Nick Maxwell The story of how Chester Beatty came to bequeath his collection of oriental art to Ireland is quite well known by now. Although the American-born mining tycoon had some distant Irish ancestry, his decision to move to Dublin resulted from his dislike of the Labour government elected in Britain after World War II. He spent … Read more
Muide Éire was a strikingly ambitious history of the depiction of Ireland and the Irish on both big and small screens, from The Quiet Man to The Late Late Show. Written by Ruth Lysaght and directed by Cathal Watters, the four episodes of the series eschewed a chronological narrative and, instead, picked out four themes … Read more
Child clerical sexual abuse, denial and cover-up Sir,—I read your editorial (HI 18.3, May/June 2010) with concern because it is upsetting to think of anyone who is usually positive expressing such despair at aspects of present-day life in Ireland. But I have to disagree with your suggestions regarding denial and cover-up of the sexual abuse … Read more
Irish history, as recent public controversies about republican violence during the War of Independence have made clear, remains an ideological minefield. Against this background, making a film about one of the most controversial republicans of the last century, Frank Ryan, presents obvious challenges. Before the first scene of The enigma of Frank Ryan had been … Read more
July 17 1935 George William Russell, poet, editor, artist and mystic, known as ‘AE’, died. 18 1610 Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, belligerent Italian painter best remembered for the uncompromising realism of his religious works, died in mysterious circumstances. 21 1920 In Belfast, ‘Protestant and unionist’ workers from Workman Clark’s shipyard marched into … Read more