June july2013newsfour1 40final by News Four

Web: www.newsfour.ie = Email: newsfour@gmail.com = Local newsdesk phone: 01 667 3317 Serving Sandymount, Irishtown, Ringsend, Pearse Street, Docklands, Ballsbridge & Donnybrook

TEDDY BEARS DAY OUT

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June / July 2013

IN YOUR FAVOURITE LOCAL PAPER…

Urban foxes stand up to be counted on page 5. Photo: Paddy Butler

These ‘teddy bears’ in their trendy check pyjamas were spotted near the East Link. They were enjoying the RICC May Day fun events. Read more about activities in the area on Ringsend and Irishtown Community Centre News on page 33.

By Eric Hillis n film-making jargon, ‘blonde’ refers to a floodlight used to illuminate a large area. Later this year, the streets of Ringsend will feel the heat of such lights as an upcoming film, titled Ringsend, shoots in the area. A hot blonde of an entirely different nature, former Miss World Rosanna Davison, is set to make her feature film debut in the €5 million production. The movie’s plot features a drug deal set against the backdrop of an MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) tournament being held in the area. Fintan Cullen, of the Entertainment Factory, is overseeing the development of the production and he told NewsFour he plans to employ locals to appear as extras in the film. “One or two of the focal points, including the main fight scene, will be filmed in Ringsend”. Cullen hopes to utilise the distinctive skyline of the Ringsend and Docklands area to portray Dublin in a more contemporary manner than we’re familiar with seeing on screen. “The film will be one of the most unusual presentations of Ireland in the sense that we’ll be showing Dublin in a very modern light,” Cullen tells NewsFour. He promises it won’t be what he calls “diddly-aye” Ireland. Cullen feels, as far as cinema is concerned, that Ireland has been underselling itself. “As a country, we’re capable of producing much better. With the exception of

‘H OT

BLONDES ’ TO LIGHT UP R INGSEND

Love/Hate, our two national broadcasters don’t seem capable of producing drama on an international level.” Cullen speaks enthusiastically about the cast that’s so far been assembled; a roster which includes former Eastenders star Martin Kemp, rising actress Jenny Lee Masterson, and renowned choreographer Shabba Doo, star of the cult ﬁlm Breakin 2: Electric Boogaloo. Making a return to the screen will be Don Baker, who Cullen describes as an actor of “exceptional capabilities”. “Rosanna Davison will have the best acting coaches working with her for a period of three to four weeks,” he tells us. “Looking good isn’t enough. She’ll

be trained by the very best.” Cullen clearly believes in the project but his enthusiasm isn’t shared by everyone. Labour Councillor, and former Lord Mayor of Dublin, Dermot Lacey has voiced his reservations regarding the association of Ringsend with a violent drama. “Such a film, as long as it retains its working title, will inevitably cast a reflection on the real community of Ringsend,” he told NewsFour. “The people of Ringsend deserve better than their area, a watchword for real traditional Dublin community life, to be tarnished and associated in the international media with drug dealing, gangsterism, cage fighting and so on.”

“Silly and immature” is how Cullen describes the Councillor’s statement. “Mr. Lacey, and his people in government, are partly responsible for the current state of the country so it’s rich to have him criticise something which is going to show Dublin in a positive light,” he says. “He doesn’t know the script, he’s not Mystic Meg. It would have done him better to call me and meet for a coffee. I would have explained it, not that it’s any of his business”. The councillor told NewsFour he attempted to contact Mr. Cullen by email but received no reply. “I hope the film is successful and brings jobs to the area,” he said, “but I believe it would be a good idea to change the name out of respect to the people of what is a very nice area.” He told us the film was brought to his attention by a number of concerned locals. Cullen tells NewsFour he is happy to speak to any local residents who may have reservations regarding the film. “We want to show Ringsend in the best possible way and we want to hear from people in the area.” Should you wish to contact Fintan Cullen, you can email ringsendfilm@eircom.net Pictured: Jenny Lee Masterson, on left, with Rosanna Davison. Photo courtesy of Irish Daily Star.

We have a special pull-out on pages 19 to 22 remembering the 1913 Lock-Out

‘Cisne Branco’ leaves Dublin Port. Tall ships returned for the June Bank Holiday

The colourful kids from Ringsend and Irishtown Youth Project prepare for the May Day Parade. See page 33

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NewsFour Editor Karen Keegan Assistant Editor Caomhán Keane Staff Gemma Byrne Eimear Murphy Liam Cahill Eric Hillis Shan Kelly Eric Murphy Ruairi Conneely Contributors Jimmy Purdy Kirstin Smith Jim O’Doherty Noel Twamley Nicky Flood Barbara Doyle Jason McDonnell Ruth Kennedy Aideen Donnelly Joan Mitchell Ruadhán Mac Aodháin Design and Layout Eugene Carolan Web Designer/Ad Design Karen Madsen Photographer Ross Waldron

Sandymount Community Services, RICC, Thorncastle Street, Ringsend, Dublin 4. Telephone: (01)6673317 E-mail: newsfour@gmail.com Website: www.newsfour.ie

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

The Letterbox

Dear Karen, Each year the People of the Year Awards are organised by Rehab and shown live on RTÉ One television. If you think you know someone who has done something extraordinary, or has gone above and beyond the call of duty, then nominate them now in one of our specific categories: Young Person of the Year, International Person of the Year, Sports Person of the Year or Community Group of the Year. The closing date is June 14th 2013 and nominations can be made at www.peopleoftheyear.com or by writing to us at People of the Year Awards, Rehab, Roslyn Park, Sandymount, Dublin 4. Yours, Sonya Felton Hi Karen, The History Press has commissioned me to write a follow-up to my recent book, ‘Ballsbridge Then and Now: The Little Book of Ballsbridge’ which will be a completely different format, so that there will be no overlap between the two titles. If any readers of NewsFour have stories, material or photographs, I’d be delighted if they could send them to me c/o NewsFour. Anything sent to me will be returned promptly. Many thanks for all your help and all best regards, Hugh Oram Dear Karen, On Easter Sunday I attended the 12 o’clock mass in Star of the Sea, Sandymount. I was greeted by a beautiful Easter garden that was a mass of colour – yellows, pinks, whites – a real celebration of colour. It was further enhanced by its careful design and layout. A very apt way to celebrate the resurrection. On investigation I learned that this garden was created and put together by your garden columnist Jim O’Doherty. I don’t know James but I regularly read his column and have picked up many hints and helpful tips from his writings. May I, through the medium of your excellent paper, congratulate James on his Easter Garden. My only regret is that I left my camera phone at home and could not capture it. Yours sincerely, Kevin Leonard Durham Road, Sandymount

NEWS FOUR AROUND THE WORLD

NewsFour Newspaper is part of a FÁS Community Employment Programme. Opinions expressed in News Four do not necessarily represent the views of Sandymount Community Services.

Dear Editor, My name is Elizabeth Curran. I was originally Elizabeth Byrne from 113 Ringsend Park. My sister Marleen Byrne, still living in the home place, has NewsFour sent to my husband Tadhg and I. We love to receive it and read all the local news and sometimes recognise people we know. What a surprise it was to see my Lakelands School First Communion photo in the latest edition. I am in the middle of the back row. I can’t remember too many names, but I am sure in the back row from left is Margaret Masterson, Bernadette Ryan, fourth in is Geraldine Doyle, fifth don’t know, then me, next two don’t know, ninth Dolores Kelly, then Mary Gregg. My husband Tadhg Curran was a teacher at St Patrick’s Boy’s School, Ringsend for many years. We now live near Avoca Beach on the Central Coast of NSW about 70kms north of Sydney. When we are finished reading NewsFour I pass it on to my sister Pauline who also lives near us here in Australia. Thank you for your paper and the joy it brings us ex-pats from Dublin 4. Kind regards, Elizabeth Curran

Lakelands 1957 Communion names From information we gathered through correspondence received on the Lakelands 1957 Communion photo, which featured in our February/March edition and is reproduced above, the names are as follows: Top Row: Margaret Masterson, Bernadette Ryan, ?, Geraldine Doyle, Noeleen Lambert, Elizabeth Byrne, Colette Morley, ?, ?, Anne Kiernan, possibly Teresa Humphreys, Mary Gregg. 2nd Row: ?, ?, ?, Eileen Doyle, Patricia McKenna, Carolyn Byrne, ?, Mairead O’Reily, ?, Maura Lacey, ? 3rd Row: Susan Gilmartin, ?, ?, ?, Angela O’Keefe, Veronica Davies, Evelyn Turner, ?, ?, Lorraine Dunwoody, Eileen Crosbie, ? Boys: ?, ?, Peter Dunne, Bert Shaw, ?, George Shaw, possibly Peter Canavan, Patrick Mitchell, ?, possibly Liam Connolly.

‘A Social and Natural History of Sandymount, Irishtown and Ringsend’ which was ﬁrst published in 1993 is available to buy from the NewsFour oﬃce and Books on the Green, Sandymount for €13.99

Printed by Datascope Ltd, Wexford

Phone 6673317 for details. Pictured is Tommy Cullen at Leeds United Football Club on Elland Road holding his copy of NewsFour.

Also available on eBay

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

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The Editor’s Corner

n true Irish style I could not start this issue without a ment i o n o f t h e w e a t h e r. S u m mer has finally arrived and no doubt many of you, like me, are sporting the Irish “red tan” after the glorious bank holiday weekend. Long may it last, we deserve a bit of sunshine and a change from the usual weather grumbles we so o f t e n h e a r. S u r e , w h e r e else would you want to be when the sun shines? I would like to thank you, our readers for your feedback and encouragem e n t o v e r t h e y e a r s . I t ’s always nice to receive your lovely letters telling us how much NewsFour is appreciated and loved. I recently opened a very humorous letter asking me had I forgotten about Sandymount as it hadn’t received a whole lot of coverage in the paper l a t e l y. I n r e s p o n s e t o t h i s

amusing letter I discovered that it isn’t common knowledge how NewsFour operates, so let me explain. NewsFour is produced by Sandymount Community Services, a Community Employment project sponsored by a voluntary committee. CE is a return to work programme supported financially (until recently) by FÁS who have now amalgamated with the Department of Social Protection. We p r o v i d e 2 5 s u p port staff and services to community organisations in the area – community crèche (4), community café (1), senior citizens complexes (1), the community centre (4), the GAA club (6), the Sandymount Community Services office and NewsFour (9). All CE staff work 19.5 hours per week and must fulfil certain eligibility criteria before com-

mencing on our project. A Community Employment contract is initially granted for one year with the possibility of an extension for a further y e a r. T h i s e x p l a i n s w h y our staff rotate so often. For this reason they are really just settling into their roles as community journalists and getting to know the area before moving on and progress-

ing into full-time employment or education when their terms on CE end. Our NewsFour staff are out and about trying to source stories in the Dublin 4 area, but we’re not always informed of events that are taki n g p l a c e . We d e p e n d o n our readers to give us a heads-up of goings on. So please pick up the phone and call us on 01

6673317 or drop us an email if there is something interesting happening in your area. Normally I would point out all the good stuff in this issue but trust me, i t ’s A L L g o o d . Karen Above: Buyers at the Ringsend and Irishtown C o m m u n i t y C e n t re b i g blooming plant sale.

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NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

WELCOME TO THE NEW MARGARETHOLME

By Liam Cahill he President of the Methodist Church of Ireland, Rev Ken Lindsay, ofﬁcially re-dedicated the new extension and refurbishments to Margaretholme in Sandymount. The event took place on May 17th, and hosted members of the Methodist Church of Ireland (who run the residence) dignitaries and the people who call the building home.

“We have a larger sitting room, we made the dining room much bigger, and we’ve also made our kitchen about twice the size that it was,” says Bill Colvin the Deputy Manager of Margaretholme. “We now have a very modern, upgraded set of buildings.” The new building includes ofﬁce facilities, en-suite rooms and a large television room for residents to enjoy. The building project also included an upgrade

of the existing buildings that have been in place since the residence opened in 1965. These upgrades included installation of a central heating system, sound and heat insulation for the residents’ rooms, new wardrobe units, a divided bedroom, upgraded bathroom, updated living area and electrical rewiring of the whole complex. “It was built in 1965 and there

had been no upgrading done at all during that time. We replaced the central heating with ﬁve different units at the end of the blocks. So, if something breaks down, it’s only that particular unit that goes,” says Bill. The building and refurbishment cost a little over €2 million, with building beginning in 2011. Funding came directly from Dub-

A WINNING

By Eric Hillis ix-year-old Maddie Hayes, a pupil at the Sandymount School of Art, has beaten off thousands of competitors to scoop top prize in her category of this year’s Texaco Children’s Art Competition. Maddie’s work, titled Lemon World, was successfully entered into the Six Years and Younger category of the 32-counties competition, now in its 59th year, along with 2,641 competing entries. The win has delighted Triona Sweeney, a former N.C.A.D student who founded the school in 2007. As well as running the

DRAW

school, Triona teaches and supervises every class herself and is familiar with young Maddie’s talent. “An adorable child”, is how she describes her winning pupil. “Most of our students are seven upwards, but Maddie was so excited about taking a class she couldn’t wait any longer,” Triona tells NewsFour. When Maddie expressed her wish to enter this year’s competition, Triona was eager to help. “We started by ﬁnding some objects that were in the studio, the jug and lemons you see in the picture,” she says. “Maddie chose a background colour and we set them up in front

lin Central Mission. The bad weather over the past few years slowed down the project considerably. Initially, the plans included a separate complex of apartments being built off-site as a “stand alone block” right next to the existing building. The management was ready to apply to the local authorities for planning permission, before the Government pulled funding for the project. Roberta Wright, a resident at Margaretholme, says, “It’s a whole new look on the place. The new dining area is bright and cheerful, there’s lots of space in it, and we can all see each other. It’s just a lovely environment and a lovely, happy atmosphere.” Above: Re-dedication of Margaretholme, Claremont Road, Sandymount, Friday 17th May 2013 Pictured left to Right: David Reynolds; David Wilkinson; Rev John Stevens; Mrs Gillian Stevens; Mrs. Patricia Lindsay; Rev Ken Lindsay, President Methodist Church of Ireland; Doreen Colvin; Bill Colvin. Photo by Patrick Hugh Lynch. of it. First she drew a rough outline in pencil before choosing her materials; chalk pastel on sugar paper.” Triona informs NewsFour about the ethos of her school. “Everything is based on creativity,” she says. “Classes are purposely kept very small so I can focus on the individual.” The school runs classes for both children and adults, with afterschool classes for kids and morning and evening classes for grownups. Triona tells us she uses the same approach for all her pupils, regardless of age. “I teach my pupils to express themselves,” she says. “I develop their observational skills, rather than simply teaching the various techniques. This results in a variety of styles, based on the individual’s creativity.” Triona believes expressing yourself through art can be of benefit to everyone, even those not naturally gifted in the field. “Developing your creativity allows you to see what others can’t,” she says. “It’s a skill that’s useful in every field of life.” The Sandymount School of Art is located on London Bridge Road and can be contacted on 01 6678023 or info@sandymountart.ie Above: Maddie Hayes and, inset, her winning entry Lemon World.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

CHARLIE’S FEATHERED FRIENDS

‘U

By Eric Hillis rban Chicken Specialist’ Charlie Ganly offers those living in a city environment the chance to connect with their pastoral roots by providing, not just the chickens, but everything required to keep them. Charlie’s love of animals was nurtured early. At the age of nine, he acquired his ﬁrst chickens and began selling the eggs to his neighbours. In 2000, Charlie’s world was turned upside down when he and his wife

separated. Depression overtook him and he found himself struggling to cope with his job as an industrial paint salesman, becoming physically ill as a result. When he purchased three chickens and built a coop in his back garden, he found this had a hugely positive effect on his state of mind. “I was sitting in my garden one summer evening, watching the chickens, and I realised life was actually pretty good,” Charlie tells NewsFour. Charlie’s friend Daphne Wynne, pictured above, asked him if he could sell her some chickens. “I had very little money at the time so he used stuff I had in my shed and made a chicken run and coop,” Daphne says. At Daphne’s suggestion, Charlie decided to turn his enthusiasm for chickens into a business. Now he has several customers across Dublin and is currently installing a fully-functional chicken farm in Wesley College as

PAGE 5 part of their Pastoral Care initiative. Charlie hopes to install similar mini eco-systems in other schools. Sheena Eustace, of the Donnybrook Therapy Centre agrees that keeping animals can have a therapeutic effect. “It gives us a direct link to nature,” she tells NewsFour. “There’s something idyllic about the idea of caring for animals. Even if you haven’t grown up around them, you probably had storybooks as a child which featured animals.” Sheena believes that seeing a direct result of your care, the laying of eggs for example, is a hugely rewarding experience. “They’re really gloriﬁed pets and the eggs are a bonus,” Daphne says. “They’ve all got their own personalities and they’re so funny. If you’ve seen the ﬁlm Chicken Run that’s exactly what they’re like.” Daphne calls her back garden “less than average sized” and claims chickens are “much easier to keep than cats and dogs”, especially with the service Charlie provides. A 12-hour helpline is serviced by Charlie, who can help with any issues that may arise. According to Daphne, Charlie makes keeping chickens a very comfortable thing to do. For more information you can email Charlie Ganly at charlieschicks1@gmail.com

Fox-Pop Project counts urban foxes

By Ruairi Conneely

new scientiﬁc survey is calling on the public to get involved in helping answer an on-going

question amongst Irish scientists. How many

foxes are there in the capital? The Fox-Pop Project is a

social media-based project where members of the pub-

lic are invited to report their sightings of urban foxes. The main catchment area is between the North and South Canals, but all Dublin sightings will be taken into account.

Project founder and science journalist John Holden

spoke with NewsFour. “There are no solid numbers on urban foxes. There was a study conducted in 1999 in Dun Laoghaire but that was a door-to-door procedure,

less versatile than the technology we all have access to now. One of our aims is to gauge popular perception of

foxes. There is a divide between rural attitudes – that foxes are vermin, and urban attitudes, where they are

seen as part of the wildlife. Foxes in the city also seem to be healthier overall.”

Sightings can be reported directly and in detail at

foxpop.info or on the project’s Facebook page, where more information is available for the curious.

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Budgeting for education costs

Instead of waiting until August, now is the time to start planning your back to school spending. The Back to School Clothing and Footwear Allowance scheme runs from June 1st until September 30th. If you believe you may be eligible, visit your local welfare office or log onto www.welfare.ie Is the School Books Grant Scheme available in your area? Contact www.citizensinformation.ie or call 0761074000. Does your school run a book rental scheme? Can your older kids pass their books onto their younger siblings? Do any of your neighbours own the required books? For uniforms, keep an eye out for special promotions. Find out if your school runs a second hand uniform sale. As with books, uniforms can be passed down from your older children. Be aware that expenses can crop up throughout the school year. Speak to the principal early to try and ﬁnd out what you may need to pay for between now and next summer. Once you’re aware of your expenses, sit down and make a budget.

A PATHWAY THROUGH INSOLVENCY?

By Eric Hillis n the 18th of A p r i l t h i s y e a r, Insolvency Service of Ireland (ISI) was launched. Insolvency applications are now being taken from this month, June, under the new scheme. This provides an alternative to declari n g b a n k r u p t c y, a p r o c e s s w h i c h c a n p r o v e c o s t l y. MABS co-ordinator Lorr a i n e Wa t e r s p r o v i d e d NewsFour with details. The Personal Insolvency Act 2012 puts three new mechanisms in place to help those with unsustainable debt find a solution to their situation. A distinction is made between secured debt (e.g. mortgages) and unsecured debt (e.g. credit cards and bank loans). 1. A Debt Relief Notice (DRN) allows for the write-off of debt up to €20,000, subject to a supervision period of three

years. This is generally for unsecured debt. 2. A Debt Settlement Arrangement (DSA) for an agreed settlement of unsecured debt, with no limit, normally over five years. 3. A Personal Insolvency Arrangement (PIA) for an agreed settlement of secured debt up to €3 million and unsecured debt, with no limit, normally over six years. The DRN is designed for those with virtually no disposable income or assets and no prospect of being able to pay off your debt in the next three years. During this threeyear period, your creditors will be unable to

pursue you. Should your circumstances improve during this period, you may be required to pay part of your debts. At the end of the three years, all of the debts covered by the DRN are written o f f . To s e e i f y o u q u a l i f y, y o u c a n v i s i t m i s c . ie. Applications can be made through MABS. If you’re ineligible for a DRN, you can apply for a DSA. Under this, you must make some repayments to your creditors in return for a discount

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013 on your debts. Applications must be made through a Personal Ins o l v e n c y P r a c t i t i o n e r. Yo u c a n o n l y b e i n volved in one of these mechanisms at any time and can avail of each only once in your lifetime. If you plan to use one of these mechanisms, be aware it can take a few months for your application to be processed. Ensure you maintain payments to your creditors during this time as failure to do so may void your application. Be aware that your name will be added to a public register should you use any of these mechanisms. For more information v i s i t w w w. m a b s . i e o r call the MABS helpline on 0761072000.

