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Archive for August, 2010

Monsters in the Golden Pages.

Posted in Miscellaneous on August 16, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Two great videos showing Dublin in a most unusual context, the first being the excellent new one for the Golden Pages iPhone App, which comes from KrookedType. Between the toys in the attic and the books under the stairs, there’s nothing in the house anymore without a mind of its own.

Then, I spotted this one over on the Dublin Community Blog, and my mind was blown. How amazing is this?

Originally created for the Darklight Festival’s ’4 Day Movie’ project, Avatar Days is a portrait of four online gamers in Dublin whose daily lives contrast with their virtual identities.

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It’s just a jump to the left…..

Posted in Events, tagged , on August 14, 2010| 2 Comments »

Above: Groovie Ghoulies- The Time Warp

I’ve always loved the Rocky Horror Picture Show. I’ve seen the cult film on big screens and small screens, and it doesn’t get old. It’s a bit mad alright, but aren’t all the best things?

The arrival of the Rocky Horror Show, the acclaimed UK stage version of the classic, is most welcome. Flicking through The Ticket on a Friday (don’t we all?), I noticed it’ll be running at the Grand Canal Theatre, where all the good things in the world seem to be going over the next few months.

It’ll be running from Monday 11 through to Saturday 16 October 2010. All the details are over on the shows site, here.

Gem of the site has to be this.

Dancing

Although not compulsory you may find that during the Time Warp you are the only person in the audience not on your feet. You dance the Time Warp by simply following the rule: ‘Do what it says in the song’. Do the same and you’ll be able to participate in this famous dance. For example, the phrase ‘its just a jump to the left’ should accompanied with a jump to the left. If you want to get up and boogie to other songs feel free to do so, but remember that the Time Warp is the only dance that has set moves

Excellent.

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Found the camera.

Posted in Miscellaneous on August 13, 2010| 5 Comments »

I’m by no means a photographer. Far from it. The camera? A simple Fujifilm ‘tourist on holiday’ effort. Still, when it vanished for a few days I felt lost. I like to just walk around Dublin and snap things. Here’s a few from a beautiful Thursday.

Do you believe in ghosts? These ones anyway. The classic Pacman ghost appears by two, up by the NCAD.

No Al Calcio Moderno: The Green Brigade are a Celtic Ultras supporters group. I like this sticker lots. Bob Marley having a kickabout.

Our man in the White House: In the excellent Kenny’s, Lucan village. Farewell pints were had for Simon, off to Taiwan. So long, young Simon.

(more…)

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Historic Trade Union Stickers

Posted in Dublin History, Politics, tagged , , , , , , , , , on August 12, 2010| 8 Comments »

I stumbled upon this amazing box of stickers today in the Irish Labour History Museum in Beggars Bush.

The box.

Brits Must Go!

Coal Not Dole

I Support Our Firefighters

'Irish Trade Unions - Support The Miners' + 'NUM South Wales Area'

ICTU Observer. ICTU Delegate.

'I Support McDonald's Strikers' 'Don't Pass The Picket' 'Grafton St. & O'Connell St.

Labour For Dublin

(more…)

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‘Glimpses of Erin’ 1934

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on August 12, 2010| 2 Comments »

Some beautiful scenes of Dublin in the early 1930s. Skip to 06:51 minutes in. College Green, Trinity College, O’Connell Street, Nelson’s Pillar, the GPO, the Four Courts and the Liffey all make an appearance.

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Pictures of Jesus and lots of Val Doonican.

Posted in Events, tagged , , on August 11, 2010| Leave a Comment »

We stopped the car last weekend at a few car boot sales in the west of the country, and you couldn’t move for all the Val Doonican LPs and flashing pictures of Jesus. Still, always stop. One of our own recently picked up a Euro ’88 jersey for €1.60 , less than my bus fare. Like the eBay of old, if you’re willing to rummage and have a proper look, you can come out with something ace.

One for the young ‘uns mainly I suppose is the excellent car boot sale out the back of the Bernard Shaw pub. It returns next Saturday, running from midday onwards.

It is an odds ‘n’ ends market, with car boots and stalls, food, drink, bands, DJs and a few hundred people in great humour. Starts at 1pm, runs til 7pm, with after party til the wee hours inside and is Free In.

Probably won’t turn up a Euro ’88 jersey granted, but maybe Val is back in fashion.

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Hoops Upside Your Head (Vol.3, No.4 1994) Shamrock Rovers fanzine.

Posted in Football Articles, Social History, tagged , , , on August 11, 2010| 1 Comment »

Following on from Only Fools and Horses (Bohs) last week, here’s another League of Ireland fanzine, Hoops Upside Your Head. I’d intended to scan up a loaned copy of No Way, Referee! from Bray Wanderers, but a tip of the hat is due in the direction of the Irish Election Literature Blog, for linking me to the scans of this one. Nice work.

