Irish Seisiún Newsletter
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there.
This Week’s Session 1
All the best,
Thanks to Bob for the photos below
Special Treat
Tommy Mac playing another tune
at St. Stephan’s Green
in Spring Lake N.J.
several years ago.
Click here to watch
Find out what’s happening at Tim Finnegan’s this month.
.
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Finnegan’s supports us…Let’s support them!
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“That’s How I Spell Ireland”
Saturdays at 7 to 8 PM EST.
You can listen on 88.7FM or WRHU.org.
For a request please text me on 917 699-4768.Kevin and Joan Westley
Note: Show will be preempted whenever the NY Islanders have a Saturday game
Old Ireland
Recent Mail
Travel in Ireland
FAVOURITE PLACES IN IRELAND
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Newgrange, County Meath. (Irish Language
Tír gan Teanga, Tír gan Anam:
A land without a language is a land without a soul.
Submitted by our own
Anita
Free Irish Classes
The classes are over zoom and are held at 12:00 eastern time the 1 st Sunday of every month.
It is basic conversational Irish and open to learners of all ages, especially beginners.
All are invited.
Hope to see you there!
slan go foill. Le dea ghui,
Anita
click here to register
Travel Quiz
Last one
here is the answer from last week
Last week’s answer
Shellig Michael
This week’s Irish Recipe
Irish country green spring soup recipe
Get your healthy hearty eating on with “The Best of Irish County Cooking.”
Nuala Cullen’s book “The Best of Irish Country Cooking” showcases the best of Ireland’s rural heritage and favorite ingredients with 100 modern recipes from home.
Nuala Cullen is an accomplished Irish culinary writer and historian, and her new book is filled with mouthwatering, user-friendly recipes, seasonal cooking suggestions, festive Irish traditions, and gorgeous scenes of Ireland’s unspoiled landscapes.
Give yourself a boost with this green soup using the early shoots of nutrient-rich herbs. You can vary the ingredients based on what you can forage or find at your local grocery store or farmers’ market.
Spring green soup recipe
Serves 6
Ingredients
- A large handful of sorrel leaves
- A large handful of spinach
- A handful of young nettles or dandelion greens
- heart of a small green cabbage
- 4 tablespoons/55 g butter
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- chopped fresh thyme
- 2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 1¼ cups/1 liter chicken stock, or milk and water
- generous ½ cup/150 ml cream
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
- Wash all the leaves thoroughly in salted water, removing any coarse stalks or ribs. Keep the nettles separate. Prepare the cabbage in the same way, shake dry, and finely chop.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan and gently sweat the onions, garlic, spinach, cabbage, sorrel, and thyme. Add the potatoes and the stock or milk and water, and simmer until the potatoes are soft. Then add the nettles or dandelion greens and cook until they are tender, about 30 minutes.
- Purée the soup, add the cream, adjust the seasoning, and serve.
“The Best of Irish Country Cooking: Traditional and Contemporary Recipes” by Nuala Cullen. Published by Interlink Books, an imprint of Interlink Publishing Group, Inc.
*Originally published in Aug 2016. Updated in June 2026.
Poem of the Week
Summer has Come
by Finn mac Cool
The photo above is an AI-generated analysis of this poem….
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Summer has come, healthy and free,
Whence the brown wood is aslope;
The slender nimble deer leap,
And the path of seals is smooth.
The cuckoo sings sweet music,
Whence there is smooth restful sleep;
Gentle birds leap upon the hill,
And swift grey stags.
Heat has laid hold of the rest of the deer-
The lovely cry of curly packs!
The white extent of the strand smiles,
There the swift sea is.
A sound of playful breezes in the tops
Of a black oakwood is Druim Daill,
The noble hornless herd runs,
To whom Cuan-wood is a shelter.
Green bursts out on every herb,
The top of the green oakwood is bushy,
Summer has come, winter has gone,
Twisted hollies wound the hound.
The blackbird sings a loud strain,
To him the live wood is a heritage,
The sad angry sea is fallen asleep,
The speckled salmon leaps.
The sun smiles over every land,
A parting for me from the brood of cares:
Hounds bark, stags tryst,
Ravens flourish, summer has come!
Stories and Tales
Another special musical treat
Click below to view and click the speaker for sound
When done, click “back arrow” to return here.
Céad Míle Fáilte, and welcome to your Letter from Ireland for this week.
Here we are at the longest day of the year across Ireland, and a beautiful one it is shaping up to be! How are things in your part of the world today?
I want to begin today not by sharing an Irish record or the image of a cottage ruin, but with a woman in a chair by the fire in the kitchen. I’m having a cup of Lyons’ tea as I share her story, and I hope you will join me with a cup of whatever you fancy yourself as we start into today’s letter.