RTÉ aims at tot market with RTÉjr

By Liam Cahill TÉ have taken a giant leap into Children’s television with the launch of RTÉjr. The new station targets tots and children up to seven years of age, and was launched in April by the Minister for Children, Frances Fitzgerald. The station is available across several traditional and digital platforms including: online, on TV (Sky, UPC and Saorview), on radio and through a mobile application. “I am delighted to launch RTÉjr and would like to compliment RTÉ on this wonderful initiative,” said Minister Fitzgerald. “We talk a lot about cherishing our children, and what an innovative way to do so by the development of this dedicated service for children in Ireland.” The new channel is part of RTÉ’s three-year strategy to create a variety of programmes and platforms for young people. RTÉjr is a non-commercial channel. It won’t carry any adverts and will feature 14 newly-commissioned programme strands. Children will be able to watch or listen on the RTÉjr website, or catch up with programmes on RTÉ Player. “The launch of RTÉjr on multiple platforms re-afﬁrms children and young people’s content as a core public-service priority for RTÉ. Now, parents and guardians in Ireland will have the dedicated children’s service that they should expect from a national broadcaster,” said Noel Curran, the Director-General of RTÉ. RTÉ’s leap into the crowded youth market isn’t a new move for media companies. Recently in the United States and the UK, the Walt Disney Company launched Disney Junior – a channel aimed directly at the ever-expanding tot market. The channel is packed full of sparkly characters including Handy Manny, Henry Huggle Monster, and Sofia the First which has become a massive hit for Disney. RTÉjr has its own version of programmes with The Clue Crew – where youngsters go on a discovery trail, Hubble – where a fluffy blue bunny called Oige goes on wild adventures, and Tell Me a Story – where stories from emerging Irish writers are read out by RTÉ personalities.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

By Eric Hillis hould you stroll across Dublin’s historic Ha’penny Bridge, you’ll see it’s become part of a growing phenomenon: the Love-Lock craze. They may seem at first glance like randomly discarded padlocks but, on closer inspection, you’ll see couples have inscribed their initials on the locks before affixing them to the structure. Once locked to a monument, the key is then discarded, symbolically locking the couple together in love. While it’s relatively new to Dublin, the practice is said to have originated in ancient China and has been a fixture at the main tourist spots of European cities like Paris, Rome and Cologne for the last few years. When the custom spread across the Atlantic two years ago, Connecticut resident Robert Timmons saw a chance for a business venture. He founded Lock-itz.com, a website which allows those of a romantic nature to order custom-engraved locks. Timmons tells NewsFour that, when thousands of locks began to appear on New York’s Brooklyn Bridge, he knew there was a commercial opportunity. His site receives an average of four orders a day and Timmons has had requests from 30 countries

LOCKED

across the globe. A maths teacher by day, Timmons’ obsession with stats allows him to tell me immediately that thus far he has received a total of 10 orders from Ireland and 30% of his orders come from outside the U.S. Timmons told NewsFour that inscriptions range from the standard “couple’s initials” to more personal messages. “I recently engraved the message ‘I love you like a mango’

PAGE 7

IN LOVE

for someone,” he laughs. Closer to home, LoveLocks U.K is the British branch of Timmons’ main competitor. Its director, Laura Tanner, informs NewsFour that the locks have now extended beyond human couples, with her company receiving several requests for locks engraved with the names of deceased pets. The custom is one generally frowned upon by local authorities.

When asked about the Ha’penny Bridge locks, a spokesman for Dublin City Council said, “It is the Council’s position to remove these locks as they will damage the protective coating if allowed to remain in place.” Timmons is aware that locks are often placed without permission on historic structures but states that Lock-itz doesn’t encourage the practice. It’s for this reason he has sought out sponsorship from local councils to erect ofﬁcial sites where the locks can be placed. To date he has acquired two such locations: a park in Kansas City and the Los Gatos Art Museum in California. Similarly, LoveLocks U.K hope to install ‘Love-Scapes’ across Britain, with one already operating in Leicestershire. “The aim this year is to get more councils on board,” Tanner tells NewsFour.

Unlike those of other countries, U.K councils seem quite tolerant of the practice. At Liverpool’s Albert Docks, a sign encourages couples to ‘interlock your padlocks on the railings and throw away the key into the Mersey’. According to Tanner, locks placed on London’s Tower Bridge are untouched by the city’s council. Tanner tells NewsFour she plans to sell the locks to gift shops and is hoping to strike a deal with some Dublin stores. Aware of the Ha’penny Bridge situation, Timmons plans to contact Dublin City Council with the idea of establishing an ofﬁcially sponsored site in the city. It seems Love-Locks are here to stay. Above: Love-Locks on the Ha’penny Bridge, Dublin and, below, on the Hohenzollern Bridge in Cologne.

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INTEGRATION ISSUES

The Gathering kicks off across D4 By Liam Cahill Pembroke Cricket Club recently held a Gathering event to celebrate the 145th anniversary of the club. This included dinner, dancing and an exhibition showcasing club memorabilia. “Pembroke is such a well established club in Dublin 4. It’s been running for 145 years. Some friends and I decided we would try to organise a Gathering in Pembroke,” says Janice Walsh organiser of the Pembroke Gathering. The event kicked off over the June Bank Holiday weekend with cricket matches on the Friday followed by drinks and a BBQ. On the Saturday, the club held a dinner dance that aimed to celebrate the birth of the club. The weekend also showcased a “memory archive” which taped stories and anecdotes of past and present club members talking about their fond memories of Pembroke. “If you’re watching cricket all afternoon there’s nothing else to do but have a chat and socialise,” says Janice. Pembroke marks one of many events happening in and around Dublin 4 which will celebrate the Gathering. “I’m surprised by the level of interest from across the community, it’s been really positive from local people in the area. It’s going to attract a number of people from abroad and across Dublin,” says Ruadhán MacAodhain organiser of Ringsend’s Summer Gathering – The River to Sea Festival. June 14th-16th: Dockers Photo Exhibition in the Ringsend & Irishtown Community Centre. Friday June 14th: Ringsend Park, Family Picnic day. Friday June 14th: The Shipwright Pub hosts an evening of comedy from 9:30pm Saturday June 16th: Stella Maris Rowing Club Gathering Regatta. Over in Donnybrook, UCD will host the UCD Ruby Jubilee of the class of 1973 and a Golden Jubilee in September.

Free Coffee By Eric Hillis If you’ve passed Food Game on South Lotts Road, you’ve probably been struck by some bizarre and unique offers of free coffee advertised on the establishment’s blackboard. The café’s owner, Ross Staunton, likes to reach out to celebrities who ﬁnd themselves in the news for the wrong reasons. Amongst the celebs who Ross has felt were in need of a comforting cuppa were former Rugby coach Declan Kidney following Ireland’s disastrous Six Nations campaign, and Giovanni Trappatoni, after Ireland received a thumping at home to Germany. Other recipients of the offer have included the I.M.F, the people of Greece and several of the café’s regulars. Ross will be launching a Free Coffee Friday once every three months which anyone, regardless of their celeb status, can avail of.

By Ruairi Conneely nyone with a sense of the news cycle can’t help but notice that certain topics recur as favourites for discussion and controversy. For a country like Ireland, which was for so long ethnically singular, few matters are as urgent as immigration and the need to integrate our new permanent residents into our communities for the benefit of all. As the population has risen, areas of Dublin – particularly in the inner city, have become segregated along ethnic and cultural lines. What is being done to remedy these divisions? NewsFour spoke with Helena Clarke, media officer for the Integration Centre, recently relocated to Upper Dorset Street. She characterised the situation as difficult, “The boom years and the influx of people from abroad led to the

MAKING

setting up of structures like the National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism (NCCRI). Now these structures have been dismantled for economic reasons. Even in schools, the English as a second language provision has been cut. The Adult Refugee Programme (which provided English requirements for non-native adults) was closed in 2012.” It’s easy to paint a grim picture, as Helena lays out the obstacles provided by the economic downturn and the political reversal that it has created in some attitudes toward immigrants. What are the possible solutions? “We need a National Framework, there’s no overarching policy. One positive move could be to take the matter out of the hands of the Justice ministry and place it with a junior minister who specialises exclu-

CONNECTIONS

By Eric Hillis wenty years ago, if we wished to contact someone, we simply made a phone call. Ten years ago, we were more likely to send a text message. Now, increasingly, we are likely to make contact through email, Twitter or Facebook. Which is fine if you’re sitting at home, logged onto your home network. But when you’re out and about, keeping on top of your messages can be a difficult, and frustrating, task. A lot of us have probably found ourselves lurking outside a café or pub at some point, attempting to steal their free wi-fi in order to check our email. Those days should soon be behind us as Dublin City Council recently began rolling out free public wi-fi across the city centre. For now, the service is lim-

ited to areas of heavy foot trafﬁc such as Grafton Street, Henry Street, and Smithﬁeld Square. Maeve White of Dublin City Council’s Economic Development unit, told NewsFour there are plans to expand later this year should the current sites prove a success. “We hope to have 12 initial sites up and running across the city centre by the end of May,” she said. The service is provided by Gowex, a Spanish company re-

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013 sively on these matters – possibly with the Minister for the Environment. Like environmental action, these matters can only be handled locally, with direct community involvement, co-ordinated nationally. Ruairi Quinn’s call for Patronage and Pluralism could be a good start.” One ray of sunshine is the Educate Together organisation. Educate Together work directly with communities to create activist and lobbyist groups for the founding of multi-denominational schools. NewsFour spoke with John Holohan, their Head of Communications. “There has been a group actively lobbying for a mixed denomination school in Dublin 4, speciﬁcally the Sandymount/Ringsend area since 2011. The real issue is the allocation of grounds and a building. In areas like Dublin 4, there is signiﬁcant demand for these schools but land to build on is scarce. The onus is on organisations like the Catholic Church to assent to release a percentage of their existing property, to be put to new use. This is known as Patronage Reassignment.” The Department of Education confirmed recently that the new school will open in time for September 2014. The pre-enrolment list opened in May 2012 and currently has over 450 children on a list to start schooling between 2014 and 2017. The hope for an ethnically-diverse and integrated city rests on the possibility of the shared experiences of a next generation.

sponsible for similar public wi-fi networks across the continent. Dubliner Nicholas Trant has spent the last ten years in Madrid, a city which has been availing of this service since 2009. “The free wi-fi in Madrid is fantastic,” he told NewsFour. “The city has hundreds of newspaper kiosks which all act as connection points. For me, the best part of the wi-fi here is that every bus and train in the city is equipped with it.” The free wi-fi sites here in Dublin are marked by distinctive mosaic tiles, featuring familiar Dublin characters, from both real life and fiction such as Phil Lynott, Molly Malone, and even a “pyjama girl”, all rendered to resemble oldschool video game sprites. Left: One of Dublin’s new free wi-fi mosaics, this one featuring a depiction of a tourist. Picture by Eric Hillis

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

MARTELLO MYSTERY

By Ruairi Conneely here has been no small amount of speculation about the status of the Sandymount Martello Tower in recent months. Work began earlier in the year without announcement and resulted in some very obvious cosmetic alterations, an addition one witness characterised as “a carbuncle”, the purpose of which remains obscure. The recent alterations are part of a preservation effort which has been characterised as ‘urgent’. Mortar replacement is underway to undo damage caused by seepage on the west side of the Tower. Lo-

cal reaction has been mixed, primarily due to the lack of certainty as to what the changes to the exterior signify. The history of the Sandymount Martello Tower is chequered. It was a tea room brieﬂy in the 1980s (which led to the addition of the white block-like extension) and, in the 1990s, was widely known to have been purchased by one David Doyle. Permission was granted to develop the site into a restaurant. Less well-known is that the restaurant was also intended to house a brew pub, predating and anticipating companies like The Porterhouse, which have since seen growth across the country. The site has remained dormant since the restaurant enterprise was abandoned. The failure of what could have been one of the pre-eminent attractions for Dublin South-East

PAGE 9 seems to have been rooted in simple misfortune and perhaps one naïve error. Dublin City Council had granted planning permission and alterations were made, adding windows to the façade facing seawards. However, An Bord Pleanála withdrew permission on grounds of inadequate parking provision for potential customers. In 1995, a limited company by the name of Kilkenny Brewing Company Ltd. was incorporated to provide unique beverages to a gastropub in Kilkenny known as the Maltings. A similar enterprise was apparently planned by the proprietors of ‘Kilkenny Brewing Co.’ for the Martello in Sandymount, until this was halted by the planning permission disputes over parking. A legal dispute then emerged between this company and the Guinness Group, who felt that the company’s trading name would lead to confusion with their own Kilkenny red ale. The High Court ruled in favour of Guinness in February 1999 and Kilkenny Brewing Company seemingly ceased trading, at least under that name. There is currently no exact word on when the work on the Tower will be completed but the preservation of this famous Sandymount landmark is assured.

IRELAND’S FIRST PETROL CAR COMES HOME

By Liam Cahill reland’s first ever motor car was on display at the Malahide Car Show on May 19th, at the Grand Hotel. The show brought people back 100 years when it showcased the 1898 Benz Velo, the first petrol-driven car ever to run on Irish roads. The event was organised by the Malahide Lions Club (a volunteer charity) in aid of St. Francis Hospice. “It’s very hard for people to put their hands in their pockets these days, so you have to try and be inventive, you have to give people a reason to give you a donation. The idea was to give them a good day, rather than just shake a bucket in their face,” says Brian Dooley the Public Relations Officer for MLC. Although over 90 cars were on display at the Grand Hotel, it was the vintage Benz Velo that got the most attention. Manufactured in Germany by Karl Benz, creator of the world’s first car, who later started the Mercedes-Benz motor company, it was sold to the owner of the Grand Hotel, Dr. John Colohan, before falling into a state of disrepair and going missing. In 1984, the car was found on a farm in Kilkenny. At this point, Dubliner Denis Dowdall, Service Manager at Mercedes Benz Ireland, restored the car to its current condition. “The car was lent to us for the day of the show, coming back to its original home place for the first time in over a century,” says Brian.

PAGE 10

By Karen Keegan arty season got underway last month, kicked off by the annual Life Festival where the country’s hoofers got their groove on to some of the leading lights in dance music. A line-up featuring Laurent Garnier, Modselector, Booka Shade and Leftfield proved pretty tough to top. But the third year of Dublin’s Forbidden Fruit festival satisfied those with a more musically diverse palate, with a line up worth being expelled from the Garden of Eden for a bite of. Featuring headline performances from Primal Scream and Chic on the Sunday and indie darlings NEON NEON and James Blake on the Saturday, when the lights went down over Kilmainham Hospital the Bulmers-sponsored event took over the centre of Temple Bar with a string of

By Ruairi Conneely ublin City Council has enlisted the aid of axis: Ballymun, an arts and community resource centre, to develop that aspect of their new strategy in the Docklands, Ringsend and Irishtown areas. As DCC prepares to issue a new long-term plan for continuing the development of Dublin’s Docklands and adjacent areas, axis: Ballymun representatives have been tapped to liaise with Ringsend and Irishtown Community Centre and the Sean O’Casey Centre in East Wall in order to perform an “audit” of community based arts projects. Emma Conners, the designated

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

FORBIDDEN FRUIT

after parties on the Sunday night. Transvestite rapper Mykki Blanco and Canadian electro hipsters Austra proved to be an unusual choice for Meeting House Square, while Four Tet and Caribou played one-on, one-off in The Button Factory. Unlike last year’s headliners New Order – who delivered their 80s hits with the passion of an over-the-hill wedding band, Chic brought the sun out in our hearts, if not in the sky, with a one and a half hour set of anthematic disco. Their feel good delivery of their own songs – Le Freak, Everybody Dance and Forbidden Lover were accompanied by a side order of Bowie, Diana Ross and Duran Duran. “We’re not a cover band. I wrote all these tunes,” said Rogers after a

TALENT

medley that included Like A Virgin, I’m Coming Out and Notorious – pausing for dramatic effect, “and they were all number one!” You had to pity Primal Scream who followed them. Their performance flew in the face of previous live outings in the country, with most of the crowd trickling off to see the end of Frank B or Woodkid who were both sensational. Less so were sponsors, Bulmers, who ran out of booze at nine o’clock, leading to a mass exodus of parched revellers. A clever ruse to get people down to their afterparty? Or an administrative cock up? We’ll have to wait till next year to see what the ticketholders decide. Photo by Tara Thomas

SCOUTING THE

liaison from axis, detailed her involvement. “I’m here on behalf of the DCC seeking a richer picture than just a report. Now that the previous Docklands Arts Parity is winding down and a new draft policy is being prepared, the emphasis is shifting. The previous mandate was for encouraging tourism, now the emphasis is on encouraging internal links within the communities.” Ruadhán Mac Aodháin, Outreach Ofﬁcer for the Ringsend Community Services Forum, emphasised the interest in “trying to mirror what’s being done

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DOCKLANDS

in Ballymun.” The axis is regarded as an excellent example in how to balance cultural and community resources on one site – the centre features a crèche, a café, a theatre and a range of versatile spaces that can be put to many purposes. Ruadhán continued, “Ringsend has a lot of facilities but seems to have comparatively little cultural events, so this meeting is for conducting an audit, seeing what’s missing. That’s fairly critical because we know the [necessary] infrastructure is all there,” he explained, referring to resources such as the RICC and Clanna Gael GAA Club. Emma stressed that the success of the axis is uniquely related to the requirements of the Ballymun area and that the Docklands regions will have their own distinct

requirements, which are what she hoped to help in discovering. A general consensus emerged quickly in the meeting that the community emphasis in Ringsend and Irishtown veered towards sport as a collective local passion, compared to the centrality of theatre and the arts in Ballymun. As such, the artistic groups on both sides of the river seemed to lack co-ordination. Cecil Smith, who is currently helping RICC develop its nascent RICC Radio programme, spoke about the requirements of bringing the unit up to speed, for the purposes of facilitating community awareness. He also indicated the possibility of promoting activities such as live streaming coverage of local events like the May Day Parade or the Regatta. Maggie Biggs, pictured above, a seasoned community arts participant who recently drafted a

treasure hunt for the forthcoming Gathering 2013, stressed the need for youth involvement. “The kids are always eager, in my experience, but if there are no obvious avenues of learning, they’ll be discouraged,” she said and also indicated that she had amassed a large archive of photos and material over her years of community arts involvement which could generate interest as local history. Local writer Kate Mulholland and visual artist Sheryl McElwee suggested the development of graphic design resources to reach young men who might otherwise prefer sports. They cited the popularity of street-art and grafﬁti and the overlap between those arts and urban athletic pursuits like Parkour and the sports showcased at the Kings of Concrete expo. The meeting concluded with a sense that co-ordination was the key theme that recurred with each person’s contribution.

St Patricks Boys and Girls National Schools in Ringsend celebrate their Pre-Communion Street Feast.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

PAGE 11

Band nights at Iris Charles Centre

Sandymount Credit Union – Our Loan Book is Open

By Ruairi Conneely he Iris Charles Centre on Newbridge Avenue in Sandymount has been expanding its activities and entertainment programmes this year, as part of a plan to include more members of different ages from within the local community. The Iris Charles Centre has a long and storied history as a local institution. Named for its founder, the Centre has provided a hub for contact and community for older residents of the local area since its establishment at the hall on Newbridge Avenue in 1960. We spoke with Claire McElvaney, the Treasurer of the Centre, who explained that the building was refurbished four years ago and this encouraged them to utilise the space more. She and other staff established a sub-committee two years ago with the speciﬁc intent of organising some in-house events which led to the institution of Bridge classes. This brought in locals outside the Centre’s usual age group. Encouraged by this modest success, a weekly ﬁlm night and a monthly music night were introduced, and of the two, the music showcase proved the greater success. “So far, and this has all been in 2013 for the most part, we have based the night around a two-man band from the area called the Past Times Band. They’re very lively, and played a lot of old tunes which our regulars appreciated. They managed to get a few people up dancing, too. Spirits were high,” says Claire. The Riverside Choir have attended, often to open for the Past Times Band and, after the main event, “one or two more local acts, which vary from month to month.” The Centre is exclusively volunteer-run so word of mouth is very important. The Iris Charles Centre closes its doors for the summer from July 16th until September 10th but the plan remains to restart the monthly music nights. Phone 01 2601848 for more information.

