Diarmaid Ferriter

It is striking that his own betrayals were paralleled by trenchant denunciations of the supposed sins of others along with a determination to make edgy comments about celibacy

The slogans ‘Ireland is Full’ and ‘Stop the new plantation of Ireland’ are comically historically illiterate

Keir Starmer may find that that bog might not be as perilous as it once was, but it still creates wariness in Britain

Former US president's actions and rhetoric have divided historians over whether he is a fascist

Those who have crafted this narrative will be louder than most when they’re next looking for Noah’s Ark to rescue them and decrying insufficient support

Our immersion in the parochial pool is entertaining but the wider picture gets lost

Perhaps not overly mindful of the horrors that would await them, many Irish people went in search of liberation, adventure or experiences unavailable at home

The political gains for climate deniers will be remarkably self-defeating

This week’s developments are about many things including the Government and new Taoiseach seeking to promote themselves as moral consciences internationally

Journalist Mary Raftery exposed a shocking culture of abuse 25 years ago this month with her three-part documentary series States of Fear

Previous official histories of the Troubles have involved privileged access to files unavailable to others and the unhelpful policy looks set to continue

Current stand-off between the British and Irish governments over immigration is another illustration of the complexities of the ties between the two countries being denied

Novelist John McGahern admired those in rural Ireland who were “above all, rooted in their own lives”. And yet, those roots are being disturbed, through extreme weather, globalisation and population pressures

From 1948 to 1964, roughly 137,000 dwellings were built with State aid, 63,000 of which were by local authorities

For more than 50 years, opinion polls in the South have suggested two-thirds wish to see a united Ireland, but that is qualified when money comes up

Binyamin Netanyahu’s only strategy, facilitated by Joe Biden and others, is to unleash the army and pummel Gaza in the hopes that it will shore up domestic support

Ireland is going through a period of transition. How Simon Harris navigates the role of Taoiseach will be a test of what the future holds

Throughout his career, Varadkar used the media to fly kites or issue provocative statements, but if there was a negative reaction he qualified them almost to the point of meaninglessness

Is the view that the 'ordinary people of Ireland would always get their politics right in the long run' still valid?

Some of the issues raised by politicians one hundred years ago about public service broadcasting still haven’t been satisfactorily answered

Some issues do not engage the electorate and that would not be a wholly unfair conclusion given the fog around the upcoming amendments

It might be tempting to construct a historical narrative that would present the resurrection of Casement Park as a symbol of transformation and reconciliation, but that would be naive

Global temperatures have breached what is regarded as the red line of calamity - 1.5 degrees - yet we’re still focused on all the wrong things

Some of Bruton’s admirers think his role in the peace process has been unduly neglected

Those on both sides of the unity argument need to find answers that go beyond sloganeering

There may be a danger of replacing one ambiguity with another in redefining ‘family’

We tend to be very selective in our attitudes towards commercialism and our national games

The reliance on for-profit care raises crucial questions about power, cost, the stance of the State and the status of older people

It is striking how similar themes of managing internal unionist tensions and relations with London and Dublin endure a century after the Boundary Commission

Their deep friendship was intriguing, warm and sometimes spiky – but she deserves more than to be entirely defined by it

The city has its troubles, but it also has a cultural robustness that took the edge off some of the difficulties

We have been repeatedly told that the Fiscal Advisory Council exists to ‘institutionalise’ the memory of the crash but that aim clashes with the politics of managing the economy

Pogues frontman gave lyrical meaning to the tension of an Ireland that demands a complex present while yearning for a simple past

Making a political football of policing will not tackle the causes of the Dublin riots

One of the great ironies of the censorship crusade was that so much “evil” under Irish noses was ignored

Director insisted history does not matter, but the best film-makers strike a delicate balance between narrative and historical fact

If Ireland’s self-image as a restraining influence in international affairs is to mean anything, more than timid ‘personal views’ are required

Recent storms are a reminder why we need a supercharged response to climate breakdown

Sweeping generalisations, short-termism, vanity and revisionist historical parallels are destroying our ability to debate rationally

PAC members seem to think it is their role to act as moral arbiters, dictate Kevin Bakhurst’s future position in RTÉ, or make threats to withhold funding. It’s not