Her name was Hannie May, my grand-aunt, and she lived to a great age in a small house in County Galway where the kettle was never quite off the boil. Whenever the relations gathered, Hannie May held the room. She knew everyone, and not just the living. She also knew the dead going back generations: who had married whom, which brother had gone to Boston and which had stayed on the land, the maiden name of a great-grandmother nobody else could place. She was, though none of us ever called her this, our family’s own seanchaí (pronounced “SHAN-a-key”), the keeper of the old stories.
I was a boy back then, half-listening, and far more interested in the biscuit tin than any stories about the “old days”. I now wish I had the opportunity to drop back to that time with a notebook in hand, listening as she connected the people and places of the surrounding townlands and villages through her stories. Hannie May slipped away one winter, and the best part of a century of memories went along with her.
Now, I suspect you may be reading this with a familiar nod, as most of us do not come to family history until we are older ourselves. The interest arrives in our forties, fifties, sixties, our seventies, once the children are reared and there is finally time to wonder where we all came from. But by then, more often than not, the Hannie Mays of our families are already gone. The aunt who knew, the grandmother who remembered, the old neighbour who could place every family in the parish, have slipped away while we were too busy living to take an interest.
If you recognise this situation, then you are in plentiful company, but what’s gone is gone. Today, I want to share with you something that few people realise, and something that offers us a glimmer of hope.
The keeper of your family’s stories may not be gone at all, they may simply be somewhere you have never thought to look. Back in Ireland, in the very place your people left.
Most reading this letter are not in Ireland – you might be in Boston or Brisbane, in Toronto or Birmingham, several generations removed from the townland your family travelled from many years ago. And it is easy for you to assume that when your own elders passed, the door closed for good. But in Ireland, in the home place, that door is very often still open.
You see, as Carina and myself journeyed around Ireland over the last twelve years, we have never failed to connect with someone in every location who acts as the local “Hannie May” of the area. In so many Irish parishes there is still someone who remembers the family that left.
Sometimes it’s the neighbour whose fields bordered theirs, or a cousin of a cousin who stayed on the land. The woman who has lived in the one village her whole life and knows every family that ever emigrated and precisely where they went. Or maybe a man at the end of the bar who will tell you, without drawing breath, that your people were over the hill there, and sure didn’t two of them go out to America in the hungry years. These are the keepers of the old stories in the locale, and they hold facts that no record ever will: why the family left, what the house was like, which fields were theirs, who they loved, and what became of the ones who stayed behind.
If you are lucky enough to be planning a trip to Ireland, here is my best advice to you. Build in the time to find that person. The cliffs and the castles will keep you entertained, but finding the keeper of your story is the real journey.
Finding them is often easier than you might think. Here are a few good places to begin:
The parish. The priest might be your first thought, however, most priests have moved into the area from somewhere else. But in the parish office you will often find whoever keeps the church and tends the graveyard, someone who knows who the old families are and how they are connected.
The local pub, the shop, the post office. Ask, simply, who knows the families that went away. You will often be pointed towards the oldest person in the area and they may be delighted to have a chance to share their knowledge.
The local history society or heritage centre. Nearly every county has one, and they are made up of exactly the people you are looking for, so do drop in and say hello. You can find a list of all of the local Heritage centres here.
The neighbours. Knock on the door of the farm nearest your ancestral townland. Irish neighbours often stayed put for generations, and they remember, or they will point you in the right direction.
The Ireland Reaching Out organisation do a fine job of connecting you with local volunteers in your ancestral area.
Also, you do not wait until you are standing in the parish to begin. A letter or an email ahead of time, to a local history society or a parish office, can have someone lined up and delighted to meet you before you ever step off the plane. However, sometimes we find that Irish people don’t always respond as well as you might hope to advanced appointments and emails. Take the chance and drop in on them when you arrive, and you will often be provided with an unexpected adventure for the day.
When you do sit down with them, whether it is a relative abroad or a neighbour back home, have a few questions ready in your back pocket, for the best things often arrive sideways:
Do you remember the family that left, and which house or townland was theirs?
Who went away, and who stayed? Did any of them ever come back?
Why did they go, do you think? And how did they fare after?
Is there a story about that family that people round here still tell?
Whatever you do, record it. Ask their blessing first, then simply let your phone record. It is not only the facts you will treasure later, but also the voice, the accent, how an old neighbour might pronounce the name of your townland. The words can be written down, but the voice not so easily.
I have heard of so many readers and Green Room members that have connected with their own “Hannie May” by taking the above approach, it may even work for you.
So, let me leave you with one question this week. Who was the “Hannie May” in your family, the one person you would give anything to sit down with now, with a fresh pot of tea and a free afternoon?
Just let us know their name, who they were to you, and the one thing you wish you had asked them. That’s plenty.
Slán for now,
Mike
Will You Keep This Letter Going?
Your Letter from Ireland is entirely reader-supported. There’s no large publisher behind us – just Carina and me here in Ireland, a few cups of tea, and a deep commitment to sharing the stories, customs, and history that bring Irish family life to light each week.
