Paddy Englishman: Frank McNally on a ‘multimillionaire playboy’ namesake with Monaghan rootsThe late Paddy McNally spent some of his childhood in Ireland, romanced Sarah Ferguson and had brothers who did unspeakable things to catsFri Jul 24 2026 - 19:00
Frank McNally: Dublin is dirtier than ever and badly needs a downpourThe issue is the dried-in grime, accumulated from two months of leaks and spillages, and from the primordial ooze that gathers around the base of binsFri Jul 24 2026 - 06:00
Mayo’s Boheh Stone is a national monument, but a new step threatens its 6,000-year-old carvingsAddition of a step to help people onto the stone has hastened the demise of its 6,000-year-old carvingsWed Jul 22 2026 - 19:00
They call it an epic, but The Odyssey was a harder watch than the woeful World Cup finalI’ll give Christopher Nolan’s film this much: the wooden horse was goodTue Jul 21 2026 - 19:00
Going Gone – Frank McNally on the rise and fall of Irish go-go dancingPlus: Diplomacy requires envoys of bad luck to avoid Spain’s and Argentina’s embassies on SundayFri Jul 17 2026 - 19:00
Scuff and tumble: Frank McNally on the art of ageing pubs (also applicable to literature) In Riga, Paddy Whelan’s pub went to great lengths to ensure it looked authenticThu Jul 16 2026 - 19:00
Baltic banter: Frank McNally on taking part in a ‘conversation festival’ in Latvia Discussions ranged from the philosophical ‘am I who I am?’ to the Pythonesque ‘what has the EU ever done for us?’Thu Jul 16 2026 - 08:27
Talking Italian: Frank McNally on Joyce, Beckett and 250 years of language studies in IrelandJoyce’s studies had been shaped by Giordano Bruno – a man considered a ‘terrible heretic’ in his own lifetimeThu Jul 09 2026 - 20:06
Ale, St Kilian: Frank McNally on Irish beer evangelism, Canadian modesty and ‘Corke’Adding an ‘e’ to Cork is baffling, but it makes 'whisky' taste betterWed Jul 08 2026 - 19:00
From Cillian to Kylian: the unlikely modern popularity of a seventh-century saintMbappé bears standard French spelling of forename that has roots in modern-day CavanTue Jul 07 2026 - 19:00
You’re Fired: If the US Declaration of Independence had been delivered by Donald TrumpUnalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of cryptocurrencyFri Jul 03 2026 - 19:00
The banned writer who explored the eroticism in Irish folkloreShe wrote about lesbian women’s sexuality and the eroticism of Irish folklore, earning acclaim and a ban in Ireland Fri Jul 03 2026 - 09:31
Bad beatitude: the Sermon on the Mount updated for the Gen Z faithfulNever mind the meek and the poor in spirit – here’s a new VIP list of entrants to the kingdom of heavenWed Jul 01 2026 - 19:00
Cross purposes – Frank McNally on a stressful collision of sport and literature in KellsTailteann Games was held nearby in old times when, perhaps, Monaghan may have fared better than LouthTue Jun 30 2026 - 19:00
Castle martyrs – Frank McNally on unwelcome side effects of Ireland’s EU presidencySecurity concerns at Dublin Castle are leading to drastic measures, but not for the first timeFri Jun 26 2026 - 19:00
Transfer window – Frank McNally on the closing stages of a dramatic GAA summerAs an exiled Monaghan supporter, it’s fair to say this has been a freakish summer for the county fansThu Jun 25 2026 - 19:00
Cursive Frankenstein – Frank McNally on the horrors of handwriting in middle ageDecades of using typewriters and computer keyboards have since obliterated all confidence in my cursive writing styleTue Jun 23 2026 - 19:00
The mysteries of a Dublin pub nameYou can take a stand in the pub, but make sure to stand a drink tooSat Jun 20 2026 - 06:00
From Monaghan to ‘Spud Island’, Canada: 1830 exodus back in focus after Mark Carney visitPrince Edward Island has a distinctly Irish flavour, with McKennas to the fore – but that’s only half the storyThu Jun 18 2026 - 19:00
How the Westport was won: Frank McNally on an unscheduled but educational night in MayoAn ancestor of visiting Canadian prime minister Mark Carney took part in a ‘great cattle drive’ in defiance of landowner Lord SligoWed Jun 17 2026 - 19:00
Bloomsday: Ringsend reclaims its Joycean heritage but, alas, no ‘superior tawny sherry’More than most places in Dublin, Ringsend is pivotal to Ulysses, as the focal point of the first date between James Joyce and Nora BarnacleTue Jun 16 2026 - 20:38
Frank McNally: Ulysses updated, with apologies to James JoyceOn Bloomsday, how would Joyce rewrite his masterpiece for a Dublin of Deliveroo, Instagram, Lidl and Tinder?Mon Jun 15 2026 - 19:00
Sun shines on Mark Carney as Aughagower welcomes world leader With its small stone bridges and babbling stream, the Co Mayo village made for a picture-postcard backdrop for a returning Irish emigrant Sun Jun 14 2026 - 19:53
The controversial origins of a Dún Laoghaire hospital, 150 years old this weekParish priest Canon McCabe was the driving force behind the creation of St Michael’s Hospital, which officially opened in Kingstown on June 12th, 1876Thu Jun 11 2026 - 19:00
