The night a ‘sputnik’ crash-landed in rural Wexford
A garda arrived immediately to cordon off a crater in the field, then the Army was called in
An Irish Diary
An Irish Diary
‘A breakthrough in the case of my stolen Dublin Bike and the subsequent €150 fine’
I am no wiser as to where the bicycle spent its long, lost weekend
A daisy with a doctorate? Frank McNally on the enrolment of ragwort in the rewilded lawns of Trinity College
Who knows how ragwort will evolve with the benefit of a few years in university? It might lose the latter part of its name, Jacobaea vulgaris, for a start
Ballet Go Backwards – Frank McNally on Patrick Kavanagh’s short-lived career as a dance librettist
This strange incident came about because of another surprising phenomenon little remembered today
A rose by any other name: Fionnuala Ward on a garden visitor with a life of its own
Sometime later, to the delight of my neighbour, it popped up on her side of the wall
A close shave: Colm Keena on the trials and tribulations of a summer job in St James’s hospital
This quickly became the cause of some anxiety, not for me, but for the poor patients
Barns ignoble – Frank McNally on Tom Waits’s barn obsession (and why Macbeth is innocent)
Tom Waits seems to have moved the scene to 20th century America
Long Day’s Journey Into Night – Frank McNally on a heady month for Monaghan GAA supporters, 40 years ago
My namesake and anti-Treaty grandfather may have been among the Monaghan supporters scarred for life
Murder most vulgar: Frank McNally on an infamous case of the 1820s
He was in no doubt about where the blame for such bad taste lay
Boyne Companions – Frank McNally on why the road from Dublin to Slane lies mainly on a plain (allegedly)
The loveliness of the setting is matched by that of the village of Slane itself
A life’s work reviving the Irish language - Oliver O’Hanlon on Liam Ó Briain
The playwright Seán O’Casey was the first person that Ó Briain spoke Irish with
Make more of the Moores: An Irish village’s connection to the Hollywood Walk of Fame
The most prolific actor was Owen Moore who made an estimated 279 movies
Learnings from Tom Lehrer: Brendan Balfe on tracking down and interviewing one of his favourite performers
Tom believed the material was the important thing, not his personal appearances
Hot Wheels - Frank McNally on the mystery of why anyone would steal a Dublin Bike
I was nevertheless baffled at the turn of events
Belfast Bride - Frank McNally on the Irish wife of man who dropped US atomic bomb on Nagasaki
Beahan had mixed feelings in later years about his involvement in the missions
Special Guest Appearance – Frank McNally on a famous banshee visitation of the 19th century
Although a great storyteller, the author was not the most reliable of narrators
‘Such a cruel sight’: A visit to Hiroshima lives long in the memory
Eighty years ago this month the first atomic bomb was dropped in Japan
John Mulqueen on Ireland’s influential role in fighting anti-Semitism and Franco’s fascists
Ireland’s brigadistas were not welcomed home as heroes
Rites and Wrongs: Examining the rise and fall of the ‘Portiuncula Indulgence’
What started out as the Pardon of Assisi required a visit to Italy, but now Westmeath will suffice
Odds and Ends - Frank McNally on the vagaries of Galway Race Week
It was as if I’d asked if his house had a late bar, or a chauffeured limousine service
Forever young: Revisiting the ground-breaking musical documentary The Last Waltz 50 years later
Bob Dylan was a guru even for the flotillas of soutaned clerics who mingled with us cool chicks
Ireland’s boy wonder who took the Lions tour of South Africa by storm in 1955
Tony O'Reilly was top scorer on that tour with 15 tries
‘In Venice, I woke up, unable to catch my breath, I knew I needed help’
I woke up, unable to catch my breath, I knew I needed help
Regaled by admirers, reviled by critics: A glimpse inside the André Rieu musical extravaganza
Sometimes dubbed the McDonald’s of Mozart, by age five he could already play the violin
Jung at Heart – Frank McNally on the Irish legacies of a Swiss psychologist
He suggested among other insults that Ulysses could be as easily read backwards as forwards
Baked into a Corner – Frank McNally on the demise of a Dublin landmark
Brian O’Nolan frequented the pub in his younger days
What unhygienic object do teams always need someone to clean up? – Frank McNally’s guide to the GAA cliche
Which undesirable qualities relating to the time-space continuum featured in that challenge by the corner back? It was late and high
Hot Tickets – Frank McNally on watching a steamy Molière and how Barry Lyndon became a TikTok hit
A Misanthrope features a choreographed sex scene that for technical difficulty (9.9) and artistic merit (10.0) would rival any gymnastics routine
Rory McIlroy and his alma mater’s key role in the formation of Irish education
Robert Sullivan had a great influence on teachers and teaching practices throughout Ireland
Remembering Ballinspittle and the moving statue
On one feast day alone, it was reckoned more than 15,000 people came to the grotto
‘They would not venture out that day’: Why Galway fishermen dread foxes
Before the captain had a chance to revisit the island, he went down in a shipwreck
Behind Enemy Lines - Frank McNally on a little piece of Cork that is forever Tipperary
Although a first-class cricketer in his prime, he was probably never much of a hurling fan
July Jeopardy - Frank McNally on this month’s ominous reputation
Men were at risk of attacks by rabid dogs and the wantonness of women, according to ancient philosophers
Publican Cause - Frank McNally on the Spanish celebrity of Paddy O’Connell
Soon afterwards, the Dubliner – born close to what is now Croke Park - was captaining Manchester United
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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