People helping People, Neighbours helping Neighbours

efore taking out a loan of any kind, it’s worth taking the time to understand the costs and how lending works. Most financial institutions which lend money are in business primarily to make a profit on the transaction. A credit union is an organisation of people – for people. It exists only to serve its members – not to profit from their needs. A credit union is a group of people who save together and lend to each other at a fair and reasonable rate of interest. Credit unions offer members the chance to have control over their own finances by making their own savings work for them. When it comes to borrowing for the small and not so small things in life, you’ll find in Sandymount Credit Union, we understand our members’ needs. Sandymount Credit Union is in a strong position to provide loans to members and welcomes your loan application. Loans are based on what people can afford to repay and repayments are planned around individual circumstances. We encourage members to manage their money carefully by structuring loans around needs and their ability to repay.

Birdman of Herbert Park Tommy Doyle from Home Villas, Donnybrook is known as the Birdman of Herbert Park. Tommy has been feeding the birds for the past twenty years and is a regular in the park, and as you can see from the picture the birds love Tommy. Photo by Paddy Butler

A credit union loan has some very special features: * Loans are insured in the event of your death at no direct cost to the eligible member. Some terms and conditions apply. * No hidden fees or transaction charges. * Reasonable interest rates. * You can repay the loan earlier with no penalty. * Additional lump sum repayments accepted with no penalty. * Flexibility to make larger repayments than agreed with no penalty.

If you are a Sandymount Credit Union member, speak to any member of staff at the credit union about making a loan application. If you’re not already a member, we would be delighted to invite you to join the credit union. We Look at Things Differently – Local, Loyal, Lending

PAGE 12

SHEDDING

Spilling onto the streets

By Eric Hillis n Saturday, May 18th, Ringsend Park Playground was transformed into a contemporary dance stage thanks to Spill, a U.K dance group who entertained onlookers as part of the Dublin Dance Festival with their show A Playground of Dance. The group utilise all the equipment found in playgrounds, from slides and swings to monkey bars and roundabouts, in a unique performance designed to channel the energy and imagination of childhood. Spill describe their performance as “a cheeky dance celebration of the child within”. The group’s Assistant Choreographer, Corey Baker, formed the group last year, along with renowned Australian choreographer Sean Barker. Four performers were recruited; two from England, one from Wales and one from Spain. Spill’s first tour lasted three months and saw the group perform in 146 playgrounds across Yorkshire and the West Midlands. “We wanted to create a show that would be accessible to everyone,” Baker says, “one which would appeal to children’s imaginations and also get them interested in enjoying the outdoors”. Due to the nature of performing in playgrounds, no two performances are the same. To meet this unique challenge, the group have developed a total of 32 scenes, 15 of which are employed for each show. “Every playground is different so we find the 15 most suitable for each one”, Baker says. “We don’t have much time to rehearse in each new playground so it’s essential for us to be well prepared and have a set of specific guidelines to draw from”. Three of the dancers are specialists in contemporary dance while the fourth is a break-dancer. Baker believes the popularity of dance shows on T.V has created an interest amongst children in dance. “Kids especially enjoy our shows”, he says. This was the group’s first visit to Dublin and kicked off their latest tour which is continuing in playgrounds across the U.K. Above: Spill’s dancers in action.

By Eric Hillis ommercial premises, once home to prosperous businesses, lie dormant. Skilled men, once gainfully employed, find themselves at a loose end. This is sadly the case in towns and villages across Ireland. But, thanks to the work of the Irish Men’s Sheds Association (I.M.S.A), these two negatives are combining to create positive results. John Evoy, CEO of I.M.S.A, spoke to NewsFour about how he came to set up the organisation. Working in community development in 2005, Evoy noticed how family resource centres and community projects were very well used by women, but not men. He decided to find a way to get men involved in community activities and, after some research, discovered Men’s Sheds Australia, an organisation focused on giving retired and unemployed men a place to socialise and continue utilising their skills. Evoy visited Australia in 2009 and was impressed by what he saw in the country’s sheds. “They were doing everything I wanted to do here,” he says. At the same time Evoy was visiting Australia, Ireland’s first shed was set up in Tipperary. Soon after, separate organisations began developing sheds in Meath, Louth and Arklow. To provide a forum for these sheds to work together, Evoy launched the Irish Men’s Sheds Organisation in 2010, with an initial seven member sheds. In 2011, the organisation won an Arthur Guinness Fund award and became a legal entity. The

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

INHIBITIONS

I.M.S.A was born. At the time of writing, there are 125 member sheds, with new sheds registering every week. “It really seems to have hit a chord with people,” Evoy says. “Most guys develop friendships in work and that becomes their social network,” Evoy says. “If they retire or lose their job, they don’t just lose their income, they lose the bit of craic they enjoyed with their workmates.” Evoy feels this social aspect is key to the sheds’ popularity. “Usually there are tools of some sort involved for woodwork, metalwork, fixing old computers etc,” he says, “but the most important tool is the kettle.” NewsFour asks Evoy if the sheds only cater to men with specific skills. “Absolutely not,” he replies. “We get men from all backgrounds and the range of skills and resources they bring is phenomenal.” Often, shed members will use their skills for the betterment of the community. “There’s a lot of ‘care and repair’ involved,” Evoy says, “whether it’s making a bench for a local park or something as simple as fixing a tap for a local elderly person.” Unlike Australia, where the vast majority of shed members are over 50, I.M.S.A members

range from 19-90, with younger unemployed or under-employed men wishing to take part. At present, there is no shed in the Dublin 4 locale. The nearest is in Sandyford or Dublin 1 but Evoy is eager to see this rectified. Should any of our readers wish to set up their own shed, he gives the following advice: “The first thing to do is to visit some of the existing sheds and familiarise yourself with what they’re all about. If it seems right for you, contact the I.M.S.A through our website and we’ll support you as best we can”. In terms of housing the shed, Evoy believes finding your own space is key. “The men need to know nobody else is going to be in there after them so they can leave sawdust or oil around,” he says. “Sharing a space with other groups leads to its own set of challenges.” Evoy sees a benefit for landlords who may be currently paying rates on empty premises. “If a landlord allows their premises to be used for charitable purposes, they can be exempted from paying rates, so it’s a good incentive to get involved”. If you wish to learn more about the I.M.S.A, you can find them online at www.menssheds.ie

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

PAGE 13

ADVERTORIAL • ADVERTORIAL • ADVERTORIAL

PAGE 14

DOUBLE-TAKE FOR MARIAN COLLEGE

By Eric Hillis tudents from Ballsbridge’s Marian College took home top prize in this year’s Generation Euro Award, beating 260 other teams from secondary schools across the country. The win is, remarkably, the second in a row for Marian, following their success in last year’s inaugural tournament. The competition, for transition year students, is organised by the European Central Bank and participating national central banks across the Eurozone, including the Central Bank of Ireland. The aim is to help students gain a greater understanding of monetary policy and its relationship to the economy as a whole. Taking part gives students an insight into the role of a national central bank and an awareness of the Euro-system and the wider world of ﬁnance. Students begin by taking an online quiz, consisting of 30 randomly selected questions. Those progressing must then submit a 2,000-word assignment using their knowledge of economic theory to explain the factors that affect price stability and the role of monetary policy measures.

The three teams who submit the most impressive assignments progress to the national ﬁnal, held in the Central Bank of Ireland, where they must present a 20-

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minute Powerpoint presentation, followed by a 15-minute question and answer session. Two hundred and thirty teams entered last year, the inaugural year of the competition, with two teams from Marian College reaching the ﬁnal under the supervision of teachers Norah Martyn and David Goode, and transition year co-ordinator Chris Halligan. The winning team, EC Beavers (pictured) were pitted against schoolmates team Eurostars comprising team captain Adam Lane and students Daniel Horca and Aaron Heavey. So impressive were both performances, judges spent an hour and a half deliberating before making their deci-

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013 sion. The Governor of the Central Bank, Patrick Honohan, presented both the winners and runners-up with certificates. Ms. Martyn told NewsFour she felt “both Marian teams had set a very high standard for successive years of the competition.” The winning team travelled to Frankfurt for three days in June 2012, where ECB President Mario Draghi presented them with certificates. All four members of the team have opted to study business for the Leaving Certificate. This year, an extra 30 teams entered the competition, bringing the total to 261. Under the guidance of Martyn and student teacher Gavin Coleman, two teams from Marian progressed to the second round. Team Unagi (Dharen Clores, Killian Ryan, Craig Kellegher, Adam Kavanagh, and Dylan Johnston) narrowly missed making it to the final, but were commended by the Central Bank for their 2,000-word assignment. The college would again be represented in the final, held in April, by team Liquidity, led by team captain Luke Murphy and comprising students Cian Byrne, Shane Downes, Gary Smyth and Sean Scott. Preparation for the final once again involved a lot of hard work from the students. As well as brushing up on their knowledge of economics, students worked with teachers to perfect their voice projection, communication, and timing. Mr. Halligan described the process as “like directing a play”.

Once again, a team from Marian College was announced national winner. As with last year, the team travelled to Frankfurt to receive certiﬁcates from Mario Draghi. Team captain Luke Murphy told NewsFour he would thoroughly recommend students take part next year. “It really improves your conﬁdence,” the student told NewsFour. “The participating students have acquired skills such as teamwork, presentation, IT and technical skills, as well as the hugely important area of public speaking,” Ms. Martyn told NewsFour. “They have also learnt that with hard work it is possible to reach one’s potential and even become the best in Ireland.” For more information, visit www.mariancollege.ie Pictured on left, left to right: Transition Year Co-ordinator Chris Halligan, Economics teachers Gavin Coleman and Norah Martyn, 2013 winning students Shane Downes, Sean Scott, Cian Byrne, Captain Luke Murphy, and Gary Smyth. Below: 2012 winners EC Beavers: Renatas Nedzveckas, Jordan Billane, Captain James Bohan, and Matthew O’Connor.

THE WORLD TURNS GAY ON ITS AXIS

By Caomhan Keane s our Government juggles the rights of the gays and the girlies in the air, waiting to see which one explodes and causes the biggest mess for them to prioritise, other ‘Catholic’ countries are putting civil rights before churches’ slights. The Supreme Court of Brazil, population 194 million (123 of whom are of a Roman Catholic bent) have followed in the fabulous footsteps of Argentina and Uruguay and stated that marriage licences should not be denied to same-sex couples. In May, Rhode Island, Dela-

ware and Minnesota became the 10th, 11th and 12th States in the US to make the union of Adam and Steve as valid as that of Adam and Eve. While in April, Germany, France and New Ze-

land either opened the door to gay marriage – or blew it off its hinges, by legalising it. That same month 79% of delegates at the Constitutional Convention here in Ireland voted in favour of Gay Marriage. But a referendum is unlikely to be prioritised. Taoiseach Enda Kenny has refused to share his personal opinion on the matter – probably after the appalling abuse ﬂung Lucinda Creighton’s way when she said she believed marriage to be between a man and woman only. The issue is to be debated in the Dail before Summer’s end.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

PAGE 15

THE CULINARY CORNER

The Riverside Choir based in Ringsend College is proud to have ﬁve singing sisters in its ensemble. From left to right, the ladies (all of whom grew up in Ringsend) are: Carmel Neville, Mary Dent, Ann Burke, Bella Neville, Phyllis Russell. Could this be a record? Image supplied by Ray Ryan (MD).

Picnic Loaf

By Gemma Byrne Photo by Fiona Brennan

his recipe is surprisingly easy for something that looks so impressive when you produce it at a party or picnic. It looks like a plain loaf of bread until you cut it open to reveal colourful layers of roast vegetables inside. It’s best made and eaten on the same day. After this, the bread can become soggy. I have char grilled the vegetables in this recipe, but if you don’t have a grill pan you can skip that step and just roast them instead. Ingredients: 1 cob loaf (round yeast loaf) 3 red or yellow peppers (deseeded and quartered) 1 red onion (cut into wedges) 1 courgette (cut in half and then into strips lengthwise) 1 aubergine (cut in half and then into strips lengthwise) 4 cloves garlic (in their skins) 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 tablespoon red or white wine vinegar Salt and pepper 1 ball of mozzarella (sliced into rounds) 8 – 10 fresh basil leaves 3 tablespoons pesto Method: Preheat the oven to 180ºC. Cut a circle out of the top of the loaf to form a lid. Take your time with this as you’ll want the lid to sit back on nicely for presentation purposes. Scoop and tear out the bread inside, being careful not to break through the crust. You want to be left with a hollowed-out loaf with a fully intact crust about half an inch thick. Discard the scooped-out bread or make into breadcrumbs which can be stored in the freezer. Place all the vegetables and the garlic in a large mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper, pour over the oil and vinegar and toss well to coat the veg. Char grill the vegetables (except the garlic) in batches on a hot grill pan. You don’t need to cook them through, just enough to get some grill marks. Transfer the charred veg and the garlic cloves into two large roasting trays – you need two so they are not over-packed. Roast in the preheated oven until they are tender (about 20 mins). Allow the vegetables to cool completely. Smear the pesto all over the inside of the hollowed-out loaf and inside its lid with the back of a spoon. Place the roast vegetables inside in layers. About half way up, put in a layer of the sliced mozzarella, a layer of fresh basil leaves and the roast garlic (skin removed and chopped). Top with more layers of the veg until the loaf is packed full to the brim. Replace the lid and press it down. Wrap the loaf very tightly in cling ﬁlm to hold the whole thing together. Leave in the fridge for about an hour for everything to ﬁrm up a little. Use a really sharp bread knife to cut into wedges.

Congratulations to Ryans Beggars Bush on their recent centenary. Pictured at the celebrations are Peter Ryan, Mick Roffe, Eimear Roffe and Eleanor Kieran. Photo by Ross Waldron.

PAGE 16

CLASSROOM

“I

By Liam Cahill f you have a good relationship and a laugh with children they’ll respect you more,” says Jane Farrelly, a resource teacher in St. Patrick’s Boys’ National School in Ringsend who deals with children who suffer from a variety of behavioural and learning difficulties. These include Autism, Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, Universal Developmental Delay, ADD, ADHD, Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties (EBD) and Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD). Of course she’s not alone. Here at St. Patrick’s BNS, dealing with children who have learning and behavioural problems doesn’t just concern the resource teacher, it includes the parents, members of the National Educational Psychological Service and School Liaison Officer Helen Sherry. “Concerns about children can come from anywhere; from parents, the teacher themselves or from someone in the community,” says Helen. Both Helen and Jane meet me in a colourful meeting room just inside the door at St. Patrick’s. They make up a remarkable team. Helen works with parents, teachers and students to get to the source of a problem and fix it before it becomes a bigger issue. Jane works with students in her class, creating different games and scenarios to ease any bad behaviour or help any learning difficulty.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

ASSISTANCE

“There’s a different array of things that could be of concern, from a learning difficulty to behavioural difficulties, where children being challenged by school academically, might try to distract or deter you through behaviour,” says Helen. In a study conducted in 2011 by the College of Psychiatry of Ireland titled Mental Health Provision for Children With a Learning Disability, there were over 9,000 children between the ages of 0-19 years of age who had a learning or behavioural disability. Those figures did not include children who may be suffering from mild learning or behavioural problems. “Kids who have problems in this school, and there are a few, have come on great and we really believe in positive re-enforcement and if they do something good we tell them they are

fantastic and brilliant. We do our best to ignore the negativity,” says Jane. Parents are particularly important and are included in all aspects of the child’s progress by meeting with Helen and Jane to discuss any problems that may occur. Helen can work with parents on finding a solution to their child’s problem, depending on what that is. If the school can’t find a solution to the problem, other services available are; The Dyslexia Association who have an assessment service for children from seven upwards, the National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) provide a psychological service to children in education, and the National Council for Special Education’s website includes a number of resources addressing a range of issues in terms of learning difficulties.

Naturopathic Nutrition How to grow healthy, happy, smart kids

By Nicky Flood rom the very start of life, all the way up to late teens, the body is growing and developing at a phenomenal rate. This high speed growth and development needs to be supported by a whole variety of vitamins and minerals alongside a specific balance of fats, proteins, carbohydrates, fibre and water. Nutritional deficiencies in children may be expressed as impaired immunity, muscle pains, difficulty sleeping or anxiety. Children can suffer behavioural and learning disorders because their diets are

deficient in vital nutrients and they are consuming too much fast and processed foods filled with sugar, salt, saturated fat, artificial colours and flavours. Supporting your child’s brain health can be as simple as starting with omega3 essential fatty acids, such as those found in oily fish (mackerel, sardines, salmon). These oils are termed essential as it is essential that we obtain them from our diet as we cannot manufacture them ourselves. Unfortunately, many children are not eating enough oily fish and are very deficient in these healthy fats

which are crucial for brain development, nervous system function and vision. Extensive research has been conducted into the effects EPA and DHA, the active compounds in fish oil, have on cognitive ability and behaviour. DHA in particular comes under the spotlight, as

Information for parents of children with learning problems

By Liam Cahill There are a number of resources for parents seeking information about learning disabilities. These include: The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) which supports parents through a number of Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENO) across the country. Each SENO deals with specific schools; primary, post-primary and special education schools. They also provide an online information pamphlet containing information for parents of children who have special educational needs. NCSE is contactable through schools or teachers. The National Educational Psychological Service (NEPS) supports the psychological developments of children. The organisation works with parents, teachers and children, conducting individual assessments of a number of learning and behavioural difficulties. NEPS Dublin region is contactable through its website education.ie and look for NEPS. There’s also the Special Education Support Service (SESS). The main aim of the organisation is to help teachers teach children who may have a learning or behavioural problem. Although the website provides information aimed at teachers, it can be used as a resource for parents who want to understand the level of help and support their child is gaining within the Irish education system. Information about the organsation is available through its website sess.ie. The Dyslexia Association of Ireland works with schools, parents and children to diagnose dyslexia. The association carries out a psycho-educational assessment, which can come at a cost. People who are in receipt of a Social Welfare payment may qualify for a reduced rate. “There is a waiting list for DAI’s assessment service of approximately three months. We do occasionally get cancellations, so if there is a particular urgency it can sometimes be possible to get an assessment more quickly,” says Harriet Doig, the information officer for the Dyslexia Association. If a child is deemed to suffer from any other learning problems- other than dyslexia, the association will advise the parents to seek the help of NEPS or their GP. For more information on placing your child on the waiting list you can contact the Dyslexia Association at info@dyslexia.ie with your child’s name, date of birth, address, and contact number.

higher doses of DHA have been found to significantly improve attention, learning and cognition in children to such an extent that a positive change in IQ can occur. There are other ways of improving your child’s learning and behaviour such as reading with them at home, making sure they get regular exercise and are provided with a stimulating learning environment. Kids need exercise to burn off energy – turn off the TV and video games and get them outside! Food, while nourishing, can also energise or subdue, comfort or agitate. Simple meal modification, supplementation and avoidance of artificial colours and flavours may eliminate the need for the frightening array of drugs

being prescribed to control children. When amphetamines are given to two and three year olds, whose brains are tiny and still developing, nobody knows the consequences – science does not yet know the outcome. By encouraging a healthy diet and lifestyle and providing the essential nutrients required for healthy brain development and function, you can truly give your child the best possible start in life – remember good fats = great brain! Nicky is a Naturopathic Nutritionist practising in Dublin. She writes, speaks and advises nationwide on all aspects of health, nutrition and wellbeing. Check www.nickyﬂood.com for further info, upcoming courses and workshops.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

BLOOM WANDERS BELOW THE RADAR

By Ruairi Conneely n the wake of the Gathering 2013, and in the aftermath of last year’s deluge of activity post-emancipation from copyright, Bloomsday (June 16th) has been approaching with little fanfare this year. Nonetheless, this international celebration of James Joyce’s great modernist novel Ulysses has a special role within the annual social calendar of the city. NewsFour went in search of news concerning Bloomsday around Sandymount Green and environs. Announcements seemed to be released slowly this year, so we contacted Mark Traynor, Director of the James Joyce Centre, to ask if there had been any promotional delay in this year’s events. The answer was a surprise. “Actually, the programme last year was even later. Normally, we aim for around mid-May as there is a lot to co-ordinate, but 2012 was a particular case as it marked the ﬁrst Bloomsday where all of Joyce’s works had entered the public domain.” This year, events will be just as elaborate it seems. The Joyce Centre is planning to collaborate with 25 other groups around the world

to co-ordinate a global reading from Ulysses, beginning on the late evening of June 15th in Dublin (a few hours before Bloomsday proper, for reasons of time-zones) and continuing all day of the 16th. Closer to Dublin 4, on Pearse St, the St Andrew’s Resource Centre is throwing its annual Bloomsday

Breakfast, on the morning of Friday June 14th. Betty Ashe, of the Dockland Business Forum Steerage Committee, told us that the breakfast is invite-only as usual and guests will be notiﬁed soon. She also added that this year’s breakfast is a notable one as it marks the 40th anniversary of the

establishment of the Westland Row/City Quay Social Services Council. Enquiries around the Sandymount area provoked frequent reminisces of last year’s event, which centred around the village green. Sandymount local and Joycean Rodney Devitt and local FG Councillor Paddy McCartan were both enthusiastic in their praise. Devitt personally led a walking tour along Sandymount Strand, performing or reading relevant sections from Ulysses particularly the infamous excerpt of Stephen Daedalus, “walking into eternity along Sandymount Strand.” Cllr McCartan emphasised the scale of the 2012 Sandymount event, lasting from 9am until midafternoon, and centering around Sandymount Green. He felt it was a particularly successful event compared to events in nearby districts such as Donnybrook which were enjoyed by those who were present but were said to be underattended. Mr Devitt indicated that the Sandymount Bloomsday event had undergone a rebirth in recent years, spearheaded by the efforts

PAGE 17 of Joe and Valerie McCarthy of the Sandymount Tidy Towns Committee and the Sandymount Village Design Statement. Joe and Valerie are once again co-ordinating plans for the 2013 celebration. The 16th this year falls on a Sunday. “Sunday can be a difﬁcult day to convince people to come out on,” Joe explained, “and I understand some groups around the city are considering moving their celebrations to the 15th or the 14th to compensate. But that seems to be against the spirit of the thing for me. The fact is, the day falls on a Sunday, so do it all on the Sunday.” “The plan for this year is to begin at 11.30am on Sandymount Green and continue until 1.00 or 2.00pm with a similar programme to last year. We have a jazz band, Aidan Murphy and other ﬁne local players, and local performers like Jim and Breda Carroll, Glynis Casson and Anne Gleeson will be performing and reading from Ulysses, Dubliners and Finnegan’s Wake. We do it for ourselves,” Rodney concludes, “and for our community and for whoever wants to join us.” Above: Bloomsday on Sandymount Green, 1992.

