Richard Lawrence Jordan Syracuse University Press $39.95 ISBN 9780815633136 Reviewed by Brian Kennaway In The second coming of Paisley, the American historian Richard Lawrence Jordan claims to provide us with some theological insights into the nature of Ian Paisley’s politics. The title may cause confusion. Some may think that ‘the second coming’ is a reference … Read more
Alvin Jackson (ed.), The Oxford handbook of modern Irish history (Oxford University Press, £95 hb, 800pp, ISBN9780199549344) Maynooth Studies in Local History (Four Courts Press, ?9.95 pb) John R. Thullier, Kinsale Harbour: a history (Collins Press, ?19.99 hb, 280pp, ISBN 9781848892064) Aidan O’Hara, Atlantic Gaels: links between Donegal and the Hebrides (The Islands Book Trust, … Read more
Powerscourt House, Enniskerry, Co. Wicklow www.taraspalace.ie By Denis Casey Formerly situated at Malahide Castle and now located in three of the upper rooms of Powerscourt House, Enniskerry, Tara’s Palace and Museum of Childhood is a small attraction dedicated to both children and adults that houses a 25-room miniature doll’s palace and a collection of toys … Read more
Blinder Films TG4, 17 and 24 September and 1 October BBC1, 17 September RTÉ1, 18 September By John Gibney What is mental illness? To ask that question implies the existence of mental health, an intriguing definition of which was provided by Jim Lucey early in the first episode of Ar intinn eile: ‘the successful integration … Read more
Gaiety Theatre, Verdant Productions, 11 Sept.–25 Oct. 2014 By Donal Fallon In June 1959 the Irish Times noted that, with the success of The Hostage and his book Borstal Boy, the name of Brendan Behan ‘has become almost as well-known through theatrically-minded Europe as those of Shaw and Wilde’. Certainly, the Dubliner captivated crowds, both … Read more