A small number of readers choose to become Letter from Ireland Plus supporters. Their support allows us to keep the weekly letter free for everyone, while continuing to research and share the deeper context behind Irish family history.
If these letters matter to you, if they’ve become part of your week, please consider becoming a Plus supporter.
It costs little more than a weekly cup of tea, yet it makes a real and lasting difference.
With sincere thanks,
Mike & Carina
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Brendan Behan’s “Confessions of an Irish Rebel”
A look at the manuscripts, edits, and final version of Brendan Behan’s “Confession of an Irish Rebel” that are housed in the American Irish Historical Society’s collections.
Editor’s Note: The following piece has been shared with IrishCentral from the American Irish Historical Society’s (AIHS) Treasures of Time, stories from the collections and archives of the American Irish Historical Society in New York City.
This article is a shortened version of a longer paper that can be found in the AIHS journal of undergraduate research, An Cartlann Gael-Mheiriceánach. This paper was created by an AIHS intern during a semester-long research project.
In New York, Brendan Behan is often remembered as a playwright with a reputation for drink, as well as for his earlier involvement with the Irish Republican Army. That reputation traces back to a series of events that began in 1939, when, at just sixteen, he was arrested in Liverpool carrying explosives for the I.R.A. and charged under the Prevention of Violence Act. He was sentenced to three years in a Borstal institution, a form of detention intended for young offenders, and released in 1941 on the condition that he be deported to Ireland. Within six months, he was arrested again in Dublin after firing on police officers. He was sentenced to fourteen years of penal servitude, of which he served roughly four before being released under a general amnesty. In 1947, he was arrested once more after returning to Britain on a forged passport in violation of his expulsion order, and served an additional four months in prison.
Behan drew extensively on his experiences in prison in his literary works, many of which appeared only after his death in 1964. “Confessions of an Irish Rebel” (1965), an autobiographical sequel to his earlier “Borstal Boy” (1958), is among these published posthumously. It is a “talk book,” dictated onto tape in 1963 when illness had rendered him unable to write. His editor Rae Jeffs, who had worked closely with Behan throughout his later career, transcribed and edited the tapes before preparing it for publication following his death.
In the American Irish Historical Society’s collections, multiple editions of the manuscript survive alongside successive rounds of editorial shaping by Jeffs, and finally, the version prepared for publication.
At every remove, something of Behan’s actual voice is necessarily lost or transformed; Jeffs’ posthumous edits shape Behan’s words into the form in which the world received them. Thus the book does not proceed directly and unmediated from Brendan Behan. It is, constitutively, a joint production, and the reader of the manuscript is watching a collaboration in progress, following the moment at which his voice and her editorial judgment meet and negotiate.
At the onset, Rae Jeffs provides an account of how Behan constructed himself before public appearances. He “would assume a completely different personality” since “he felt he had to live up to his reputation as the tough I.R.A. rebel, the man who would assault not only others, but himself as well, rather than conform.” The physical symptoms she catalogues, “beads of perspiration would break out on his forehead, and he would be cruel, abusive and arrogant,” register as signs of performance anxiety. Jeffs effectively introduces the dichotomous nature of Behan’s identity as an interpretive framework, foregrounding the structural gap between internal and external selfhood that his biography repeatedly instantiates.
As such, while confession as a form promises the dissolution of distance between performed and felt selfhood, Jeffs establishes, before the confession begins, that such dissolution was for Behan physiologically unavailable in public. The book is therefore structured around a paradox: it is a confession composed by a man who performed even his confessing. Rather than treating this as a failure of the form, it can be understood as the condition that gives the text its analytical interest and political force.
What follows takes this paradox as a point of departure, tracing a series of moments in “Confessions of an Irish Rebel” in which Behan’s confessional voice moves between private reflection and public performance, and reading these moments as sites where that division is most fully articulated.
The courtroom scene offers a concentrated image of the structural gap between private voice and public performance. Behan explains that the statement he delivers to the court is recycled from a previous appearance, so its effect is already known to him. The passage opens, however, with something that cuts directly against that performance. “I reflected on the sadness of Irishman fighting Irishman or indeed I’m ashamed even to say now of men fighting men or men fighting women or women fighting women anywhere because I suppose at heart I’m a pacifist.” Within the same scene, Behan shouts “Up the Republic” across the courtroom. The private voice, reflective and admitting to pacifism and sadness, and the public voice, performative and defiant, do not cancel each other out or resolve into a synthesis. Behan understands the difference between what he feels and what he performs, and he chooses to perform nonetheless. The confession resides in the space between these two registers rather than in either one alone.
