Amazon sent me an e-mail today suggesting some books I might like to buy. Top of the list was Downfall: How Rangers FC Self-Destructed by Phil MacGiolla Bháin, the story of the meltdown of the biggest club in Scottish soccer. It would indeed be a book I would be interested in buying. The story of the …
Author Archives: Robert McMillen
Gerry Diver’s The Speech Project
This Sunday will see an amazing piece of avant garde traditional music – yes there is such a thing – when Gerry Diver’s Speech Project ends its Irish tour with a performance at the Sonic Arts Research Centre at Queen’s University in Belfast. Growing up in Manchester, Gerry got all the musical benefits of …
The Playboy of Armagh
The Playboy of the Western World – what’s the point? This was probably an impudent first question to ask someone who had been expending blood, sweat and tears preparing for a run of the John Millington Synge’s classic at Belfast’s Lyric Theatre but in a country which arguably relies overmuch on getting out the …
The Plough and the Stars
If Sean O’Casey is up in Socialist heaven, he is probably looking down at Ireland and saying “I told you so. Have ye not seen The Plough and the Stars?” Well, the Abbey Theatre’s production of The Plough and the Stars is in Belfast until Saturday this week before continuing its tour and the …
Speak dating
The wonderful centre culturel irlandais in Paris is organising Irish classes once again, and they’re also running a Speak Dating linguistique. Using the same principle as speed dating, English and French-speaking twosomes will converse for ten minutes before moving on to the next partner, talking about a variety of topics. It will be a friendly, …
Liam Mac Aindréis, ealaíontóir
Ealaín don phobal trí phriosma Gaelach Saothar Liam Mhic Aindréis, Ealaíontóir agus Gael (1913 – 1996) le Liam Andrews Rugadh m’athair, Liam Mac Aindréis, mac le Sarah Cooke agus Edward Andrews, ar 14 Meán Fómhair 1913. Cé gur thacaigh a sinsir Phreispitéireacha le hÉirí Amach 1798, ba aontachtaithe iad teaghlach a mháthar a raibh cónaí …
Songs that scare children …
Who’d have thought that death was so life-enhancing. Other people’s deaths of course, fictional people at that and creatures whose often grizzly ends have been wrapped up in a shroud of melody and sung for the entertainment of all God’s chillun. And out of that ménage has grown Cathy Davey’s Songs to Scare Children (but …
Séamie ar an CLG
Níor foilsíodh colún Shéamaí Mhic Giolla Ghinnéin san Irish News an tseachtain seo. Seo an méid a chaill sibh .. D’imir siad a chéíle sa chluiche ceannais le trí bliana anuas. Ach cé acu a imreoidh An Ghaillimh an dara Domhnaich den mhí seo chugainn – Cill Chainnigh nó Tiobraid Árainn? Iomáint : Dé Domhnaigh …
Katie Taylor – Great Briton
It is unsurprising that the right-wing English newspaper, the Daily Telegraph, should call Ireland’s ambassadorial female boxer, Katie Taylor, British. They have a habit of doing that. Like the words they have made their own from possibly every known langauge in the world to make up the English language, the English take the success of …
Culture Night 2012
One of the most enjoyable nights I every spent in my native city was on Belfast’s first Culture Night, a balmy evening filled with wonderment and magic and smiles. The Cathedral Quarter was like the bit of The Wizard of Oz which goes from monochrome to technicolor. On September 21st this year, Culture Night will …