Eilis O’Connell at teh Solomon Gallery, Rickie Lee Jones in Copenhagen long ago, Back in the Troy, Jack Smith for Man of the Year and the irascible Hugh MacDiarmid.

Anna Mendieta’s evocative image, Floyd Cramer’s Last Date, Arcadia bowdlerised, an army brat and the Ship of Death.

Donald Teskey in the woods, Paul Krugman, the Platters, David Seabrook’s seedy world, a soldier’s end, and Tom McCarthy looks back.

Brian Bourke at 90, John the Whipper’s story, Iarla Ó Lionáird, and a farewell to Wendell Berry.

Gary Stewart’s tragic end, scenes from a gambling life, Camus’ rosemary, and John Behan’s apocalypse.

Pat Connor in Union Hall, Beckett’s alarming insight, Johnny Ace the failed Joker, and an ingenue in Sixties London.

Caitlin Johnstone is angry; Charlie Brady’s gift; Donal Lunny; Tom Stoppard, who killed John Joe O’Reilly and the curious case of Rosemary Tonks.

Velasquez’s buffoons; Thomas Nashe plagued; The Holy Modal Rounders; Coulda been a Contenda and Colson Whitehead’s entertaining novel.

Whistler in London, Fleetwood Mac’s early days, Mayo - May-a-a-o, Young Love and the plain-speaking Ben Jonson.

Cian McLaughlin, Bernard MacLaverty, that chap Verdi, Cork slang me bollix, and an old UCC sparring partner..

Tim Goulding at Taylor Galleries, Leonard got it wrong, oilrig woes, a World Cup disaster class, and a lament for Kilcash.

John Shinnors going strong, Anne Applebaum changes dictators, Wanda Jackson, that modest genius Aidan O’Brien, red-necks bully genteel college boy, Sebastian Faulks, and Paul Potts fiery finish.

Milly in Connemara, Ireland as tech’s lapdog, T-Bone Walker, a literary stich-up, and Charles Bukowski.

An ingenue on the oil rigs, Claire Halpin, Bob Seger, the Dalkey Book Festival and more mealy-mouthedness from Micheál Martin.

John Kindness, Edward Chisholm on Alain Delon, Jerry Lee Lewis in Foxrock, Seamus Heaney and how I enraged Richard Ford.

Manar Mervat, Simon Schama on Pete Hegseth, Sebastian Faulks, Mary Gauthier, and Maurice Riordan. And a another morsel of memoir.

Michael Flavin, Douglas Stuart’s John of John, Sean McSweeney, the Rocking Berries, a beautiful poem by Louis MacNeice and the folly of a young gambler.

New broom at the RHA, Javier Marías’s literary acid drops, Andrew Sullivan agonistes, Solomon Burke on a Fast Train and a cryptic work from Derek Mahon. Plus a few memories from the Campfield.

Martin to “discuss with EU partners” how to ensure the safety of our citizens, kidnapped in international waters and physically abused by the IDF. Pathetic response. Do something.

In our Malice in Blunderland world, it’s no more ludicrous that a nasty little spiv like Farage could become PM of the UK than that a pig-ignorant grifter became president of the USA.

The main beneficiaries of the current Iranian debacle are Russia and the oil companies. The rest of the world pays the price for the policies of this malignant US regime. Putin smirks in the Kremlin.

I’m pleased to see our President has the moral courage to denounce University of Galway for its collaboration with Technion University in Israel, a technical resource for the Israeli arms industry.

Marcus Aurelius warned himself in his Meditations "not to be Caesarified or dyed with this purple". He advocated duty, humility, and service to others over authoritarian control or narcissistic rule.

Our cowardly, deferential government is still dragging its heels on the Occupied Territories Bill as Israel carpet bombs the Middle-East, slaughters children, and appropriates the West Bank.

The magnolias are making their all-to-brief appearance and the sun is shining. I shall be walking my dogs on Killiney Beach shortly and letting the decline of the west take place in my absence.

With some people, money and sex are the only truths. It’s the ultimate delinquency to believe that gratification...

Our Taoiseach Martin by his craven deference to the USA and the EU (both embroiled in this ongoing Genocide) is making the Irish people complicit in the annihilation of Palestine and its people.

598 Living Room 2024 by Michelle Conway, Ye Vagabonds, Julian Barnes’ Departures, Langston Hughes, and an incident in Spanish Point.

Dante stated that the direst recesses of hell were reserved for those who remained silent in times of moral crisis. Martin and his craven cabinet better start donning their asbestos knickers

From the surreal to the ridiculous. It’s hard not to see all this Greenland business as a distraction from both the Epstein files and the continuing destruction of Ukraine and Gaza.

Any civilised country would sever all interactions with Israel - like the apartheid era boycott of South Africa. However our craven leader baulks even at the insipid occupied territories bill.

Andrea Long Chu is the poster girl critic of the American progressive left. Writing primarily for New York magazine, she made her name with takedowns of celebrated novelists such as Hanya Yanagihara,...

Friends,

Let us examine the state of journalism at Jeff Bezos’ The Washington Post, where three reporters have combined to create drivel that is subtle in its deceit upfront, while burying a simple truth that ...

How to deal with their tyranny

There is a statute of limitations on civic virtue as Lowry is openly embraced as the power broker of the new government

A blog about art, literature, and horse racing, with occasional personal stuff and some rancid observations on our shabby little oligarchy.