Nick Maxwell Town Hall, the Castle, Bangor, Co. Down www.northdownmuseum.com museum@northdown.gov.uk North Down Museum recently celebrated its 30th year and it is one of the most successful local museums in Ireland. It is historic in itself, being situated in converted outbuildings of Bangor Castle. The museum covers a number of themes on the history and heritage of … Read more
El Zorrero Films RTÉ1, Dec. 2014 Gallery of Photography, Meeting House Square, Dublin 2, 29 Nov. 2014–8 Jan. 2015 Ciarán Deeney & David Clarke, Man on the bridge: the photos of Arthur Fields (Collins Press, ?24.99 hb, 240pp, ISBN 9781848892170) By John Gibney Man on the bridge illustrates how simple ideas are often the best … Read more
RTÉ’s new primetime drama Charlie, which charts the life and times of arguably Ireland’s most notorious—not to mention corrupt—politician, Charles J. Haughey, has rekindled the public’s fascination with the Irish political landscape of the 1980s The 1980s will forever be remembered for their prolonged economic recession, mass unemployment, institutionalised emigration and the ongoing Troubles in … Read more
On coming to power Thatcher knew very little about Ireland, North or South. Prior to becoming prime minister she had visited Ireland only a handful of times and had failed to strike up a relationship with the leaders in either Belfast or Dublin. In private, she had once conceded that ‘If the Irish want to … Read more
The deliberate burning of nearly five acres of Cork by Auxiliaries on the night of 11–12 December 1920 left a trail of debris and ruin in the city. Patrick’s Street traders sought, and successfully accessed, compensation for their losses. Chief amongst the traders was William Roche (d. 1939), who had developed his business from a … Read more