Teachers will, in time, have to explain to students why life was once so very different in Ireland on Good Friday. Those teachers, unless we risk Brexit-scale disruption and division, will also tell their pupils why the three Sheehan brothers, from Fermoy in Co. Cork, died fighting with Canadian troops in WWII and, hopefully, explain the structures we put in place after the war to try to ensure that we never have WWIII.

An island community off the south-west coast has come up with a novel way of raising money, while also educating visitors about its past.

As the beloved 88-year-old actor/director releases another film, avowed fan John Daly selects 10 of his favourites

My grand-uncle drilled with the UVF in Donegal in 1912, writes Victoria White.

Ellen Alden’s Irish great great grandfather fought in the American civil war to safeguard his family, says Ellie O’Byrne.

A Confederate flag is on sale on Amazon advertised as an "Ireland South Cross Flag".

THE GAA has two red flag issues to deal with. One is, literally, that: the display by Cork hurling fans of Confederate flags at the All-Ireland hurling semi-final between Cork and Waterford at Croke Park on Sunday.

The Cork County Board has said it “outright condemns” the flying of the Confederate flag in support of the county’s GAA teams, writes Conall Ó Fátharta and Denis Hurley.

The Cork County Board has said it “outright condemns” the flying of the Confederate flag in support of the county’s GAA teams.

Three great movies to look forward to this week, reviewed by Declan Burke

As the world’s most famous film festival kicks off, Helen Barlow selects some of the highlights

Bette Browne on all the president’s men (and women) who have the ear of the most powerful man in the world

WITH an excerpt in the New York Times, a place in Oprah Winfrey’s Book Club and with it now being named Amazon’s book of 2016, Colson Whitehead’s latest novel The Underground Railroad arrives with a silo of hype and a bar set particularly high. Thankfully, the New York writer more than manages to meet these high expectations with a powerful, relentless novel that is tightly wrapped around a gripping story.

Irish authors Sebastian Barry and Maggie O’Farrell have been shortlisted for the 2016 Costa Novel Award

US domestic and economic policy are likely to change utterly now Donald Trump is in power, but his foreign policy remains a mystery, writes TP O’Mahony.

Sexual allegations are not new in US presidential politics, but Ryle Dwyer notes that Donald Trump has plumbed a new low.

Peter Gowen was born Youghal, Co Cork, and now lives in London. He is currently on tour with Decadent’s production of The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh. Upcoming dates include Everyman Theatre, Cork, 7-11 Nov; as well as Civic Theatre, Tallaght, 21-22 Oct; and Lime Tree, Limerick, Nov 4-5.

PAPER is ubiquitous. We use it for everything from mopping up a spill to creating art. It carries news, heartbreak, love, and spreads knowledge and culture.

 

 

A New York restaurant has banned tipping. Instead, it’ll raise prices and the cash will go to the staff. So what do Irish eateries make of it all? And do we even have a tipping culture here? Joe McNamee settles the bill.

The problem with Mother’s Day is not that it exists but that it is just one day. In my view we

Emily Dickinson’s house in Amherst, Massachusetts is turned upside down with the arrival of a 17-year-old Irish maid-of-all-works, Ada Concannon, into its scullery in Nuala O’Connor’s novel.

Plans have been put in train to link events to commemorate the Waterford birth of 1848 leader and subsequent American Civil War veteran Thomas Francis Meagher and the 1916 centenary commemorations.

A pioneering music out-reach project is expanding into a free family festival on the banks of the River Lee.

Harper Lee isn’t the only author who wrote a worldwide bestseller yet decided not to try to repeat that success. Brian Moss and Lorraine Murphy look at other members of this elite club

Hundreds of people packed a sweltering Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston yesterday as it re-opened to worshippers just days after a 21-year-old white gunman shot dead nine black church members.

The new remake of The Magnificent Seven is still casting up, as Peter Sarsgaard is a late replacement for Jason Momoa's villain

The Taoiseach has been heckled by anti-water charge protesters as he made a speech in Ballymote, Co. Sligo.

In Waterford, President Michael D. Higgins recently launched the Thomas F. Meagher Foundation for 2016 Flag Week, which will be held from March 10 to 17: the national flag will be given to schools around the country.

The business end of the Champions League has been less sweet 16 and more a knockout for England’s elite this week, another chastening trial for the self-styled ‘greatest league in the world’. 

WE’RE well into the blackberry season and the warm weather has helped the growth and ripening of this popular fruit all around the country — one of the best years in recent times.

Check out our spolier-free guide to what's good to watch tonight.

THREE years ago many Irish people had never heard of Mother Jones.

Plans to turn Spike Island into an Alcatraz-style attraction would certainly prove a magnet for Irish-Americans, according to US sailors who visited the historic site yesterday.

From 1700 to the end of the First World War, almost 2m Irish men died fighting for British kings and queens, according to a new RTÉ documentary.

CLEAR ISLAND WALK, WEST CORK

What is Ireland doing about Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)? For some years, lectures from major universities have been available, free, on the internet.

I was driving into town early this morning, and I saw the Fine Gael posters calling on us to abolish the Seanad.

Toddler dethroned in toilet seat dilemma

During its long evolution from dialects introduced by Germanic invaders in the 5th century, the English language has been peppered with curious phrases.