Ciaran Ward

In the 2010s we had a decade of centenaries marking key events in Irish history such as the War of Independence, the Home Rule debacle, the Easter Rising, and the 1918 elections – followed in the 2020s by a decade of half centenaries more specifically focused on the North. As the current decade approached, we commemorated half a century since the conflict, euphemistically known as “the troubles,” began. But as 2024 draws to a close, the events of 1974 spring …

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Although not exactly hot off the press, as the fine was announced back in early October, but what has been described by the independent review “Protecting from Within” as: the most significant data breach that has ever occurred in the history of UK policing, not only because of the nature and volume of the political history and context that sets the backdrop of contemporary policing in Northern Ireland and therefore the actual, or perceived, threats towards officers, staff and communities …

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  Tom Joad and Me is the debut novel from veteran comedian, poet, playwright, occasional actor and Cookstown native Owen O’Neill. Set in the early to mid-1970s the novel is narrated by young Emmett McCrudden who flees his violent alcoholic father and the onset of sectarian conflict in the small Tyrone town of Carricktown to re-invent himself in London. Inspired by the hero of John Steinbeck’s classic novel The Grapes of Wrath set in depression-era America, he adopts the alias …

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I was intrigued to find a recent feature in the Metro newspaper promoting tourism in Northern Ireland. ‘Awe-inspiring’ UK destination full of natural beauty spots with flights from £30 | Metro News For those unfamiliar with this publication it’s a free daily paper available from public transport hubs throughout England Scotland and Wales. Its local claim to fame was when the DUP took out a controversial double front and back page ad endorsing the leave vote in the EU referendum. …

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With the winter solstice and shortest day of the year rapidly approaching it’s worth remembering the old traditions which predate any concept of Catholicism, Protestantism, Judaism, Islam, unionism or nationalism – specifically neolithic (meaning literally “new stone”) stone circles and other prehistoric constructions which were built specifically to align with the rising or setting sun on solstice day. You can watch a live stream broadcast of the solar alignment from possibly Ireland’s best-known megalithic site, Newgrange, on 21st December. The …

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Hot on the heels of the major data breach in August of this year when thousands of officers’ personal information was accidentally leaked via a spreadsheet, the PSNI has once again found itself on the naughty step and received a slap on the wrist from the Information Commissioner following revelations of personal information having been unlawfully shared by the PSNI’s Extradition Unit (EU) with the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Information on 174 individuals was apparently routinely shared …

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In over 100 years of its existence, the Irish state is no stranger to scandal. Such incidents in the past have mostly involved politicians, businessmen/women, priests or bishops. But now we have the unprecedented situation of the national broadcaster at the centre of the latest outrage. Although not totally unprecedented if you take into account the incident in 1972 when journalist Kevin O’Kelly attempted to circumvent the broadcasting ban on members of outlawed paramilitary groups from the airwaves by interviewing …

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Is it mere coincidence that two former political leaders on either side of the Atlantic, both big, blonde and boisterous find themselves on the naughty step at the same time? And in a further coincidence, another former populist leader has just exited the stage for good. Silvio Berlusconi – an outspoken, controversial business tycoon who became premier of Italy arguably paved the way for the Trump presidency. So both Trump and Johnson see themselves as victims of witch hunts and …

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Events of the past two years have demonstrated that thanks to modern technology and the increasingly individualistic nature of modern western society it’s now perfectly possible, especially if you live in an urban area to go for days and even weeks on end without any meaningful contact with other human beings. We can do our supermarket shopping online and have the groceries delivered to our door by an anonymous delivery driver on a zero contract. In fact we can now …

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