Ciaran Carson: The Dichotomy of Being
Belfast writer, and poet, Ciaran Carson carried a black flute with silver keys on its…
Browsing: culture
Ten Faery Tales for Our Time
This article is dedicated to Patrick Healy. The Irish people have a long-standing relationship with…
Liking Lockdown
The first thing that distinguishes a writer is that he is most alive when alone.…
Julian Lloyd: Pure Luck and Happenstance
Julian Lloyd’s iconic portrait of Nick Drake now forms part of the U.K.’s National Portrait…
John Betjeman’s Love Affair with Ireland
The colourful humourist and English poet laureate, Sir John Betjeman (1906-1984) is the subject of…
The Myth of the Spiritual Contract
According to Western medical science I suffer from a condition called depression. And from my…
Michel Houllebecq and the End of History
Inspired by Michel Houllebecq’s novel Atomised (1998), Ben Pantrey considers the endurance of the Christian…
Pietas in Richard Kearney’s Novel Salvage
When, after a long siege, the Greeks breach the defences of Troy, Aeneas must flee.…
SUVs: A Symbol of Our Demise
This article has been gestating for some time. I must admit to a long-standing loathing…
Tunnel Vision in Chișinău, Moldova
Gary Farrelly is an Irish visual and performance artist based in Brussels. Together with his…
Kevin Higgins: 1967-2023
According to the recently deceased Kevin Higgins: ‘Poets may be divided into three types: those…
Welcome to the Jungle
Not since Byron awoke one morning to find himself famous has there been such an…
Open Mics or Open Micks?
I immediately twitch with an almost intolerable discomfort when I hear the words freedom and…
Classic Paddies
The music was the code. It was the transliteration of the style. It was not…
Niall McDevitt (1967-2022)
The London-based Irish Poet, Art-Activist, Musician and Psychogeographer, Niall McDeviit died at his home in…
Forty Footer
Sixteen years ago, I wandered down to the Forty Foot to take some pictures of…
About Queen Elizabeth in a Soviet Childhood
Did I mention that I remember seeing Queen Elizabeth II not as a very old…
Smartphone usage is impacting society, but how?
Whether we’re regularly reading sports news or contributing to a comical WhatsApp group, many of…
North as Religious Experience
And the people came from far, And they came from near, To see the troubadours.…