PAGE 18

By Jimmy Purdy fter spending a year working as a messenger boy, on a messenger boy’s bike for Hunt Bros of Grand Canal Street, I got a job driving a lift at College Green for Friends Provident and Century Life Insurance. The building is still there. I then went to work in the Dublin Port & Docks Board at East Wall Road, where I was sent to the Eastern Breakwater then known as Ben Ghazi, as it was the last point at that side of the Liffey at the time. The black lighthouse with steps down to the river was there at the very end of the wall facing the T.B home on the Southside. Like the Hailing Station, at the end of the South Wall, at the lock gates facing Tobin’s Pub, both were demolished for progress? Yes the question mark is deliberate, just look at the state of the Hailing Station area now. But, my story is about the Terns who came back every year to spend the Summer at Eastern Breakwater. The area was reclaimed land and the Dutchman had to pump in a lot of the best, fine sand from Dublin Bay which they were dredging. The Terns were probably from the Arctic Region, a Summer visitor, and it was my first Summer working as a nipper at Eastern Breakwater that I first came across them. The Terns are an aggressive bird. To get to Eastern Breakwater you walked there on a three-foot wall at the riverside or on bike between the stacks of coal that were stored by the government in case of emergency. In the sand between the coal, the terns built their homes to hatch the eggs and to rear their chicks. On

THE TERNS AT EASTERN BREAK WATER 1949

our way to work, they would dive to attack and scare you off from their nest. The nest was simply a hollow in the sand. When the eggs were in the nest, the dives would be more vigorous, some work mates would walk that half mile to work carrying their bikes over their heads to protect themselves from attack. As a nipper for the work gang at Ben Ghazi, I would often have to cycle up to East Wall to a shop to get messages for the men; things like cigarettes, cheese, maybe a man had forgotten his lunch and an odd bet in the bookies. On one occasion coming back on my bike, keeping my eye on the Terns, I hit a rock and was sent ﬂying off my bike. As I said earlier, Eastern

HOP-ON HOP-OFF

CITY BUS TOUR

B y J a s o n Mc D o n n e l l P h o t o b y K a re n M a d s e n n the 12th of March I went on the Hop-on Hop-off Bus Tour of Dublin City with a friend of mine. We had gone on similar bus tours of Edinburgh, Barcelona and Budapest and found them a great way of getting to know a city. Even as a local, it was brilliant craic exploring the history and culture of Dublin. The buses come every 10 to 15 minutes and the tour usually lasts around 1hr 30mins, if you just stay on the bus. It can take a bit longer if you are hopping on and off at different destinations. Two Day Tickets

Breakwater, was the last piece of land at that time and accidents were dealt with there and then. My memory of a more serious one was of a man who had an accident to his foot – with no transport and him not able to walk, he was put into a wheelbarrow and wheeled to the nearest point to be taken to Jervis Street Hospital. After work, I had reason to go into the city and while crossing O’Connell Street Bridge on the bus, I saw my two workmates coming from Jervis Street Hospital. The injured man, Mick Heffernan was getting a jockey back as he couldn’t walk with his injury. The man carrying him was his good friend Christy Dolan, known locally as ‘Oxo’. As a boy labourer, when you

are €18, or €16 for seniors and students, but that doesn’t cover the cost of admission to any exhibits. They run daily from 9am to 6.30pm and you can hop on at any of the 24 stops. Both a “live” English speaking tour and a multilingual pre-recorded tour are available on the same route. We set off from Cathal Brugha Street. On Abbey Street Corner, the driver gave us the history of the Spire and the GPO before we moved on to Trinity College, where we got to see the Book of Kells. From there, it was on to Nassau Street and the National Gallery, Leinster House and the Dead

reached twenty one, you became full-time and were paid full-time wages, you were put into a gang working around Dublin Port Co. In 1954, I was working on the building of the ocean pier and still ducking the Terns as if it was still Summer time. The Ocean Pier is reclaimed land and Mr. MacManus, our foreman, put me in with the bar benders who did reinforcing of concrete and buildings. As the ﬁrst roll-on roll-off was being built at Ocean Pier, we were detailed to put reinforcing iron into the building. This building was at the water’s edge so some work was at the top of the building as some was out over the water from the platform. As I was the youngest and able to swim, I was selected to go

Zoo. After St. Stephen’s Green and Grafton Street (where you can see numerous street entertainers and buskers, pictured) we turned into Temple Bar and Dame Street and down to see Dublin Castle, Cork Hill and Christ Church/Dublinia, all of huge historical interest. This was followed by a great tour of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We got off for some light refreshments at the Guinness Storehouse, St. James’s Gate before getting back on the bus for the Museum of Modern Art, Kilmainham Gaol and the Royal Hospital. We went to Dublin Zoo in the Phoenix Park, the third oldest zoo in the world after Paris and London, before pushing on to Ryan’s Victorian Bar on Park-

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013 over the water and on top to put in the iron bars. There was no health and safety then and the Terns were playing games with me. One very interesting event while on Ocean Pier was the arrival of a Russian timber boat which was to be unloaded. It caused a lot of interest all over Ireland at the time and people were divided as to whether it should have been allowed into Ireland or not. While being unloaded, which took, I think, three days, at the end of the gangway on the ship a sailor always stood guard. We thought this was to stop unauthorised persons from going on board. No such thing. It was to stop crew members jumping ship and seeking asylum. It wasn’t all work and no play. Dublin Port and Docks Board had a team in the Leinster Senior Soccer League. In the off season, they ran a seven-a-side competition for the Mallagh Cup. This was interdepartment and as you can see from the photograph there was a shortage of jerseys. As our game had just ﬁnished we had to give our jerseys to the team playing the next match. So the good news is that the Terns are still around and should be arriving to our shores soon. In the photo from left to right: Coach Jimmy Allen who worked on the diving bell which can be seen on the South Quay, Paddy Dunne, who became Lord Mayor of Dublin, J.J. McLoughlin who became a great Irish athlete over the one mile, ? and Charlie Farrelly who became an assistant to a tradesman. Front row: ?, Jack John Caulfield a great player with St. Patrick’s Athletic and me the nipper.

gate Street, where Bill Clinton is known to have a drink when he’s in Ireland. The National Museum and Collins Barracks were next followed by a hopoff at the Old Jameson Distillery in Smithfield, where we had to sample the best whiskey in the world. We headed back towards the city centre passing the Four Courts, Ormond Quay and Bachelors Walk and ended up once again on Upper O’Connell Street. This time with a better view of the Spire from a southern perspective and a little more history on the GPO before finally going to the Writers’ Museum on Parnell Square North, the final stop. A great day out, especially if the sun shines.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

Strikes in Dublin Employers Lock-Out Workers British Workers lend support

1913 Lock-Out

Striking Times

It was supposed to be a friendly football match between two rival teams – Shelbourne vs Bohemians – to mark the opening of Shelbourne’s new stadium but what resulted on Saturday August 30th 1913, was a riot which became one of the pivotal moments of the 1913 Lock-Out. The spark for the riots which took place in Ringsend

Larkin and Connolly arrested Employers refuse demands

By Joan Mitchell

By the time the Dublin Lock-Out took place in 1913, workers downing tools in protest had become a growing global phenomenon. With the United States experiencing industrial growth on an unprecedented scale, it became the site of several of the bloodiest disputes of the early twentieth century. In May 1900, tram workers in St. Louis went on strike, attacking their temporary replacements. The police swore in 2,500 civilians and armed them, in order to guard the streetcars. Gunfights broke out along the tram-lines. By the end of the dispute in September, 14 people had been killed and over 200 wounded. None of the workers’ demands were met. Two years later, in the coal-fields of Pennsylvania, the United Mine Workers of America downed tools, demanding their union receive official recognition. With America’s cities facing a winter without coal, President Theodore Roosevelt was forced to intervene and eventually met the miners’ demands. When Union leaders called off a 1905 strike in Chicago that had resulted in many casualties, it was revealed they had accepted bribes to do so, a revelation which lead to widespread mistrust of America’s Unions amongst the nation’s workers. Anti-semitism was rife during this period, often translating to lower wages and poor conditions. In 1909, Jewish women employed in New York’s garment industry, pictured above, struck a blow for both their religion and gender when a successful strike led to better pay and shorter hours. It was the first female uprising in the U.S to yield positive results. Slovak immigrants who went on

By Liam Cahill

Strikers and Police clash

Why the Lock-Out happened

By Eric Hillis

Riots in Ringsend

PAGE 19

strike in the Pennsylvania coal mines during 1910 weren’t so successful. Thousands of miners’ families were evicted from their homes, which were owned by the coal company, and relocated to a ‘tent city’ organised by the United Mine Workers of America. A private police force, known as the Coal and Iron Police, were drafted in to guard the strikebreakers working in the mines. 16 strikers died at the hands of this police force. In July of 1911, 14 months after the strike had commenced, the miners went back to work, defeated by the prospect of spending another winter living inside ramshackle tents. Today, most adults would baulk at the prospect of a 56-hour week, but this was the reality for the workforce of the Lawrence, Massachusetts textile mills of 1912. When the weekly wage of $9, was reduced, 20,000 workers went on strike. The heavy-handed tactics of the police, which caused one striking woman to suffer a miscarriage, made news around the world. Workers as far away as France and Sweden refused to load U.S-bound ships, in support of the Lawrence workers, the first strike to receive global attention. Spurred on by the widespread sympathy the Lawrence strikers had received, Unions around the world became more confident and the following years saw workers take action in cities like Brisbane, Wellington, and, of course, Dublin.

is very much up for interpretation. Many people blamed it on Jim Larkin, the head of the Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union who was engaged in a vicious dispute with William Martin Murphy the press Baron and over 300 employers on workers’ rights. Author of the book Lockout Arnold Wrights said that Larkin called members of the teams “scabs” (referring to scab labour) and said the only

One hundred years ago, Britain and Ireland were going through huge changes. In 1910-1911 there was a Welsh coal miner’s strike with 12,000 men marching in the Rhondda Valley. Police were sent from London and Lancashire to deal with the social unrest and finally Winston Churchill sent in the British Army to stop the rioting. The following year, there was a National Coal Strike in England, with thousands demanding a clear pay structure for their work and again the army were called in. In Parliament the Minimum Wage Act passed, as demanded by the Unions. While the National Coal strike was going on, The Suffragettes, above right, were breaking windows in the West End of London and demanding the vote for women. In April 1912 just as the strike was ending, the Titanic sank and sent shockwaves all over Britain and Ireland. There was a feeling that times were changing, social class was beginning to crumble and people felt they were on the crest of a wave – they could make change happen. In Dublin, we had the worst living conditions in Western Europe, with TB rampant and child death all too common – life was extremely hard. In the dockyard, men and boys turned up at the docks each day not sure if they could earn a day’s pay. The foreman picked those he favoured or the strongest and his choice could determine if your family ate that day. With so much change happening against a background for Home Rule in Dublin (100,000 marching), there was a tangible appetite for change, and in walked Big Jim Larkin who said, “We are now on the threshold of a newer movement, with a newer

hope and a new inspiration.” The people were at breaking point and they were willing to do whatever it took. There were more slums in Dublin in 1913 than in Calcutta; families were living in one-room tenements, with one tap and one toilet in the yard for up to 80 people. Workers who joined the newlyformed union were ‘locked out’ from their jobs unless they signed a pledge to denounce it. When they wouldn’t sign the pledge, non-union workers were given their jobs. ‘The Lock-Out’ phrase was born. On August 30th there were riots in Ringsend, Beresford Place and Eden Quay and police baton charged the crowd. Two men were hit on the head with batons and later died from fractured skulls. Throughout the Lock-Out, food parcels for children arrived from the trade union TUC in England and without their aid (food and financial) the strikers would not have been able to survive. The strike lasted seven months and Larkin was portrayed as the villain by the wealthy industrialist William Martin Murphy, who owned the Irish Independent, Sunday Independent and Evening Herald, Dublin Tramway, Clearys and The Imperial Hotel. Throughout the Lock-Out, the Catholic Church supported the employers, as they feared Larkin and his popular socialism.

reason anyone would be at the match was to picket for his Union’s demands. The result was a massive riot between 6,000 spectators and 100 tramway men. It is unsure why the tramway men had gathered outside the grounds on that particular day to picket, but many believe they were under instruction from Larkin to do so. A number of trams carrying supporters to the match were attacked. In the weeks before the

game, the political atmosphere had intensiﬁed between Larkin and Murphy. The Lock-Out had been ongoing for weeks with no end in sight. The vitriol of these disputes may have created intensity at the football game. In the end, the police brought the riots to a close by “forcibly closing” pubs in and around Ringsend and making a total of 16 arrests, with over 50 people treated in hospital for injuries.

PAGE 20

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

The Schoolboy Strike of 1911 By Ruairi Conneely

On September 13th 1911, staff of the East Wall Wharf National School arrived to work to be confronted with a sign that read ‘Any boy cot going into school and not following other schoolboys examples will be killed by order Strike Strike Strike’. NewsFour spoke with East Wall and Dockland historian Joe Mooney about this strange and timely event. It might be hard to imagine in the present era that school children might organise a union-style strike. But the events in East Wall two years before the great Dublin Lock-Out were part of a wave of children’s protests which swept across the UK that September. Sixty-two

such protests are on record, taking place in areas such as Liverpool, Portsmouth and Southhampton. The actions derived from the port towns and manufacturing centres of what was then Britain’s industrial North. Joe Mooney, who is currently collaborating on a book about the Schoolboy Strike, observed that “at the time there was a wave of strikes involving Dock workers and also a national

rail strike. It’s quite clear that the pattern of school strikes mimics that of the general industrial unrest. It was a case of ‘like father like son’ as the children learned the tactics and put them into practice to address their own grievances.” The strikers’ demands were simple – they wanted cheaper schoolbooks, shorter school hours and an end to the practise of caning.

Jim Larkin

to draw the boys there out in a sympathetic strike.” The strike lasted three days before it was halted, the so-called ringleaders identiﬁed and severely punished but the actions drew the attention of school inspectors. The headmaster, a Mr Homan, came under scrutiny for “unorthodox punishment methods” and (tellingly, given the boy’s demands) his practice of excluding students who did not own their own copies of the schoolbooks. The schoolboy strikes were mocked and belittled in their immediate aftermath but provided a prophetic foreshadowing of the disarray of the summer of 1913. Picture from libcom.com, picture of the Hull School children’s strike.

James Connolly

By Liam Cahill ‘And Tyranny trampled them in Dublin’s gutter until Jim Larkin came along and cried the call of Freedom and the call of Pride.’ (Sign at the foot of the Larkin statue on O’Connell Street). Ironically enough, given the above statement, ‘Big Jim’ Larkin was born to Irish parents in Liverpool, England in 1876. Larkin’s past, as a child of poverty, would shape the leader’s political ideology throughout the course of the LockOut and as a bystander to the 1916 Easter Rising and the ensuing Civil War in the early 1920’s. According to Emmet O’Connor in his lengthy biography of the leader titled James Larkin, Larkin was secretive. He didn’t like paperwork and his emotions were very much deducted from any formal biography written during his rise into the political culture of the modern Republic. “He was unique in introducing an industrial dispute into mainstream Irish history, creating a positive view of that struggle in an otherwise hostile climate, ennobling strike tactics into a moral struggle,” writes the author. Larkin moved to Belfast in 1907. He founded the

Joe explained how these demands were not frivolous but based on an awareness of the poverty which at the time defined the Dublin Docklands. “The boys set out their demands in a very similar way to their UK counterparts, so they had definitely seen reports of these. However, they were not just copying them; they had real grievances they wanted addressed. Their families were poor and books were very expensive, yet the principal wanted the boys to all have their own copies. He had come from working in a private school and didn’t seem to make allowances for changed circumstances. The boys were serious; they identified themselves as a schoolboys’ union and even travelled over to City Quay

By Liam Cahill

Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union, the Irish Labour Party and later the Workers’ Union of Ireland, where he was to become a pivotal voice in the ensuing Lock-Out of 1913. During the Lock-Out, Larkin became the embodiment of the working class, calling for change in working and living conditions. “Larkin saw society as polarised in terms of class, and a trade union as essentially a class organisation,”

writes Charles McCarthy in The Impact of Larkinism on Irish Working Class. As McCarthy argues, Larkin did not exclude class in his orations; he simply exempliﬁed needs of the working class and saw employers as the enemy. After the Lock-Out, Larkin moved to the United States. His intentions were to raise funds for his union, but he became a supporter of the Soviet Union and later returned to Ireland in 1923 and campaigned for an end to the Irish Civil War. Larkin struck a chord with the working class regions of Dublin, and Ireland as a whole, he spoke for the common person echoing a nationalistic tone that was less cutting than Connolly’s, but got the message across. He stood up, he fought and he won, depending on what political divide you come from.

