Dr John Wallace looks at the career of Academy Award-winner Greer Garson, star of Random Harvest, Mrs Miniver and the superb Goodbye Mr Chips. Irish actors are much sought-after in Hollywood these days. Stars like Pierce Brosnan, Liam Neeson, Jonathan Rhys-Myers, Brendan Gleeson and the recent Golden Globe-winning Colin Farrell and Gabriel Byrne are just [...]
The real literary detectives
October 5, 2008 By
Dr Stephen McWilliams plots the links between literary figures and detective novels — some with a strong medical influence — and investigates the possibility of writing his own sleuthing novel. If the shelves of my local bookshop are to be believed, most 19th-century literary figures were super-sleuths in their time. Indeed, any prominent child of [...]
When I was young and so much younger than today..
August 10, 2008 By
John Wallace looks at the recently restored film Help! starring The Beatles What impressed John Lennon about Paul McCartney when they first met in 1957, was that the 16-year-old McCartney could tune his own guitar. Lennon could not. Paul could also play When the Saints Come Marching In on the trumpet. So, he had no [...]
Blessing and honour be unto mobile broadband
May 10, 2008 By
Berna Cox sings the praises of her long-awaited mobile broadband connection after spending years wandering around lost in the technology wilderness. For the last couple of weeks, there’s been a little smile playing around the corners of my mouth at all times. Sometimes, it even spills over into a broad grin accompanied by a whoop [...]
Forget the weather at summer festivals
May 8, 2008 By
Mary Anne Kenny takes a quick tour around the country to see what’s on offer at some of the festivals being held later this summer – whether the sun makes a guest appearance or not After the washout that was last summer, Fáilte Ireland, the national tourist board, really has to ‘put the big egg [...]
Legends of music set to play Ireland
May 1, 2008 By
Dr John Wallace takes a nostalgic look back at the histories and the rock ‘n’ roll craziness behind some of the well-known artists that are coming to our shores to perform this summer. An impressive range of musical acts are due to perform in Ireland in the coming months. They include Neil Young, formerly of [...]
In Bruges and the mass hysteria of bad taste
April 16, 2008 By
In Bruges is an awful film, not in the way Armageddon or Independence Day were awful, but subtly awful, like the way it goes when you see a beautiful woman from a long way off, but when you meet her she is a homeless man begging for money. In other words, it’s not unwatchable; it’s [...]
The poetic journey of Daniel Day-Lewis
April 3, 2008 By
John Wallace looks at the careers of Wicklow-based actor, Daniel Day-Lewis and his Irish father, the Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis One of the most dedicated actors of his generation, Daniel Day-Lewis totally immerses himself in his carefully-chosen film roles. He is difficult to satisfy artistically and he continues to confront the rules of Hollywood. De [...]
Gonna buy 5 copies for my mother
February 19, 2008 By
Dr John Wallace looks at a book detailing the history of the most influential magazine in pop culture, Rolling Stone, which doubles as a history of the culture of recent times A fascinating book, Rolling Stone, 1000 Covers, is not just about the evolution of a magazine, but about the evolution of the culture of [...]
Why the Spartans lived for the glory of the battlefield
November 30, 2007 By
In the fifth century the Pass of Thermopylae in Greece was the scene of a defensive battle by an outnumbered Greek force against a vast, invading Persian army. Among the Greek defenders, were 300 Spartans. The army of Persia, under King Xerxes, was one million strong and it was poised to crush Greece, ‘an oasis [...]