Deadly Buzz – Frank McNally on a belated ‘inquest’ for James Joyce’s Paddy DignamWe know Dignam died of a Monday. But Monday is not an official cause of death, even in IrelandWed Jun 10 2026 - 19:00
Slippery people: David Byrne soaked up Dublin atmosphere while the rest of us absorbed the floodSnow was not general in Ireland at the weekend, but unseasonably treacherous weather wasTue Jun 09 2026 - 19:00
Soul sanctuary: Frank McNally on ‘staggeringly beautiful’ library of St GallThere are several hundred medieval Irish volumes, including a dictionary that has definitions with a surprising contemporary resonanceFri Jun 05 2026 - 19:00
Remembering Tomi Reichental: a gentle man who never gave in to bitternessHolocaust survivor was resident of Dublin for more than 60 yearsThu Jun 04 2026 - 19:00
Aldous and Joyce too: Frank McNally on a literary pilgrimage to ZurichThe odd circumstances that brought our visit about were in part the influence of another Irish novelist – Flann O’BrienWed Jun 03 2026 - 19:00
A piece of Switzerland that is forever IrishIrish monk St Gall settled down in a hermitage at what is now St GallenTue Jun 02 2026 - 19:00
Surprise(d) guest: Frank McNally on the mysteries of Irish-English and the story behind the world’s greatest collection of Joyceana Invited to join a conversation on Irish-English, I found my biggest challenge was to shut upFri May 22 2026 - 19:00
The lilting Cork accent in my local Lidl reveals a truth about automated voicesPlus, filling in the blanks and the real meaning of lifeThu May 21 2026 - 19:00
Devil in the detail: Frank McNally on the diabolical reputation of St DunstanThe 10th century holy man’s demonic pact is blamed for the occasional frost around his feast dayWed May 20 2026 - 19:00
Here are 20 things I have learned in 20 years of writing An Irish DiaryDeadline fears, the law of typos and becoming a master diarist are just someWed May 20 2026 - 06:00
Ballinode to Joy: Frank McNally on quiet roads, noisy weather and the perils of Monaghan football A fellow county man has taken on the challenge of getting people out on their bikes in Monaghan - although not, alas, on Inniskeen RoadFri May 15 2026 - 19:00
All Well and Good – Frank McNally on the holy (and unholy) waters of KilmainhamNearby and unseen, the holy well gurgles onThu May 14 2026 - 19:00
Suspended sentence – Frank McNally on English revisionism and 1916 executionsIf any Methuen editors are reading, there are two problems with your footnoteTue May 12 2026 - 19:00
Strained relations – Frank McNally on the usefulness of Irish for keeping track of your cousinsDid the Irish system of accounting for family arise from Brehon Law? Fri May 08 2026 - 19:00
Unchained melody: Nocturnal declamping is part of the soundtrack to city lifeEavesdropping can bring you into a world of fascinating speakers and conversationsThu May 07 2026 - 19:00
Clouds in cuckoo land: Frank McNally on the meteorological ‘scaraveens’ of MayCaught unawares by the sudden cold spells that happen this time of year? Blame the cuckoosWed May 06 2026 - 19:00
All about the Bass – Frank McNally on a Joycean angle to a million-pound questionNo small beer for winner of TV quizshow’s jackpotTue May 05 2026 - 19:00
Any portent in a storm: Frank McNally on dogfights, doomsday and a tale of two DundalksRobert Ross, royal diplomacy and linguistic battles over whiskeySat May 02 2026 - 06:00
Road to perdition: Frank McNally on the strange, tragic fate of a Kerry historian in 1920s America A new documentary tells the story of Patrick Foley, who left Dingle in 1909 and died violently in mysterious circumstancesThu Apr 30 2026 - 19:30
Walpurgis Night: Frank McNally on the superstition of April 30thThe sinister reputation of the date has origins in folklore of northern Europe Wed Apr 29 2026 - 19:30
Cultural exchange: Frank McNally on the mutual benefits of being an occasional tour guide I suggested my guests look up Raglan Road on a well-known Swedish institutionTue Apr 28 2026 - 19:00
Frank McNally: The mood in Brussels is poised between worried and smugMood in Brussels, as detected during two days of press briefings at least, was poised between worried and smugFri Apr 24 2026 - 19:00
Last Post and Chorus: Frank McNally on memories of a long-lost Dublin restaurantKaminski snr bought the restaurant some time after he graduated from Trinity College in the 1950sThu Apr 23 2026 - 19:00
How a 16th-century English failed monk tried to bridge Anglo-Irish linguistic gulfYou wouldn’t want to mistake squish for huff Fri Apr 17 2026 - 19:00
The nationalist tobacco shop that hosted James Joyce and Arthur GriffithIts precious visitor books were rescued decades later from a barrow on Dublin’s quaysThu Apr 16 2026 - 19:00
Dearly imparted: Frank McNally on Paddy the philanthropist, the BBC banning of Clannad, and Beckett’s womb with a viewMight Paddy Dear be persuaded to throw a few million our way, for the relief of distress in dear old Ireland?Wed Apr 15 2026 - 19:00