“That the Thinker and the Worker are Manhood’s only Kings.” – James Connolly If a picture tells a thousand words, the iconic image of James Connolly’s moustache, dark suit and tie strike a particular chord with the working class he so well represented. Connolly was a key player in a number of pivotal events in Irish history – from the Lock-Out in 1913 to Easter 1916. Connolly spent a number of years in the United States, returning in 1910 to work as the Belfast organiser for the Irish Transport and General Workers’ Union (ITGWU) – which was headed by James Larkin. When Larkin left to travel to the United States, Connolly took charge of the union and worked as Editor of its socialist newspaper ‘The Irish Worker’. In his inﬂuential book titled James Connolly, Samuel Levenson said Connolly was “feared and abhorred by all classes and groups of society.” Levenson suggests that Connolly was viewed with “suspicion and distrust” by many people within middle and upper middle class parts of Dublin. If Irish history was a TV drama, the Lock-Out of 1913 was Connolly’s prelude to his 1916 ﬁnale. As head of the ITGWU, Connolly and Larkin found themselves caught up in a workers’ dispute which would turn

out to be the biggest in Western European history, lasting ﬁve months and affecting over 20,000 workers. Despite this, Connolly’s role in the strike was as the prominent orator, taking over from Larkin, before both were jailed. The Lock-Out allowed Connolly to speak to the people he cared about the most, according to Peter Berresford Ellis in his book James Connolly. “Connolly was a man of high ideals, a man who lived and died for other people. His entire life was spent fighting for the poor, the exploited, the alienated,” writes the author. Like Wolfe Tone before him, Connolly spoke with an increasingly nationalistic voice, echoing not only the concerns of independent working disputes, but also largely the idea that Ireland was not free until it was equal. In 1913, Ireland was on the footstep of a bloody fight that would cost the lives of thousands, leave the nation divided and spark the ‘Troubles’ years later.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

PAGE 21

Other Players in the 1913 Lock-Out By Ruth Kennedy William Martin Murphy (1844 - 1919) Newspaper baron, MP, builder and owner of the Dublin Tramway Company, William Martin Murphy led Dublin employers against Jim Larkin’s trade union movement. In August 1913, he sacked hundreds of workers whom he suspected of union membership, leading to a strike and ultimately the locking out of the workers who refused to sign a pledge never to join a union. During the Lock-Out, Murphy made full use of the newspapers under his control to portray Jim Larkin as a villain. Several workers died during the dispute, and Murphy was often referred to as ‘William Murder Murphy’ by Dublin workers. It must be said, however, that Murphy was a complex character, originally known

for being a fair employer. Because of his nationalist politics, he dramatically refused to accept a knighthood from King Edward VII. During his early years in business in Dublin, he was invited by a building labourers’ union to – successfully – arbitrate a dispute, and was praised for his fairness by both sides. The Daily Chronicle in 1907 referred to him as ‘the iron hand in the velvet glove’. The Earl of Iveagh (1847 – 1927) Edward Guinness, Earl of Iveagh had become the wealthiest man in Ireland by ﬂoating the Guinness Company on the London Stock Ex-

change in 1886. He remained in control of the company and in 1913, was its chairman and biggest shareholder. Guinness was the largest employer and biggest exporter in Dublin in 1913. The company was an exemplary employer; providing housing, schools, hot meals, medical care and even cookery classes for its workers. Nonetheless, Guinness had a policy against sympathetic strikes, expecting its workers not to strike in the light of their excellent conditions. Lord Iveagh refused to join William Martin Murphy in locking out workers, but in October 1913, the Guinness company dismissed boat crews who were refusing to handle ‘tainted goods’ in the

Ladies of the Lock-Out

Rosie Hackett

By Ruth Kennedy Rosie Hackett was born in Dublin in 1892 and worked as a messenger for Jacobs Biscuits. She became a member of the Irish Transport and General Workers Union and at the age of 18 was one of the ﬁrst women in the company to join the men in solidarity in a strike in 1911. The strike was successful, leading to improvements in pay and conditions for women workers. Rosie, along with Delia Larkin,

Superintendent Fergus Quinn, Dublin Metropolitan Police (1881 – 1920) Two men with similar backgrounds ended up on opposing sides in the Dublin LockOut: Jim Larkin and Fergus Quinn. Like Larkin, Quinn came from a working class background, starting life as a labourer. An Irish Nationalist and self-made man, by 1913 he had risen to the rank of superintendent in the DMP.

the average male labourer’s wage was less than a pound a week, with women earning half as much. The trade unions of the

time forbade women from becoming members and so were of no help to the striking Jacob’s workers. This led to the formation of the Irish

Women Worker’s Union, pictured left, founded by Delia Larkin, whose brother, Jim, became the organisation’s ﬁrst president. The I.W.W.U had its headquarters at 18 Dame Street, holding nightly meetings between 7.30pm and 9.30pm. The union would go on to play a vital role two years later, during the Lock-Out, providing food for striking workers and their families. Every member of the I.W.W.U was out of work for a full six months and this commitment to the cause was taking its toll, particularly on the children of striking workers. The Catholic Church, ve-

was a founder member of the Irish Women Workers Union in September 1911. In August 1913, during the tram workers strike, Rosie joined the striking men once again in solidarity. She was on the streets during the infamous baton charge by the Dublin Metropolitan Police on what became known as ‘Bloody Sunday’. On the following Saturday, three Jacobs’s workers were sacked for refusing to remove their ITGWU badges and all of the workers were ultimately locked out by the

employers. In the hard times that followed, Rosie, along with the members of the IWWU, threw herself into working to help the strikers, in what became a battle for survival. She worked alongside Abbey actress and activist Helena Molony and Countess Markievicz in running soup kitchens in Liberty Hall during the dispute. Rosie was never re-employed by Jacobs, most likely due to her trade union activity, and after the Lock-Out she worked full-time as a clerk for

the IWWU. She fought with the Irish Citizen Army during the 1916 Rising, and occupied the Royal College of Surgeons along with Countess Markievicz. In May 1917, a year after the execution of James Connolly, Rosie Hackett and a group of other young female trade unionists placed a banner across the front of Liberty Hall which read ‘James Connolly: Murdered, May 12th 1916’. Rosie later boasted that it took hundreds of policemen to drag those young women

By Eric Hillis The early 20th century was a time of social change across Europe, particularly for women. In the U.K, Emmeline Pankhurst’s Women’s Social and Political Union, more commonly known as the ‘Suffragettes’, were making giant strides in the struggle for sexual equality. In Dublin, working class women were, likewise, beginning to stand up for their rights. In 1911, three thousand female workers at the Jacob’s biscuit factory downed tools, demanding better wages. According to the census of that year,

ports as it was unloaded using imported ‘scab labour’. Although a teetotaller, Jim Larkin rejected calls to boycott Guinness products. Larkin appealed unsuccessfully to have the workers reinstated.

The day before Bloody Sunday, Quinn had secured arrest warrants for both Larkin and Connolly. Depending on which accounts you read, Bloody Sunday is an event which showed considerable police brutality, or a civic guard endangering their own lives to keep the peace: or both. Police historian Gregory Allen has written that the police in 1913 were ‘caught in the crossﬁre’ in the battle between the strikers and the employers. In the end, despite serving the establishment for many years, Quinn was not rewarded for his long service. Although he became Joint Assistant Commissioner of the RIC in 1915, Quinn, like many other high-ranking Catholic nationalists in the police were forced to resign in 1920, apparently due to their nationalist sympathies. From left: William Martin Murphy, Edward Guinness and Supt. Fergus Quinn.

hemently opposed to the union movement, had blocked a scheme which would allow workers’ children to be looked after by British trade unionists during the protest, worried the children would fall under the influence of Protestants and Atheists. Many I.W.W.U members were imprisoned during the Lockout, with some committed to institutions like Drumcondra’s High Park Convent, a Magdalen Industrial school run by nuns. It’s her brother who history remembers more but, with her actions at the time, Delia Larkin was an important figure in both the Labour and Equality movements. down from the building. She died in 1976, having spent 60 years in the trade union movement. Rosie’s name is believed to be one of the favourites in the bid to find a name for the new Marlborough Street Bridge over the Liffey. A Facebook campaign is currently underway by the Irish Left Review to have the bridge named after her. w w w . f a c e b o o k . com/pages/RosieHackett-Bridge-Campaign/109664749219687

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NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

Big Jim in Living Colour by Ruairi Conneely

Information on the events of the Lock-Out will not be hard to come by as August 26th draws closer. But in trying to understand watershed events of the past sometimes the human dimension is lost in the politics. Dublin-based publishers the O’Brien Press, specialists in historical non-ﬁction and illustrated books for children and adults, have chosen to commemorate the centenary with the release of the graphic novel Big Jim. Written by Cork-based author Rory McConville and drawn by Dublin designer/cartoonist Paddy Lynch, Big Jim tells the story of the months of the Lock-Out, with a focus upon the dynamic presence of Big Jim Larkin himself. Rather than overwhelm the reader with dry historical context, the book adopts an immersive, almost thriller-like,

Strumpet City

By Eric Murphy The choice of James Plunkett’s Strumpet City as this year’s One City, One Book has been given the thumbsup by many of the capital’s literary groups. Although written in 1969, the story still retains the feelings of destitution, anger and defiance prevalent during the period surrounding the great Lock-Out, precursor to both the Rising and the War of Independence. Set between 1907 and 1914, Dublin is brimming with talk of overthrowing colonial rule amid a possible war between Britain and Germany. King George himself arrives in the city to bolster recruitment to the British armed forces. Anglo class structure is prevalent throughout most of the capital’s employers

and gentry, whilst squalor, poor sanitation and high unemployment thrive amongst the less educated masses. This is reflected nowhere more so than the Bradshaw residence, a lavish house on the outskirts of Kingstown, where Mary works as a well-liked servant girl. Contrary to her terms of employment, she is secretly courting Fitz, a foundry worker whom she marries following discovery and dismissal by the Bradshaws. The couple settle in Chandler’s Court, an inner city tenement surrounded by an array of characters, each with individual and unique struggles. From Mulhall, a workmate of Fitz who holds militant views favouring Jim Larkin, to the Hennessys and local scallywag ‘Rashers’

Tierney. The community is scrupulously overseen by the local church, where Parish priest Father Giffley struggles against alcoholism and whose Christian virtues are severely tested following the arrival of Fr O’Connor, a young conservative-styled cleric with high ambitions of leaving the tenements’ community for more lush pastures. A split in Larkin’s own trade union and the offer of work to those prepared to cross a picket line brings about harsh divisions and envy as the great Lock-Out of 1913 takes grip throughout Dublin. The resulting widespread striking and rioting has a profound effect on the community and on each of the characters. James Plunkett’s Strumpet City gives a unique insight to a city and people on their knees just before being forced to revolt. The levels of class structure are painfully peeled back to expose the humanity beneath, whilst questioning the principles that make up that humanity. Although set in a turbulent time of Dublin history, the story still holds as true today, even if the tenements may have changed.

storytelling style, directly presenting the poverty and propaganda of the times. The style is documentary-drama, rather than straight documentary. The project began with McConville pitching to the O’Brien Press, who were enthusiastic. A word-of-mouth recommendation from Dublinbased Marvel Comics artist Declan Shalvey led them to Paddy Lynch and the project took off. “I write prose and plays,” explained McConville, “but comics have always been a particular passion of mine.” He elaborated that “graphic novels have an atmosphere that just can’t be found in traditional history books. They pull the reader right into the world they’re depicting. In order to fully understand the Lock-Out, you need to be aware of the great suffering and bravery of the people involved.” For his part, Paddy Lynch, a stalwart of the Dublin comix

scene, embarked upon a campaign of research that took him everywhere from the National archives to box-sets of ‘Downton Abbey’ in search of art references. “Using photo reference is always a tricky one in comics, especially with a historical book like Big Jim. You want the characters and places to be recognisable and believable, yet at the same time you don’t want to rob the drawings of the dynamic energy that cartooning has.” McConville maybe sums up the relationship between the book and the subject best when he observes “It’s appropriate that the Lock-Out be told through a graphic novel because Larkin himself was greatly aware of the power of comics… throughout the LockOut, he and William Martin Murphy attacked one another viciously through the political cartoons in Irish newspapers.” He looks to have had the last word.

The Shape of Things to Come – the Irish Citizen Army

After the conclusion of the Lock-Out, and following an attack by the Dublin Metropolitan Police on a demonstration march in early 1914, the Irish Citizen Army were restructured at the suggestion of the playwright and author Sean O’Casey, who was General Secretary of the Army Council at the time. O’Casey personally drafted the ﬁrst version of the Army’s Constitution. It was this formally-constituted version of the Irish Citizen Army which would go on to play a central role in the events of Easter Sunday 1916. The Citizen Army never officially disbanded, although the collapse of the 1935 Republican Congress is regarded as their effective endpoint. Despite this, their last recorded public appearance was a contingent who accompanied the funeral procession of James Larkin in 1947.

By Ruairi Conneely

Nearly three months into the Lock-Out, on November 19th, James Larkin and James Connolly founded the Irish Citizen Army. The militia was established as a response to the harsh physical force employed by the Dublin Metropolitan Police and the Royal Irish Constabulary against striking workers. Heavy-handed baton charges of picketing crowds had resulted in the deaths of two workers, John Byrne and James Nolan. Very deliberately established as a formal body, rather than a rag-tag troop of irregulars, the Irish Citizen Army were uniformed and engaged in regular public training routines, led by union activist and former British Army Captain Jack White. Training drills were routinely sited at Croydon Park, Fairview (above).

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

BRINGING

By Ruairi Conneely debate has been raging between environmentalists and the Department of Agriculture over the possible connection between a common pesticide and the noted fall in bee population in recent years. Ireland recently abstained from voting for or against participation in a temporary EUwide ban on the use of ‘Neonicotinoids’. Fluctuations and overall reductions in the populations of bees have been observed globally in recent years and there are a number of possible explanations. In some cases, local honeybee populations crash almost overnight for no apparent reason, in what’s known as Colony Collapse Disorder, which has dramatic effects on crop yields. Without a healthy bee population, pollination of plants decreases overall, effecting food production. In the event of Colony Collapse Disorder, even a person growing tomatoes on an allotment would notice the difference. Experts are divided on the cause of these events, which are the most dramatic form of the trend of thinning bee populations. Apiarists (bee

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BACK THE BEES

researchers) in the US have blamed the rise in mobile phone technology which they say affect bees’ ability to navigate. The use of the controversial Neonicotinoids since the 1990s, are a current sticking point as little research has been done on their possible long-term effects on the environment. A spokesperson for the Department of Agriculture recently conceded that no research had been conducted in Ireland on the relationship between Neonicotinoids and bee populations. What can be done about this at a grassroots level? Where does the average gardener stand in relation to this overarching problem?

NewsFour turned to our gardening expert Jim O’Doherty for an answer. Jim ﬁrst explained that research on the pesticide matter is more divided than it might be made to appear by people who support the temporary ban. “Germany, France and Italy have all banned Neonicotinoids already, unrelated to this temporary ban which is being discussed. It’s important that the proposed ban for the whole of the EU is temporary. It’s only a two-year moratorium while research is conducted into the effects of the chemicals, which says a lot to me.” He speculated that since the

Neonicotinoids are so commonly and frequently used, they are not likely to be the cause of the problem. “They are very commonly used, in garden sprays and in largescale farming. At high concentrations, they might be a problem. I think the largest on-going threat to the honeybees is still parasites.” Jim has his own theory on what is diminishing the bee populations at a local level and possibly all over the city. “Honeybees have hives and are maintained by a beekeeper, but the other common type would be Bumblebees. Part of their lifecycle involves burrowing into compost heaps or into the topsoil and staying at rest, but if you look at somewhere like Ringsend Park for instance, now there’s a lot of artificial turf laid down there. It used to be all natural grass and white clover. The same goes for decking in gardens. People digging up the ground will dig up bees and when the decking goes down there’s less available ground for them to burrow.” People need to facilitate creating better habitats for bees, by being more thoughtful about their needs. “And grow more wild flowers,” he adds, “Hollyhock, Cornflower, Foxgloves, Bluebells, the bees love them.”

Meta Gale RIP

Meta Gale, who died recently in her nineties, was for decades an indespensible member of Dublin Camera Club. Meta was Honorary Secretary of the club from 1960 until 1996 and served as President in 1969, the ﬁrst of numerous women in that post. She was also a very accomplished photographer, gaining a title of AFIAP, an international distinction. Meta lived in Haddington Road, Northumberland Road and, in recent years, St John’s House, Merrion Road. A selection of her pictures can be viewed on dublincameraclub.ie/membergallery/meta-gale-aﬁap

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ARTIST

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

PROFILE:

MAURICE FITZGERALD

By Ruairi Conneely ou may not realise it but you probably know Maurice Fitzgerald’s work by sight. If you’ve had friends or relations visit from abroad, and they’ve played the tourist around town, they may well have returned to their homes with a souvenir postcard bearing his artwork. Maurice is the founding artist and general manager of the Maurice Fitzgerald Gallery, located in the George’s Street Arcade on South Great George’s Street. The Gallery showcases his own artwork and also the work of the Ukrainian artist Ludmilla Karol. The form is appropriate to the setting, modelled as a market-type stall rather than an enclosed presentation space. Maurice is a unique artist in his own right. He is a self-taught draughtsman (scale drawings) who decided to become a full-time artist in 2002, following on from years spent as a renovator and restorer of old houses. He also spent years in the sign-painting business, prefiguring his current occupation on the arty side of things. He started drawing after a tumultuous time in his personal life. “My youngest son had a brain haemorrhage in 2002, and then there was an accident. A truck came off the road and ploughed through my mother’s house. She was in the USA at the time or she might have been killed. I always had creative ambitions. I thought I would eventually write a book or a novel but my sister beat me to it.” Maurice’s sister Lorna Byrne is the author of mystical bestseller Angels in my Hair. “So on September 17th of that year, it all got a bit too emotional for me and for some reason I sat down to draw, really for the first time in my life. Now I feel like I have to draw. I can’t not do it.” This spontaneous emergence of talent took a specific form which further marked Maurice out from the crowd. He has a totally unique ambidextrous drawing style. He very lightly holds his pen in his right hand, with index, second, third finger and thumb, and steers the drawing action partly with the aid of his left hand. When he works live at the Gallery, there is a certain stop-and-stare factor among the viewing public. You might say his drawing method draws them in. “The Gallery has been up and running for about six years now. I’m perfectly happy with it as it is and have no plans to move or expand it,” he explained. There’ll often be someone on site, working on a picture or happy to discuss a given artwork. “I’m often there on a weekday and we’re open seven days a week, so people should feel free to drop by. You might find me working on a landscape. I do these for pleasure between commissions.” https://www.facebook.com/mauriceartdublin

THESE HALCYON DAYS

By Ruairi Conneely ath Avenue-based theatre company Landmark Productions have embarked on a wide-ranging tour of their latest show. Having opened in the Irish Arts Centre, New York, on May 7th, These Halcyon Days by Deirdre Kinahan returns to Ireland this month for a nationwide tour before heading over to the Edinburgh Fringe in August. A two-hander, set in a nursing home, the play stars Gate stalwart Stephen Brennan and Anita Reeves, who many Dubliners will recognise for her role on stage in the celebrated Little Gem and is derived from a shorter work Salad Days which the playwright wrote for the Abbey Theatre. Anita wasn’t worried about taking on a play with no supporting characters and only the two principals to carry the weight. “Little Gem had just the three of us and I did that for two and a half years but that was a string of monologues. The challenge here was that it was just the two of us, but the play is nearly all dialogue. There’s a music-like quality, very chatty and quick in places, then slow and conversational. The other actor becomes very important for that reason: it has to be a duet performance.” Anita’s character Patricia is a retired school teacher who ﬁnds herself falling victim to debilitat-

NOT

ing mini-strokes. A character who prizes her independence, Patricia ﬁnds herself unable to live at home unsupervised and reluctantly takes a room in a care home for the elderly, where she meets Sean. Anita explained that she didn’t seek out the role. “I was in Spain, where I sometimes take off to when I’m not working, and I got an e-mail from Deirdre (Kinahan) through my agent. She was in the middle of writing These Halcyon Days and had thought of me for the part, so she sent along an excerpt. And, of course, I liked it.” Talking more about her character, Anita elaborated on the life experiences she drew from for the role. “When I was young, I worked in St James’ Hospital in the elderly wards. I was a nurse’s aide for six

months, so the topic of the play wasn’t new to me. The main thing is always the writing, though. Great writing does the work for you, shows you where you are, like a really good, detailed map.” Maybe the most daunting aspect of These Halcyon Days is the scale of the tour planned. “I get tense about leaving home,” Anita said. “I miss my cooker, my kitchen… and the people, of course. But Edinburgh will be great fun. You never know how it will be, you might be putting on a show at 11 am. It’s not the usual at all.” More info on These Halcyon Days is available at www.landmarkproductions.ie Above: Anita Reeves with Stephen Brennan.

