CPH Post St Patrick's Day Edition 2022

INTRODUCTION

St Patrick has seen off the pandemic in the same way he banished the serpents. It’s time to plunge headfirst and embrace the wonderful culture of the Emerald Isle

ARMELLE DELMELLE Prepare yourself for a day drenched in rain and Guinness, as freckled blue-eyed boys and green-haired girls take over the city. No, they’re not Billie Eilish fans (well, most of them probably are!), this is St Patrick’s Day and it’s been a long time coming.

Jonathan Swift once remarked: “I don’t really like the term ‘luck of the Irish’ because the luck of the Irish is, historically speaking, f**king terrible.”

Before you google ‘profanity in Gulliver’s Travels’ – make sure you check out whether the satirist made it into our ‘Top ten figures of Irish literature’ (pages 16-17) – it might be worth asking whether he had a point.

After all, the Irish have been waiting three years to celebrate a decent St Patrick’s Day. Any longer and it was in danger of turning into the Olympics. It’s hardly the ‘luck of the Irish’, is it!

Lucky for me though So sorry four-leafed clovers and Leprechauns, but looking ahead to the big day itself on March 17 has made me realise they’re not really that lucky after all.

And besides, the expression actually stems from the US, not Ireland – specifically the gold (and silver) rush years of the 19th century, when many of the successful miners were of Irish heritage.

My first St Patrick’s celebration feels like it was yesterday. In Dublin, it lasts for days, and our teacher encouraged us to enjoy as many festivities as we could.

Still, I like to associate Ireland with being lucky.

Had I not spent nine months in Dublin learning English, I would not have had the necessary language skills to work at the Copenhagen Post and end up writing this editorial.

My roommate and I bought everything Irish we could to be ready, which was just as well: almost everybody was dressed in green at school and then, of course, on the parade.

Here I am, five years later enjoying my time in a new country and ready to celebrate Paddy’s Day like it’s 2017 all over again.

Paddy’s Day in Dublin

I learned the basics of Céilí dancing in the streets with my friends, and on the big day itself we got up early and went straight to O’Connell Bridge to find a spot where we could

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have a good view.

St Patrick’s Day 2017 might have been rainy, but we didn’t really care. I’d be lying if I said I remembered every detail … it is after all a celebration with liquid refreshment.

Your turn to enjoy For the first time since 2019, Copenhagen will be hosting a full program of St Patrick’s Day festivities. We urge you to plunge in headfirst and embrace the wonderful culture of the Emerald Isle.

In this supplement, we will take you through

everything Irish. So, dress up in green and be ready to fall in love with this amazing country.

Learn about the two main events: the parade (page 6) and three-legged race (8) and then find out more about the country, starting with a trip around Ireland to take in the best sights (10-11).

Following that, let’s take a walk down memory lane with an A- Z on recent history (12-13), its shared past with Denmark (14-15) and a round-up of what’s happened on this day in history (18-19).

GIUSEPPE MILO/ FLICKR

PLUCK OF THE IRISH!

INTERVIEW

THAT THEATRE GUY!

CATCHING UP WITH PLAYWRIGHT FERGAL O’BYRNE The Irishman has a new play coming out on March 16, and then it’s Paddy’s Day. Sounds like it’s going to be quite the weekend

BARTHOLOMEW SKALA With over 2,000 Irish people living in Denmark, CPH POST is always spoilt for choice looking for heavyweight interviews for its annual St Patrick’s Day supplement.

In 2020, ahead of what turned out to be a cancelled day out, we caught up with Irish Ambassador Adrian McDaid, Copenhagen Celtic founder Aidan Coogan and Kennedys co-owner Tim Tynan.

The year before, it was management consultant Patrick Sheridan, the co-owner of Irish bar Gravens Rand, and popular musician Pat Kelly.

No better choice!

For 2022, there could be no better choice than Fergal O’Byrne, the resident playwright at That Theatre Company, the group run by Ian Burns.

Following the success of his play ‘Extremophiles’ in late 2020, Burns and O’Byrne (which has a nice ring to it) are making final preparations to stage ‘Rub-A-Dub-Dub’. The worldwide premiere is on March 16 at Krudttønden theatre.

We caught up with Fergal to find out more about his background, what brought him to Copenhagen, his new play and how he will be celebrating St Patrick’s Day – when it finally arrives after what has been a three-year wait.

TELL ME ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE GROWING UP IN IRELAND: HOW DID YOUR CHILDHOOD AND UNIVERSITY YEARS PAVE THE WAY FOR YOUR CAREER AS A PLAYWRIGHT? I was born and bred in the Dublin suburbs from what I would call a typical Irish Catholic upbringing in the late ‘60s. I was from a family of eight, and I suppose we would have been politely called sort of upper working class. I went to a very famous school called Synge Street in Dublin. My dad was insistent I go there for their expertise in English – maybe my dad knew something before I did. I do, however, regard my childhood as quite normal. I was a bit of a maths geek in school. I love tech – it framed my early career. After working in the industry for a few years, I continued my college education. College was honestly where I just woke up. I discovered everything. I had a very sheltered childhood, so college was a total awakening for me in more ways than one. I really loved it. I studied electronic engineering at what was then called the Dublin Institute of Technology.

It was during these university years that I got involved in a theatre group. We put on what you would call routine comedy skits that we devised ourselves – very improvised stuff. But it was fantastic. And then I was challenged to write a play, and it was absolute rubbish. But I

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remember sitting there, with 300 people in the audience, and people started laughing; they seemed to be enjoying it! So I said, hang on, I’ve got something here. A few of my friends were very encouraging, and that’s when I realised I had the bug.

into technology for quite literally the next 13 years. I started a couple of technology companies and eventually sold one of them and became financially secure. I then went back to the thing I love most. On 1 January 2013 I became a writer again. I had the financial security to say look: this is life, you get one shot.

Follow the things that fulfill you the most.

SO A CAREER IN THEATRE BECKONED? Not immediately. When I left college, I had a job guaranteed for five years in the telecom industry. It was quite depressing, however. I went from being an avant-garde student with a great lifestyle to being stuck in an office. It didn’t sit well with me at all and I knew I had to get out of this work environment. It was getting involved with a dear friend named William Morgan at the Pink Panda Theater Company where the spark re-ignited. We put on a lot of work at a small theatre in Dublin.

One work that stuck with me was the first play I wrote called ‘Oscar and Jim’. It was based on Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison meeting in a graveyard in Paris. We ended up making a little money out of it, so William and I went on to do about five or six more theatre productions in Dublin, touring them around Ireland.

