I could hardly write this column without reference to last week’s weather event. It dominated media news and current affairs, perhaps to an excessive degree. I certainly thought it was going over the top when it was prominent on Claire Byrne Live, as far back as last Monday night, and until the snow actually arrived much…
Pat O’Kelly I was regaled at the National Concert Hall recently by two award-winning young pianists – Alexander Bernstein and Fiachra Garvey, both former pupils of John O’Conor at the RIAM. Accompanied with spontaneous aplomb by the RTÉ NSO, they conveyed the wit and charm of Francis Poulenc’s effervescent Concerto for Two Pianos written…
Given how fractious the Catholic internet has been of late, it can be surprising to find someone you might expect to have joined the camp of those attacking the Pope expressing an impressive docility, and a recognition that being Catholic is not simply a matter of believing Catholic things but of union with the Pope.…
Emil Nolde: “Colour is Life” : Beit Wing curated by Janet McLean and Sean Rainbird, National Gallery of Ireland, with Keith Hartley, Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art Exhibition runs until 10 June 2018. The latest exhibition at the National Gallery presents a selection of paintings and other works from the long career of German artist Emil…
A Year in the Life of Glencairn Abbey by Valerie O’Sullivan (Columba Books, €24.99) Though many people casually think of as a nun’s day as one of prayer and devotion this has never really been the case. For in their enclosed world laborare est orare – to work is to pray – has real meaning. This…
The Family Tree: Reflections for the World Meeting of Families 2018 by Anna Burke (Veritas, €7.99) Emily Keyes The World Meeting of Families, which comes to Dublin in August, is an international event occurring every three years that uses prayer, celebration and catechesis to stress the importance of family life in society. In preparation Anne Burke…
Over recent decades readers of academic books on history and archaeology, and even some ordinary mass market trade books, will have noticed the increasing use of the term ‘Common Era’ (CE) rather than the older BC and AD for describing dates, the system familiar for centuries. This new usage arose from the reluctance of some…
Dictatorland: The Men Who Stole Africa by Paul Kenyon (Head of Zeus, £17) Peter Hegarty Many millions of Africans have lived under tyrants, endured long years of oppression, and watched in enraged impotence as the dictators squandered public money on the erection of grandiose monuments to themselves. What explains the rise of strongmen in so many…
Some of the things I like about Sunday Sequence (BBC Radio Ulster) are the variety of items and the decent length of the show, facilitating thorough discussion. Last Sunday’s episode started with the state of charities in the wake of the Oxfam controversy. Andrew Dougal, a former charity CEO, mounted a robust defence of the…
The 90th anniversary of the Oscar ceremonies is being held this year in the Dolby Theatre, Los Angeles on March 4. Sadly, the possibility that home favourite Saoirse Ronan will reprise her Golden Globe victory for Lady Bird has been ruled out by the bookies. They make Frances McDormand the hot favourite for Three Billboards…
Brendan O’Regan
Greg Daly
Peter Costello
Aubrey Malone