JUST ANOTHER STAGE SCHOOL

By Shan Kelly ust down the street from Google’s European HQ on Barrow Street, the rough stone walls of The Factory building houses the National Performing Arts School. Set up 20 years ago by Eamon Farrell and Jill Doyle to teach the skills needed to make a living in the world of ﬁlm, TV and theatre production, the Factory is a lively hub for acting, dance and singing. It draws hundreds of children and adults to Ringsend every week for hourlong classes in ballet, jazz dance and music. They even teach Bollywood dancing. On weekends and after school, kids as young as three take classes. The emphasis is on having fun and building conﬁdence. They learn what they are good at and whether they want to pursue it. People also come from all over Dublin and beyond, for week-long intensive courses in movie making, acting and drama, while its

Glee Club summer camps in July and August draw children from as far away as Sligo and Waterford. One class of students on an Easter course made a movie in one week. “We are very much a national school. Kids meet people from lots of different backgrounds and cultures here,” said a spokesman for NPAS. For those who want a performing career, a casting agency runs alongside the school, which organises photo shoots and helps with auditions. A few Factory children have just been cast in a new movie. One of NPAS’s most famous

graduates is Hollywood A-Lister Colin Farrell, brother of the cofounder Eamon. Colin took dance and drama classes at NPAS before getting his first movie breaks. Also based at the Factory are a number of Irish film directors such as Kirstin Sheridan, daughter of Jim Sheridan. The party for Kirsten’s most recent film was also held there. Last month, students were hard at work rehearsing the NPAS Summer show Choices in Life, which took place at The Olympia Theatre on June 1st and 2nd. www.thefactory.ie

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

By Ruairi Conneely t’s a pleasure to welcome you all to the newly revived Poet in Profile section. I’m Ruairi Conneely, a staff journalist here at NewsFour and a jack-of-alltrades writer. Before journalism, I worked in the world of small press publishing for an agency that specialised in poetry collections. I write poetry and short fiction and the curious among you can find me most months at the monthly Last Wednesday Open Mic where I frequently perform my work. I’ve elected to start with an unusual choice for my debut Poet in Profile, a man more predominantly known as a novelist. Oran Ryan’s third novel One Inch Punch was published to much fanfare in October 2012 and was mentioned in the Seanad by Senator David Norris for its hands-on treatment of the topic of bullying. However, Oran is also an extensively published and experienced poet. His work has been published in periodicals like Can Can, Poetry Ireland, the Iota Poetry Quarterly, the International Library of Poetry Journal and Anarchist Angel, to name but a few. He has

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POET

PROFILE:

ORAN RYAN

a collection forthcoming from Seven Towers entitled Portrait of An Atheist Monk At Prayer. Oran trails behind him an interesting and complex personal biography. He was an ordained monk of the Capuchin Order for much of the 1980s before suc-

cumbing to his natural scepticism. He then entered into the study of philosophy, then psychology, psychoanalysis and the study of language. “I started to read poetry at a very young age, because my father would read poems to us. He

was a big fan of Samuel Taylor Coleridge and he would read to me and my sisters the entirety of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, which was extraordinary. I would have been about six years old. Imagining what that poem describes was hallucinatory, overwhelming at that age. There was hardly a time after that when I wasn’t reading poetry.” He started writing seriously and getting published in his teens and early twenties. “It was weird. I thought of myself predominantly as a religious person, not at all as an artist, but I always wrote some poetry. After religion, I focused on psychoanalysis and language and envisioned a career writing on these subjects; non-ﬁction, scholarly, academic texts.” He doesn’t take linguistic cues from poetry itself but from everyday speech and use of language. “People hide as much as they display in their everyday words and often reveal their very deepest feelings unwittingly.” He starts with a subject or image that has jumped out at him, and the style and voice, even the length of the poem, is determined from that starting point.

THE POETRY PLACE

The Werewolf Librarian’s Love for the Moon

I wonder if this hunger comes from my true love If my bloodlust longings will in death be resolved If my virtuoso killings are sanctioned from above If my fever dream visions in bookish vestibules Divine how the moon and I shall be as one In the gnarled witty ends of our Algonquin books In doomed before Pilate bohemian looks In dead arenas of career, in frittered down lives In coiffured laughter therapy, in red satin smiles These are my daylight librarian times All my life I have lived these lives As my wolf self is hidden from book borrower eyes I am that longing only murder satisﬁes With order and precision I live my lie I shelve books and wait till the Moon arrives And Moon is my lover who makes Love bitter For hers is the arena where innocents are butchered And mine are the eyes that will see death forever And these are my claws that clutch dead letters As the night light metropolis howls in the emptiness By Oran Ryan

Workhorse

Many times I came across you as I rode out in winter, alone with your driver, flanks damp with sweat from the heavy loads you pull; nostrils blowing mist clouds into the cold winter air. Your grace and calm belying your bulk; a gentle giant weaving in and out of the trees, massive hooves yet not a trace; forests left intact. Around a fire your driver warming himself with hot soup from a flask; still you are by his side blanketed and steaming, your soft muzzle dipped in oats. Your time is almost done, machines have come, belching their fuel, ripping up the ground; a forest disemboweled. As I ride out now, I turn my head in sadness, hoping still, for a glimpse through the trees of your noble strength. By Katharine Wheeler

“I’m not opposed to formalism. Sometimes I start with the most precise metre possible. But metre is a tool. Important to know but don’t let it rule your life.” His forthcoming collection is called Portrait of An Atheist Monk at Prayer. The gathering of many years’ work – some previously published, some not –Oran had resisted the idea that he should do a collection for many years. “I didn’t feel it would really be complete. I felt I had more to learn. But recently I had the idea for a poem that became a series focusing on a character called Joe the Astronaut. “Joe is a wounded hero for the new age we live in. He’s been to space, he’s seen inﬁnity directly and it’s crushed his mind with its vastness. So now, returned to Earth, he writes about his experiences in the third person. He writes about his failures, his dreams, lost and former loves. He is the Atheist Monk of the title. He has seen but he cannot believe.” Oran Ryan’s novels are available through Seven Towers at seventowers.ie. He blogs at oranryan.com

In Love

On my Saint’s date this Angel was born,

Into a world of turbulence, quakes and scorn,

But with the ﬂip of those eyelids over that deep blue sea, Sent my heart to skip and ﬁll the soul with glee.

When she spoke and looked through those big entrapping eyes, The world folded in a box, the release from my demise, Like the petal from a rose on a summer afternoon,

Her presence would ensure that many like me would swoon. Such little faith in oneself, the torment cut like a knife,

When I knew others could have, but my love was my strife, In tandem we battled, to keep the dream awake,

For if I woke to this void, there would be no sake, On my Saints date, born was this unknown belle,

Wings unclipped and feathered, but nobody could tell,

Her beauty inside and out entrapped my mind and soul,

For I knew, should she ﬁnd someone else, I would be left to console. From the break of dawn to the end of the night,

My mind’s scourged with questions that all begin, ‘what might?’ For this presence she has in what I do and say,

This love is potent, without which I am gone, astray. By Peter Mcloughlin

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P ICTURE

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

ROUNDUP The HMS Illustrious, a 23,000 ton helicopter carrier docked in Dublin Port after an exercise off the coast of Scotland. The visit to Dublin allowed its crew some time off before returning to her home in Portsmouth. The arrival of the Illustrious coincided with The Gathering as many onboard were of Irish heritage. Photo by Patrick Hugh Lynch.

Who’s a Purdy boy then? Our beloved contributor and friend Jimmy Purdy turned a whopping 80 in April. He is pictured here celebrating with all his family and friends at his home in Edenmore. Doesn’t he look dapper? That botox must be working! Happy Birthday from all your pals at NewsFour.

The story of Inse na Mara’s Great GAA Games by Jimmy Purdy, which featured on pg 36 of the April/May edition of NewsFour, mentioned a cup which the team won outright. The above picture of the cup, named the GAA Leinster Senior Trophy, is in Collins Barracks Museum. Michael Collins’ hurley is also pictured on the right in the hands of DJ Carey, one of the great Kilkenny hurlers.

Cooling off in the Grand Canal by Kim Houghton. We’re hoping Summer is on her way. Picture found in the NewsFour photo archives.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

PAGE 27

Railway Union Ladies Hockey Club won Irish Senior Cup at UCD Belfield on March 24th beating UCD 3-2. Then on Sunday May 5th they beat Loretto in Grange Road in a thrilling final after winning a penalty shootout 4-3. They are now the champions of the Irish Hockey League for the second year running and represented Ireland in the European Club League in Antwerp at the end of May. This is the team and the photo came courtesy of Stephen Findlater ‘Hook Hockey’. Congratulations to the White Wash’s 100,000th customer Cleona Dunne Fanning of Charlotte Quay Dock, who is pictured, right, with her daughter Katie after receiving a hamper and voucher from the dry cleaners at Beggars Bush.

Stella Maris Rowing Club welcomes new boat

By Liam Cahill Stella Maris Rowing Club welcomed their new boat, the Stella Maris, with its launch on May 5th. The event was held at the side of the clubhouse on Pigeon House Road, next to the Poolbeg Yacht Club. In attendance at the event was Father Ivan Tonge, who blessed the new ship, and Billy Quinn, the oldest living member of the rowing club. Other members, past and present, also attended. “A special thanks to all our members and their families for the amazing dedication

and effort shown in our quest for the new boat,” said David Doyle, Secretary for the Stella Maris Rowing Club. “It was extremely hard work and we hope the arrival of our new boat makes it worthwhile for them all. A special thanks to Richard Saunders and John Hawkins of St. Patrick’s RC, who built the club oars during the winter months.” The launch is the accumulation of 12 months of fundraising by the club in order to purchase the boat, which was built in the UK by Maurice Hunkin. www.facebook.com/pages/Stella-Maris-Rowing-Club Pictured above: Father Ivan blessing the Stella Maris.

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NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

FILMS

UPCOMING DVDs

THE COMPANY YOU KEEP Reviewed by Eric Hillis

Here are my recommendations for the must-see movies hitting DVD in the coming weeks.

im Grant (Robert Redford), once known as Nick Sloan, is a former member of a left-wing activist group that disbanded following the shooting dead of a security guard during a 1980 bank robbery. Under his new identity, he has been operating as a lawyer in Albany, New York, while raising his 11 year-old daughter following his wife’s recent death. When Sharon Solarz (Susan Sarandon) is arrested for her part in the robbery, Albany Sun-Times reporter Ben Shepard (Shia LeBeouf) conducts an investigation which leads him to discover Grant’s true identity. Leaving his daughter with her uncle, Grant sets out to track down Mimi Lurie (Julie Christie), the woman responsible for the 1980 killing, hoping to convince her to turn herself in. When actors turn their hand to directing, it usually results in a certain style of film-making, one more concerned with acting and dialogue than visual story-telling. A film directed by someone more comfortable in front of, rather than behind, the camera, usually resembles

BOOKS FINGERS Reviewed by Liam Cahill

he problematic nature of an ageing Celtic Tiger, easy credit and questionable lending practices comes to the fore with the story of one man and his company in this new book by Tom Lyons and Richard Curran. This book starts in a unique place; a private dinner for Prince Albert of Monaco and his beautiful fiancée Charlene Wittstock in Straffan, Co. Kildare. It’s a Sunday night, in April 2011, and Michael Fingleton, the former boss of the now-bankrupt Irish Nationwide Building Society, sat next to the Royal couple. The party was held on the first floor of the Palmer Smurfit Clubhouse in the newly-opened Kwam Suk-Royal, a classy Thai restaurant. Also at the party – and sitting near Fingleton, is Michael Lowry – a man dogged

To the Wonder (June 17th) Enigmatic film-maker Terence Malick’s latest meditation on the meaning of life may not be everyone’s cup of tea but if you have the patience for a film which rejects traditional narrative structures in favour of a purely emotional experience, you’ll be richly rewarded by this beautifully filmed piece of cinema.

No (June 17th) This Chilean ﬁlm documents the role played by the advertising industry in the ousting of the country’s dictator General Pinochet. Filmed on an outdated eighties video format, the movie captures the era perfectly while spinning a fascinating true story.

Zero Dark Thirty (June 10th) Another movie based on true events, this one chronicles the decade-long hunt for Osama Bin Laden. The ﬁlm features a stunning performance from Jessica Chastain as the lowly CIA operative whose dogged determination played a major role in the eventual death of the world’s most wanted man.

an episode of a T.V show in its aesthetic. There are, of course, a few exceptions; Vincent Gallo’s Buffalo 66, Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto, and Charles Laughton’s Night of the Hunter are immensely cinematic. Usually, however, actor-directors prefer to keep things simple. As a director, Robert Redford’s films have, for the most part, resembled edited versions of T.V mini-series. The Company You Keep continues this trend. by allegations of corruption. “None of the twenty guests at the dinner cared a lot about either Fingleton’s or Lowry’s fall into disgrace, but were happy to dine with both men,” the writers tell us. Fingleton (or ‘Fingers’, as he is known to his friends) was a gossip and the sort of man who liked to be heard at any party. He was the son of a Garda, who rose through the ranks of the once small business society (where staff kept records of clients in biscuit tins) to take it over and turn it into Irish Nationwide. According to the book, Fingleton sat in a large green chair at the Irish Nationwide headquarters. It was here that he developed a personal business model where journalists, politicians, sports stars would “… ask a favour or beg a dig-out in their time of need.” One of those friends who asked Fingleton for a hand – in the form of loans back in the 1990’s – was Sean Dunne. The two men got on well, but in the chapter ‘Making a balls of it in Ballsbridge’ the au-

It’s easy to see why Redford was drawn to Lem Dobbs’ script. It combines the plotlines of two movies he appeared in during his acting heyday of the seventies. The procedural element of a journalist digging deeper into a story despite much opposition is straight out of All the President’s Men, while the man-on-the-run story-line feels like a geriatric update of his role in Three Days of the Condor. The former is a gripping

drama, arguably the best movie ever made concerning journalism. The latter is a fun thriller in the style of Hitchcock. Redford fails to combine the two into a satisfying whole. His movie is at its best when focusing on LeBouef’s investigation, as the young star gives his most mature performance to date, shaking off the baggage of the Transformers series. Watching Redford’s attempts to escape capture at times provokes unintended laughter, with the 76 year-old hopping over fences like it’s 1973 again. Ultimately, the film is saved

from disaster by the impressive cast assembled by Redford. Just when things start to get dull, another quality character actor like Brendan Gleeson, Stanley Tucci or Chris Cooper turns up to get you through the next couple of scenes. It’s a story which needs more fleshing out, though, and the final 30 minutes attempt to cram a little too much in too short a time in order to wrap up sub-plots. Add an extra hour to develop things and this could have made a decent two-part T.V mini-series, rather than a rushed and schizophrenic feature film.

thors detail the “minor disagreements” between the two, equally competing for a piece of the Irish property boom. The book describes Dunne’s property binge of Jury’s Hotel, Hume House and a chunk of AIB’s corporate headquarters. Apparently, Fingleton and Dunne’s disagreement ensured Fingers stayed clear of any lending to Dunne – but eventually gave in, giving Dunne €70 million for a part of AIB’s headquarters.

The book also details a number of other controversies such as; the Hugh O’Regan and The Kilternan Hotel; his ﬂirtations with construction ﬁrm Michael and John O’Flynn and his company’s lending with Larry O’Mahony and Tom McFeely. The property boom had seen Fingleton give out loans that were too big for his organisation to handle (€17 billion) most of which were concentrated on property developers who had developed a working relationship with Fingleton over the years. In the end, Irish Nationwide had boxed itself in with just 30 borrowers according to the book. When the crash came, Fingleton lost it all. He walked away from the bank with bonuses of €1 million and a pension fund that, according to the book peaked at €27 million. Lyons and Curran give us a unique insight into the world of Fingers, highlighting the man’s many faults in the backdrop of a disastrous period in Irish economic history.

This book is a story of our times, a story of greed, and a story of how one man cost us it all. It’s written in a style that is both easy to read and informative; explaining complicated financial transactions and business situations in an understandable manner. The book’s authors, Tom Lyons and Richard Curran, have both cemented their reputations as experienced financial journalists before – Lyons who is Deputy Business Editor of The Sunday Independent wrote The Fitzpatrick Tapes about Sean Fitzpatrick’s amazing rise and horrific fall from grace. Curran, the former Deputy Editor of The Sunday Business Post has proved his tenacity for investigative and factual journalism with this new book and previous investigative reportage. The book proves to be an amazing read, not just for people who live in the complicated world of finance and business, but for people looking to see what happens when a business man gives the nation the two fingers.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

T HE

By Jim O’Doherty t was back in 1969 that George Harrison of The Beatles sang “Here Comes The Sun”. Summer has arrived after a dismal winter and a disappointing spring so it’s time to enjoy floral gems glistening in the summer sunshine; colour, fragrance, beauty all around us. Plants are brimming with life – all of them welcoming the Summer sun. Long days and short nights make June and July the great months in the gardening year. Glorious days from dawn till dusk make it such a pleasure to be in the garden. I write this sitting on a large rock with my back warmed by the late Spring sunshine with my little friend, the Robin, dancing around my feet. We are saying goodbye to one of the most awful Spring times in my memory. And this time of year one can appreciate the value of trees and shrubs as they im-

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GREEN SCENE

prove the quality of the atmosphere – certainly in our built-up cities. Look out for the lovely Mock Orange, the bees busy around the Cotoneasters, the beautiful Dúzia, the white blossoms of the Pyracanta, the blue of the Ceanothus, Roses, Fuchsias, Hydrangeas, Hypericums and the long Summer flowering Spirea Anthony Waterer. In your garden, complete the planting of Summer bedding such as Geranium, Petunia, Salvia Lobelia and white Alyssum Begonias. All will benefit from a fortnightly tomato feed. Keep your Rose beds free of weeds and spray, if required with Rose Clear and give them a dressing of rose fertiliser. As Rhododendrons and Azaleas finish flowering, cut off the dead flowers. This also applies to your Herbaceous Perennials. Daily watering of window boxes and baskets and indeed all container plants is necessary. Feed them with a fertiliser every ten days. The lovely Sweet Pea, with its massive diversity of colour needs regular feeding and a good soaking twice weekly during hot and dry weather. During the Summer months, deadhead all flowering plants regularly for continuous flowering.

Feed your lawn and cut your grass on a weekly basis and if required use a selective weed killer to control weeds. Use After Cut to get that great green colour. It is time also to think ahead, so sow now and you will have many flowering plants for next spring. Mid-June is an ideal time to sow Wallflowers, Double Daisies, Foxgloves, Polyanthus, Pansies, Sweet William and ForgetMe-Nots. In the vegetable garden, lift early potatoes in July and remember succession is the order of the day. Sow Peas, French Beans, Runner Beans, Carrots, Beetroot and Lettuce. Plant out all herbs, Brussels Sprouts, Savoy Cabbage, Onions, Celery and Kales. Sow Turnips now for Autumn and Winter use. Feed your outdoor tomato plants every fortnight and as the fruit begins to develop, continue to remove side shoots every week and stop the main shoot in early August. Watering is the secret for a good tomato crop. Give them a good soaking three

times a week in hot and dry weather. Use the hoe regularly and your soil will produce crops by giving it plenty of humus and fertiliser. A word now about a plant that is recognised as a symbol of peace and of all that is good in life, the Lily, especially the most beautiful Lily of all – the Madonna Lily. It’s correct name is L-Candidum and it is the oldest of all the Lilies and should be planted (or replanted) during August and September. Do not plant it deeply. Three inches is deep enough. It may take some time to establish itself. If you haven’t already done so, maybe consider introducing one of these beautiful Lilies into your garden this Summer. All house plants should be out in the garden during July and August. This will benefit them greatly. Be careful with the feeding and watering. For those of you with a garden pond, the planting of aquatics is best done in May and June. Of course, the Water Lily is ideal for the formal pond.

As soon as I finish sharing a few thoughts for the Summer gardening months ahead, the sun is fading here and the birds are quietening down. I am the classic oldstyle gardener leaning on my spade with my gardener ’s mug of tea and sandwich at hand… Ye s , I s t i l l g e t g r e a t pleasure from a day in the garden and if God wills it I’m looking forward to many hours in the golde n d a y s o f S u m m e r. T h e Swedish proverb springs to mind, “A life without love is like a year witho u t S u m m e r. ” P l e a s e G o d we are blessed with a good one… Enjoy it. F ro m l e f t , c l o c k w i s e : Hypericum, Cotton Eate r, J a s m i n e a n d S p i re a A n t h o n y Wa t e re r.

