Affairs of the Nation

Paschal Donohoe Poster

Affairs of the Nation

DONOHOE’S SIPO COMPLAINT

EUROPEAN POSTER-BOY boy Paschal Donohoe, now public expenditure minister and recently re-elected as president of the Eurogroup, may have his glistening image tarnished if a complaint to the Standards in... Read more »
Budget Jack Chambers Nicki Minaj B’Tselem Phil Hogan UCD IRTA DIGI Katy Brown Rory Godson Pallonji Mistry Shark Hanlon Frances Ruane Taste of Dublin Listowel Writers’ Week Paddy Curran Harvey Norman Anton Savage Paul Hourican Enda O’Coineen PfP Red C Poll IFTA Ben Gilroy Luke Comer Sue Spence Fingleton Aubrey McCarthy Matt Cooper Parker Green Danny McConnell Gayle Killilea Maura Derivan Ed Honohan INS Arts Council EDAF Emuse Rosslare Golf Club Mairead Casey Colm O’Rourke Stephen Connolly Peter Aiken John Malone Tom Barry Anthony Halpin Ian Kehoe Kevin Bakhurst Geraldine O’Leary Dennis Horgan RUSI Gareth McAllister Ryevale House Joe Macken RUC Omagh Patrick Connolly Paddy Cosgrave The Ditch Newstalk Fake Tan Fred Logue Ian Paisley Sean O’Riordan Margaret Sweeney Jay Bourke Ellie Kisyombe Francesca McDonagh Ted Cunningham National Space Centre An Irish Goodbye Oscar Robert Quirke Ciara Kelly Executive Women Gathering Doug Taylor Florian Haufe Robbie Henshaw Bill Shipsey Breaking the Silence L’Ecrivain Ronan McNally National Lottery Michael Roche Energy Action Balls.ie Newspapers VAT Abbey Theatre Patricia Madden Irish Banking Culture Board Randox Aoife Gallagher Book Dalai Lama Trinity Trevor White RTÉ Chairperson Shane Houlihan Noel Smyth IKC Bob Geldof Landlord Ireland Neutrality Ukraine

Affairs of the Nation

NEW REGIME IN ROSSLARE

DESPITE THE hectic social calendars of members of Rosslare Golf Club, they somehow found time to squeeze in an extraordinary general meeting on December 27 to install a new chairman.... Read more »
Budget Jack Chambers Nicki Minaj B’Tselem Phil Hogan UCD IRTA DIGI Katy Brown Rory Godson Pallonji Mistry Shark Hanlon Frances Ruane Taste of Dublin Listowel Writers’ Week Paddy Curran Harvey Norman Anton Savage Paul Hourican Enda O’Coineen PfP Red C Poll IFTA Ben Gilroy Luke Comer Sue Spence Fingleton Aubrey McCarthy Matt Cooper Parker Green Danny McConnell Gayle Killilea Maura Derivan Ed Honohan INS Arts Council EDAF Emuse Rosslare Golf Club Mairead Casey Colm O’Rourke Stephen Connolly Peter Aiken John Malone Tom Barry Anthony Halpin Ian Kehoe Kevin Bakhurst Geraldine O’Leary Dennis Horgan RUSI Gareth McAllister Ryevale House Joe Macken RUC Omagh Patrick Connolly Paddy Cosgrave The Ditch Newstalk Fake Tan Fred Logue Ian Paisley Sean O’Riordan Margaret Sweeney Jay Bourke Ellie Kisyombe Francesca McDonagh Ted Cunningham National Space Centre An Irish Goodbye Oscar Robert Quirke Ciara Kelly Executive Women Gathering Doug Taylor Florian Haufe Robbie Henshaw Bill Shipsey Breaking the Silence L’Ecrivain Ronan McNally National Lottery Michael Roche Energy Action Balls.ie Newspapers VAT Abbey Theatre Patricia Madden Irish Banking Culture Board Randox Aoife Gallagher Book Dalai Lama Trinity Trevor White RTÉ Chairperson Shane Houlihan Noel Smyth IKC Bob Geldof Landlord Ireland Neutrality Ukraine

Affairs of the Nation

STILL STANDING AND SHOUTING

NEARLY 40 years ago to the day – January 7, 1983 – The Phoenix rose from the ashes of a previous media venture and it is still standing. Buffeted by... Read more »

