Put on a grave face and don’t spoil the party

THEY stood side by side, Dev and Dev Óg.

Éamon de Valera was on an election poster dating from 1959. The poster bore the legend: “For President Vote No 1”. Éamon Ó Cuív was posing with the poster for a woman who wanted a novel photo reflecting the generational links in the party.

It was early on Saturday morning; early by ard fheis standards. Ó Cuív had just come out of a seminar entitled Sustaining Rural Communities. Once the meeting broke up, he was met by a queue of well-wishers. Here at least, in the rural wing of the party, he was among his own.