The following passage, a reflection on the Nuremberg trials, contains two distinct Behans: the one in the prison cell in 1946 and the one speaking into Rae Jeffs’ tape recorder in 1963. The confession takes place as the later Behan holds the earlier one to account, recalling a moment when he believed in capital punishment “even for a woman.” He admits that “I’m not very proud of these sentiments today.” The earlier self is preserved in the text without revision or erasure, while the later self stands beside it in dissent. This temporal doubling is made possible in a particular way by the mediated and collaborative nature of the text. The 1963 voice is recorded, transcribed, and edited by Jeffs, and then published after Behan’s death. By the time the reader encounters it, the dissenting present self has itself become historical. The confession thus becomes a dialogue across time, and that dialogue remains unresolved because both selves are preserved in the record, equally present and equally irreconcilable.
This final passage functions as a defense against a specific charge and as a retrospective theorization of the confessional project as a whole. Behan has been accused of ridiculing his faith and his fatherland. He contests the accusation regarding faith, but on the question of the fatherland he replies that “the first duty of a writer is to let his father land down, otherwise he is no writer.” He continues, “How the hell can a writer attack anyone else’s father land if he doesn’t attack his own?” In Behan’s articulation, the willingness to subject one’s own nation to critical scrutiny is a precondition of political credibility.
This claim gives the confessional mode of the book a retrospective coherence. Read in isolation, many of its moments of self-exposure might appear to be unguarded revelations produced under conditions in which Behan’s capacity for self-management had been diminished by illness. The closing passage reframes them, making each act of self-exposure an assertion of political integrity. The confession of Ireland’s contradictions and of Irish nationalism, given his own personal affiliation, is what authorizes Behan to speak beyond it. The same goes for himself; he critiques himself in order to speak beyond himself.
The mediated and collaborative nature of the text, established through the archival conditions of its production, reinforces this interpretation. A work dictated onto tape, transcribed and edited by another hand, and published posthumously cannot claim the kind of sovereign authorial coherence that might sustain a more conventional confessional narrative. Instead, “Confessions of an Irish Rebel” is a self-aware performance of the impossibility of unperformed selfhood, and Behan turns that impossibility into a sustained argument about the conditions of political voice.
*Ella Rose is an archives intern at the American Irish Historical Society and an Honors History and Politics student at NYU. Her research focuses on Irish political identity, diaspora communities, and state formation.
This column is adapted from the blog of the American Irish Historical Society (AIHS). Read the full stories at AIHSNY.org/blog.
Founded in 1897 and located on Museum Mile in New York City, the American Irish Historical Society (AIHS) preserves and promotes the history and cultural legacy of the Irish in America through its archives, art collections, and public programs. Learn more at AIHSNY.org.
James Joyce and Marcel Proust’s one and only meeting
was pure literary chaos
At a star-studded Paris dinner in 1922, two of literature’s greatest minds finally met and barely managed a conversation.
James Joyce and Marcel Proust are remembered as towering innovators of 20th-century fiction, but their only face-to-face encounter was less a meeting of geniuses than an awkward, late-night collision of temperaments. At a glittering Paris dinner attended by Picasso, Stravinsky, and other luminaries, the two writers arrived exhausted, unwell, and seemingly uninterested in one another’s work.
The Irish author James Joyce and the French author Marcel Proust are regarded as two of the titans of 20th-century literature. Though quite different in style, Joyce and Proust revolutionized the portrayal of human consciousness in literature. Joyce is best known for his ground-breaking “Ulysses” (which takes place on June 16 – Bloomsday), and Proust is best known for his multivolume novel “In Search of Lost Time” (also known as “Remembrance of Things Past”).
On May 18, 1922, Sydney and Violet Schiff, British patrons of the arts, held a dinner party attended by leading artists at the time: James Joyce, Marcel Proust, Pablo Picasso, and Igor Stravinsky.
Accounts of what happened that night differ. They do agree that by the time dinner was served (at about midnight), neither Proust nor Joyce had arrived. Sometime after coffee was served, Joyce arrived looking a little worse for wear. According to the Irish Times:
“In an obvious state of alcoholic alteration, he went straight to where the champagne was being served. He [Joyce]sat down next to Schiff and remained silent for what must have seemed an eternity. That was before he fell asleep and started snoring.”
A few hours later, Proust arrived. All accounts describe Proust as being elegantly dressed but looking pale and sickly. Interestingly, one of the accounts we rely on for this meeting of the literary titans is that of Italo Svevo, who was thought to have been the model for Leopold Bloom (the central character in “Ulysses”).
Read more
English novelist Ford Madox Ford reports that the dialogue between Proust and Joyce as follows:
“Proust: As I say, Monsieur, in Du Côté de chez Swann[the first volume of In Search of Lost Time], which without doubt you have – Joyce: No, Monsieur. (pause) Joyce: As Mr Bloom says in my Ulysses, which, Monsieur, you have doubtless read … Proust: But, no, Monsieur. (pause) Proust apologizes for his late arrival, ascribing it to malady, before going into the symptoms in some detail. Joyce: Well, Monsieur, I have almost exactly the same symptoms. Only in my case, the analysis …”
In none of the accounts of this meeting of the literary titans are there any reports of discussions of their work and what they were trying to achieve. As the evening ended, Joyce and Proust left the dinner party; dawn must have been breaking on that May morning.