HOW DID MOVING TO COPENHAGEN IMPACT YOUR CAREER? So we moved in 2017. We went from looking at cows in green fields of Wexford to the wonders of Copenhagen. In terms of my writing career, you can write plays anywhere, so I just kept going. But I was itching to get into the local scene. It was actually on St. Patrick’s Day when I met Ian Burns dressed up in the Irish Embassy as Saint Patrick. He read one of my plays ‘Extremophiles’ and saw potential in it. To this day, I think to myself that it’s the best thing I’ve written in a long, long time. He produced the play, and it got great reviews. And now I am thrilled to work with him on ‘Rub-A-DubDub’. We will also be doing another of my plays called ‘Same Shit, Different Planet’ in early 2023.

My major break came in the late 1990s when I started writing short stories, and ended up winning the prestigious Hennessy Literary Awards. After that, a publisher rang me and asked to turn it into a book. I had a great time writing it, but it definitely did not make waves.

It was hard to understand and I only made 600 pounds in royalties. But it set the tone for my future. I was at that crux where I was getting some recognition but could not make any money. I just stopped writing and went back

HOW DOES YOUR BACKGROUND IN TECH INFLUENCE THE GENRES OF PLAYS THAT YOU WRITE? ARE ALL YOUR PLAYS NORMALLY CENTERED AROUND SCI-FI? I still love technology. People regard me as a geek because my bedside reading would be a book about Mars, a book about the history of science, and a book about artificial intelligence. So absolutely, technology features in all my writing: my short stories, my book, and definitely my plays, at a heavy angle. It

ST PATRICK’S DAY 2022 GUIDE

makes sense since I am qualified in that field. I have a degree, so I can talk about technology without having to either invent it or veer into non-factual information. I did about six months of research on Antarctica before I even started writing ‘Extremophiles’ – right down to what communication systems and frequencies they would use, to make sure it was all spot on. And the same with the current play that’s coming up. I delved into artificial intelligence because I’m fascinated by it and big data. I mean, all of us, whether we like it or not, we’re kind of controlled a little bit by the algorithms that Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat use. The way they profile us is great in one sense, but terrifying in another. We live in a state where we need to be aware of the Orwellian portent.

CAN YOU GIVE A QUICK SUMMARY OF WHAT TO EXPECT FROM ‘RUB-A-DUBDUB’?

Well, it’s a very simple story. It’s about three old friends getting together. They’re in the autumn years of their lives; their bodies are starting to show wear and tear, and each has taken a different decision on how to handle that. They’re scattered across the planet, so they only meet every few years. One of them wants to grow old gracefully, although it makes him very grumpy. Another is in denial of his self-decay and is actually considering euthanasia as an option. And another is trying to beat old age with technology. He’s quite rich, wears an exoskeleton suit, and buys all these technologies to avoid old age.

SO IT’S ABOUT USING TECHNOLOGY TO STOP THE AGEING PROCESS?

JULIAN SIMPSON

Yes, that’s the main theme. Should we be using technology to elongate our lives and cheat death? I’ve read the science around this: about the scientists that actually claim the human body could, in theory, live to be 500 years old. Think of the ramifications of that in terms of the family unit. Do you want to live that long? Do your loved ones want us to live that long? These are fundamental questions, and it affects our religious and ethical beliefs.

That’s the core of the story.

And then I always like to throw in a twist. The character hosting the event has a replicant called Sisi, who is meant to represent an ‘Alexa’, although she turns out to be so much more than just that. She’s actually a piece of human-software and she cannot lie. The three of them are trying to score points off each other, but she cannot lie to anyone. So she’s telling them exactly as it is. And yet she has a yearning to do one thing: to know what love is. She just cannot identify this human emotion called love.

SOUNDS GREAT! HOW CAN WE GET TICKETS? You can find tickets on the Teater Billetter website. The play runs from March 16 until April 9 at Krudttønden.

AS AN IRISHMAN, HOW DO YOU THINK ST PATRICK’S DAY IN DENMARK COMPARES TO OTHER PLACES YOU’VE CELEBRATED THE HOLIDAY? In Ireland, people just go a little nuts on the day. It’s great fun. There’s a massive parade in Dublin. It’s a spectacle. It’s a time where all walks of Irish life are represented in every

Cast of ‘Rub-A-Dub-Dub’ in rehearsals

small town. When I came to Denmark, I expected nothing because a lot of Danes haven’t been to Ireland. But it’s actually quite similar here: everyone is singing and chanting at pubs. My family loves going into the town square on St. Patrick’s Day. There is lots of Irish dancing and a small parade. There are about 3,000 people there and it’s quite fascinating.

Danes really love to put in the effort to make us feel accommodated on our special day, and I know I am very much looking forward to the day.

THERE IS A QUITE LARGE IRISH COMMUNITY IN COPENHAGEN. HAS THAT MADE

SETTLING INTO COPENHAGEN EASIER FOR YOU? Absolutely. I love stopping by Irish pubs and meeting new friends. Pubs are the social cultural centre of the Irish. We sometimes don’t even go to drink, just to meet people and talk. I really enjoy that. I know I can walk into any of the pubs, sit at the bar and someone will introduce themselves and ask where I’m from.

WHAT WOULD BE YOUR TOP RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ST PATRICK’S DAY IN COPENHAGEN? Well, I strongly recommend you go to Radhus-

pladsen. They set up a pub in a tent right in front of the Town Hall. It’s a great time: you see everyone out there wearing green, dancing and singing. Our Irish traditions are infectious, and people just walking by always come out and have a beer with us. We’re like a disease of friendship. And if you do not wear something green you will get pinched!

ARE THERE ANY LAST WORDS YOU’D LIKE TO ADD REGARDING THE PLAY? If people want a good night out, check it out!

It’s a comedy, but it has a dark angle, and it’s very relevant to our times. It’s in English and the actors, and director, are so good.

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PARADE

EMBRACING THE FEAST DAY ON WHICH EVERYBODY IS IRISH Since its debut in 2005, the Copenhagen St Patrick’s Day Parade has established itself as one of the capital’s highlights of the year

BLAKE REILLY St Patrick might be the patron saint of Ireland, but on his feast day on March 17 “everyone is Irish!”, according to the organisers of the annual parade through the streets of Copenhagen.

With its origins as a 17th century religious festival for feasting, the holiday has grown in international appeal over the years and is now synonymous all over the world with shamrocks, lively parades and overall merriment – an occasion for everyone to enjoy!

