Arts
So, Where Are You From?
People research their family trees for all sorts of reasons. Where did I come from? (perfectly respectable to ask one’s self!).What sort of people were my forebears? what jobs did they do? Are there any [more…]
Ireland
Literature
Postcard from Cork
Warning: do not expect to find anything in this postcard about Irish craic, trad’ music, green pastures, comely colleens, or comparisons between Murphy, Beamish and Guinness stouts. There won’t be much either about “the 850 [more…]
Arts
Long memories at Clashanimud
We are often now asked to believe that European countries have no culture, or even any connection to their own pasts – that they are all lands of immigrants, blank sheets on which anything can [more…]
Arts
Golf in the Kingdom
I’ve played the eternally fascinating, stupid golf game since I was a lad. Played to a decent standard & been lucky enough to tee it up at almost all of the courses in the “Top [more…]
Arts
The Year Turns, Part 7
Lughnasadh For me, this was always one of the festivals which seemed to slip under the radar. Which is a shame, because it’s a nice social time, with fun and games, and good food. Falling [more…]
Arts
Postcard From November, Part 4
Happy Birthday to Me My birthday is November 4th and as a child my main memory of it was always of my parents laying on a party for my friends who all turned up bearing [more…]
16th Century
The Troubled History of the Potato
The potato is a native of the high Andes, a low-growing plant (Solanum tuberosum) with pretty purple flowers and round black fruits. To survive in its harsh environment it has evolved the habit of growing [more…]
Animals
Larry’s Diary Week Twenty Eight
Monday Good Morning merry readers, I had a lovely peaceful day yesterday, but things were a bit hectic down in Streatham High Street. Another madman went on a stabbing spree in the name of “religion”. [more…]
20th Century
Bax of Delights
There have been quite a few occasions when one wished one was a fly on the wall to listen in on a conversation. The private discussion between Sir Arnold Bax, Master of the King’s Musick, [more…]