News
Paddy Molloy: The Soul of Wit
By John Fitzgerald Paddy Molloy might well have been Callan’s wisest and wittiest man of the 20th century. He was born in Callan on a sunny day in 1898. At age 16, following intensive schooling at the CBS, during which the Christian Brothers taught him everything they knew, an adventurous Paddy joined the army in …
Large numbers turn out for Good Friday walk
Over 300 people turned out for the Annual Good Friday Walk, which is the 22nd year of the walk, and was led by Bishop Ger Nash, Apostolic Administrator of Ossory, and Fr. Willie Purcell. Each walker received a St. Francis of Assisi cross in remembrance of the walk in this year of St. Francis. “It …
The Parish Housekeeper
When ‘Fourth Wall’ theatre company take to the stage in Thomastown Concert hall, one thing is certain. The audience will have the time of their lives. Comedy will abound. As a matter of fact there will be little else, because their production of Moll by JB Keane is a laugh from beginning to end. John …
Murder mystery at Thomastown concert hall
If you like your coffee black, your femmes fatales ice-cold and your unreliable narrators on the seedy side, then The Tangled Skirt, running in Thomastown Community Hall on Thursday and Friday, April 16th and 17th, might just be the play for you. Playwright Steve Braunstein, a self-professed aficionado of the classic age of Hollywood film …
Puccini, Zeffirelli, Jack and the scalper!
FURTHERMORE By Gerry Moran There was a right schmozzle about opera, and ballet, recently when actor Timothée Chalamet (he played Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown and lost out to Best Actor in Marty Supreme at this year’s Oscars) said in an interview that no one cares about opera and ballet. There was a swift …
Jobs market slows, as housing crisis rises
BY JOHN ELLIS, FINANCIAL ADVISOR Another 300 people signed on to the live register last month, pushing the seasonally adjusted total to 171,100. The unadjusted March figure reached 168,072, a 5.1% jump on the same month last year. Yet, again, the Government appears slow to respond to these warning signs. The unemployment rate, released by …
Coco’s Law – a lesson worth learning
AS I SEE IT BY MARIANNE HERON Is celebrity protected against online abuse? You might think so, especially when an individual’s success is hard won. But look at the way that nasty comments about his appearance have impacted Peaky Blinders star Barry Keoghan, to the point where he told US radio Sirius XM listeners: “I …
Power through Flower Essences
BY CLAIR WHITTY Are you feeling on edge, stressed, worried, uneasy, or panicky? Sound familiar? There are many reasons why you might feel like this. Maybe you have exams or a driving test coming up soon. You might be waiting on medical tests or surgery. Fear of flying is another cause of fear and overwhelm. …
It’s back to Square One with heat or eat crux
THE FACT OF THE MATTER BY PAUL HOPKINS An oil crisis back then and embarrassing hairstyles notwithstanding, the 1970s were the good old days. I thought we never had it so good. And it seems I was right. A study suggests our global prosperity peaked in 1978, and it’s been downhill ever since. Governments have …
Love earth, skip the flights and rockets
CHOICES SHAPE YOUR FUTURE By Judith Ashton I only take flights if it’s for an extended stay, e.g. a holiday. I couldn’t justify jetting off somewhere for a weekend. I remember, years ago, being aghast when a woman told me she was off shopping to New York with friends for a weekend. Before the war …