And for nearly two decades now, the Copenhagen St Patrick’s Day Parade has been turning the streets awash with green!

Going green “The motivation for organising a big event like a parade in Copenhagen was to give the Irish expats living here, along with people from all nationalities who are fascinated by or feel a connection to Ireland, a platform where they can celebrate Ireland’s national day with the whole family at a family-friendly event,” the parade’s co-organiser Marianne Green tells CPH POST. “The ‘Everyone is Irish’ slogan we chose felt right because it is so important for us to invite and engage people who are not familiar with Irish culture or are not Irish and send a message that we can all share and take part in each other’s cultural celebrations across nationalities and culture.”

A testament to the cultural inclusivity of the city, each year the celebrations continue to grow as Copenhageners delight in a taste of all things Irish.

With so much live music, face painting, traditional dancing and Irish coffee to consider, CPH POST is here to give you a rundown of what is planned for the day.

Return to Rådhuspladsen The City Hall Square will act as the main location for the festivities. A large tent will be set up in the square to accommodate face painting and a costume shop to buy all the necessary green accessories for the parade, while live entertainment will take place on stage. And, of course, no St Patrick’s Day tent would be complete without an Irish café and bar.

The festivities commence at 13:00 with the opening of the café, serving Irish whiskey from Tullamore DEW, Irish beer and stout from O’Hara’s Brewery and hot chocolate. Make sure you try one of the custom-made St Patrick’s Day cookies baked specially for the occasion.

Free face painting for children will take place inside the tent between 15:00 and 17:00 to make sure they look properly festive!

It is important to remember to wear green to the event – but just in case you forget, a costume shop will be open inside the tent where you can buy some last minute shamrock-inspired apparel.

Next to the tent in the square, an open air stage will play host to live folk music and traditional dancing performed by the Dark Green School of Irish Dancing from 15:30 – including a set performed by The Early House – right up until the parade is set to begin. All the best of Irish musical traditions will be there to lend City Hall Square a distinctly Irish tune.

Join the parade Anyone wearing green can freely take part in the parade and walk along with the likes of the Copenhagen Showband, the Bodhrán Band and the Dark Green School of Irish Dancing.

with talk of a few demonstrations before kick-off.

Ian Burns returns this year to lead the procession as St Patrick himself, and a few four-legged companions in the form of Irish wolfhounds and terriers will follow behind – doubtlessly wagging their tails through the streets of Copenhagen.

Make sure you arrive well before 17:00 to secure your spot in the parade – and again, don’t forget to wear green!

Starting from Rådhuspladsen at 17:00 the parade will follow a route along Vester Voldgade, Stormgade, Vindebrogade, Højbro Plads, Gammel Strand, Nybrogade, Rådhusstræde, Gammeltorv, Nytorv, Slutterigade, Lavendelstræde and Vester Voldgade, before returning to Rådhuspladsen.

The parade will conclude with one more song from the Copenhagen Showband: “a parting glass to finish off a great day”.

THE SCHEDULE - 13:00: Café and bar open - 15:00 - 17:00: Free face painting for children - 15:30 - 17:00: Live on-stage entertainment - 16:30 - 17:00: Participants start gathering

GAA, the city’s Gaelic football and hurling club, will also be arriving at 16:00 to take part in the parade,

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- 17:00 - 17:40: Parade duration

Visit the island of Ireland

Press the Green Button ST PATRICK’S DAY 2022 GUIDE

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3-LEGGED RACE

FEEL THE SHAMROCK LOVE OF THE THREE-LEGGED RACE! Since its inception over two decades ago, the event has raised nearly 600,000 kroner for charity

BEN HAMILTON For the first time in its history, it will not be possible to register to compete in the St Patrick’s Day three-legged race on the big day itself.

Instead, pre-race registration for Shamrock Love’s 3 Legged Charity Race 2022 began via the event’s website on March 1 due to the limited numbers allowed to take part.

There is only space for 100 pairs to take part – so 200 racers in total. At the time of going to press, there is still availability, the organisers confirmed to CPH POST. Win a trip to Dublin!

Pre-race registration costs a minimum of 100 kroner per racer – there is no limit on how much each racer can donate – and must be carried out using MobilePay via 299333.

This could be problematic for anyone hoping to register from abroad, so don’t be surprised if Stockholm Seamu, Dublin Dermot or Oslo Orla enlists you into helping them – but bear it in mind there is a huge incentive to help them or indeed make a charitable donation of your own (via PayPal, GoFundMe, or bank transfer – learn more at shamrocklove.com/ donate).

This year, thanks to race sponsor Guinness, a donor will win a trip for two to Dublin that includes travel expenses (up to 3,000 kroner), airport-hotel transfer both ways, two nights at a four-star city centre hotel with breakfast, and a day out at the Guinness Storehouse including lunch.

The deadline to qualify for the prize is 18:00 on March 31, and the winner will be announced on April 2 at around 15:00. Thanks to Guinness, all of the donation goes to charity.

Three charities again This year the race will again be supporting three children’s charities: Danske Hospitalsklovne, Laura Lynn Children’s Hospice and CCAFO (Cambodian Children’s Advocacy Foundation Organization).

The race has been supporting the charities since 2012, 2015 and 2010 respectively, raising 138,700, 86,700 and 164,700 kroner for them.

Since its inception in 2001, the race has raised 556,700 kroner for charity – including 15,000 in 2020, even though the race was cancelled.

In 2012, a record 600 racers took part.

THE RULES Complete the race entirely on foot Drink half a pint of beer at each participating pub: so five in total Get your scorecard stamped as proof at each pub before hobbling on your merry way.

Wear something green Dress up – there is a prize for the bestdressed team too!

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Five pub pitstops This year, the race will begin at Kennedy’s Irish Bar at 14:00 and head to The Shamrock Inn, Pub & Sport, The Globe and finally The Dubliner.

Racers are advised to head to Kennedy’s from around 13:00 to collect their 3LR packs – new this year, the racers’ legs will be tied with reusable Velcro leg-ties.

The course is 2.6 km long. After Kennedy’s the racers will stop at three more ‘pit stops’ – The Shamrock Inn, Pub & Sport and The Globe – drinking half a pint at each, before a grandstand finish along Strøget to the finish line at The Dubliner.

Be warned: it isn’t easy. Bar-hopping’s hard when you’re tied to your partner and you have to co-ordinate your steps whilst downing beers.

However, the absolute majority of entrants are doing it for the craic, and very few run at all!

For those who take part, it is an experience they never forget!