Affairs of the Nation

Mary McAleese Gulf

Affairs of the Nation

BRUSSELS BAGGAGE

THERE HAS, not surprisingly, been acres of space devoted to the scandal over cash-fuelled lobbying by the Qatari government of European Parliament members, with a number of players arrested to... Read more »
Budget Jack Chambers Nicki Minaj B’Tselem Phil Hogan UCD IRTA DIGI Katy Brown Rory Godson Pallonji Mistry Shark Hanlon Frances Ruane Taste of Dublin Listowel Writers’ Week Paddy Curran Harvey Norman Anton Savage Paul Hourican Enda O’Coineen PfP Red C Poll IFTA Ben Gilroy Luke Comer Sue Spence Fingleton Aubrey McCarthy Matt Cooper Parker Green Danny McConnell Gayle Killilea Maura Derivan Ed Honohan INS Arts Council EDAF Emuse Rosslare Golf Club Mairead Casey Colm O’Rourke Stephen Connolly Peter Aiken John Malone Tom Barry Anthony Halpin Ian Kehoe Kevin Bakhurst Geraldine O’Leary Dennis Horgan RUSI Gareth McAllister Ryevale House Joe Macken RUC Omagh Patrick Connolly Paddy Cosgrave The Ditch Newstalk Fake Tan Fred Logue Ian Paisley Sean O’Riordan Margaret Sweeney Jay Bourke Ellie Kisyombe Francesca McDonagh Ted Cunningham National Space Centre An Irish Goodbye Oscar Robert Quirke Ciara Kelly Executive Women Gathering Doug Taylor Florian Haufe Robbie Henshaw Bill Shipsey Breaking the Silence L’Ecrivain Ronan McNally National Lottery Michael Roche Energy Action Balls.ie Newspapers VAT Abbey Theatre Patricia Madden Irish Banking Culture Board Randox Aoife Gallagher Book Dalai Lama Trinity Trevor White RTÉ Chairperson Shane Houlihan Noel Smyth IKC Bob Geldof Landlord Ireland Neutrality Ukraine

Affairs of the Nation

BLUESHIRT PLAYBOOK

SOME AGEING Fine Gael members have been muttering about Irish Times anti-American liberals who blame the antics of Brazilian ex-president Jair Bolsonaro’s fascist fans on the precedent created by Donald... Read more »
Budget Jack Chambers Nicki Minaj B’Tselem Phil Hogan UCD IRTA DIGI Katy Brown Rory Godson Pallonji Mistry Shark Hanlon Frances Ruane Taste of Dublin Listowel Writers’ Week Paddy Curran Harvey Norman Anton Savage Paul Hourican Enda O’Coineen PfP Red C Poll IFTA Ben Gilroy Luke Comer Sue Spence Fingleton Aubrey McCarthy Matt Cooper Parker Green Danny McConnell Gayle Killilea Maura Derivan Ed Honohan INS Arts Council EDAF Emuse Rosslare Golf Club Mairead Casey Colm O’Rourke Stephen Connolly Peter Aiken John Malone Tom Barry Anthony Halpin Ian Kehoe Kevin Bakhurst Geraldine O’Leary Dennis Horgan RUSI Gareth McAllister Ryevale House Joe Macken RUC Omagh Patrick Connolly Paddy Cosgrave The Ditch Newstalk Fake Tan Fred Logue Ian Paisley Sean O’Riordan Margaret Sweeney Jay Bourke Ellie Kisyombe Francesca McDonagh Ted Cunningham National Space Centre An Irish Goodbye Oscar Robert Quirke Ciara Kelly Executive Women Gathering Doug Taylor Florian Haufe Robbie Henshaw Bill Shipsey Breaking the Silence L’Ecrivain Ronan McNally National Lottery Michael Roche Energy Action Balls.ie Newspapers VAT Abbey Theatre Patricia Madden Irish Banking Culture Board Randox Aoife Gallagher Book Dalai Lama Trinity Trevor White RTÉ Chairperson Shane Houlihan Noel Smyth IKC Bob Geldof Landlord Ireland Neutrality Ukraine