This fanzine comes from the 1994 season. It includes a great piece on away trips to Limerick, a report of a trip to Zabre, a piece on the incompetence of the FAI, and even an offer to send ” SRFC.bmp” to those who send a blank formatted diskette to the fanzine. Ah, the novelties of the early 90’s!

Well worth a read. As ever, best read in Full Screen. We welcome scans of League of Ireland fanzines, mail me at donal.ofalluin.2009@nuim.ie to get in touch.

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A Random Drop Inn: The Workman’s Club

Posted in Pubs, tagged , on August 10, 2010| 4 Comments »

The Workman's Club is right next door to The Clarence.

These are brave times to open a pub.

When I heard the site of the old Workman’s Club on the quays was to become the home of a new boozer, I didn’t know what to expect. I’ve always had a soft spot for Workman’s Clubs (The one in Inchicore comes to mind, is it the last on the go?), and have drank in a few ‘across the water’. On the wall by the bar here, an old relic of the Workman’s Club survives, informing members of the need to get the £40 membership in as quickly as possible.

It’s not a wall but, as I thought, but rather a door that opens up to reveal a large stage area, where gigs will soon be taking place (look out for the Hard Working Class Heroes Festival, long-established in the city). Like the bar, the design is minimalist. With the exception of a piano and a few candles, the bar is a straight up tables and chairs affair. I’m happy to see the piano works/

I mistake an old couple in the corner for lost tourists. Rather, they turn out to be old punters of the actual Workman’s Club, and they are full of questions for the bar staff. At our table, the lads are all happy with the Guinness, Ciaran in particular. On first sip, it is unfaultable. The music here is well within the indie school of rock, ranging from Lykke Li to The Clash in the time we’re here.

I venture upstairs. The view looks down over the Liffey, and the upstairs has a design completely unlike that downstairs, opting for a purple look and decorated with art and snaps by Dublin artists and photographers. There’s plenty of room for dancing, and an open window (soon to go, apparently) allows a glance out at what will hopefully become a smoking area. It’s sizable, and you can just peak at Essex Street in Temple Bar from here.

Being a Sunday, we were soon off to Pygmalion for half price drinks, but on first glance this one is a winner. The lovely brick work front of the pub looks great and it’s nice to see one of the buildings in the city I can’t recall seeing used in donkeys years find a purpose. It’s simple, pretty cool without trying too hard and the Guinness (€4.50 a pint) is thumbs up. The music is right up my street, and the place is a welcome addition.

Shame about the neighbours.

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Sinn Féin Rebellion Handbook (Irish Times, 1917)

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , on August 9, 2010| 8 Comments »

Sad state of affairs when it takes the Boston Public Library (4,811 km away from the GPO) to digitize such a historically valuable document. Read the 308 page booklet here.

The Rebellion Handbook was published by the Irish Times in 1917, and is based on articles carried in the Irish Times in May 1916. The handbook provides a fascinating insight into the Easter rising. It is one of the key sources and contains a wealth of information, including an official list of casualties, names of prisoners, photographs and a map showing the key locations in Dublin.

The handbook contains 308 pages of information. It includes:

* facsimiles of documents
* articles from the Irish Times
* photographs of principal rebels and government & security personnel
* a detailed account of the events in Dublin and around the country
* detailed list of buildings destroyed
* official and rebel documents
* names and personal details of 1,306 casualties (including 300 deaths) from army, navy, RIC, DMP, civilians and rebels.
* full account of court martial hearings and execution of 15 rebels
* names, addresses and occupations of over 3,000 rebels arrested and interned.
* a detailed Whos Who of the people of the time.
* full court details of the Casement trial.

It remains one of the most detailed accounts of the rising, and is an essential resource for those studying the people and events of this tumultuous event.

Front cover.

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Saving the pram. (July 18, 1951)

Posted in Dublin History, Social History, tagged , , , , , on August 9, 2010| Leave a Comment »

A promotional image for the current run of The Plough and the Stars at the Abbey.

Sara Keating, for The Irish Times, recently wrote a fantastic piece on the background to some of the props in the current production of The Plough and The Stars at the Abbey. You’re only a click away if you want to read it.

One of the props dealt with was the pram belonging to Mrs. Gogan. She discussed the pram with prop maker Eimear Murphy.

The pram being used for the looting in Act Three is one of the oldest props at the Abbey. An original Victorian pram, it was used in the very first production of the play and every production since. Over 100 years old, it is in a delicate state; “one of the wheels is just taped on at this stage”, Murphy says. It was also badly damaged in the fire of 1951, so that while the frame of the pram is original, its casing isn’t. With its delicate frame and unique wooden handles it is totally authentic, and has been especially reserved over the years for The Plough and the Stars

The fire? Well, on July 18 1951 a fire ripped the home of the Abbey apart.The great history of the Dublin Fire Brigade compiled by Tom Geraghty and Trevor Whitehead noted that in was the busiest night of the year for the Brigade, with nine crews fighting the blaze.

