Opinion

BY JOHN FITZGERALD Part 1 For decades in Callan, one of the most striking and cherished facets of the local streetscape was a clock. Though battered looking and antiquated, people swore by it. The sturdy hands that revolved around its aged face recorded the passing of the seconds, minutes, hours and days of their lives …

9/11 families ‘betrayed’ by Saudi golf deal PAUL HOPKINS Breaking his silence on the Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour’s sudden merger with LIV Golf, Rory McIlroy insists he feels like a “sacrificial lamb”. The Northern Irishman, who has been highly critical of the Saudi-backed tour and turned down offers worth upwards of €400m. from LIV, …

FURTHERMORE  By Gerry Moran I was in Dublin recently and what I always like to do when in the capital is pop into the National Art Gallery. Love to take in the latest exhibitions and always like to poke around the Portrait Gallery; always enjoy looking at the portraits of Ireland’s famous celebrities from the …

BY JOHN ELLIS, FINANCIAL ADVISOR The sun is shining. It’s the middle of June with more than 130,000 students completing their Leaving Certificate and Junior Cycle exams in more than 800 venues across the country. Holidays will then begin in earnest and the last thing families will want to think about, for a while anyway, …

BY JOHN FITZGERALD Part 2 Fair Day at Castlemorris was an ideal time of the month to settle old scores or exact revenge on anyone who had wronged you. You would walk up to the culprit, remind him of your grievance, and then commence to beat him senseless. A blackthorn stick was useful, but your …

BY CLAIR WHITTY Do you get bitten by mosquitos at home or abroad? I know that some of you get bitten and more of you are left alone, it isn’t fair. Luckily there is help, Incognito Insect Repellent is a clinically proven repellent that can protect you. And a Wexford woman from Enniscorthy is co-founder …

AS I SEE IT MARIANNE HERON If you live near or visit the sea, there may be a change of scenery coming your way. Fast forward three years or so and there will rows of turbines as tall as the Eiffel tower whirling away their giant arms near the coast as they convert kinetic wind …

The millions condemned to war without end PAUL HOPKINS Memorial Day, and I am with my son and his American wife and two darling granddaughters as we line the streets with neighbours and friends – armed with picnic baskets and waving Stars ‘n’ Stripes – to watch the Big Parade honouring America’s fallen soldiers – …

BY JOHN FITZGERALD Kilkenny is renowned for its annual Arts Festival. But you don’t have to wait till August to savour the county’s prolific output of painting, ceramics, and sculpture. This month you can call to the Watergate Theatre in Kilkenny to see Clodagh Holahan’s Natural Designs exhibition. And last week I was privileged view …

BY JOHN FITZGERALD Part 1 Paddy Hearns of Hugginstown could recall a different time in Ireland, so far removed from our own fast-track age as to be almost beyond present-day comprehension. In 1989, he told Radio Kilkenny listeners about what he called “growing up in Paradise.” In his young days, Paddy lived in a cottage …