Guests of the Nation

Guests of the Nation

My review of Conal Creedon’s book, Art imitating Life imitating Death, was published in the Irish Examiner last Saturday (17 December).* Here it is: One of Ireland’s greatest short stories is Frank O’Connor’s ‘Guests of the Nation’ about two British soldiers...
When is Enough, Enough?

When is Enough, Enough?

Former British soldier and member of the Ulster Unionist Party in 1998, Glenn Bradley, recently spoke at the Ireland’s Future event in the Ulster Hall and was later vilified on social media by some loyalists. Here, he links the debate about fundamental...
Timothy O’Grady on his book ‘Curious Journey’

Timothy O’Grady on his book ‘Curious Journey’

The Irish-American author, Timothy O’Grady,  has a feature in the online edition of the Irish Times about the provenance of his book Curious Journey which can be read here. Copies of the book can be ordered from republican outlets in Dublin or Belfast....
The Life of C.L.R. James

The Life of C.L.R. James

The British radical left and their prodigious publications in the 1970s were quite influential on young northerners like myself and introduced a new generation to voices like Frantz Fanon, Albert Memmi, Patrice Lumumba, Julius Nyerere, and Aimé Césaire, to name but a...
Rewriting History or Parallel Lines?

Rewriting History or Parallel Lines?

Sam Thompson writes and occasionally lectures on history. A former RUC officer, he wrote his first novel, Nights in Armour, under a nom de plume, which I reviewed back in 2017. An updated version of the novel was published by Mercier Press in 2019. Sam now describes...