Affairs of the Nation

GARDAÍ’S GOOD TIMING

JUST BEFORE Christmas there was a high-profile conference, called ‘Breaking the Silence’, held in Dublin focusing on issues to do with the sex trade, trafficking and sexual violence. It was... Read more »
Prince Harry RICHARD KEMP

Affairs of the Nation

HARRY’S GAME OF CHESS

RICHARD KEMP, a former commander of British armed forces in Afghanistan and ex-chair of the Cobra Intelligence Group – co-ordinating MI5 and MI6 and answerable only to the British cabinet... Read more »
Liz Doyle IRTA

Affairs of the Nation

HEAVING GOING FOR TRAINERS

A DEVASTATING ruling by the Court of Appeal has meant a very bad start to 2023 for the new regime at the Irish Racehorse Trainers Association (IRTA). There has to... Read more »
Gerard O’Neill

Affairs of the Nation

TURN AROUND FOR LEGAL EAGLE

LIMERICK SOLICITOR Gerard O’Neill will have been pleased at the fight back he successfully mounted against press statements issued by the Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association (Isme) following a... Read more »
Joe Biden Russian Orwell Road

Affairs of the Nation

MARTIN’S DIPLOMACY

IT’S BEEN a rough year for Russian diplomats on Dublin’s Orwell Road since Russia invaded Ukraine, when the Russian embassy became a focus for protests by Ukrainian exiles and their... Read more »

Pillars of Society

Jennifer Carroll MacNeil

Pillars of Society

PROFILE: JENNIFER CARROLL MACNEILL

While the media-hyped ministerial reshuffle turned out to be the damp squib that cynics had predicted, it was still interesting that Jennifer Carroll MacNeill,... Read more »

The Young Bloods

Peachylean Sharon Keegan

The Young Bloods

YOUNG BLOOD: SHARON KEEGAN

SURELY THE biggest asset Sharon Keegan has is her ability to talk up her athleisure brand Peachylean? This year business watchers who have followed... Read more »

Fit to Print?

Eoin Ó Murchú Richard Pine

Fit to Print?

‘IRISH TIMES’ CRITICS

“SPECIAL CONSIDERATION shall be given to the reasonable representation of minority interests and divergent views,” according to the “principles of the Irish Times”. However, with political debate nowadays tainted by... Read more »
Ivan Yates Nell McCafferty RTÉ Lord Laird Intro Matchmaking NewsBrands Martin McGuinness Dún Laoghaire Pat Leahy Cormac Lucey John Cooney Irish Journalism Awards Steve Aiken Anton Savage John Downing Lucinda Creighton Marina Sologub Eilis O'Hanlon Ian Kehoe Danny McConnell Sindo O'Connor Mediahuis Stephen Collins Book Justine McCarthy Rewriting the Troubles Lynn Ruane Sinn Féin

Fit to Print?

MEDIAHUIS RETREAT

EFFORTS BY Mediahuis, publishers of Independent titles and others north and south, to colonise the Sunday market in the north via the Sunday Independent have failed and the Belgians have... Read more »
Eliza Manningham-Buller-2 Nicholas Blanford

Fit to Print?

RTÉ’S MILITARY ‘EXPERTS’

TWO DAYS after Christmas RTÉ’s Morning Ireland interviewed the Atlantic Council’s Nicholas Blanford, an expert on the Middle East. Listeners were told that the council was a “US think-tank” and... Read more »

Last Refuge

Leo Varadkar

Last Refuge

A TAOISEACH ONCE AGAIN

ONE PRESUMES that former taoiseach, now Tánaiste, Micheál Martin, was not entirely gulled by the remarks of Leo Varadkar, then his second-in-command, to the Fine Gael ard fheis in November... Read more »
Kieran O'Donnell

Last Refuge

ARISE LAZARUS O’DONNELL

THE PROMOTION of long-time Fine Gael backbench TD Kieran O’Donnell to the post of junior minister for local government and planning was described by the Irish Times as not widely... Read more »
Sinn Féin RTÉ Brendan Griffin

Last Refuge

BRENDAN GRIFFIN’S AMBITIONS

FINE GAEL TD and former junior sports minister Brendan Griffin walked off the pitch in what looked like a sulk as he was offered a junior ministerial post that was... Read more »
James Lawless Junior Minister