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PUTTING

By Eric Hillis ith Irish people leaving the country in droves, it’s easy to forget that only a few years ago Ireland was one of the most attractive destinations for immigrants. Ireland traditionally had a culture of emigration but this was turned on its head during the boom years of the 90s. 1996 was the ﬁrst year to see more people enter the country than leave it. This pattern continued unabated for 13 years, peaking in 2007 with an estimated 150,000 new arrivals, but, since 2009, Ireland has reverted to its previous status as a nation of emigrants. The statistics gathered in the 2011 census show that, while there are much fewer immigrants arriving in recent years, those who arrived during the boom are more likely to stick around than their Irish counterparts. According to the census, there are 544,357 non-nationals resident in Ireland, making up 12% of the population. NewsFour spoke to three individuals who arrived in pre-recession Ireland and have stuck around, despite the economic downturn. Lukasz Hajduga, 31, arrived from Krakow, Poland, in 2005. Poland accounts for almost a quarter of Ireland’s immigrants

SEA

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

DOWN ROOTS

with 122,585 Poles registered on the 2011 census. The U.K (112,259) and Poland are the only nations to provide more than 100,000 immigrants to Ireland. The third highest group, Lithuanians, number a much smaller 36,683. At the other end of the scale is Argentina, with only 458 of its citizens registering on the census. Juan Fravega, 36, hails from Mendoza, the country’s fourth largest city, and came to Ireland in 2001. Living here since 2003 is 38year-old Jose Carlos de Jesus Cardoso, a native of Porto, Portugal, a country which shares our current economic woes. While many have left Portugal for this reason, few have chosen

Ireland as their destination. The census reports a relatively small total of 2,739 Portuguese residing here. The one common reason for all three choosing Ireland as their new home is the English language. Hajduga claims to have had a good standard of English but wished to practice it by conversing with native-speakers on a daily basis. Having worked in Portugal’s hotel industry, Cardoso was fully ﬂuent in English, a factor which he claims made his integration easier. On the other hand, Fravega arrived with very basic English, taking an intensive six-month English course on arrival. Both Hajduga and Cardoso had always been attracted to

LEGS AND A GREEN THUMB

By Ruairi Conneely he 4th Port Dodder Sea Scouts are sequestered at the end of a cul-desac in Derrynane Gardens, off Bath Avenue. Occupying a stretch of the Dodder riverbank, it’s easy for the eye to miss from the footpath opposite, as it sits behind high floodwalls. NewsFour paid a visit to learn about their Organic Gardening Project, three years on from its inception. “Don’t point your camera over there, the greenhouse isn’t finished yet,” jokes Geraldine Smith, a Troop Leader with the Sea Scouts. She and fellow leader John Allen are giving me a tour of the Organic Garden. The greenhouse will shortly replace a polytunnel which looks from the outside to be very full with colourful flowers. John points out some young

apple trees growing against the floodwall, and some berry bushes which are slow to mature but with luck and effort will produce whiteber-

ries, strawberries and raspberries, maybe for next year. There is also a bed of herbs: lemon thyme, parsley and chives among them.

Ireland’s image as a “green” land. “When I got here, it was even better than I imagined,” says Cardoso, “It’s a country with great natural beauty.” With this idyllic idea in his mind, Hajduga was somewhat surprised by Dublin. “It took me a while to see a green part of Ireland,” he says, “I didn’t expect so much concrete.” Fravega’s romantic concept of Ireland came from the writings of Jorge Luis Borges, an Argentine writer who used Ireland as a setting for several of his stories. The strength of Ireland’s economy was a big attraction for Hajduga. “In my ﬁrst three years here, I could see Ireland changing for the good,” he says, “There were new roads, bridges, improvements in public transport, and many job opportunities.” Coming from recession-hit Argentina, Fravega was surprised at how good we had it. “When I came here, Ireland was growing and my country was having a lot of trouble,” he says. “Now things have been reversed, Argentina is in a very healthy state these days.” Both Fravega and Cardoso have been relatively unscathed by the economic downturn, holding down steady employment as an Area Manager for a pharmacy chain and a Senior Bartender respectively. Hajduga, however, has found himself a victim of the recession, having been recently made redundant

from a retail management position. “I’ve been unemployed for almost six months now,” he tells NewsFour, “the longest I’ve ever been out of work”. When asked what they miss most about their countries, all three reply “the weather”, though while Fravega and Cardoso pine for the warm Latin Summers, Hajduga yearns for the snowy Polish Winters. Likewise, they all confess to missing the unique food of their homelands. Fravega also notes the vast difference in pricing of cultural activities. “In Argentina, an opera production that would cost €80 to see here would be state-subsidised, meaning you could buy a ticket for a ﬁver”. Despite these minor complaints, none of the three have any immediate plans to leave. Fravega has two children with an Irish partner and is currently studying for a business M.B.A. Cardoso recently became a father and lives with his Czech partner in Sandymount. Hajduga tells us his stay is dependent on finding employment. “If I find a job, I hope to become a citizen and stay in Ireland for a few more years,” he says, “If not, I’m taking my backpack and walking off into the sunset”.

The unpredictable weather has delayed the development of the garden this year and the cultivation of a regular crop of organic potatoes. Later, Geraldine explains the nature of the organic gardening project. “Scouting is about development; social, physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual and character development. That’s the same message from every scout group. The other stress is on learning by doing. Gardening links into this because it involves so many skills. We have at least one weekly meet per group per garden section. So one group will be on herbs, another on vegetables and another on flowers. All the produce is do-

nated to the local community. Even the hanging baskets outside the pubs will be arranged by the kids.” The hope is for good weather this year and next. 2014 is the 4th Port Sea Scouts 80th anniversary. Here’s hoping it’ll be in full bloom by then.

Pictured: Jose Carlos de Jesus Cardoso, a former resident of Portugal, now living in Sandymount.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

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SOUNDS OF THE FIFTIES

By Noel Twamley he 1950’s was a dynamic decade for music. The first five years was dominated by crooners and cowboy singers – Crosby, Como, Laine, Mitchell and girl singers Day, Starr, Stafford, Clooney. Around this time, I was involved with Tara Records in Tara Street. We had the entire building, including a fine apartment over the shop where we entertained many pop stars who played Dublin, including Johnnie Ray, Louis Armstrong, Guy Mitchell and our senior partner George O’Reilly’s great friend Bing Crosby. Indeed, Bing got his friend Nat King Cole to officially open Tara Records. At this time, I was a fan of American Swing and Jazz Big Bands and had all the latest albums on Decca, Capitol and R.C.A. labels. In the mid-50s nobody was allowed to buy U.S. dollars. This was a time of super austerity shortly after World War II; however, as we had a business we were allowed $200 per year to purchase U.S. stock, which enabled me to buy The Kenton Era direct from Capitol Records on Hollywood and Vine. This was a four-album box set

that cost £16.00, more than a week’s salary at that time. When word got out that I had this album, George Hodnot, who was a music critic at The Irish Times, rang me looking to hear and review the album. I met Hoddy, as we called him, in The Red Shoes, a restaurant in Rathmines near The Stella Cinema. I loaned him the album, to which he gave a glowing review. Some weeks later I met Hoddy in The Band bistro in South Richmond Street. He told me I was one of the few people in Europe to have this album, due to the Europe-wide embargo on U.S. dollars. Around this time, I would ﬂy to London to hear American Big Bands such as Stan Kenton or Woody Herman at Royal Festival Hall and Count Basie at Kilburn State, which was great fun. I arrived at Kilburn State ticketless and alone, bought a ticket from a scalper or “spiv” and to my utter chagrin my seat was at the rear, miles from the stage. Lucky for me I was seated beside a lovely South African girl who had a set of binoculars and thanks to her I was almost on stage with the Great Count Basie Band. After the show, I invited her for re-

freshments. We ended up in a lovely wine bar in Maida Vale, near Marble Arch. We had a great time, got on like a house on fire, sparks were flying and then my new South African girlfriend invited me to stay all weekend in her large apartment in Earls Court and said she would show me some London Jazz Clubs. We went to Ronnie Scott Club in Frith Street, Soho, and heard some great sounds. On Sunday, we visited The 100 Club in Oxford Street to hear the Humphrey Lyttelton Band with Monty Sunshine and the Future King of Skiffle, Lonnie Donegan.

That same night we heard the super Ted Heath Band at The Palladium. A most memorable weekend, indeed. Meanwhile, back in Dublin in 1956 I noticed our clients at Tara Records had got much younger. The reason for this was the explosion of new music called Rock and Roll, played mostly by young black musicians. Even the record labels were changing, with names like Sun, Ace, Roulette, Coral, Imperial and dozens more. All these new singers ruled the roost until 1960 when the music scene moved to English bands from Liverpool and London. What happened to the ﬁrst wave of U.S. singers, I hear you asking? I would like to give you my take on some of the changes; Johnnie Ace was shot dead so was Sam Cooke, Eddie Cochran was killed in a car crash, Little Richard found religion for some years, Jerry Lee Lewis caused a scandal by marrying his 13-year old cousin, Chuck Berry got two years in jail for bringing a

Spanish-speaking Apache prostitute across the state line, Elvis Presley joined the army for two years and the great Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens were killed in a plane crash in Iowa in February 1959. Don McLean sang about this tragedy in American Pie – he called it “the day the music died.” The music of the ﬁfties is now on my mind, so I am going to dig out some of my old albums. I’ll start with Fats Domino and his great band of wailing tenor saxophones and ﬁnish with Buddy Holly and the Crickets and the wonderful sound of Holly’s Fender Stratocaster guitar. Pardon me, folks, as I sit down, close my eyes and marvel. Left: Buddy Holly and, below, Elvis Presley during his stint in the US Army.

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NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

DCC N OTES Compiled by Liam Cahill

LEAVE MALONE ALONE Despite the fact that the new Luas Cross City Extension is estimated to cost €370 million, a number of DCC councillors were more concerned over the relocation of Molly Malone. The new location for the infamous statue has yet to be confirmed. The Red and Green Luas lines will b e l i n k e d t o g e t h e r, a d d ing over 13 new stops i n c l u d i n g S t . S t e p h e n ’s Green We s t , Broombridge and Maynooth. The project started construction at the end of M a y. S e e w w w. r p a . i e f o r more information.

FLOODING PREP Labour’s Dermot Lacey requested information from the City Manager relating to the regular flooding of Merrion Cricket Club. Lacey said he had met with DCC engineers and local councillors to discuss flooding at the cricket grounds during prolonged periods of rainfall. “This is a regular event and appears to be associated with the combination of high river levels and surcharging of the Rathmines/Pembroke sewer and other local drainage systems,” said Lacey. He also raised the question about updating lighting in Herbert Park just off the Merrion Road.

DOCKLAND’S DARKNESS Fine G a e l ’s Kieran Binchy and L a b o u r ’s M a r i a P a ro d i b o t h r a i s e d concerns that the lighting around the Docklands has greatly diminished or is i n e ff e c t i v e i n i t s c u r r e n t capacity and is in need of updating. The Council has yet to come up with a n e ff e c t i v e s t r a t e g y t o deal with the lighting problems. STELLA MARIS ROWING CLUB Dermot Lacey requested an update on the plan to transfer the adjoining land in Ringsend to Stella Maris Rowing Club. The Council replied regarding the possible granting of a licence to sections of the site by saying, “the Housing and Residential Services are currently finalising details.” B O I L E R S E RV I C E L a b o u r C o u n c i l l o r G e rry Ashe raised the issue of home heating servicing by the City Council after a number of residents in Dublin 4 and in O’Carroll Vi l l a s i n D u b l i n 2 , c o m plained that their boilers had not been serviced for up to three years. The City Council said they had “commenced a new boiler service since March 1st and boiler servicing schedules are usually carried out on a monthly basis.”

ON YOUR BIKE Dublin Bike Scheme is to be expanded. The city-wide expansion was announced by Dublin’s Lord Mayor Naoise Ó Muirí. The proposed expansion provides for 58 additional stations, 950 additional bikes and 2,000 new bike stands. Many of the new points will be situated around the Docklands area with routes

from the city to the South Coast. According to the City Council’s website, the current scheme consists of 44 bike stations, 550 bikes and 1,087 stands and is valued at €33.391 million. In Dublin 4, the Donnybrook to Stillorgan stretch drew huge criticism regarding un-level surfaces caused by road works and inadequate sign markings.

Other local issues

NEW WIND FARM FOR DUBLIN BAY? Public consultations are currently underway for construction of a wind farm in Dublin Bay. The new wind farm called Dublin Array would be situated on the Kish and Bray Banks off the coast of Dublin and Wicklow. Saorgus Energy lodged a planning application to the Department of the Environment. The application proposes the construction of 145 turbines, which would be visible from coastal areas. “If this wind farm goes ahead it will have serious adverse effects on all your readers in respect of views of Dublin Bay,” said Marie Boland, a resident from Sandymount. As legally required, an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) has been prepared on behalf of the developers and lodged with the application. The EIS was made available for public consultation from 9th April to 1st June 2013. Final date for submissions is 11th June 2013. The plans are available at the RDS or online at dublinarray.com.

GILMORE SOLICITORS 22 BRIDGE STREET, RINGSEND, DUBLIN 4 Tel: 6677170 * Fax:6673809 E-mail: info@gilmoresolicitors.com

House Sales/Purchases Re-mortgages & Commercial Property Family Law Wills/Probate/Estate-Planning Employment Law District Court & Road Traﬃc Oﬀences

A Friendly & Professional Service

Left to right: Stephanie Casey (Irish Cancer Society), Joe Treacy (Heritage Boat Association) and Victor Henry (Model) at the handover of the cheque worth €10,490.12 to the Irish Cancer Society for proceeds raised from the Heritage Boat Association ‘River Rats’ calendar which featured in NewsFour last year. The event took place at Waterways Ireland Visitor Centre (aka Box in the Docks) on Saturday 18th May.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

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RINGSEND AND IRISHTOWN COMMUNITY CENTRE NEWS tion process will be displayed on our website in the coming months.

By Barbara Doyle RICC MAY DAY PARADE 2013 The Annual RICC May Day Parade celebrated its 5th year in May and was as always a great success. Thank you to all those who got involved, marched, performed, raised funds, donated prizes, all our local groups, staff and volunteers who made the day colourful, fun and the place to be in Dublin 4 on the Bank Holiday. We are already planning next year’s parade so if you would like to get involved in any way please contact Barbara or Lorraine on 01 6604789.

LORD MAYOR OF RINGSEND AND IRISHTOWN RICC were delighted at the growing response to the election process of selecting a Lord Mayor this year. Revisited by RICC in 2009 originally as an informal, novel idea it gives us great pride that the title has returned to a system that utilises its title for the benefit of the community in all areas of business, community, groups, activities, individuals and local issues that pertain to the area of Ringsend and Irishtown. RICC were delighted to

welcome back Brian Betts as Lord Mayor for 2013/2014 due to his proactive involvement throughout the year and also for the work he intends to do. Brian was elected Lord Mayor through a committee consisting of RICC Management, local groups, organisations and volunteers based in the community, so should anyone like to be elected or indeed put themselves forward for the title for next year please contact Lorraine or Barbara on 01 6604789 before April 2014. Details of the complete selec-

RICC Radio RICC Online Radio continues to go from strength to strength and you can access it on your computer or phone through www.ricc.ie. We are currently looking for volunteers for presenting, engineering and admin and if you would like to get involved in this exciting project please contact the centre on 01 6604789.

‘LIKE’ us on Facebook Ringsend and Irishtown Community Centre. Follow us on Twitter @RICCD4 SUMMER PROJECT Preparations for this year’s Summer Project are now taking place. It will run for two weeks from 23rd July – 2nd August and two weeks from 13th – 23rd August. For further details contact the centre on 01 6604789. Left and below: Pictures fron the May Day activities.

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QUAY

TO RECOVERY

DOGGY DAY CARE

By Eric Hillis erchant’s Quay Ireland (MQI) is one of Dublin’s great charity success stories. In 1969, Salvador Kenney and Sebastian Tighe, two Franciscan Friars, established a tea room for the city’s homeless, laying down the groundwork for what would become the MQI of today. MQI’s head of fundraising, Denisa Casement spoke to NewsFour about how the organisation grew in the wake of the 80s drug epidemic. “The friars began to realise a lot of the chronic homelessness was related to addiction and mental health issues,” she tells us. “One of the fathers, Sean Cassin, obtained a degree in addiction studies and opened a rehab centre at the Merchant’s Quay site.” In 1989, Cassin started the Merchant’s Quay Project and, two years later it was granted charitable status. Though it had been established as a voluntary project, the increasing demand required professional staff to be hired. The ﬁrst employee was Tony Geoghegan, who today is the CEO of MQI. Casement tells NewsFour that MQI served over 80,000 meals to those in need last year and expects the number to reach 100,000 by the end of this year. The other services provided by the charity include a needle exchange and drug free counselling across Ireland’s prisons. A doctor is onsite twice a week with a dentist available four days a week. Two thirds of MQI’s budget comes from government funding but Casement tells NewsFour that the amount they receive is being cut each year and so public donations are increasingly crucial. Realising people are reluctant to part with money in the current climate, MQI ask that you consider the charity when having your will drawn up. “Once you’ve taken care of family and friends, perhaps think about leaving us a small donation,” Casement says. To make it easier for you to have a will drawn up, MQI have teamed up with a range of solicitors including Emer O’Sullivan, who operates out of Arran Quay. O’Sullivan told NewsFour she was impressed by the work of MQI, calling it a “very solid and reliable organisation which provides a good support structure for those in need of such assistance”. For more information, visit www.mqi.ie or call 01 5240160. Emer O’Sullivan can be contacted on 01 8874027. Above: An MQI chef at work preparing meals.

By Jason McDonnell or the last few years, local dog lovers Alan Pullen and Fiona Brannock from Ringsend have run The Fluffy Mutts Grooming Salon in Unit 2, Cambridge House, Ringsend and have just opened the D4 Doggy Day Care Centre in the adjoining Unit 4. Fiona is in charge of grooming, hair cutting, nail trimming and more in The Fluffy Mutts ever since she completed her training with Mutt Ugly in Ranelagh. She decided to go out on her own and has built up a lot of regular customers thanks to referrals around

RED

the area. Alan, meanwhile, is in charge of the new D4 Doggy Day Care Centre. He has had a love for dogs all his life, looking after not only his own pet but also spending a lot of time looking after injured and stray dogs when he was younger. After completing a course with Dog Training Ireland in Blanchardstown, he decided to set up his own dog training and obedience school, along with a social and pampering crèche for dogs. The training and obedience side of things is separate from the centre and you can talk directly to Alan about that, as each dog needs to be

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013 assessed individually. The crèche, pampering, socialising and walking service has a dog trainer and dogs are supervised at all times. Specially designed rubber mats are onsite so the dogs don’t pick up any injuries. The D4 Doggy Day Care Centre is open from 7.30am to 6.30pm Monday to Friday with a provision for earlier pickups and overnight stays. The centre is also open on Saturdays from 11am to 4pm for people going into town or shopping etc. There is ample parking on the street outside. The cost of leaving your dog for the entire day is €15 and if you leave your dog there a lot during the week it works out at around €10 a day. Alan says that the dogs have a great time. They get well pampered, get to socialise, are well fed, well watered and walked two or three times a day. Phone Alan on 0858487035 or email: alanpullen1@gmail.com Phone Fiona on 0879219811 or email ﬁonabrannock@gmail.com

BRICKS, VILLAGE GREENS

By Eric Hillis n 1968, British rock group The Kinks had a hit with The Village Green Preservation Society, a paean to holding onto traditions in the face of progress. When it comes to Sandymount’s own village green, a group of locals are singing to the same tune, forming a steering committee to produce the Sandymount Village Design Statement. Sandymount Green is a source of great local pride for the residents of one of Dublin’s most attractive areas. Councillor Maria Parodi was an initial member of the SVDS committee, which first met in September 2011. She said the committee was formed to create a vision for the future of the village, in particular the area surrounding the distinctive green. “We feel it’s important to preserve the special character of that area,” she says. Local resident Joe McCann is a member of the committee, and a keen advocate of the aesthetic qualities of the village green. “It’s lovely to sit in the middle

of the green,” he says. “You can look in any direction and see five streets, all with beautiful buildings”. Preserving the architectural look of these buildings is a key part of the statement. The distinctive red-brick look is “intrinsic to Sandymount’s heritage,” according to the statement. “If you change this for one building it takes away from the look”, McCann says. “We’re not saying every building has to be actually made from red brick,”

he clarifies. “You could have a wooden building painted to fit in with the existing red-brick buildings”. According to McCann, the statement isn’t about halting progress but rather ensuring “the modern blends with the old.” If you wish to know more about the statement, you can contact the committee by emailing them at svds@dublin.ie Above: Sandymount Green. Photo by Ross Waldron.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

IT ALL STARTED IN FAIRVIEW PARK

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THE NEWSFOUR CROSSWORD COMPILED BY GEMMA BYRNE

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By Liam Cahill his year marks the 30th anniversary of the Dublin Pride Parade. The theme of the parade Live, Love & Be Proud, will be held on Saturday June 29th. A spectacle of equality – with its fair share of flamboyance – the gay community have fought some hard battles to get where they are today. It started with the murder of Declan Flynn. Heading home after a night out, Flynn was chased by a gang of youths and beaten to death in Fairview Park, a known gay pickup spot. After the murder, the killers – many in their early teens – were brought before the Late Judge John Gannon and handed down suspended sentences, outraging the LGBT community for the injustice of it all. “Fairview Park was a pivotal moment for the LGBT movement. It was the beginning of what you might call an engagement,” says Brian Sheehan,

Director of GLEN (Gay and Lesbian Equality Network). After Flynn’s killing, Dublin Pride Parade was originally a protest movement – organised by the Gay Liberation Federation – but more importantly as a call to action for the oppressed members of the LGBT community who had largely been ignored by mainstream Irish society. “Those early Pride events felt more like marches and protests than the parades and parties they have now become,” says Tonie Walsh, a long time LGBT activist. “One’s sense of Pride was truly shaped by protest,” he says. The 1983 march was billed a ‘Gay Rights Protest March’, which included on its programme the unveiling of a pink triangle, a cheese and wine reception, movie screenings, a talk about the ‘straight alternative’, a disco, brunch, and, of course, the actual protest, the first incarnation of the Pride Parade.

