Charles Haughey

Houdini, the Teflon Taoiseach and the Polytetrafluoroethylene Prime Minister…

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man in black and white shirt painting

So following an apparent pyrrhic victory in the party confidence ballot and notwithstanding the damning conclusions of the long-awaited “FINDINGS OF SECOND PERMANENT SECRETARY’S INVESTIGATION INTO ALLEGED GATHERINGS ON GOVERNMENT PREMISES DURING COVID RESTRICTIONS” (better known as the Sue Gray report) Boris Johnson lives to fight another day. Partygate is simply the most serious in a long line of scandals which have dogged Johnson over the years. His alleged part in unlawfully promoting the business interests of ex-girlfriend Jennifer Arcuri …

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Your lockdown political documentary/film recommendations

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A few weeks ago I did this segment with William Crawley on Talkback but a few of you have been in touch with me to ask for a written copy.Here you go. The Killing Season-The Killing Season is a 2015 Australian television three-part documentary series which analyses the events of the Rudd–Gillard Government of 2007–2013, a turbulent period of Australian political history. You don’t need to have a great knowledge of Australian politics to watch this. Labour-The Wilderness Years which …

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In Government or howling at the moon? Coalition politics in Ireland

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We are fast approaching the next Irish general election and this one is likely to be a real squeaker in terms of which combinations win enough seats to form a stable government. The latest polls show us a couple of things; Fine Gael (unless they fight a terrible campaign) will be the largest party. Sinn Fein will come third. The local elections showed the trend towards the party and it is very unlikely at this stage that Labour will over …

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What is Sinn Fein’s path to victory next year in the Irish general election?

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Jonny’s post about when Enda Kenny might call the election got me thinking about just how the next election might pan out for each of the parties. The next election is such a hard one to call as the old certainties have gone out the window. Not since 1926 have there been so many unknown variables in the contest that could impact the outcome. The rise of Sinn Fein as a serious force in Irish politics has thrown everything up …

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Dan McGinn on #Charlie: Dynasty on the Liffey

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Last night the first in a three part mini series on RTE about former Taoiseach Charles Haughey hit the screens. Local film critic, Dan McGinn, reviewed part one for Slugger In 2006 when Charles Haughey passed away, the former Irish Times journalist turned popular broadcaster Henry Kelly went apoplectic in the Daily Telegraph about the former Taoiseach being accorded a state funeral. The former ‘Game for A Laugh’ and ‘Going for Gold’ host wrote: “Charles Haughey exemplified all that was, …

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Charlie: Remembering the Haughey era

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Two reasons I bring this up now, the first is the annoucement of the Charlie drama which will be hitting RTE on 4th January 2015. and second, today is the 35th anniversary of the election of Charles Haughey as Fianna Fail leader. For any of you not familiar with Irish history, Haughey beat his long time rival George Colley with 44 votes-38. His win a huge shock to the senior figures in the party, all but two of the cabinet …

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Memories of 1982, a strange year

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According to what’s appeared in the papers, the archives of 1982 have produced few surprises.  Perhaps Wally Kirwan’s suggestion of cross border internment put (safely) to Garret FitzGerald comes close but it was never going to happen.  The two governments had allowed themselves to be pushed apart by the 1981 hunger strike and a key initiative had been handed to the IRA and Sinn Fein for years. I missed  an early chance of enlightenment. After snatching a TV interview with …

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An English Guinness?

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This time of year is always interesting for the release of state papers under the thirty year rule. The release of these papers bring fresh light on a period of our past and often reveal tensions we thought were there as well as unearthing stories we didn’t even expect.The one story that struck me and made the front page of the Newsletter was the fact that the Guinness family considered moving the brand from Dublin to their English base. The …

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Austerity in two halves: #Budget2012

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Early next week will finally see the introduction of #Budget2012 to the Dáil, in a novel format with two speeches, one by Brendan Howlin on Monday and one by Michael Noonan on Tuesday. The budget has been heavily trailed, with endless kite-flying over the last few weeks. A brief guide to (some) of the proposed changes was given by Caroline Madden in the Irish Times last Monday. For ease of reference, most of the main suggested budgetary changes are given below. It will be interesting to compare the …

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Taoiseach’s speech: An end to ‘Never explain, never apologise’?

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The papers are full of the taoiseach’s speech to the Dail yesterday. Rightly so. It was an audacious speech, and one made in stark contrast to the parliamentary mumbling and stumbling of the two previous taoisigh. And, importantly, it was a defence of thousands upon thousands of ordinary Catholics, ‘who have been shocked and dismayed by the repeated failings of church authorities to face up to what is required’. Somewhere in the Irish media in the last few days, someone …

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