The popular perception of Vikings is tinged with terror. The Irish tend to think of them as ferocious marauders who pillaged monasteries a millennium ago. But there was more to the Vikings than most people realize and their contribution to Irish society has long been under-appreciated. This is certainly true in Waterford, Ireland’s oldest city, which celebrating its 1,100th … [Read more...] about The Vikings of Waterford
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How Guinness Saved Ireland
June / July 2014
At nearly one billion liters of Guinness sold per year, it has become one of the world’s most recognizable Irish brands. And though it is brewed in over 60 countries and available in more than 120, there is only one which owes its very survival as a sovereign state to the Black Stuff.Seventy years ago – February 1944 – and it is at last clear that the Allies are going to win … [Read more...] about How Guinness Saved Ireland
The Very Modern Ed O’Neill
It’s hard to put a finger on why the sitcom Modern Family is so successful. It seems set to play to stereotypes – older man with trophy wife; gay male couple with their adopted Asian child – but the secret of the show’s success may lie in the acting. It’s a well cast ensemble, all of whom have perfect comic timing. The characters are believable and seem familiar. The show is … [Read more...] about The Very Modern Ed O’Neill
At Home with the McDonalds
Ed: NYPD Detective Steven McDonald, who was inducted into the Irish America Hall of Fame in 2014, died Tuesday, January 10, 2017 at North Shore University Hospital in Manhasset, NY following complications from a heart attack. McDonald was paralyzed from the neck down in July 1986 after confronting potential bicycle thieves in Central Park, one of whom shot him three … [Read more...] about At Home with the McDonalds
The Light of Munster
If I could be dropped anywhere in Ireland with my camera and lenses, I’d choose the region of Munster nearly every time. The spectacular cliffs on the coast of Clare, the wild headlands of the Kingdom of Kerry – the landscape is rugged and the coastline endless. But photography is so much about light, and isn’t the weather still … well, Irish? And yet, if photography were … [Read more...] about The Light of Munster