“People, by and large, were quite good-natured, possibly bemused, certainly taken by surprise. I suspect we were all too excited to take notice of any distinctly homophobic reaction,” says Tonie. The first Pride Parade coincided with a legal battle being waged by David Norris and Mary Robinson as part of The Campaign for Homosexual Law Reform. An early attempt by Norris to argue the constitutionality of the 1885 Offences Against the Person Act, and the Criminal Law Act, both of which had outlawed homosexuality, failed. He eventually won the case at the European Court of Human Rights. Decriminalisation eventually came in 1993, the day before the annual Pride Parade – which by then had morphed from a protest movement, to one of celebration. Although it had taken six years to fully implement the Norris ruling, being gay was no longer a crime. The movement that had kicked off with the Flynn killing had finally reached a point of acceptance within Irish society. “What is most significant today is the comprehensive body of anti-hate and anti-discrimination legislation on our statute books. The behaviour of the self-appointed, self-termed ‘queer bashers’ who robbed Declan of his life would simply not be tolerated today by any section of Irish society,” concludes Walsh. Photos by Ross Waldron.

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Name:…………………………… Telephone:………………… Address:………………………………………………………… Prize of a €25 book token. Post entries to NewsFour, RICC, Thorncastle Street, Ringsend, D.4 by 17th May 2013. Winner of our April/May crossword competition was Mary McMullen, Doris Street, Ringsend. ACROSS: 1) Dazzling/amazing (11) 7) A unit of energy (3) 10) The chemical symbol for gold (2) 11) Began/got under way (9) 12) Move quickly to avoid (5) 13) Beguile (5) 14) Make the ﬁrst move in tennis (5) 15) Blue or long tailed common garden bird (3) 16) Pry (5) 19) Highest male singing voice (4) 20) --- Lingus (3) 21) --- Cat, The indisputable leader of the gang (3) 23) Yogi Bear’s favourite type of meal (6) 25) Roald Dahl’s famous niece (6) 26) Long span of time (3) 27) Wed again (7) 28) Brief sleep (3) 30) A long and distinct period of history (3) 31) Fishing pole (3) 32) Is afraid of (5) 33) Oozed (6) 34) Add up this very small child (3) DOWN: 2) The Jackson Five told us not to blame it on this (8) 3) Canada’s second largest province (7) 4) Sate (7) 5) Circuitous/Roundabout (8) 6) Ingenious and useful device (6) 8) Tattered piece of cloth (3) 9) Small hotel or B & B (10) 15) Switchboard operator (11) 16) Those who deliberately thwart others (9) 17) Left without parents (8) 18) Chest muscles (9) 22) Watched carefully (8) 24) List individually (7) 29) A formal agreement between two parties (4) 32) The chemical symbol for iron (2)

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THERAPY

By Ruairi Conneely he Harvest Moon Centre on Lower Baggot Street was established in 1996 as a holistic therapy centre, providing a variety of treatments to promote stress management, mental relaxation and physical healing. These treatments range from the esoteric, such as Reiki, to the more conventional such as holistic whole-body massage. Warmly lit and elaborately decorated with unique paintings, statues, icons and a vast array of crystals and semi-precious stones, there’s a curious harmony to what should seem like a disorganised collection of so many different things, a sense that this is a place of retreat. Harvest Moon were among the very first to offer Floatation Tank Therapy. The Floatation Tank was invented in 1954 by the pioneering American neuroscientist John C. Lilly. Lilly was an innovative researcher and theorist and the Floatation Tank was developed to finally answer a fundamental question in the study of the brain: is consciousness dependent upon stimulation of the senses? In the early

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013

UNDERGROUND

50s, the dominant assumption was that, without the constant input of the external world, the brain would simply fall into a silent sleep-like dormancy, like a wind-chime on a still day. Lilly proved otherwise with the Tank and, in doing so, accidentally invented one of the most definite methods for deep relaxation and introspection known to exist. The tank is quite big, easy to

enter and move around in. There are between eight and 10 inches of water, warmed to around 37ºC (the average person’s body temperature) with water infused with several hundred pounds of Epsom Salts. Once you lie back, wearing the ear plugs provided, with the door closed in front of you, you are in a totally dark, soundless environment where you float weightlessly on the heavily salted water. Very quickly, you lose track of where your body ends and the warm waters begin. The door is light and effortless to open and the whole procedure is no scarier than taking a bath. The health benefits are extensive and well-documented, chiefly because the tank was invented by a respected scientist in an era

TECHNOLOGY KILLS EIGHT-HOUR DAY

By Liam Cahill t was just before 8am on a hot March morning in Rio de Janeiro when Karen Keegan, the Editor of NewsFour and C.E. Supervisor of Sandymount Community Services woke up and opened her email. Clicking through the bulk of the mail, she quickly passed by items that could be deferred until later, and responded immediately to the mails she considered a priority. Karen was supposed to be on holiday, but with the advent of new forms of technology, such as iPads, iPhones and laptop computers it had become quite difﬁcult to switch off from work. “The rise in technology means that you will check your email a lot more than you should, even when you’re outside of your working hours,” says Karen. “When I get up in the morning I will check my work email account before I even get to the ofﬁce, I’m already working outside my hours by doing that. The temptation is too much when you have a smartphone in your hand,” says Karen. The rise in Ireland’s smartphone, iPad and WiFi culture means that managers are constantly switched

on. The days of allocating time and space to spend with the children on the weekend are gone, replaced by urgent calls and emails, the ding of an incoming text message and endless worries about issues that should be conﬁned to the workplace. “Being constantly on call and our tendency to look at phones and check emails is a newer development,” says Associate Professor Eileen Drew at the School of Computer Science and Statistics in Trinity College. Professor Drew has worked on a number of research

topics concerning technology in the workplace, and contributed to a study on work and family issues amongst small business owners who have children. “The most extreme example of the encroachment, was in a study of men and women in legal professions – which found one woman answered her mobile phone about a client’s case when she was literally going into the delivery ward to have her baby,” Drew says. According to a study by Red C and Win Research Group, 71% of

when psychological research was very adventurous (Dr Lilly’s career became weirder and weirder as it went on – he spent his last thirty years researching human/ dolphin communication). A two-hour session in the tank, pictured below right, has been characterised as the deepest form of rest possible, even more so than sleep. This level of relaxation leads to a net reduction in the presence of the stress hormone cortisol. Improved healing times from sporting injuries, normalisation of high blood pressure and even improved skin condition have been shown to result from periods of regular tank use (the magnesium in the Epsom Salts diffuses into the skin quite naturally, reaching a balance with the body’s natural magnesium requirement). I was advised to take three separate hour-long floats to get a full sense of what the tank had to offer. I decided to go once a week. The best way to describe an hour in the tank is that it’s like falling asleep without losing consciousness. Within the tank, your sense of time becomes distorted, as if you had nodded off to sleep unexpectedly. Without the constant provocation of the sense, your mind seems weight-

less and adrift, just as your body is. I’ll definitely try this again, for periods longer than just an hour. Each time, I felt that the relaxation state was only coming into itself when I heard the startling knock that told me my time was up. A word to the wise: if you have any open cuts, mask them with the Vaseline provided, or that salty water will seriously sting. And be gentle getting in and out of the tank. The natural temptation is to splash about a bit but Epsom Salt isn’t Sea Salt and if you get it in your eyes or nose, you’ll regret it. Happy floating! Harvest Moon Centre is online at www.harvestmoon.ie or available at 01-6627556.

the Irish population had a smartphone device in 2012, with 41% of people owning a tablet device. These numbers mean that Ireland is now ahead of the world average of 35% of people who own a smartphone or other technological device. In terms of the working life, managers, employees and corporate staff are constantly connected with some organisations through Gchat, Skype or internal instant messaging devices. “A lot of the time I have to do work at home which interferes in my own personal life,” says Karen. “I try not to bring the work home, but it’s very difficult, especially coming up to a print deadline. Other times, I have to bring it home just to get it done without distraction because we’re six people working in a very busy, cramped office space.” For some managers however, the influx of new technologies has meant adapting a new management strategy. But even then technology and working life interfere with personal life. “I tend not to check emails at home,” says Terry Donahue, the Service Manager of Cara Cheshire House, a residential care centre for adults with physical disabilities. “Occasionally, if there’s something

going on I’ll check my emails at the weekend but I like to keep the boundaries separated.” Donahue tells me that for some people it must be difficult to create a clear separation between work and home life, but for him it’s less difficult because of his avoidance of smartphones, iPads and other forms of technology. “I think it could be the case that technology could infringe more and more on working lives if that’s how you want to respond to technology,” says Donahue who also tells me that people using smartphones and other forms of technology for both work, and in general use, is becoming a big problem. For many managers, the constant connection of work and home life can cause certain problems; higher stress levels, depression, lack of motivation and, in extreme cases, dropping out of the workforce altogether. With constant dings, IMs, and emails it’s harder to disconnect, but that doesn’t mean technology is some monster, it just means we need to find a better way to separate our professional lives from our personal ones. Pictured: Technology kills Karen’s radiant appearance.

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SHUTTLECOCKS AT THE READY

By Liam Cahill pworth Badminton Club has a history of welcoming people. A local club, born in Sandymount, it welcomes inexperience, diversity and people of all ages. The only thing is, not many people have heard of it. Until now! “Based in Sandymount since 1921, we have 32 members and one court hall. The age would be from 16 to 60 – maybe even

slightly older,” says David Bowles the Match Secretary for Epworth Badminton club. Epworth’s practices take place in a renovated part of Christ Church Hall, a vanilla-like building nestled next to Christ Church. Every week, players take up practice, sweating it out in mixed and single sex teams. David started at Epworth at the novice age of 18. He learned quickly and became somewhat of a go-to-guy for club

history. “Epworth was a parish club at the time. Originally you had to be a member of the parish to join, and as the years went on, the age profile of the parish increased. Right now, there are no parishioners at the club. Back in the 80s one guy – who is still a member of the club – was the first Roman Catholic,” says Bowles. It wasn’t that Epworth didn’t like Catholics, or that they had a problem with them. It’s that they had never been in a position to welcome one. “I came down from Dundrum, Co. Down, in 1983 and looked for a place to play badminton. I contacted Epworth and they asked me to come down. In my naiveté, I came down to the club and played, I sorta said ‘is that ok?’ and they said ‘oh no, this has to go through the church committee.’ It was only then I thought there was an issue,” says Eoin Flynn, the first Catholic to join. “It was a bit different to what I was used to. I seemed to open the flood gates with all sorts of religions coming to join,” says Flynn. Flynn played with David’s father – the late Philip Bowles – who was also club champion. It

wasn’t until the 90s that the club and church got a modern revamp, making it a more social club. Welcoming people from all parts of Dublin, it’s not the biggest club in the world, but it still attracts a strong following and has a team of dedicated players – most of whom come from outside Sandymount. “There’s a mixture of people who play at Epworth. There’s a

lot of Malaysians who would be Muslims. We also had a couple of Catholic nuns play in the club so, obviously things have changed a lot. There are a few younger people who have shown an interest,” says Bowles. From June to September people can participate in Epworth’s Summer club, which costs a small fee. Email: epworth@eircom.net for more information.

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By Ruadhán Mac Aodháin lanna Gael senior team have recorded one win, one loss and one draw in the championship. Their win against high-flying Setanta was an epic battle with the Fontenoy lads showing true grit and determination to nose in front at the end – and stay there. All now rests with their final two matches away to both Faughs and Commercials to determine the knockout stages. In the league their latest exploits saw them snatch a draw in the dying moments away to Ballyboden. Junior Hurlers, having unearthed a few early retirees from the Ringsend area, are enjoying a blossoming period and their recent win over Faughs at the Clubhouse suggests that it won’t be long until some of these guys are knocking on the first team door. Inter-footballers, after a shaky start to the league, recorded a great victory over St Olafs to get their campaign up and running. In the first round of the Championship they easily accounted for St

The Fontenoy Files True grit shown by Senior Hurlers

Margarets in O’Toole Park and eagerly await the next round. The return of Ricky Joyce after a 15 month exile in Van Diemen’s Land has lifted the spirits.

Calafort Átha Cliath

Dublin Port Company Port Centre, Alexandra Road, Dublin 1. Telephone: 887 6000, 855 0888 Fax: 855 7400 Web: www.dublinport.ie

All things seem possible in the month of May for Clanns underage teams as our U16s football team reached a championship final against St Patricks of Donabate after a commanding semi-final performance defeating St Maurs: 2-16 to 2-7. It’s six wins out of six and joint top of Division 4 spot for the U-13 hurlers. They recorded their most comprehensive win of the season with an emphatic away victory over St Vincents. Controlling the game from the outset, Clanns got into their scoring stride to register some really fine points after very good passages of passing play. The scoring spree continued into the second half, this time with goals coming as well as points. Every one of the 14 players contributed well to the performance, with Colm O’Keefe playing his best game yet in a Clanns jersey. The team was also helped in no small way by the valued contribution from a few of the U-12 squad, Conor Hennessy and Seamus McCann, whose hurling skills are a match for the best. St Vincents 1-2 Clanna Gael Fontenoy 5-14. The team’s good form continued with a follow-up home win over St Finians from Swords. Once again,

Clanns managed to wrestle early control of the game and actually kept their visitors scoreless for the first half while clocking up 1-5. Finians presented a stronger challenge in the second half and managed to hit the back of the net twice. But it still wasn’t enough to catch the Clanns boys, who added a couple more goals and points to their tally. Once again, the team was considerably reinforced by three of the U-12 squad – Colm O’Briain, Karl Morgan and Seamus McCann – all of whom played particularly well, along with Cian O’Regan, Des Duggan and Conor Rimmer. Clanna Gael Fontenoy 3-7 St Finians 2-0. In recent weeks the U8s have played Kilmacud Crokes and Lucan Sarsfields in football and Good Counsel in hurling. We continue to get good numbers – fielding three football teams and two hurling.

NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013 The most challenging games were those against Lucan Sarsfields who appeared to have strength in numbers (they have six teams in total). It was also apparent that they had done some extra work – especially in relation to tackling – and they proved to be formidable opponents. Notwithstanding this, the Clanns lads stood up manfully to the challenge even on a bank holiday weekend! The games against Kilmacud Crokes were more even – meeting three of the nine teams that Crokes have at this age group. (A complimentary text was received after this away game thanking our parents/coaches for staying on to clear up the pitches after the matches). The hurling team made a great account of themselves against a traditionally tough Good Counsel team. Even playing against a very hairylooking U-8 keeper who stopped nearly everything that came his way, Clanns proved too strong for their opponents and enjoyed the majority of possession. Commitment and fearless determination, which cannot be taught, was shown in this match as in all games this year. Finally, Clanna Gael says goodbye to our popular and committed Games Development Officer, Jonney Sadlier, who has recently departed for New Zealand. Clanns are forever grateful to Jonney for developing our underage teams and youth structure, which have made substantial progress over the past number of years in a highly competitive environment. We wish Jonney the best of luck and hope to see him again soon. P i c t u re d a b o v e : C l a n na Gael Fontenoy U16 v St Maurs. Below: Adult Hurlers.

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STADE FRANçAIS COMES TO SANDYMOUNT HOTEL!

By Aideen Donnelly Muscular Gallic rugby hunks in bright pink shorts were de riguer as Stade Français based themselves in Sandymount for their Amlin Rugby Final clash with Leinster in the RDS Arena. Sadly, for the visitors, it was “Bon Voyage” as they suffered defeat to an in-form Leinster Team who had a point to prove, having missed out on this year’s Heineken Cup playoffs. The pride of Paris and their supporters brought a splash of colour to Sandymount Hotel, and passed off their defeat in good spirits as they partied well into Friday night staying for Saturday’s all French Heineken Cup Final clash of Clermont Auvergne and Toulon. They posed for farewell photos at the infamous “Sandymount Lineout” rugby sculpture before their return to France. “Au Revoir, À Bientôt”!

New Club President for Monkstown Football Club

ocal Sandymount resident Gerry Hegarty, left, has been elected President of Monkstown Football Club for the 2013/2014 Season. The former Irish Army officer will be the 81st president in the club’s 130 year history. “I consider it a very special honour to have been asked to be President. Monkstown FC is one of the oldest rugby clubs in Ireland. It was founded in 1883 and originally located in Monkstown in South County Dublin. However, the club moved to its current location between Sydney Parade and Park Avenue in 1901 and has been playing rugby in Sandymount ever since. We are ambitious to make next season – our 130th anniversary – a memorable one on the playing fields. We have a new coach in place and are actively recruiting new players, locally and from further afield. “I would welcome new players and would particularly like to see ex-members who live in the area returning to the club. Next season, we will be making a special effort, with mini rugby and building on the success of our under-16 squad last year. “I would love to see more people from Sandymount, Irishtown, Ringsend and Donnybrook at our games each weekend. I can guarantee a warm welcome and that you will enjoy your rugby here. “I am proud of Monkstown FC and its long association with Sandymount. It has a lovely grounds and a very welcoming, convivial club house – an ideal place to watch an international match or a Leinster game on one of the big screens if you haven’t a ticket.” http://www.monkstownfc.ie/

Pictured above are Railway Union Ladies Tennis Team, who were Class 3 of the Dublin Tennis League in April.

Railway Union is a unique multi-sports club situated in Park Avenue. The following is a summary of what we offer:

RAILWAY UNION SUMMER CAMP FOR KIDS

By Kirstin Smith ailway Union RFC, in conjunction with Leinster Rugby, will host a Summer Camp from 1st to 5th July in Railway in Park Avenue, Sandymount. This camp is aimed at players (male and female) aged between 6 and 12 and costs €89 for the ﬁrst child with subsequent children costing only €80. Camp places are available for boys and girls from 6 to 12 years of age

and to facilitate the appropriate attention, participants are divided by their age into six groups. The camp introduces rugby in a safe and controlled manner and is run by fully accredited IRFU and Railway coaches. Children who participate in the camps get the chance to make new friends, see the Heineken Cup, meet Leinster players, learn more about rugby values such as team work, commitment and integrity, and also become more aware of the importance of physical ﬁtness. All this while learning to develop the basic

rugby skills of passing, tackling (in a controlled environment), evasion and kicking. Most of all we guarantee lots of fun! The camp takes place from Monday to Friday inclusive between 9.30am and 1.30pm. Each participant will receive an Ofﬁcial Canterbury of New Zealand Rugby Pack (t-shirt, ball, boot bag and water bottle). For further details, go to www. railwayunionrfc.com/summercamp or email teammanager@ railwayunionrfc.com

A newly refurbished bar – Pavilion members always welcome (Sub €30). Tennis – ﬁve grass courts and ﬁve new all-weather courts. Hockey – a state of the art AstroTurf Hockey pitch. A Rugby Pitch – both ladies and mens teams and tag rugby. Two Soccer Pitches – a thriving boys section. Cricket Crease – one of the leading cricket teams in the country. Both mens and ladies. Bowling Green – a thriving club for all ages Bridge – every Monday at 7.30pm. All members of the family catered for. AstroTurf pitch available for hiring Facilities available for corporate and private functions. For further information contact Martin at 087 2331430 (martincowley@utvinternet.com)

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NEWSFOUR JUNE / JULY 2013