Joyce reportedly did not like Proust’s In Search of Lost Time, but he was impressed with some of Proust’s earlier stories. As is the case with much of Joyce’s work, you must dive deeper to reveal the full meaning. Joyce paid Proust the ultimate compliment –mentioning him in his work. As the Irish Times reports:
“Joyce’s tribute to the him – and this is perhaps his best epitaph – is what he wrote in ‘Finnegans Wake’, recognising his colleague’s rightful claim to eternity: The Prouts who will invent a writing there ultimately is the poeta”, where Prouts (instead of Proust) is an Irish priest (Father Prout – Francis Sylvester Mahony), the author of ‘The Bells of Shandon’.”
While Joyce and Proust may not have realized or wanted to acknowledge it, they had much in common. Both men focused on the details of our daily lives, showing us that they are worth celebrating. Joyce saw the day of an ordinary Dubliner as a Homeric odyssey, and Proust saw how we can see our whole lives in a teacup. Anyone writing fiction has a debt to both Proust and Joyce, who showed us that everyone’s life provides the material for great literature.
This article was submitted to the IrishCentral contributors network by a member of the global Irish community. To become an IrishCentral contributor click here.
Giant’s Causeway formed much quicker than previously thought,
scientists discover
New research has changed the scientific understanding of Northern Ireland’s volcanic past, including the Giant’s Causeway in Co Antrim.
The distinctive columnar landscape at Giant’s Causeway in Co Antrim, Northern Ireland, was formed during intense volcanic activity, which forced molten rock up through cracks in the earth.
Thick lava flows then cooled, contracted, and cracked, creating around 40,000 basalt columns that are now internationally famous.
However, new research by the Geological Survey of Northern Ireland (GSNI) and the British Geological Survey (BGS) has revealed that the volcanic rocks of the region formed in just 5.5 million years, 8 million years less than previous estimates.
In a statement on June 15, BGS said that by uing state of the art techniques, scientists were able to reconstruct a new timeline for volcanic activity across Northern Ireland.
“It now firmly connects the Earth processes that caused the development of the Giant’s Causeway and the broader Antrim Plateau area, along with the Mourne Mountains and Slieve Gullion, to a globally significant volcanic event seen in rocks as far away as Greenland and known as the North Atlantic Igneous Province around 60 million years ago,” BGS said.
Professor Mark Cooper, GSNI Chief Geologist, commented: “The Giant’s Causeway is one of the world’s most instantly recognisable landmarks.
“For decades, it was believed the region’s volcanic activity, responsible for the Giant’s Causeway, stretched over 13.5 million years during a time period we refer to as the Paleogene.
“Our research shows that this activity was far more concentrated, with geological processes acting much faster than previously thought.
“These findings have completely changed how we understand the Northern Ireland’s place in the wider North Atlantic volcanic story.”
Dr. Simon Tapster, Geochronologist at the British Geological Survey, added: “Cutting-edge analysis has allowed us, for the first time, to place the volcanic activity that led to the formation of the Giant’s Causeway within a much more precise global context.
“It’s a remarkable reminder that the iconic 40 000 basalt columns that we can still see today in Northern Ireland can also help us to understand the globally impacting geological transformations during the Paleogene period.”
The research is part of a wider initiative at the British Geological Survey to improve the understanding of the UK’s geology through better quantifying geological time in the rocks around us.
The research paper, “Feeling the pulse? Paleogene chronostratigraphy of Northern Ireland and the north of Ireland temporally coupled to the North Atlantic Igneous Province Open Access,” is now available to read on GeoScienceWorld.
News From Ireland
Rising costs forcing pubs to cut jobs
as rural sector faces “existential threat”
The Vintners’ Federation of Ireland (VFI) will tell the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Enterprise, Tourism and Employment that escalating business costs are forcing bars to cut jobs and threatening the survival of many rural pubs.
Representing more than 3,500 publicans nationwide, the VFI will present new survey findings showing that 22% of pubs have reduced staffing levels over the past 12 months.
According to respondents, ongoing cost pressures were the primary factor behind employee cutbacks.
The federation said the trend mirrors wider challenges across the hospitality industry.
Recent Central Statistics Office data indicates that employment in the food and beverage sector fell by 15% over the past year.
In its submission, the VFI will highlight significant increases in operating costs over the last five years. Electricity bills have risen by 70%, wages have increased by 40%, while water tariffs rose by 30% in 2024 and increased by a further 10% this year.
VFI Chief Executive Pat Crotty said the figures illustrate the severe financial strain facing publicans, particularly in rural communities.
“These figures are clear evidence of the pressure pubs are under,” he said.
“Publicans are being forced to reduce staffing levels simply to keep their doors open. For many smaller and rural pubs, the current cost environment has become completely unsustainable and poses an existential threat to future viability.”