Last Refuge

MARTIN’S PAYROLL VOTE CAPPED

THE WEEKS leading up to the most uneventful ministerial reshuffle in memory saw repeated references to a possible expansion of junior ministers by two. In the event, no such ministerial... Read more »

Hush Hush

Irish Media Ukraine Simon Coveney

Hush Hush

IRISH ARMS TO ISRAEL

THE CONTROL of Exports Act was passed in 2008 to ensure that Ireland would finally be in compliance with the provisions of the European Union’s Council Common Position, which was... Read more »

Bog Cuttings

Bog-Cuttings-Defaul

Bog Cuttings

BOG CUTTINGS

GOING NOWHERE TULLAMORE DISTRICT Court heard the case of Derek Wyer (47), who was arrested following an altercation with gardaí outside the Bride House pub in the early morning of... Read more »

Fowl Emissions

Deirdre Grant

Fowl Emissions

BRIGHT RED FLAGS

GOLDHAWK WAS browsing the lobbying register during the Christmas break and was intrigued to see that a board member of Oxfam Ireland has been lobbying minister Eamon Ryan on behalf... Read more »
Luke Holland Climate Denial John Fagan Wolf Europe David Quinn Duncan Stewart Data Centre Carbon Emissions Conor Skehan Chris Hazzard

Fowl Emissions

NOTEWORTHY EMISSIONS

AN INVESTIGATION by the excellent Noteworthy website has revealed that data centres’ on-site carbon emissions are 35 times higher than a decade ago. This is about to get much worse.... Read more »

The Hot Air Brigade

Una Mullally

The Hot Air Brigade

THE HOT AIR BRIGADE

In these places, character must be erased lest it tell a story. A sense of place must be rinsed until what emerges from the white walls is what Kyle Chayka... Read more »

High Society

High Society

Jacky Flavin Tehan

High Society

JACKY TEHAN’S PROMOTION

THERE HAVE been some changes at the Roche family’s investment company, where Jacky Flavin Tehan has moved into the hot seat. Flavin Tehan is... Read more »

High Society

IHT CHL The Lion in Winter Racing Royalty Le Brocquy City of Troy Fitzwilliam Square AIRO Dermot Smurfit Ballinacarrig Park Club Cosgrave Fitzpatrick Keith Jameson National Gallery Collection Marissa Carter VG Tom Higgins Neil Jordan Laura Bonner Paul Ward Variety Jones Dtat Eathos Sharon Keegan Angela Scanlon Desmond Canouan Bellair Estate Bobby Flay John O’Conor Portrait of Omai Eibhlín Ní Chonghaile Wedding NGI Board Rachel Flynn JP McMahon Ash Quinn Pamela Laird Abdullah Al Naboodah Boundless Ocean

High Society

JOHN MAGNIER’S MASTERPIECE

IN JUST eight weeks an export ban will expire on the famous Sir Joshua Reynolds masterpiece, Portrait of Omai, which has been the subject... Read more »

High Society

Michael Heffernan

High Society

MICHAEL HEFFERNAN’S NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS

THERE HAVE been some changes in the business portfolio of Michael Heffernan, son of Dunnes Stores boss Margaret, with the businessman having checked out of his hotel group. Meanwhile, his... Read more »

Behind the Scenes

Desiree Finnegan

Behind the Scenes

DÉSIRÉE’S IN-TRAY

THERE IS no sign of a plot twist at Screen Ireland (SI) when it comes to publishing its annual reports. Successive head honchos, including current chief executive Désirée Finnegan, have... Read more »
Tailored Films Screen Ireland Perspectives DCCI Crescine Tarka Russell Lara Hickey Reality Check Sarah McInerney Irish Movies Paul Murray Arts Council Dublin Theatre Festival TWU Macdara Kelleher Richard Boyd Barrett DADC Cillian Murphy Terry McMahon Media Commission Ireland Kerlin Gallery Creative Ireland Section 481 Christine O’Donovan RTÉ Storyland NMI Board Vacancies IASCA Ossie Kilkenny RTÉ Original Programmes

