I hope Covid-19 restrictions will soon be lifted. Two groups – Irish National Opera (INO) and the National String Quartet Foundation – have had their current tours disrupted with changes to starting times and even some cancellations. Supported by Culture Ireland, INO’s nationwide tour of Vivaldi’s Bajazet is drawing to a close…
Haughey by Gary Murphy (Gill Books, €27.99/£25.99) The distinguished philosopher, Sir Anthony Kenny, wrote apropos of an encounter with Charles J. Haughey that “on no other occasion in my life has anyone, with a straight face, told me so many lies that he knew were lies, and that he knew I knew were lies”. Many…
On Dangerous Ground: A Memoir of the Irish Revolution by Máire Comerford Hilary Dully (The Lilliput Press, Dublin, €20.00) This is a fascinating diary written by a republican ‘true believer’. From 1916 until her death in 1982, Máire Comerford was totally committed to the struggle for independence as understood by many of those elected to…
Aubrey Malone
Brendan O’Regan