Whatever your views on the monarchy and Ireland, I think we can all be united by a brief pause of mathematical surprise that HM Queen Elizabeth’s 2016 personal medal tally is precisely 50 golds, 50 silvers, and 50 bronzes. Pádraig Belton30 year old journalist thing. Buys loo roll on eBay. scribd.com/padraigbelton
Like boiling a frog… After the party’s opposition to her first truly historic official visit to Ireland, this week, on the third occasion of the Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, Sinn Fein’s forgetful Martin McGuinness, being presented to the UK Head of State, Queen Elizabeth II, the earlier pretence has finally been dropped. As Liam Clarke notes in the Belfast Telegraph In another sense, the Queen and Martin McGuinness may look back on how difficult that first meeting between them had been …
[Once more into the breach then – Ed] In yesterday’s Irish News, Patrick Murphy posited three theories to explain what he describes as “the latest dismantling of Irish political and cultural nationalism.” That would be Martin McGuinness, et al, at Windsor Castle in white tie and tails, and the GAA deal with Sky. From the Irish News The first theory suggests that the process has been largely fuelled by Britain’s determination to give political cover to the PIRA’s defeat in a …
There’s a ton of good comment on Nuzhound re Michael D’s state visit to the United Kingdom [makes a change from the single transferable column much in evidence at home this week – Ed]. It’s hard to know what to leave out of John Spain’s column for IrishCentral, so here goes: The plain people of Ireland, however, are far less impressed by all the hype about the visit. Judged by the reaction on newspaper websites and Twitter, they regard the …
H/T to Jude for pointing me at a little gem for the weekend. He starts by quoting from Mary McAleese’s address to the the Royal Edinburgh Society, and he highlights this little gem: “I don’t do that. I don’t kiss bishops’ rings, I don’t curtsey to popes and I don’t curtsey to monarchs. It is part and parcel of the make-up, the strong egalitarian sense that runs through me”. “Neither do an awful lot of us, Mary”, says Jude. But …
The DUP’s Jeffrey Donaldson, MP, and Sinn Féin’s Alex Maskey, MLA, appeared separately on UTV Live this evening to give their thoughts on the 15th anniversary of the 1998 Agreement. Apparently Alex Maskey hadn’t arrived at the studio in time for the first segment… Whether by accident, or design, it was left to presenter Seamus McKee Paul Clark to ask the obvious question to Alex Maskey’s opening assertion. Here’s what the Sinn Féin MLA claimed The fundamental difference between before the …
In the Irish Times, Patrick Smyth rains on “this national parade, The Handshake-fest”. Don’t get me wrong. This is not to say that The Handshake was not a “good thing”. It was. Belatedly, 14 years after the genuinely “historic” Belfast Agreement was signed, marking not only Sinn Féin’s renunciation of coercion as a means of uniting Ireland but also, crucially, a new set of relationships on and between these islands, the party takes another incremental step down that road. Masters …
There’s been a bit of a political kerfuffle in Wales over the forthcoming ‘historic’ meeting between the Northern Ireland deputy First Minister, Sinn Féin’s Martin McGuinness, and the Queen as she tours the UK to mark her Diamond Jubilee. [Mark Devenport is on tour?! – Ed] No, he’s not the Queen. As the BBC reports A Plaid Cymru Assembly Member is taking a break from Twitter after describing Sinn Fein’s Martin McGuinness as “naive” for agreeing to meet the Queen. Apparently, …
Where Mick treads softly [always stepping on someone’s dreams! – Ed], Alex Kane rips the PR plaster off. [Mixed metaphors much? – Ed] ANYhoo… from the News Letter article Let’s be blunt about this: Martin McGuinness didn’t join the IRA and become the de facto commander-in-chief of the army council just to end up at a function in which he will be ‘presented’ to Her Majesty during a tour of her United Kingdom! But the meeting between McGuinness and the Queen …
For a unionist to admit to being less than a wholehearted monarchist is often difficult, especially so during the 60th jubilee. Alex Kane, a unionist and open republican, has a very good analysis during which he almost becomes a pragmatic monarchist. It is worth reading in totality but his main argument centres around the stability the monarchy under the present Queen has helped provide. I have mentioned before that not all unionists are wholly supportive of the monarchy. Personally I …