Never forget the blizzard The principal organiser is Siobhán Kelleher-Petersen, one of the three co-founders of the race, who is the sister of Globe quizmaster John Kelleher.

According to Siobhán, the race has never looked back since becoming a fundraising event in 2007. And perhaps the most memorable race came a year later.

“I always smile when I think of St Patrick’s Day 2008, when we woke to a blizzard. I thought it would be a disaster and no-one would turn up,” she told CPH POST. “But when I arrived down at Kennedy’s for the registration I saw them coming – over 200 of them! It was so cold, but we had such a blast, and we raised 21,500 kroner for charity, so it was a really great day.”

ST PATRICK’S DAY 2022 GUIDE

NEED TO KNOW Thu March 17, 14:00, registration online; race starts at Kennedy’s Bar, Gammel Kongevej 23, Cph V, race ends with prizes at 16:15 at The Dubliner, Amagertorv 5, Cph K; minimum donation of 200kr per team; shamrocklove.com, paddysday.dk

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VISIT IRELAND

TEN GIANTS OF NATURE IN LITTLE IRELAND NO TRIP TO THE EMERALD ISLE IS COMPLETE WITHOUT A VISIT TO THIS SELECTION

Cliffs of Moher

BY PAUL MCNAMARA Ireland may be a small island, but it’s got a big heart and jawdropping landscapes.

Best appreciated by road, its west coast, in perpetual submission to the Atlantic, is probably the standout.

And accordingly it dominates our recommendations, all embracing extraordinary nature, which we’re confident won’t disappoint.

Welcome to one and all Central to the appeal are the fascinating people, whose warm nature is ably reflected in the wildness of the rugged nature.

Everything you’ve heard about Ireland is true, but while it’s steeped in history, it continues to write its own story, offering a culture ever-blossoming in the realms of music, food and the arts.

Céad míle fáilte – a hundred thousand welcomes.

Ring of Kerry, County Kerry With its rugged islands, white-sand beaches and dramatic mountains, the Ring of Kerry astounds visitors with its raw nature and charming villages.

Pro-tip: prepare to be breath-taken by the beauty of Moll’s Gap. Aran Islands, County Galway Famed for their knitted jumpers and pretty thatched cottages, many fall in love with the wild landscapes of the Aran Islands. Easily visible from the counties of Clare and Galway, the rocky, wind-buffeted island has a desolate beauty guaranteed to make you fall in love.

Glendalough, County Wicklow Glendalough, or Gleann dá Loch (Valley of the Two Lakes), is one of the most significant monastic sites in Ireland. Carved out by glaciers in the Ice Age, this national park hosts jaw-dropping nature and a 6th century round tower, the surviving remnants of a monastery founded by Saint Kevin.

Cliffs of Moher, County Clare No trip to Ireland would be complete without a visit to the Cliffs of Moher situated on the wild Atlantic Way. The Cliffs of Moher have majestically faced the Atlantic for over 350 million years

and, simply, their beauty is incomparable. It’s Ireland’s most visited place for a good reason.

Glenveagh National Park, County Donegal Ireland’s second largest national park, in the northwestern corner of County Donegal, is a remote and hauntingly beautiful wilderness of rugged, raw nature. Deep within the spectacular Derryveagh Mountains, pristine lakes, wondrous waterfalls and oak woodlands are waiting to be explored.

Aran Islands

Glenveagh National Park

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VISIT IRELAND

Ring of Kerry

Benbulben The Rock of Cashel

Blarney Castle/Stone, County Cork Reputed to endow the gift of the gab on those who dare to hang their head off the parapets to kiss it, the stone is not the only reason for visiting Blarney Castle. Standing for over 600 years, the massive building boasts compelling dungeons and towers.

Benbulben, County Sligo The area is also known as ‘WB Yeats Land’, as it was the inspiration for much of his poetry.

The area contains a walk that starts just four miles from the main man’s grave in a secluded forest area, before offering up absolutely magnificent views of Donegal Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.

The Rock of Cashel, County Tipperary Perched upon a limestone rock formation in the Golden Vale, this magnificent group of medieval buildings includes a 12th century high cross in a romanesque chapel, a 12th century round tower, a 15th century castle, and a 13th century gothic cathedral among

others. It’s said that this was also once the seat of the high kings of Munster prior to the Norman invasions.

Skellig Michael

Skellig Michael, County Kerry On this island 11.6 km west of the Ivereagh Peninsula is a well-preserved 6th century monastic settlement. The UNESCO World Heritage site was recently used by the Star Wars franchise as Luke Skywalker’s hideaway. It is home to 23,000 gannets, making it the seabird’s second largest colony in the world, and is Ireland and Europe’s most westerly point.

Slieve League Cliffs, County Mayo Who would have thought the third highest cliffs in Europe could be found in Ireland?

Placed after Hornelen in Norway and Cape Enniberg in Faroe Islands, the Slieve League Cliffs rise 688 metres above the Atlantic Ocean.

Effectively the slopes of Mt Croaghaun, they are best viewed from the water as it can get mighty slippery up there! And if the fall doesn’t kill you, the killer whales will!

Glendalough Monastery

Blarney Castle

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A TO Z OF IRELAND

A-Z OF 21ST CENTURY IRELAND EMERALD ISLE MAKING ITS MARK IN THE MODERN WORLD

BY ARMELLE DELMELLE A is for Abortion Rights and the bill that proved Ireland is very much in the 21st century. When it came in 2018, it was not perfect – nothing is ever perfect, even a new-born baby – but at least you don’t go to jail for making a choice that can change (or save) your life.

B is for Bród and Síoda, the ‘First Dogs’.

No official visit to Ireland and its President Miggeldy Higgins is complete if you haven’t seen them. It is almost constitutional law for their owner to give them a belly rub whenever they ask for it. It does not matter if he is in a meeting or an official event. They just come and get it.

C is for Conor McGregor, an embodiment, perhaps, of the new-found confidence of 21st century Ireland. You either love him or you hate him, but there’s one thing you can’t argue with: he is one of the most famous ever athletes to emerge from Ireland. Oh, and maybe a second thing you can’t argue with: him! You definitely don’t want to get into a fight with him. Nicknamed ‘The Notorious’, he is a former featherweight

division champion and former lightweight division champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

D is for Dancing. The traditional Céilí dances, which originated in Ireland, became wildly popular in the 1990s thanks to ‘Riverdance’, the show whose popularity has endured for 27 years and counting. Some troupe members find novel ways of finding an audience, such as the Gardiner Brothers, who have posted numerous videos of them dancing all over the country in various landscapes.

