In a new book, Ireland’s first ‘soul’ singer: the forgotten story of Mary Connolly, Eric Villiers has uncovered a long-lost piece of Ireland’s social and theatrical history. It’s a century-old tale brimming with the tragedies and successes in the life of an extraordinary street singer who swept to international fame in 1917. It has lain … Read more
The Irish Tourist Association (ITA) survey for Limerick city and county was for several years stored away quietly in an old box in Limerick County Library. It was one of those library collections that promised to be a rainy-day project for cataloguing but it was never given any real priority until now. The ITA was … Read more
In my possession I have an Auxiliary Division Royal Irish Constabulary (ADRIC) Christmas card sent at Christmas 1921 by the splendidly named Ernest Rencella Wilson. Intrigued by this item I set out to find out more about the sender. Wilson was born in Swansea, Wales, on 8 August 1897 and rather unfortunately for him his … Read more
As President John F. Kennedy prepared to leave Ireland after his June 1963 visit he spoke of his love for the nation and promised to return ‘in the springtime’. ‘This is not the land of my birth’, he told the crowds, ‘but it is the land for which I hold the greatest affection. I am … Read more
In the Great War, Belfast contributed more voluntary recruits per head of population than any other part of Ireland. Out of an Irish recruiting total of some 144,000 men, Belfast—which represented less than a tenth of the Irish population—provided 46,000. What factors motivated so many Belfast men to enlist? A unionist interpretation, formed during the … Read more