The organization’s survey also found that 65% of publicans believe rising business costs are having an unsustainable impact on their operations, while 41% reported that trading conditions are worse than they were a year ago.
Business confidence is also weakening. Almost 42% of respondents said they lack confidence in the long-term sustainability of their businesses.
Read more
The VFI will tell the committee that the challenges facing the sector extend beyond hospitality, warning that continued pub closures would have broader social and economic consequences for communities across the country.
More than 2,200 pubs have closed in Ireland since 2005, according to the federation, representing a decline of over 25% in the total number of licensed premises.
The rate of closures has accelerated in recent years, averaging 128 pubs annually.
While welcoming the restoration of the 9% VAT rate for food-led hospitality businesses, the VFI argued that the measure offers limited support to many rural pubs, noting that 64% do not serve hot food.
As part of its Budget 2027 proposals, the federation is calling for the introduction of an On-Trade Sustainability Scheme.
The proposed initiative would provide a targeted tax credit linked to verified draught product purchases, with support capped at €20,000 per premises.
* This article was originally published on BusinessPlus.ie.
Springhill Massacre families
receive formal apology from British Government
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has formally apologized to the families of the victims of the 1972 Springhill Massacre in Belfast.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has issued an apology on behalf of the UK Government in the wake of the Springhill Inquest findings, which were announced on April 30.
On July 9, 1972, five people – John Dougal (16), Father Noel Fitzpatrick (42), Patrick Butler (37), David McCafferty (15), and Margaret Gargan (13) – were shot and killed by British soldiers in the Springhill area of Belfast. Two others – Martin Dudley (19) and Brian Petticrew (17) – were seriously injured.
In the findings delivered at the Belfast Coroner’s Court, Justice Scoffield, sitting as a coroner, concluded that the five fatal shootings were carried out by soldiers acting in breach of the ‘yellow card’ rules governing the use of lethal force.
The coroner said that while four of the deceased were unarmed at the time they were shot, the same could not be determined for the fifth person who was killed.
The coroner found that, while suspicions remain regarding the activities of certain individuals prior to the shootings, none of the deceased should have been shot in the circumstances.
The coroner said he would take submissions on whether his ruling should be referred to the public prosecution service.
“The findings of the recent Springhill inquest into the tragic deaths, in July 1972, of Father Noel Fitzpatrick, Patrick Butler, Margaret Gargan, David McCafferty, and John Dougal are sobering,” Starmer said during Prime Minister’s Question Time in the UK House of Commons on Wednesday, June 3.
“While the circumstances in which the events occurred were undoubtedly challenging, it is the duty of the state to hold itself to the highest standard.
“The Government accepts and deeply regrets these findings, and recognizes their gravity.
“On behalf of the Government, I want to apologize unreservedly to the families for what happened and for the grief and trauma that they have endured since the tragic deaths of their loved ones.”
Starmer’s letter to Springhill victims’ families
The non-profit group Relatives for Justice said on social media that each of the Springhill Massacre families received a personal letter from the Prime Minister.
The group highlighted that the apology came only after “an effective and human rights inquest which rewrote and rectified the inaccurate historical record.”
In the letter to the victims’ families, Prime Minister Starmer expressed “personally how sorry I am for your loss.”
He wrote that the findings of the Springhill inquest were “clear” and that it “was not reasonable for the soldiers to fire the shots” that killed the victims on that day.
“I accept and deeply regret this finding and recognise its gravity,” he wrote. “I wish to acknowledge the terrible hurt that has been caused to you and to apologise.”
He continued: “It is the duty of the State to hold itself to the highest standards. That requires the State to acknowledge and apologise where it has fallen short. While the environment in which they were operating was extremely challenging and dangerous, nonetheless soldiers were still required to use only such force as was reasonable in the circumstances.
“I want to recognise the dignity and strength you have shown and know that no words of apology can undo what occurred or make up for the loss you have suffered.
“On behalf of the Government, I want to acknowledge the terrible hurt caused an to apologise unreservedly to you for the grief and trauma that you have endure since the tragic death of your loved one.”
Each of the Springhill Massacre families received a personal letter from the Prime Minister. This came AFTER an effective and human rights inquest which rewrote and rectified the inaccurate historical record. Having suffered egregiously for so many years this is a landmark day… pic.twitter.com/MhJo7N4dEp
— Relatives 4 Justice #NeverGivingUp (@RelsForJustice) June 3, 2026
“A necessary part of achieving truth and justice”
Pádraig Ó Muirigh, solicitor for the Gargan, Dougal, McCaffery, and Butler families, said on Wednesday that the families welcomed Starmer’s apology.
“Whilst the evidence-based inquest findings, which vindicated the families’ long campaign to clear their loved ones’ names, was the primary objective of the campaign, it is also important that the families have official acknowledgement of the wrong done to them,” Ó Muirigh said in a statement.