Despite sitting in a Northern Ireland Assembly that requires Royal Assent to enact any legislation passed, the NI deputy First Minister, Sinn Féin’s John O’Dowd, has told the BBC that he would not be prepared to meet the UK Head of State (Queen Elizabeth II). From the BBC report [John O’Dowd] “There are a number of issues which need to be resolved before such a scenario would arise, including from a republican point of view, we were meeting a family …
In contrast to John’s northern cynicism, in the Irish Times Fintan O’Toole is optimism personified on the impact of the visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Ireland [Keep the noise down in the attic, please – Ed]. Indeed. From the Irish Times article The combination of all of these factors made the visit an oddly liberating occasion. No one would have thought that the British queen could free Ireland, but she did help to free us from the crippling insecurities of …
The Sinn Féin mayor of Cashel Town Council, Michael Browne, has been writing his own “next page” by officially greeting Queen Elizabeth II to the Rock of Cashel – to his party’s apparent surprise. He did signal his endorsement of the visit beforehand. As the Irish Independent reports Mr Browne said he had made his position clear on the queen’s visit weeks beforehand. The 63-year-old had said he would welcome the queen to Cashel if the majority of the people in the …
For the historic days that are in it… A Shoilse Banríon, A Mhórgacht Ríoga, A Thaoisigh, a Phríomh-Aire, a Chéad Aire, Tánaiste, Rúnaí Gnóthaí Eachtracha agus a aíonna oirirce, fearaim céad míle fáilte romhaibh tráthnóna go Caisleán Bhaile Átha Cliath ar ócáid atá thar a bheith speisialta ar fad. Your Majesty, Your Royal Highness, Taoiseach, Prime Minister, First Minister, Tanaiste, Foreign Secretary, Distinguished Guests: It is my pleasure to welcome you to Dublin Castle this evening on this the first …
While much of the media attention on Republican protest at the British Royal visit to the 26 counties has focused on éirígí, they were not the only group on the streets with the RNU, 32CSM and RSF also calling for mobilisations. The tiny numbers that turned out after these calls demonstrates the irrelevance militant republicanism continues to have in the lives of the majority in 21st Century Ireland. SF could have driven a larger protest but decided to opt for …
UPDATE – video of the ‘execution’: It has variously been described as tasteless, juvenile, pathetic, street theatre and much more – tomorrow éirígí intend to chop Elizabeth Windsor’s head off in the centre of Dublin. Blank
Both Buckingham Palace and the President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, have announced the itinerary for the State visit of Queen Elizabeth II to Ireland, from Tuesday 17th to Friday 20th May. The first by a UK monarch since 1911. The programme will include a formal welcome by President McAleese at áras an Uachtaráin, a ceremony at the Garden of Remembrance, a courtesy call on the Taoiseach at Government Buildings and a State dinner in Dublin Castle, at which both The Queen and …
Another post possibly related to the point Mick was making… As the BBC notes US President Barack Obama will not cross the border into Northern Ireland when he visits the Republic of Ireland, the Irish prime minister has said. From the breakingnews.ie report The Government is gearing up for the historic May visit after President Obama announced on St Patrick’s Day that he wanted to return to his roots in Moneygall, Co Offaly. But the Taoiseach said that under diplomatic rules …
The BBC reports confirmation from Buckingham Palace that Queen Elizabeth II has accepted the invitation from Irish President, Mary McAleese, to visit Ireland later this year. Despite the objections from some… The iol report has the quotes from President McAleese In a statement, the office of President Mary McAleese said the timing of the visit would be confirmed at a later date. “President McAleese is pleased to announce that Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II has accepted an invitation to visit …
Via Newshound. In the Sunday Times Liam Clarke picked up on the reaction by the Sinn Féin president, and still Crown Steward and Bailiff of Northstead, Gerard Adams to the recent reports of a possible visit to Ireland by Queen Elizabeth II later this year. Here’s the An Phoblacht report of that reaction I don’t think the queen should come. There are hugely unresolved matters in terms of the British still claiming jurisdiction even though in terms of the Good Friday …