E is for Enya, who contrary to what you might think has been just as busy in this century as the last. Her songs have always been ethereal, but in 2005, the poet Roma Ryan even created a language for her: Loxian! It duly appeared in her sixth studio album, ‘Amarantine’, in 2005. Since then, there have been three more – albums, not languages. That would be Tolkienesque.

F is for Festival, as in the redheads festival.

On a world scale, around 1.5 percent of the

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population has red hair; in Ireland it’s 10 percent. So, it was obvious that they needed a festival, and the Redhead Convention duly obliged from 2010 to 2016 in Cork. The ‘foxy’ attendees were celebrated at various events, and they even chose a king and queen.

similar to a hockey stick but with a flat end, to hit a small ball (sliotar) between the opposing team’s goalposts.

I is for Ireland, the Emerald Island itself, which we’ve heard is having a party on March 17, and you’re all invited! Put on your green clothes and shamrock glasses, enjoy the parade and 3-legged race, and celebrate like only the Irish can.

J is for Jack Gleeson. Somehow his character Joffrey Baratheon survived four seasons of ‘Game of Thrones’. Jack gave up acting once he was eventually killed off … to focus on university. Nothing to do with how spectacularly unpleasant his character was, then!

G is for Guinness. Human lifetimes tend to last around 100 years, reichs for 1,000, but what has a 9,000-year lifespan? The answer is the lease signed by Arthur Guinness in 1759 for the use of the current-day premises used by his brewery. The owners thought they’d seen him coming, when they charged him a monthly rent of 45 pounds. After all, the public preferred gin and whiskey, not this peculiar dark beer brewed from roasted barley. But nearly three centuries later the Black Stuff, and the rent, haven’t changed a jot!

H is for Hurling, one of two Irish sports recently added to UNESCO’s List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, along with Camogie – the version for women. Two teams of 15 players use wooden sticks (hurleys),

K is for Kilkenny, which boasts one of the most beautiful medieval cities in Ireland.

From Kilkenny Castle there is a popular discovery trail linking other Kilkenny highlights called the ‘Medieval Mile’: a fairy tale-like walk back in time that will take you through a city known for its festivals and arts tradition.

A TO Z OF IRELAND

L is for Lipstick by Jedward, the Irish entry in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011 – the last time anyone gave them a hope of winning. After four wins in the 1990s, taking their total up to a record seven, Ireland has been cautious this century, as it’s rumoured the hosting costs very nearly bankrupted the country. Jedward finished eighth as the government watched on with paramedics in attendance.

P is for Population and how Ireland’s had been yo-yoing for centuries. In 1840, it was as high as 8 million and then in the 1960s down at 2.84 million. But it started to climb again after the Celtic Tiger economic boom and now stands at 5.03 million – the first time it has exceeded 5 million since 1851.

Official projections predict it will reach 6.7 million by 2060.

initials of influential owner Daniel E Williams, is the tipple of choice of Lisbeth Salander and Hunter S Thompson. It has a visitor centre in Tullamore where guided tours can last anything between 50 and 300 minutes – now that’s what we call a tasting!

X is for X-rated, as in most things Roy Keane says. These days it’s not so much the foul language but the toe-curlingly acerbic comments he makes as a pundit.

In yesteryear, nobody was safe with the ball at their feet, and today nobody is safe when the mic’s in his hand.Sample line from 21st century Roy: “I don’t think some of the people who come to Old Trafford can spell football, never mind understand it.”

Q is for Aidan Quinn, who again like Sinéad, sorry Magda, sorry Shuhada, saw his better years in the 1980 and 90s. Raised between the state of Illinois and Ireland, he’s still acting, but mostly in television shows like ‘Elementary’.

R is for Saoirse Ronan who like Quinn was also born in the US. She made her acting debut in 2003 at the age of nine, and since then nobody has been able to stop her. Her first Oscar nomination came at the age of 13 for ‘Atonement’ and she has gone on to win 65 acting awards from 133 nominations.

She’s still only 27.

M is for Cillian Murphy, a bonafide movie star thanks to meaty roles in more than a few Christopher Nolan films, but it is thanks to television that he is truly global. This year will see the final season of ‘Peaky Blinders’, the show he has appeared in every episode of since its pilot in 2013. Will he survive the final season? Does anyone.

S is for the Sam Maguire Cup. Often called Sam, it is the trophy awarded every year to the team that wins the GAA All-Ireland Senior Football Championship, the main competition in Gaelic Football. Dublin won the cup for six consecutive years between 2015 and 2020, but their run was finally ended by Tyrone last year.

N is for the Six Nations, which Ireland have won an impressive four times since its grand slam in 2009 – a feat it repeated in 2018.

O is for Sinéad O’Connor, arguably the country’s most famous-ever female singer, even though she’s grabbed more headlines for changing her name in recent years. First she switched to ‘Magda Davitt’, a rejection of patriarchy, and then to Shuhada Sadaqat, an embrace of Islam.

Y is for the ‘double Y’ in Paddy’s Day. This is what this supplement’s about, right? We don’t know what St Patrick would think of the celebrations happening all over the world. But we’re sure they would have his blessing.

Z is for the Zone in Boyzone, the boy band that thrived in the 1990s before disappearing for a decade. But a huge comeback in 2008 brought them back. Three more albums followed before they again split up. By our calculations, they’ll be reforming in 2028.

V is for Leo Varadkar, Ireland’s first openly gay ‘Taoiseach’ (the PM). He joined the political party Fine Gael (centre right) in 2004 and climbed the ladder until he was elected to Dáil Éireann (the lower and main chamber) in 2007. In 2015 he came out as gay during campaigning for same-sex marriage, becoming the first serving Irish minister to do so. He then replaced Enda Kenny as Taoiseach and the head of Fine Gael in 2017. Today he is the deputy.

T is for ‘Take me to church’, a 2013 Hozier track that Sinead O’Connor covered in 2014.

Talk about awkward. The nation is divided on which version is the best.

U is for U2. Before you claim U2 is mostly a 80s and 90s band, they’ve arguably been busier since then, winning 12 Grammys on the back of four studio albums, seven tours, 17 DVDs, and even two VHS. Who said video was dead!