“Their loved ones, and their wider community, have been vilified for over five decades.
“The apology cannot undo the loss and pain suffered, however, the overturning of a wrongful legal verdict through the recent inquest and official acknowledgement by the state of their wrongdoing is a necessary part of achieving truth and justice for these families.”
“Many families who continue to wait”
Northern Ireland’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill, who is also the Vice President of Sinn Féin, said on Wednesday that Starmer’s apology was “an important acknowledgement of the suffering endured by these families over many decades.”
She said: “Nothing can undo the pain and loss experienced by those who lost loved ones that day. But acknowledgment matters. The Springhill families deserve the truth, and they deserve to have that truth publicly recognised.
“The Springhill families now join the families of Bloody Sunday and Ballymurphy, whose determined campaigns secured official findings and public acknowledgement of the circumstances surrounding the deaths of their loved ones.
“These moments matter not only because they recognise individual loss, but because they affirm and expose the actions of the British army against the Springhill community.”
O’Neill went on to say that “there remain many families who continue to wait for truth, accountability, and acknowledgement where their loved ones were killed as in a manner similar to Bloody Sunday, Ballymurphy, and Springhill.
“Every family has the right to know what happened. Every family deserves equal access to truth, justice and accountability.”
She said: “The British Government must now end its cruel and cynical approach to legacy. Families seeking to establish the truth about what happened to their loved ones should not be dragged through protracted and painful legal processes, and particularly so when the evidence is clear. The cynical handling of legacy issues from the British Prime Minister, including his prioritisation of the interests of British state forces over victims and families, has undermined confidence in current legacy mechanisms and deepened hurt. If he is serious about dealing with legacy, this approach must end.”
Controversial Ireland-Israel match
to be moved from Dublin to ‘overseas neutral venue’
The Ireland – Israel match scheduled for October 4 will be moved out of Dublin and played behind closed doors, the FAI has confirmed.
The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) confirmed on Friday, June 12, that UEFA has approved a request to host the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League match between Ireland and Israel “overseas, in a neutral venue and behind closed doors.”
The FAI said on Friday that following consultation with various stakeholders, it is “of the view that operational challenges could impact on the delivery of the game on home soil, so the fixture will be played away from the Aviva Stadium.”
The FAI, which thanked An Garda Siochana for their support and advice, said the “decision to relocate to a neutral venue is one that has been considered an appropriate course of action by the FAI Board with the support of UEFA.”
The FAI added that it “understands and respects the views expressed by players and staff, supporters, its members, campaigners, members of the public and the Irish footballing community in relation to this fixture.”
Calls to suspend Israel
Friday’s announcement comes after months of controversy surrounding the match and, more broadly, Israel’s participation in international football.
Last autumn, UN experts and Amnesty International each called for Israel to be suspended from international football due to the genocide in Palestine.
In November, the FAI’s General Assembly voted in favor of the FAI submitting a formal motion to the UEFA Executive Committee requesting the immediate suspension of the Israel Football Association from UEFA Competitions.
The FAI said on Friday that it “continues to reflect the sentiment” of that motion, adding that the motion has been submitted to UEFA and that the FAI has consulted with UEFA officials for almost two years on the issue.
Meanwhile, the Stop the Game campaign is calling for the match to be scrapped altogether. Last month, the group submitted an open letter calling on the FAI to refuse to play Israel in October’s Nations League fixture. The letter was signed by a number of Irish players, as well as notable figures outside of football.
Earlier this week, Sinn Féin and the Social Democrats put forward motions in the Dáil calling upon the Irish Government to stop the game. The motions passed after they were amended to say that the Government has no role in the fixture and that it is a matter for the FAI.
Also this week, the Stop the Game campaign engaged solicitor Darragh Mackin of Phoenix Law and initiated legal action against the Irish State for its failure to stop the match.
Impact of forfeiture
The FAI said on Friday that despite its motion and continued sentiment, it recognizes the UEFA rules and regulations it agreed to, which outline that “if an association refuses to play a match, then that fixture will be forfeited and further disciplinary measures may follow – including potential disqualification from the competition.”
In February, Ireland were drawn into Group B3 of the 2026-27 UEFA Nations League alongside Austria, Israel, and Kosovo. The FAI stated at the time that the Ireland team would proceed with all scheduled fixtures, and on Friday, the FAI said it “maintains this position, given it would have a profound impact on the whole of Irish football.”
The FAI said if it opted not to fulfil the fixtures, the immediate result would be:
- The forfeiture of six points (which could lead to relegation to League C in the UEFA Nations League and weaken our qualifying potential for UEFA EURO 2028)
- A direct impact on Ireland’s UEFA and FIFA rankings (which would affect future qualification to UEFA European Championships and FIFA World Cups).
