Category Archives: Uncategorized

Suspension of UK Parliament, August 2019 (1)

Posted on August 29, 2019 by

Yesterday (28th August) Boris Johnson asked the Queen to suspend Parliament and she agreed. Jeremy Corbyn (Labour) and Jo Swinson (Lib-Dem) sent letters to the Queen asking her to refuse BJ’s request but they were too late; she had already … Continue reading →

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BREXIT (The night Theresa May’s deal was voted down)

Posted on February 3, 2019 by

Reuters reports today that there are plans afoot to move the Royal Family out of London if things turn sour  I didn’t intend to blog about Brexit, but this jogged my memory. We were in London in the middle of … Continue reading →

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An egg is not a bird. A seed is not a tree.

Posted on April 19, 2018 by

This blog was originally posted in 2013.  As we get closer to the referendum I am increasingly worried about the misinformation and distortion of facts I hear on the radio as reputable programmes try to present both sides of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Abortion, Choice, Commentary, Irish Solutions, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

DAPHNE CARUANA GALIZIA – International PEN Call to Action

Posted on April 16, 2018 by

Leading international writers join PEN International in calling on Europe to protect press freedom in Malta Leading writers from Europe and around the world have written to the European Commission today, on the six-month anniversary of the brutal assassination of … Continue reading →

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Nicole Krauss in dlr LexIcon with Nadine O’Regan (28.08.2017)

Posted on August 30, 2017 by

Nicole Krauss was in Dun Laoghaire this week to promote her new novel, Forest Dark.  Nadine O’Regan (NOR) opened the conversation by remarking on how young Nicole Krauss (NK) was when she began to publish fiction and how quickly success came … Continue reading →

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Internment, anyone?

Posted on June 7, 2017 by

This blog is usually about the arts but artists are citizens too. The UK election is tomorrow. In Ireland we worry about the Border, no matter how officialdom tries to placate us. Now there’s something else to worry us: Today’s … Continue reading →

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Sally Rooney at ILFD 2017 (With Rick O’Shea  in Belvedere House)

Posted on June 3, 2017 by

Sally Rooney is a phenomenon. She’s very young (26) but we can’t hold that against her. She has talent, energy, a strong sense of the world her generation inhabit and a direct way of talking (and writing) that is instantly … Continue reading →

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Elizabeth Strout at ILFD 2017 (with Sinéad Gleeson)

Posted on June 1, 2017 by

No one could accuse Elizabeth Strout of being an overnight success.  Encouraged by her mother, she started writing as a child. That, she says, got her thinking about sentences. She started sending stories out when she was 16 but her … Continue reading →

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Rugby as Theatre (Arena essay)

Posted on March 9, 2017 by

The lovely people at Arena (RTÉ Radio One) asked me back. Here’s the first radio essay I’ve written in a long time: * My artsy friends are puzzled by my love of rugby but to me, rugby is pure theatre. … Continue reading →

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Away …

Posted on October 11, 2016 by

Starting work on a new novel is a lot like going away for a very, very long time on a one-way ticket. I’ve no idea when/if I’ll be back. But feel free to look through the archive if you’re interested … Continue reading →

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments