A Question of Taste: Mary McCarthy

Mary McCarthy is from Whitehall, near Skibbereen, Co Cork. She is director of the National Sculpture Factory in Cork and also chair of Culture Ireland.

Best recent book: Without doubt, John Williams’s Stoner.

Best recent film: American Hustle — good fun, great soundtrack. Also really enjoyed Richard Linklater’s Boyhood.

Best recent gig/performance: John Grant at Cork Opera House.

As for theatre, I was honoured to witness Olwen Fouere’s mind-blowing performance of Riverrun, at the Edinburgh festival.

Best piece of music you’ve been listening to lately: I’m currently enjoying George Ezra’s Wanted on Voyage and First Aid Kit’s The Lion’s Roar.

First ever piece of music or art or gig that really moved you: It’s more of an encounter over a number of years, rather than a single experience.

Growing up in West Cork, I was lucky to live in the midst of many working artists. In the 1980s, my parents got to know Mary and Donald Grant, two American journalists who gave up their careers in New York to become subsistence farmers in Kilcrohane, West Cork.

As a child, I remember being enthralled by their stories of NY and their journalism work there.

They wrote an account of their efforts at subsistence farming, White Goats and Black Bees.

They really were forward-thinking and an inspiration. Sadly, both are now deceased.

TV viewing: I was totally addicted to the series Breaking Bad in 2012/13, so I’m a bit more cautious of getting ‘involved ‘ since then.

I’m awaiting the next season of House of Cards and am lining up the series Legacy, to start all over again.

Radio listening: The day starts with Morning Ireland, really useful for getting the news highlights.

In the evenings, I tune into Matt Cooper, Sean Rocks and John Creedon.

Weekends usually involve some Miriam O’Callaghan and Marian Finucane, to balance out some of the gender imbalance during the week.

One to watch — an artist that you think will be big in the future: Irish visual artist, Ruth E Lyons, currently based in Cork ( in the National Sculpture Factory and embarking on postgraduate study in CIT/CCAD).

A founder member of the Good Hatchery collective, she makes very inspiring installations, which are ambitious and relevant.

Best recent holiday or weekend break: Sicily — it was on my list for a while and I made it there on holidays this autumn. Loved Palermo: it is gritty, and feels very different to many European big cities.

Your best celebrity encounter: Encountering Philip Seymour Hoffman on the street outside the Public Theatre in New York, in 2007.

I had just seen him perform in Jack goes Boating. Then, there he was flagging a taxi like the rest of us... we managed to exchange a few words and he was as he was on stage.

Think he was amused, but totally funny and charming. A total loss to the world.

Tech habits: iPad for survival, for everything — travel schedules/cooking recipes/ news/emails/music — everything really.

Weekend treat: Despite the fact I often have weekend work commitments, I never fail to feel like celebrating the fact that it’s Friday and I definitely try and kick it off with a pint in Henchys, my local, in St Luke’s. With a bar that exhibits great art, I can justify it as work, if needs be.

Health and fitness: I like to walk, and scramble up a few mountains when I get the opportunity.

Unsung hero — individual or group you think don’t get the praise they deserve: Those that scoop up after their dogs and save us from it....you’d have to love those dogs.

You are king for a day — what’s your first decree? That there would be more unsung heros. Also to ensure that all those that are in our direct provision centres are given autonomy over food choices and cooking needs and treated with dignity and respect.