Friel renaissance Translations National Theatre, London Aristocrats Nuffield Theatre, Southampton by Mark Coalter The works of Brian Friel have had a renaissance on the London stage of late. In 2005 Friel’s masterpiece Translations and the less-celebrated Aristocrats appeared in the National Theatre to sell-out audiences, whilst Home Place won the coveted Evening Standard Theatre Award … Read more
The rocky road to modernity Rocky Road to Dublin (1968) Directed by Peter Lennon by Luke Gibbons Film classics often seem ahead of their time, rather than of it. John Ford’s The Searchers (1956) was one of the first to suggest that the true savage on the frontier was the white man, but had to … Read more
SUGRUE, Michael ‘Butty’ (1924–77), circus strongman, entrepreneur and boxing promoter, was born 27 July 1924 in Gortnascarry, near Killorglin, Co. Kerry, one of six children of Timothy Sugrue, a farmer, and his wife Eileen Reilly of Gortnascarry. Known as ‘Butty’ because of his squat and powerful stature, upon leaving school he was employed as a … Read more
Rabies is an infection associated with a wide range of wild and domestic animals. After dogs, cattle were the most commonly affected animals in Ireland in the late 1890s, mostly having been bitten by rabid dogs. The rabies virus is shed in the saliva of infected animals and may be transmitted by animal bite or … Read more
The official organ of the government of the Republic of Ireland is Iris Oifigiúil, which is in effect a state newspaper for the publication of important public notices. Those notices that name and shame large-scale tax defaulters are usually given extensive coverage in the media. Iris Oifigiúil commenced in 1922, the first year of the … Read more