W is for whiskey, which the Irish spell with an ‘E’. Top brand Tullamore DEW, named after the town where it was founded and the

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DENMARK & IRELAND

DANISH-IRISH CONQUESTS: PILLAGING, PUBS AND THE PADDY’S DAY PHENOMENON THE TWO COUNTRIES HAVE A LOT IN COMMON – AND THIS CAMARADERIE WAS NO MORE EVIDENT DURING THEIR 2018 WORLD CUP PLAYOFF

BY BEN HAMILTON Denmark and the Republic of Ireland have a lot in common. There’s the constant rain, of course, and their love of beer, and even Hamlet, who was originally Irish apparently. They have similar populations (5.8 vs 5.0 million) and are part of bigger regions (Scandinavia and the British Isles) of which they like to think they’re top boys despite being outnumbered (by the Swedes and the English). Talking of which, they’re big exporters to the UK (of bacon and people) and, as we found out last November, they love their footy, even though they’re better at other sports (handball and Gaelic varieties).

Viking conquest The countries have a shared history that goes back over a millennium. This was brought to the fore over the summer of 2007 when the Sea Stallion, the Viking Ship Museum’s reconstruction of a longboat, arrived in Dublin after completing a six-week,

1,000-mile voyage from Roskilde. Based on a wreck discovered in Roskilde Fjord, the original vessel was made in ‘Dubhlinn’ in around 1042 when the Irish capital was a mere Viking trading fort. The 65-member crew spent most of their time on deck exposed to the elements and soaked to the skin.

The Vikings are believed to have first invaded Ireland in 795 on Rathlin Island off the northeast coast – as was often the case, the first victims were monks at a monastery.

The pillaging continued sporadically over the next two centuries as the Vikings began to occupy, initially close to the shore, and then inland, particularly as it became clear there were more monasteries to loot.

Between 849 and 852, we have our first historical reference to a different kind of Viking: the Dane.

But the Irish enjoyed their fair share of victo-

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ries, and eventually Brian Boru, a ruler from Munster, saw them off in 1002 – seemingly for good – but then another Viking victory in 1014 led to another period of Scandinavian rule.

Denmark’s culture minister, Brian Mikkelsen, took the arrival of the Sea Stallion as an opportunity to apologise! “In Denmark we are proud of this ship, but we are not proud of the damage to the people of Ireland that followed in the footsteps of the Vikings,” he told the crowds who had gathered at the dockside.

Trade wars Following the Viking exodus, it wasn’t until the 20th century that the two countries started to come into close contact again – particularly as the British ruled Ireland until 1922. Nevertheless, there was a trade rivalry between the two in the 19th century – particularly with regard to bacon, eggs,

and butter. And following its independence, Ireland realised it could learn from Denmark in its bid to stand on its own two feet.

“Denmark is not only a smaller country than Eire but her climate is less equable, her soils are, in general, lighter and poorer, she has no coal and no water power to compensate for its absence, nor has she any iron ore or other metallic ores to serve as a basis for industrial activities,” commented the Irish historian JP Beddy in 1943.

“Yet, in comparison with Eire, she has a bigger population, a greater agricultural output, a more extensive industrial system, a larger foreign trade, a lower national debt, a higher national income and a better standard of living.”

Both countries went on to join the EU in 1973, along with the UK.

DENMARK & IRELAND

Inn to stay In recent years, Ireland’s biggest export to Denmark has been pubs. When the Shamrock Inn opened its doors near Axeltorv in 1989, it became Scandinavia’s first Irish pub. Its landlady Eileen Bruun De Neergard told CPH POST in 1999 how Guinness did not even have a Danish agent back then, meaning she was forced to make frequent visits to procure supplies of the brew.

The next pub on the scene that is still going strong today was the Dubliner on Strøget. Its Scottish landlord Gus Brown first visited Copenhagen in 1986, when he was given a job at Burger King by Charlie Scott (who today runs a bar under his name on Skindergade). And then on a trip to Sweden to watch Euro 1992 he entered the Dubliner in Gothenberg where he met his future business partner, Ian McGlinchey.

The pair started working together and heard about a special building in Copenhagen. Formerly it had been a Häagen-Dazs ice cream parlour. Back then, there was no nightlife in the centre of town, so it was by no means easy drawing in the punters when it opened in 1995.

The Globe on Nørregade is the city’s third oldest ongoing Irish pub. Like the Dubliner, it has only had one landlord, Brian McKenna, who has been craicing the whip since 1997. A passing Dane saw something in the 22-year-old manager of McCormacks in Dublin and enticed him into setting up a pub in Budapest.

Two years later the pair found a multi-level premises with numerous nooks and crannies that was being used as an Indian restaurant. Using their ingenuity, the pair created a distinctive pub complete with a 35-foot high tree and a main bar area constructed out of old church furniture.

Nevertheless, the first half year was tough and it wasn’t until the 1998 World Cup that the word started to spread.

More Irish pubs have since followed: most notably Kennedy’s at the Vesterbro end of the Lakes (2000) and the now defunct Irish Rover on Strøget, which was set up in 2004 and run by former Dubliner bar manager Jonno Farrelly until his untimely death in March 2017. Both would probably echo Brown’s sentiment that international customers will never be enough. He esti-

mates that English-speakers only account for 10 percent of his trade, with Danes making up around 65 percent.

Paddy’s invasion Nobody can under-estimate the role the pubs have played in making St Patrick’s Day on March 17 such a huge event. It’s impossible to avoid the multitude of green in the city centre thanks to the success of the 3-Legged Race and the Parade.

The 3-Legged Charity Race, in which tied competitors run from pub to pub, drinking a beer at each pitstop, was founded in 2001

by Garrett McKeon, Desmond Carswell and Siobhan Kelleher-Petersen, who continues to take charge to this day with help from big brother John, a two-time winner and current quizmaster at the Globe.

In 2003 it experimented with being the 3-legged Spud n Spoon Bar race, but otherwise the formula hasn’t changed much since the first year. The number of competitors certainly has though: from 18 pairs in 2001 to over 300 today. After the 2008 race was run in a blizzard, a time limit was introduced, and since 2007 it has raised over 400,000 kroner for charity.

The parade, meanwhile, started in 2005.

Traditionally, three hours of afternoon entertainment at Rådhuspladsen, the city hall square, climaxes with the walking of a procession through the city centre’s streets, always with St Patrick himself (either Ian Burns or Tom McEwan) at the front. Everyone is welcome to participate, providing they are wearing some green!

Its co-organiser Marianne Green was among the founders, and last year she told CPH POST how it quickly became a truly international affair following its first year. “When it first started it was mostly people we knew through Irish cultural activities and friends and families of those that got involved,” she said.

“However, we launched it as an international event from the beginning and had ambitions for it to develop as such. This was very well received by the Danish press and it quickly grew and became a popular event.”

