In Limerick The Post Office Lane passageway is one of the arteries in which trade coursed through the i9th century City. Over decades the paths have settled into anonymity as the storehouses they once serviced disappeared. Paul Tarpey explores one of the dramatic and quietly significant stories they hold. One well known one surrounds the famed Hanging Gardens, adjacent to the lane from Henry St. This was an exotic … Read More
Get Medieval
Finbar Dwyer’s new book ‘Witches, Spies And Stockholm Syndrome’ is the Christmas Bestseller that brings medieval Ireland to life. We sat down with Finbar to find out more about murder, drink and his research One of the first stories tells of a drunken row between Cachfren and Freysel which quickly escalates to murder. It seems drunkenness & violence existed before Love/Hate? Humans have been getting pissed and lairy … Read More
Session Pixies: Holistic Lifestyle Column from #rabble7
While Santa’s elves are slaving away constructing train sets and tricycles for a measly extra €50 euro a week under the new North Pole Jobbridge deal, the Session Pixies are kicking back and cracking open a bottle of your aul one’s brandy as they gear up for this year’s festive frolics. Dear Session Pixies, I bought my elderly grandfather a bottle of 12 year old Jameson for Christmas this year, … Read More
Ballyhea, Ho – Let’s Go!
An attempted military coup led Donncha Ó Briain to produce the acclaimed Chavez: Inside The Coup. He’s back with a new documentary that traces the humdrum of those rare Irish social movements fighting against austerity. Rashers Tierney quizzes him on it . Peripheral Vision is the title of the documentary. Can you tell me where that came from? It seems to suggest that the sort of movements you … Read More
Up Up And Away: What’s Going On With Dublin’s Property Prices?
With everyone seemingly going ga-ga over the rise in house prices, it’s like Ireland has made a miraculous recovery. Hold off on buying that champers-fuelled jetpack just for a moment though, as Stephen Bourke looks into the housing crisis that is still very much in existence. The great big Bank of Ireland ad on Manor Street says something like, “I thought I’d be renting for the rest of my … Read More
[A Quickie With] Evolve Urban Art
You might have noticed the growing number of painted shutters around the capital, many the work of Evolve Urban Art’s growing roster of artists. Killian Redmond sat down with Evolve’s Ene Keenan for a bit of a chat. Evolve Urban Art has been running since January 2013. What made you set it up? It’s a simple idea. Connect people with artists, leading to positive art in a lot of places. … Read More
[Piseogs] The Widow’s Curse
Piseogs are the disappearing, peculiarly Irish, superstitions that attend every aspect of human behaviour. Ian Ó Loingsigh takes us back to the days when the act of cursing implied something slightly more sinister than calling your friend a fuckhead for robbing your flip-flops. One often wonders what has become of that famous Irish spunk that we’re all supposed to be full of. Siphoned off by weekly rituals of … Read More
The Price We Pay
Ronan Burtenshaw examines the State of the Nation for Ireland’s youth. From internships to precarious employment, what is the reality behind the figures? Young people in the West increasingly find themselves with worse standards of living and career prospects than their parents. But is there really a crisis of young people here and abroad? And, if so, why? Unite economist Michael Taft puts it strongly, “don’t be under any illusions. … Read More
We Are The Enemy
Sleep deprivation, booze-fuelled excess, punters acting the bollocks. Gareth Cummins from Thomas House gives us an insight into the glamorous life of the pub manager. The stress almost killed me. A few years ago I went temporarily blind in my left eye while trying to book a US tour for a band. This was worse. My fucking teeth started to fall out. These days I rarely drink, the fact that … Read More