The pendulum continued to swing between optimism and pessimism in Northern Ireland at the time of going to press, with the main political parties still in talks and Senator George Mitchell poised to release his long-awaited report on the state of the peace process. Mitchell, hailed by commentators of all the persuasions for his role in securing the Good Friday Agreement, flew … [Read more...] about Quiet Optimism Over NI Talks – Mitchell Report Anxiously Awaited
2000
Flatley’s Feet of Flames
The fastest feet in dance, Michael Flatley, has officially come out of retirement to launch a new turbo-charged dance show, Feet of Flames, which will be seen in the USA in October of next year. Flatley chose a quaint 14th-century castle in Germany as the venue for the launch of his new show, set to open in March near Frankfurt. In front of a few hundred journalists, … [Read more...] about Flatley’s Feet of Flames
John & Yoko’s Yen for Peace in Ireland
John Lennon stood at the corner of 45th Street and 5th Avenue in New York City and faced the rally. About 5,000 people had gathered that February morning in 1972 to protest the massacre of 13 unarmed civil rights marchers in Derry on Bloody Sunday the week before. "Any government that doesn't allow demonstrations like this should be put away," he told the cheering crowd, … [Read more...] about John & Yoko’s Yen for Peace in Ireland
Musical Merry-Go-Round
It's been a good year for Irish pop music. There hasn't been one big ticket album in 1999--the new U2 effort isn't expected until early 2000--but if you scratch the surface, you'll find some exciting music nonetheless. TOM DUNPHY recommends a few favorites you may want to investigate... VAN MORRISON, BACK ON TOP Van Morrison's Back on Top couldn't be more aptly named. Van … [Read more...] about Musical Merry-Go-Round
An Irish Slant on the English Language
By Dan Casey
January 2000
Terence P. Dolan's Dictionary of Hiberno-English is not like any other dictionary or, for that matter, like any other reference volume. It's the first general dictionary of the Irish dialect of English ever published and, in spite of its heady title, a good read for Irish and Irish-American word-hoarders and word-mongers -- from the burly longshoremen on Pier 54 to the … [Read more...] about An Irish Slant on the English Language