- The converse of these impacts would apply for Israel (which would increase their prospects of promotion in the UEFA Nations League and qualification to UEFA EURO 2028)
The FAI added on Friday: “Beyond the sporting implications, there would be broader consequences for Irish football, such as reduced capacity to support clubs and leagues through critical services such as safeguarding, educational programmes, and player development opportunities.
“Also, the impact on Ireland international teams could result in the withdrawal of underage teams and a reduction in the level of support and services provided to players and staff.”
Palestinian Football Association responds
The FAI added on Friday that in recent months, it has been in communication with the Palestinian Football Association regarding the fulfilment of the fixture.
The FAI shared this statement from the Palestinian Football Association: “The Palestinian Football Association expresses its appreciation for the principled positions taken by the Football Association of Ireland in support of the rights of the Palestinian people and Palestinian athletes.
“The Palestinian Football Association also affirms its respect for the decision made by the Football Association of Ireland within the framework of its sporting and international obligations, in a manner that enables it to continue fulfilling its noble mission of serving football and promoting the values of justice, solidarity, and mutual respect.”
What’s next
The FAI said on Friday that it will engage with its members at a forthcoming Extraordinary General Meeting, but sought to remind its members that “it is the responsibility of the FAI Board to protect the future interests of football in Ireland and, therefore, remains committed to fulfilling each of its 2026-27 UEFA Nations League fixtures.”
The FAI said that while its Board “appreciates that the decision to fulfil this fixture back in February does affect many stakeholders, it would ask for consideration to be given to players and staff.”
The FAI said that once all details are established for the October 4 fixture between Ireland and Israel, it will update 2026 FAI Season Ticket holders and Club Ireland members on “the appropriate ticketing arrangements, which may include compensation owed or the potential of availing of an extra home game in 2027.”
Concluding its announcement on Friday, the FAI said that its Board reiterated “that its decision to fulfil the fixture has been made in the interest of Irish football.”
More than three dozen South African nationals
deported from Ireland via charter flight
15 children, all part of family units, were among the more than 40 South African nationals deported from Ireland via charter flight on Thursday.
Deportation orders against 42 South African nationals were enforced by charter flight on Thursday, June 18, Ireland’s Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration Jim O’Callaghan confirmed on Friday.
The charter flight departed Dublin Airport at 3:30 pm local time on Thursday and landed in Johannesburg at 4 am Irish time on Friday.
Nine men, 18 women, and 15 children were removed, Ireland’s Department of Justice said on Friday. All children were part of family units.
The returnees were accompanied on the flight by members of An Garda Síochána, medical staff, an interpreter, and a human rights observer.
The Department said the removal flight was provided by Air Partner Ltd at a cost of €735,000 (ex-VAT) for a return flight. The total costs for this operation are not yet available as the invoicing process has not yet been completed, the Department noted.
Commenting on the operation, Minister O’Callaghan said on Friday: “Our immigration system must be rules-based and robust.
“The enforcement aspects of our laws, including deportation orders, are an essential requirement for the system to work effectively and to ensure there is public confidence in the application of our legislation in this area.
“The vast majority of South African nationals are legally resident in the State and positively contribute to society.
“I would like to thank the members of An Garda Síochána and officials from my department for their continued work in conducting these complex operations.”
A further deportation flight left Dublin yesterday and landed safely this morning in Johannesburg, South Africa. There were 42 South African people on board who had received but not complied with Deportation Orders.
— Jim O’Callaghan TD (@OCallaghanJim) June 19, 2026
Minister of State with responsibility for Migration, Colm Brophy, added: “It is necessary to recognise that Ireland welcomes migrants as they play an important role in our economic, social, and community life.
“However, they must enter through the various legal pathways available and abide by the laws of the State.
“My department has taken significant action to improve enforcement measures with 4,700 deportation orders signed in 2025.”
The Department noted that Friday’s operation was the fourth deportation charter flight of 2026. In the three previous operations this year, 130 people were removed from the State, including 67 EU citizens on grounds of criminality.
In 2025, there were six charter operations that involved the removal of 205 people from Ireland.
The Department also noted that, last year, 4,700 deportation orders were signed, an increase of 96% from 2024. So far in 2026, 2,108 deportation orders have been signed.
Further charter operations will be conducted throughout 2026, the Department added.
Jokes
While being interviewed for a job, the personnel manager said to the Maguire brothers, “We’re going to give you a written examination. Ten questions. Whoever gets most right we’ll hire.”
Papers were produced, and the boys set to work answering the general knowledge questions. When the time was up, the personnel manager collected and marked the papers.
“Well,” said he, “you’ve both got nine out often, but I’m giving Mick the job.”
“Why’s that?” asked Pat.
“Well,” said the manager, “you both got the same question wrong but he had ‘I don’t know this,’
and you had ‘Neither do I!'”
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Good night to you all….Tommy Mac
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Tír na mBláth is one of hundreds of branches throughout the world of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann (CCÉ) pronounced “kol-tus kyol-tori air-in“, the largest group involved in the preservation of Irish music, dance and song.
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