A rock in a hard place: Frank McNally hunts an elusive ancient monument in Mayo
Natural monolith covered with carvings suggests Croagh Patrick was an object of pilgrimage long before Christianity
An Irish Diary
An Irish Diary
Frank McNally: A History of Ireland in a Hundred Hyperboles
A catalogue of 100 colourful expressions, myths, legends and sayings
Mother nature: The mystery animal was bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and hanging about for no one
Fionnuala Ward: Encounter may have been influenced by a podcast about the Loch Ness Monster
Old Men of the Canal – Frank McNally on the herons of Percy Place
There is something military-looking about the birds’ appearance
Roots and Branch: Alex Haley’s lesser known Irish heritage
The Roots author’s follow-up novel Queen traces five generations of a second branch of his ancestry back to a town in Co Monaghan
A Feast of Festy: A new lease of life for a colourful Irish name
Festus, from the Latin for ‘joyful’, is a popular boy’s name in Nigeria
Not raising hell: An insight into Limerick-born actor Richard Harris’s lesser known life
His career included playing the part of Dumbledore in the first two Harry Potter movies
Michael Dervan on how opera composer Gioachino Rossini and Ireland are intertwined
From Dublin’s Theatre Royal in 1829 to Wexford’s modern stages, the Italian’s spirit remains woven into Irish operatic history
Up Crockery Mountain, Dungarvan’s smashing monument to too much stuff
Sean Corcoran’s idea of recycling cups and plates into an artwork has become a wall sculpture worthy of the Guggenheim
Lips Sealed - Frank McNally on a mysterious facial feature, the philtrum
Now it’s just a vestige of evolution, with no apparent function.
Cast a Cold Eye – Frank McNally on the monuments, republican and otherwise, of Tipperary
Divorced of importance it later acquired, was original War of Independence event worthy of pride?
Our Man in Havana – Frank McNally on a forgotten Irishman honoured in Cuba
James Joseph O’Kelly was also, for a brief period, a man of two wives
Charlie Tango – Frank McNally on revisiting the Charlie Hebdo massacre 10 years on
In keeping with a low-budget production, the movie was projected onto a make-shift screen
Mutual admiration: Anti-slavery campaigner Frederick Douglass and his connections to Daniel O’Connell and Ireland
O’Connell introduced him as the ‘black O’Connell of the United States’
Ballpark figure: The Irish-American sports entrepreneur who moved Brooklyn Dodgers to LA
Myth endures that casts Walter O’Malley as the ultimate sporting villain
Immaculate reception: How an Irish priest helped turn the Pittsburgh Steelers into winners
Frank McNally: Relationship between Fr John J Duggan and team’s original owner was founded on a misunderstanding
Howya Heid? - Frank McNally on a visit to one of Glasgow’s toughest pubs
We had only dropped in for the proverbial one drink
Off track - Alison Healy on how James Joyce disembarked in the wrong country
When the train pulled into a significant city, they thought they had reached their destination
Waking Dream – Frank McNally on having intimations of mortality at a book launch
There may even have been ghosts present, as I was reminded by the attendance of some of my maternal cousins
Jukebox memories on Tramore’s boulevard of teenage dreams
There were six jukeboxes along the Strand Road in the 1970s, and we flocked to them like moths to a flame
Not Making Hay by Frank McNally: A witty memoir on his journey from Monaghan to media
The Irish Times columnist reflects on farming roots, newsroom dramas, and the cost of nostalgia
Tariffs were long a weapon of choice for Ireland as well as the US
Like most wars, tariff wars tend to come to an end
It’s a jungle out there: Sorcha Pollak on growing up fast while working in the Amazon at 18
Social media and smart phones had not yet taken over our lives
Missing in action: Renewed push to honour Finnish sailor who fought in the Easter Rising
Antti Juho Mäkipaltio was sent to Kilmainham Gaol and Knutsford Prison following GPO surrender
High seas drama: Áine Ryan on a Tory Island ferry crossing she would rather forget
As always, in rough sea conditions I am more than happy to make a holy show of myself
From predators of pests to a calm presence on warships, cats have done some service
In Chinese mythology, cats were appointed by the gods to oversee the Earth, but they preferred snoozing to organising
Saving the best for last: How the Making In symposium left an indelible mark
Two-day event gathered outstanding makers from a variety of practices across the world
Artefact facts: Garryduff bird takes flight as part of Cork museum exhibition
Women have played a significant role in the Cork Public Museum since its earliest days