Visit the island of Ireland

Press the Green Button ST PATRICK’S DAY 2022 GUIDE

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LITERARY GIANTS

TEN REASONS TO DISCOVER IRISH LITERATURE

From literary giants James Joyce and Samuel Beckett, to more contemporary choices Roddy Doyle and Sally Rooney, we are spoilt for choice

LENA HUNTER You don’t have to drink ten pints in your local Irish bar to celebrate St Patrick’s Day. You could just stay in and read a book and still awaken a swell of national pride by acquainting yourself with this pick of ten must-know literary figures from the Emerald Isle.

Doing both on the same evening might be foolhardy, although a pint or three of the Black Stuff has helped readers navigate the likes of ‘Ulysses’ and ‘Finnegan’s Wake’, while champagne is the perfect accompaniment to ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’.

Anglo-Irish contingent It’s arguable, of course, whether the latter is a worthy inclusion in this best of Irish literature, as Wilde was very much an English gentleman raised in an Ireland under British rule.

OSCAR WILDE Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde – to use his full and exemplarily Irish name – rose to prominence in the 1880s and 90s on the wings of his brilliant wit and style. But the beloved poet, playwright and novelist behind such icons of the written word as ‘The Picture of Dorian Grey’ and ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ has only soared to greater heights in the century since his death. He is the poster boy of the 19th century Aestheticism movement, which holds the pursuit of beauty and good taste to be the main aim of art. Aesthetes like Wilde shunned didacticism and instead elevated the vapid. If he was alive today, he would probably be an Instagram influencer.

As it happens, his great grandson (who is a dead-ringer, by the way) is a computer programmer living in London.

SAMUEL BECKETT Samuel Beckett’s Cold-War era plays are half bone-chilling, half wildly obtuse musings on the global trauma of the nuclear age and the futility of human existence. But don’t all rush to the ticket office at once. If you can stomach it, seeing a Beckett play is a valuable experience. Standouts of his oeuvre include Waiting for Godot (1952) and Happy Days (1961). He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1969 but – tempting as it is to say that his plays are fitting mirrors of our uncertain times – Beckett’s absurdist nihilism will never go out of style.

JAMES JOYCE The novelist, poet and critic James Joyce is regarded as one of the most influential literary figures of the 20th century. His modernist fever-dream masterpiece ‘Ulysses’ (1920) might

be his best-known work, but ‘Dubliners’ (1914), ‘Finnegans Wake’ (1939) and ‘A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man’ (1916) are all seminal in their own rights. Head to Dublin and you’ll find an impressive number of commemorative plaques in pubs that he frequented.

Davy Byrnes on 21 Duke Street, a favourite, even gets a mention in ‘Ulysses’ when Leopold Bloom drops in for a gorgonzola sandwich and a glass of burgundy.

WILLIAM BUTLER YEATS William Butler Yeats is undeniably one of the greatest poets of the past century. He belonged to the Protestant Anglo-Irish minority in Ireland – most of whom considered themselves English – yet Yeats staunchly defended his Irish nationality, featuring Irish folklore and heroes in many of his works. Two of his major per-

Oscar Wilde

For the same reason, other Anglo-Irish writers such as Bernhard Shaw, Jonathan Swift and CS Lewis have failed to make our top ten, as they are not renowned for their contribution to the Irish voice.

So, ten pints or ten Irish writers? The choice is yours. No doubt, the main characters in ‘Normal People’ would opt for both.

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Samuel Beckett

James Joyce

(2017) and ‘Normal People’ (2018), became word-of-mouth success-stories straight off the bat. ‘Normal People’ leapt to the top of the US bestseller list in its first four months of release, selling almost 64,000 copies. It was promptly adapted into an Emmy-nominated TV series in the UK, which spawned a viral trend – and even a dedicated Instagram page (@connellschain) – for the ‘Argos-chic’ necklace worn by one of the central characters.

William Yeates sonal influences were famous patriot John O’Leary – returning to Ireland after serving 20 years in prison for revolutionary nationalistic activities, he encouraged Yeats to honour his cultural roots in his writing – and English heiress Maude Gonne, an ardent Irish nationalist with whom Yeats developed an obsessive infatuation.

SEAMUS HEANEY Seamus Heaney’s poetry has been disseminated into the collective consciousness via being studied in English classes the world over – which may have taken the shine off for many but doesn’t diminish its brilliance.

He was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1995 for his “works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past”. Particularly well-known is ‘Death of a Naturalist’ – his first major published volume. As a Catholic in Protestant Northern Ireland, Heaney described himself as someone who “emerged from a hidden, buried life and entered the realm of education”. His poems largely revolve around Northern Ireland’s civil strife, local culture and language overrun by English rule.

RODDY DOYLE Dublin-born Roddy Doyle’s raw accounts of the working class have earned him a spot as one of Ireland’s fiction favourites. Several of his books have become successful film adaptations: ‘The Commitments’ (1987), ‘The Snapper’ (1990) and ‘The Van’ (1991), which comprise ‘The Barrytown Trilogy’. He is also a prolific dramatist, having composed four plays and two screenplays. His work is dialogue-heavy, with little accompanying description. It’s largely set in working-class Dublin and unpicks domestic and personal concerns as well as wider Irish history.

MAEVE BINCHY Over the course of her lifetime, author and journalist Maeve Binchy blew the roof off international sales of Irish literature, selling over 40 million book copies in 37 languages. Her novels have been plugged by Oprah Winfrey, turned into films and won her lifetime achievement awards at both the British Book Awards and Irish Pen/AT Cross Literary Awards. Binchy was born in Dalkey, County Dublin, and returned in later life to settle in an ‘unpretentious Georgian cottage’. Nevertheless, her depictions of betrayal, child-parent relationships, rural and urban life, and cultural and religious transformations in Ireland resonated with readers far beyond Ireland’s borders.

SALLY ROONEY Sally Rooney is the buzzword contemporary Irish author of the last five years. Her first two novels, ‘Conversations with Friends’

Sally Rooney ANNA BURNS Northern Irish writer Anna Burns is another modern literary heavyweight. Her novel ’Milkman’ scooped three major awards in three years: the 2018 Man Booker Prize, 2019 Orwell Prize for political fiction, and 2020 International Dublin Literary Award. In fact, she is the first Irish author to win the Booker.

‘Milkman’ explores the ordeals and complexities of growing up during the Troubles in 1970s Belfast. Despite the setting, the book taps into a universal narrative. “I would like to think it could be seen as any sort of totalitarian, closed society existing in similarly oppressive conditions,” Burns explained to the Guardian. “I see it as a fiction about an entire society living under extreme pressure, with long-term violence seen as the norm.”