What had been the former Mechanic’s Institute and City Morgue was just a gaunt dangerous skeleton festooned with The Plough and the Stars posters, and the ghost of Yeats was left to haunt an eerie smoke-filled chamber.

Flann O’ Brien (Or eh…Myles na gCopaleen) dealt with the fire in his excellent Cruiskeen Lawn column on July 25, 1951. Writing about plans to stage some major plays in the Peacock, he quipped that.

At the moment the company purports to be playing The Plough and the Stars in the Peacock. Why not Juno in the Peacock?

Or why not Autumn Fire?

No, I’m probably wrong- The Plough is probably the right play. After all, it brought the house down.

Excellent.

The photograph below is a gem, showing Fireman Frank Brennan salvaging the above mentioned pram from the ruins of the Abbey.

Thanks are due to the Dublin Fire Brigade Museum for the use of the image. What survived of the pram can be seen on stage in the current run of the O’ Casey play.

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Belle and Sebastian

Posted in Music, tagged , , , , on August 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »

This Grand Canal Theatre lark is going well so far, isn’t it? Along with Joanna Newsom, here’s another one for my list. I must have been chilling in the west the country when this one was announced, as it went completely over my head.

Not alone did Belle and Sebastian produce one of those albums you play all the time and nobody else in the house minds (Dear Catastrophe Waitress), but they’re also the subject of a comic book entitled Put The Book Back On The Shelf (Forbidden Planet stock it), which is quite cool. Fitting enough, when your bands name is a nod in the direction of a children’s book. Music (from my room) and comics (from the room next door) kept this house busy in days gone by.

The Glasgow bands brand of indie-pop works for me, and obviously millions of others. To quote a friend….

How could something from Glasgow sound so Edinburgh?

They’d be chuffed.

Belle and Sebastian roll into town on Friday December 3rd.
Tickets range from €39.50 to €44.50, from the usual sources.

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Dublin’s War Memorials

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , on August 7, 2010| 1 Comment »

(I wish I could take credit for the following information and pictures. Major kudos to those behind the Irish War Memorials website. Check it out.)

It is well known that Dublin is dotted with memorials to those killed in the 1916 Rising, the Great War and WW2.

But did you know that we have plaques and monuments dedicated to those who lost their lives in the Korean War (1950-53), Cypriot War of Independence (1955 – 1959), Palestinian Revolt (1936 – 1939), Afghanistan War (1879 – 80), Sudan conflict (19th century) and the 1867 Rising? I certainly didn’t.

Dublin has two memorials marking The Korean War. The first, a bronze plaque in St. Matthew’s Church on Irishtown Road, is dedicated to Thomas Hankey (Rifleman 1st Batt. Royal Ulster Rifles. 6th Airborne Division) who was killed in action on the 7th June, 1944 and Bruce Samuel Hudson (Lieut. Royal Artillery) who was killed in action on the 23rd April, 1951.

Hankey and Hudson Memorial, St. Matthew's Church. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

The second is a Memorial Cross in the grounds of  St. Mary’s Church of Ireland on Anglesea Road. It honours men from Donnybrook who fought in WW1, WW2 and the Korean War.

War memorial. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

John David Foster. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

James Lane, a past pupil of Belvedere College, who was killed in the Cypriot War of Independence is commemorated in a plaque dedicated to alumnus who were killed in wars both at home and abroad:

Belvedere War Memorial. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

At the Law Memorial in the Chapel in St. Columba’s College, Whitechurch, there is a plaque to 2nd Lieut. John Anthony Law who was killed in Palestine on the 9th September 1938:

Picture - Michael Pegum

The following memorials are dedicated to Irishmen killed in Afghanistan (1879 – 80):

Kelly Memorial, Sandford Church, Ranelagh. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

Cumming Memorial, St. Patrick's Cathedral. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

Henn Memorial, St. Patrick's Cathederal. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

St. Patrick’s Cathedral is also the home of the Royal Irish Regiment China Memorial:

Royal Irish Regiment China Memorial. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

Tucked away in the Royal Hospital in Kilmainham is a memorial to the 16th Lancers who were killed in action in Soudan (1884 – 5):

16th Lancers Soudan Memorial. (Picture - Michael Pegum.)

Finally, have a look at this plaque dedicated to the Fenians who fought in the 1867 rising in Tallaght:

Fenian Men Memorial, Tallaght. (Picture - Michael Pegum)

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