At swim, two brothers: Denis McClean on a remarkable feat of sporting prowess in Tramore
It is amazing what a healthy dose of sibling rivalry can do to inspire you
Next stop, Antarctica: ‘Van Diemen’s Land’ and its many historical Irish connections
It is the smallest of the Australian states, with a population of just under 600,000
Walking the Camino: Rain didn’t dampen the appeal of an autumn pilgrimage
I had no togs as we happened upon a beach, but there was no resisting a dip in the nip
Harsh life of soldier Johnnie Haughey bore privileged fruit in son Charles
One hundred years on from his birth, all the late former taoiseach’s biographers have speculated on the impact of his impoverished childhood
Charles Bianconi, the Italian man who put Ireland on wheels
He saw an opportunity in early 19th century for cheap transport services linking rural towns
Here it was again, the phantom Yeats quote in an Irish pub in Perpignan
This same legend turned up on the Dublin City Marathon medal two years ago
Skipping pages – Frank McNally on trawling through the discarded library of a lifetime
A full-blown bibliophile, the deceased was said to have had up to 100,000 volumes
Trying times for Ballinsloe: The Galway town and Ireland women’s World Cup squad
Three team members following in footsteps of many others, albeit men, in international rugby
For the Birds – Frank McNally on an encounter with Dublin’s Pigeon Man
When I got a word in edgeways, finally, I wondered why Dublin’s rapacious seagulls never came near him
Blades and Fades – Frank McNally on New York’s ‘Lads of Kilkenny’ and a Joycean Fenian in Paris
Washington Irving was a native New Yorker who had no known connection with Kilkenny
‘Colin Farrell’ and the jigsaw makers of Ireland head to the world championships in Spain
More than 3,400 dissectologists taking part, with two dozen entrants from Ireland
From Sugar Loaf to Ogre: The Irishman who was the first to climb the Eiger
Charles Barrington’s guides were reluctant to follow his chosen route, so he set out on his own for the western flank
The Word made fresh: One enlightening billboard outside a church in Mount Merrion
A friend from south Dublin suggested I write something about a church billboard where Foster Avenue meets the Stillorgan dual carriageway
Klepto countess: Light-fingered Irish aristocrat Mary Monckton
The Countess of Cork and Orrery was notorious for purloining items and smuggling them in her hand muff
Tourists beware: supposed new ‘traditions’ at Dublin statues
As with tour guides inventing stories, here’s hoping the phenomenon is not on the rise
A day trip to Electric Picnic does not go as planned
If you go down to the woods: Frank McNally on a long, dark night of no soul in Stradbally
Dog collars, a toilet seat and my favourite blue jeans: how a Victorian artist went viral
A long-time fan of William Morris on the enduring appeal of his floral designs
Lesson of St Paul - Colm Keena on one benefit of being a lapsed Catholic
Appreciating life, time and travel, with or without a magic bus
Eavesdropping on tour guides in Dublin I overheard what sounded like a very dubious story
I began to feel some Swiftian indignation on the part of the innocent Americans who were listening to the tour guide’s claim
Contraceptive crop: How an Irish-American agricultural fortune helped pay for the pill
Philanthropist Katharine McCormick used her riches to help the cause of women’s rights
It was just a perfect day... until we got to the Dursey Island cable car
Remembering an eventful trip to Dursey Island many years ago
Dedicated to the one I hate: Frank McNally on how a book inscription came back to haunt Patrick Kavanagh
Signed first American edition of Tarry Flynn is dedicated to ‘poet and painter’ Brendan Behan
‘The measure of my dreams’: Rainy Night in Soho lives on, almost 40 years after its release
One of Shane McGowan’s best-loved songs has been covered by Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Lisa O’Neill, Nick Cave and more
A mixed schoolbag: Noel Costello on turbulent classroom days and being taught by John McGahern
Teacher-come-celebrated writer was light on homework, which was fine by his pupils
The night a ‘sputnik’ crash-landed in rural Wexford
A garda arrived immediately to cordon off a crater in the field, then the Army was called in
‘A breakthrough in the case of my stolen Dublin Bike and the subsequent €150 fine’
I am no wiser as to where the bicycle spent its long, lost weekend
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Stardust
Inquests into the nightclub fire that led to the deaths of 48 people
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
Family NoticesOpens in new window
Weddings, Births, Deaths and other family notices