This week I’m reflecting on themes of reason, artificial intelligence (AI) and journalism – all related for sure. Sunday Morning Live (BBC One, Sunday) is back for its 14th series, and the main discussion for the first episode was the power and intrusiveness of the press, issues highlighted by Prince Harry’s ongoing civil action against…
The significance of the date, for those not perhaps as steeped in national lore as others, is that it marks the birth of Arthur Griffith in 1871. He died, as many more will remember, on August 12, 1922, of sudden heart failure; to be closely followed 10 days later by the death in action of…
The Pope at War – The Secret History of Pius XII, Mussolini and Hitler by David I. Kertzer (Oxford University Press, €29.00/£25.99) Dermot Keogh The decision in 2019 of Pope Francis to open the Vatican archives for World War II and beyond, becoming operational on March 2, 2020, is a significant milestone on the long…
Index, A History of the – A Bookish Adventure from Medieval Manuscripts to the Digital Age, by Denis Duncan (Allen Lane/ Penguin Books, €15.50/ £10.99) Dennis Duncan, who lectures in English at the University College London, is a man of many parts and a writer of diverse, bookish interests. His most entertaining book, which deals as…
Not that long ago people would have been amazed and puzzled at the way some elements in society today are going ballistic over gender. Gender Wars (Channel 4, Tuesday) tried to get to grips with the issue, but I suspect viewers were still amazed and puzzled. The main focus was on philosophy lecturer Kathleen Stock…
Last week the National Symphony Orchestra and Royal Irish Academy of Music announced a joint venture entitled ‘The NSO Concerto Project’. While that may be a slight misnomer, the idea behind the enterprise is, and hopefully will continue to be, a fruit bearing amalgamation. Under the baton of Gavin Maloney, the inaugural event had four…
A Kerry Odyssey: The Boer War and Great War Experiences of John J. Moore, by Martin Moore (Gabha Beag Publications, Tralee, €24.00/ £20.99) This is a fascinating account of the remarkable military career of John J. Moore, written by his grandnephew. It is a remarkable record of an Ireland we have almost lost sight…
This Listowel interior (pictured), a water colour rather than an oil, painted in 1842, is a picture with a story. It is attributed to a Miss Bridget Maria Fitzgerald (1817-1905), a lady with some local reputation as a painter. It was come upon by the distinguished art historian Dr Anne Cruickshank, who photographed it in…
The Tilson Case: Church and State in 1950s Ireland, by David Jameson (Cork University Press, €39.00/£33.99) The Tilson Case hit the Irish public in the Holy Year of 1950. The West was over-charged with feeling, almost hysterical. In Hungary Cardinal Mindszenty had been imprisoned. The Korean War was in full swing, with the potential for…
The “meet-cute” is a hallowed tradition in Hollywood romances. It’s how the hero first encounters the heroine. In The Little Mermaid (PG), a live action re-imagining of the Hans Christian Anderson classic directed by Rob Marshall, it acquires an innovative spin, occurring after a shipwreck when disgruntled Prince Eric (Jonah Hauer-King) has his life saved…
Brendan O’Regan
Peter Costello
Aubrey Malone