Behind the Scenes

CATHERINE MARTIN’S UNJUST TRANSITION

WITH THE Arts Council planning to significantly expand its scale, maybe one of the new hires could keep an eye on the activities of Creative Ireland, the slush fund established... Read more »

Sport of Kings

Tom Rudd

Sport of Kings

LIMERICK’S MYSTERIOUS CROWDS

FORMER JUMP jockey Tom Rudd took over as the manager of Limerick racecourse late last year amid hopes that the track would see some continuity among the senior management after... Read more »
Paul Kimmage

Sport of Kings

O’LEARY PULLS NO PUNCHES

PAUL KIMMAGE began 2023 by reminding his Sindo readers on New Year’s Day that he hasn’t given up when it comes to exposing a doping culture in the Irish racing... Read more »
Ed Dunlop David Dunsdon Sarah Lynam Rebecca May Wayne Hassett Eoin O'Brien Michael Burke Aine O’Connor Ashroe Diamond Thomand O’Mara Peter Keatley Timmy Hyde Coolmore All About Sunday Colin Keane Ronan Whelan JP McManus Jessica Harrington Dundalk Racecourse Paul Hensey Irish National Hunt Horse-racing Doping Paddy Walsh Tom Kelly Suspension

Sport of Kings

AMO KEEPS OPTIONS OPEN

ONE MAJOR flat owner who likes to keep his trainers guessing is Kia Joorabchian of Amo Racing. The football club investor and tech entrepreneur upped his spending again last year,... Read more »
Luke Comer Ban

Sport of Kings

COMERS’ CHRISTMAS PLAN

EIGHT YEARS after the Comer brothers, Luke and Brian, acquired the Kilternan sports and leisure complex in south Co Dublin for €7m – 96% less than the €171m spent on... Read more »

Reviews

An enemy of the crown

Books

AN ENEMY OF THE CROWN – DAVID BURKE, MERCIER

DAVID BURKE’S An Enemy of the Crown provides essential reading on British disinformation and smears, bringing readers up to speed on what is sometimes referred to as the ‘seamier side’... Read more »

Moneybags

Moneybags

Martin Davis

Moneybags

MOLTEN VENTURES INVESTMENTS EXPOSED TO THE DAYLIGHT

IT IS far from obvious just what has gone wrong at Molten Ventures, the investment fund previously known as Draper Esprit. What is clear,... Read more »

Moneybags

Seamus Keating

Moneybags

CAN FD TECHNOLOGIES DELIVER ITS SECOND ACT?

NEWRY WOULD not be known to most people for its prominence in the high-finance technology sector, courtesy of Brian Colon, who developed what is... Read more »

Briefcases

John Magnier High Definition

Briefcases

JOHN MAGNIER’S BEDROOMS

WHILE MONEYBAGS John Magnier has tended to be seen as something of a deity in south Co Tipperary, where he has been splashing the cash for decades, the locals in... Read more »
Will Prendergast

Briefcases

WILL PRENDERGAST’S PREDICTIONS

AFTER TWO years in situ as a director on Advisable.com, venture capitalist and member of the Society of Kauffman Fellows Will Prendergast has stepped down from the board. Having recently... Read more »
Rick Earley

Briefcases

RICK EARLEY’S LATEST SETBACK

A LOW-PROFILE Co Longford company called Profill Ltd was wound up immediately before Christmas. Having started life as a mattress manufacturer in Tralee with a different name and under different... Read more »
ZMG Cyril Murphy Newbridge College Peter Wilson Sporting Emporium Chris Wholey O'Kane God’s Creatures Film Tax Relief Anne Rossi Desmond Live Nation ESCADIA LTD Al Porter Comeback Gordon Elliott Clayton Love Ivan Wilde hot-water-brigade Parnells GAA Lawsuit

Briefcases

DESMOND BOUNCES BACK

ACCOUNTS HAVE just been filed by LN-Gaiety Holdings Ltd (LNGH), the joint venture between loaded concert promoter Denis Desmond and the Live Nation behemoth. It is clear that, post-pandemic, business... Read more »
Windhoist Ireland Uniti Bhalla

Briefcases

WINDHOIST HOISTED

THE WEEK before Christmas, a business involved in providing services to wind farms – Windhoist Ireland Ltd (WIL) – was wound up by the High Court on foot of a... Read more »