EIMEAR MCBRIDE McBride wrote her debut novel – ‘A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing’, a stream of consciousness narrative set in 80s Ireland – in six months, but it took nine years to get it published. Once out in the wild, the novel took off and was hailed by critics as “blazingly original” and “unflinching”. McBride explores themes including the ubiquity of porn, the performative nature of feminism, sex and the body, shame, disgust and gender stereotypes. Much of McBride’s success is grounded in the way she translates her own personal experience into prose. “As an Irish Catholic, I belong to a long tradition of shame,” quipped McBride, explaining the roots of her work.

Eimear McBride

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HISTORY

MARCH 17: ON THIS DAY IN HISTORY

BEN HAMILTON 180: Emperor Marcus Aurelius dies: a cracking day for his son Commodus, but not good for Maximus Decimus Meridius – commander of the armies of the north, general of the Felix Legion, and loyal servant to the true emperor – who becomes a father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife, and decides he will have his vengeance in this life or the next.

Boston, USA. Ireland eventually follows suit in the 19th century.

1762: New York hosts is first procession – a parade that has subsequently gone on to be the world’s largest with 150,000 participants, two million spectators, and five hours of marching. Some Irish soldiers serving in the English army march through the city, play some music and grumble about the weather.

1777: Father Patrick Brontë is born in County Down, where he lives until he is 25. Ordained as an Anglican priest, it is as a literal father that he achieves enduring fame. Tragically he goes on to outlive his entire literary offspring, dying at the ripe old age of 84.

461: Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, dies. Although the year is disputed, the date is definitely not.

1737: The Charitable Irish Society organises the first ever St Patrick’s Day parade in ….

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1780: George Washington grants the soldiers of Irish descent under his command the day off “as an act of solidarity with the Irish in their fight for independence”. It was wishful thinking from the king of revolutionaries as they have to wait another 141 years.

1861: Italy’s monarchy is proclaimed. It doesn’t last long.

1880: Captain Oates, the Antarctic explorer, is born.

years later the Italian would echo the disgust of millions of fans worldwide when a deliberate Thierry Henry hand-ball prevents the Republic of Ireland from qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. He brings quirky habits – such as sprinkling holy water (a steady supply from his sister, a nun) in the dugout – and a level of English that even the Irish can’t understand (‘Trappish’ according to the local media). But all is forgiven when Ireland qualify for Euro 2012 – their first major tournament for 10 years.

1888: A cartoon appears in Harper’s Weekly presenting a scene from a St Patrick’s Day parade in New York City. It depicts the double standards of an American of Irish descent frowning at the thought of celebrating a saint who wasn’t even born in Ireland. He inexplicably tells a passing woman that Patrick was French. So, useless at history as well as geography.

1912: After a few renditions of Happy Birthday, Captain Oates, the Antarctic explorer, tells the polar expedition: “I am just going outside and may be some time.” Anything to escape Captain Scott’s singing.

1937: Dublin hosts the first parade held in a free Ireland. Annually the parade attracts an attendance of 500,000.

1939: Giovanni Trapattoni is born, and 70

1940: There is no St Patrick’s Day. No, not because of the war, but because of a clash with Palm Sunday, causing the Catholic church to move the day to April 3. In 2008, another

HISTORY

clash with Holy Week switches Paddy’s Day to March 15. Fortunately no more clashes are expected until 2160, by which time Christianity will be ...

1949: Patrick Duffy, the American actor best known for playing Bobby Ewing in the US soap ‘Dallas’, is born in a conventional delivery room, unaware that he will one day be reborn in a shower scene. Duffy, who converts to Buddhism in the 1970s, unsurprisingly sees nothing wrong with the reincarnation storyline, despite the fact it writes an entire series off as a dream and costs half the cast their jobs.

1949: Former Arsenal assistant manager Pat Rice is born in Northern Ireland. His parents show their allegiance to the old country and

name him after St Patrick, not because, as some have claimed, they like Chinese food.

1968: Mathew St Patrick, who finds fame as the gay black cop in Six Feet Under, is born – a happy coincidence for his family name, but how cool would Patrick St Patrick have been for a name.

against playing ‘Whisky in the Jar’ again.

1992: Moscow hosts its first ever parade, featuring Russian marching bands, Cossack horsemen and 15 floats representing Russian businesses. And Boris Yeltsin falls over attempting the Riverdance.

1999: The International Olympic Committee expels six of its members following a bribery scandal, apparently over its decision to grant official Olympic status to drug taking.

Although initially controversial, it goes on to be the event’s most popular discipline.

2013: The Little Mermaid joins the party, turning green for the occasion along with the likes of the Pyramids and the Christ the Redeemer Statue in Rio. 2018: Ireland make it a perfect St Patrick’s Day by beating England at Twickenham to win the Six Nations grand slam. Their hosts might have had home advantage, but Ireland had a saint on their side, and nobody wanted to disappoint the birthday boy.

2001: The inaugural St Patrick’s Day Three-legged Race is run. The event is declared an instant success by competitors who started with three legs but pretty much all finish legless.

1984: The start of the Oxford-Cambridge boat race is delayed by a day after the Cambridge vessel collides with a barge and sinks.

Apparently the boat’s cox, who is only 163cm tall, failed to see the barge due to a view obstructed by the protruding chins of the rowers.

1985: Night Stalker kills his first two victims.

The Thin Lizzy tribute band had been warned

2005: The St Patrick’s Day Parade joins the party. Brian McKenna, the landlord of The Globe, an Irish pub on Nørregade, threatens to turn the canals of the city green for the day. Suddenly, out of nowhere, Copenhagen is emerging as one of the best places in the world to spend the day.

2008: The Three-legged Race is run in a blizzard and several competitors get lost, eventually finishing hours later. The organisers respond by introducing a limit – not on the consumption of beer (perish the thought), but on the finishing time.

2020: Disaster strikes just days before the big day when the corona lockdown makes it necessary to cancel the entire program of St Patrick’s Day festivities in Copenhagen.

This year’s occasion will mark the return of the three-legged race and parade after more than a 1,000-day absence.

ST PATRICK’S DAY 2022 GUIDE

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OPLEV SMAGEN AF IRLAND & HONNING

UEUR MA ST LIQ S ER

TH E

NYHED

GOLD 2021

IRSK WHISKEY MED NATURLIG HONNING FRA BØHMEN. LIKØR

ALKOHOL BØR NYDES MED OMTANKE