Comedian Aoife Dunne on her new show, 'Good Grief'
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Irish Times
5 days ago
- Irish Times
Oliver Callan gets acidic about the Orange Order
He may have a prime time slot on the nation's most popular radio station, but while Oliver Callan ( RTÉ Radio 1, weekdays) has to appeal to a broad audience, he doesn't appear to have had much in the way of cultural sensitivity training. Opening his show on Monday, the host surveys the events of the previous weekend, paying particular attention to the Twelfth of July parades in the North . 'The Orangemen got their only exercise of the year,' Callan tartly observes, 'Loyal Orange lodges, the only thing they might be loyal to is sausage rolls, by the cut of a lot of them.' Now, Callan needn't unduly worry about offending the sensibilities of an organisation whose more dedicated followers celebrate their biggest holiday by burning effigies of refugees . But body-shaming them? That's the kind of thing that sets off alarms in HR. The presenter might want to be more cognisant of the feelings of others, or he'll be in hot water quicker than you can say 'citrus intolerance'. [ 'Isn't it brilliant' a mother says, photographing her children at the bonfire topped with an effigy of a migrant boat Opens in new window ] In Callan's defence, it's the only astringent note in an otherwise jolly week that has him broadcasting from across the northwest. Monday's programme comes from Donegal, where he gives his hot take on the demeanour of the locals. READ MORE 'They tell about three jokes, as dry as a chardonnay, every year,' Callan says, not unadmiringly, before praising natives of the county for shunning anything that smacks of ostentation, 'such as using your whole mouth to speak.' What did we say about not making fun of people's appearance, Mr Callan? When it comes to interviewing his guests, however, the host is benignity personified. He talks enthusiastically about Donegal's All-Ireland football semi-final win with the county's former manager Brian McEniff, who as a hotelier also provides his insights into the tourism trade this summer: 'Not great.' But such downbeat blips are the exception. Another veteran of the hotel business, Noel Cunningham, takes a more upbeat tack, talking up the hospitality available in Donegal. As he travels down the coast, Callan's monologues grow ever saucier. In Sligo on Tuesday, he jokes about catching a 'Yeats infection', while the following day's show from Mayo has him describing the Erris peninsula as a 'geographical Langer'. But again, a breezy mood prevails, with the host at his most chatty as he learns about local attractions such as Blacksod lighthouse, from where he broadcasts on Wednesday. None of this is groundbreaking nor even memorable, but it makes for easy summer listening, the good-natured proceedings enlivened by Callan's flash of acidic humour. It's also notable that he meets several local residents originally from foreign climes such as Australia, the Philippines and America, all of whom he gets on with famously. Happily, Callan has no problem with diversity. It's always a mixed bag on The Ray D'Arcy Show (RTÉ Radio 1, weekdays), as the host moves between items of varying substance. D'Arcy sounds most at ease when the subject is lightweight, literally so in the case of a 3D crocheted map of Ireland knitted by a group of Wicklow women. 'The best thing I've seen in a long time,' he tells Liz Butler of Carnew Community Care centre, 'It's spectacular.' But he also tackles more difficult topics, though the shifts in tone can be awkward. On Monday, as excavation works commence to recover infant remains on the site of the Tuam mother and baby home, he talks to local historian Catherine Corless, who uncovered the lack of burial records for 800 babies at the institution. D'Arcy's admiration for his guest is obvious, the host pointedly remarking that when she first revealed her findings 11 years ago, she was scoffed at by many. Local historian Catherine Corless, who uncovered the lack of burial records for 800 babies at Tuam. Photograph: Dan Dennison Asked how she now feels, Corless replies 'justice has been finally served', though she regrets it took so long for church and state authorities to act. But her account of how the home disposed the bodies of the dead infants still horrifies to the core. 'The babies were literally dropped down, placed on top of each other,' she says. 'The least we can do is give their dignity back.' D'Arcy wisely holds back throughout, leaving Corless to talk uninterrupted – her determination is palpable, even when calling from a train – though he makes one indisputable contribution: 'On behalf of the country, I want to thank you.' [ Tuam is a microcosm for Ireland's history of discarded bones Opens in new window ] The host sounds less sure of himself when speaking to Dublin poet Stephen James Smith. D'Arcy lurches between questions on his guest's move to Wexford, his work with arts and mental health charity First Fortnight, and the difference between a poem and a song. 'Where are we going now, Ray?' an amused Smith asks at one point. But amid it all, D'Arcy makes an admission that, far from suggesting uncertainty, speaks of a deeper curiosity beneath his on-air persona. 'I'm only coming to terms with how poetry can cut through things,' he says. Smith unsurprisingly agrees. 'We often turn to it in important times in our life,' the poet replies, 'It saved my life.' D'Arcy's show mightn't have quite that impact, but it can definitely surprise. Poetic matters are also pondered by Brendan O'Connor (RTÉ Radio 1, Saturday & Sunday), though to unnerving effect, when he asks if listeners can tell a poem written by a person from one generated by AI. 'The question is, if you can fake poetry, can you fake humanity and soul?' The answer isn't reassuring. Galway poet Rita Ann Higgins, whose disarmingly open manner is matched by her formidable literary gifts, reads two poems, one which she wrote, the other artificially generated in her style. O'Connor then invites journalist Mark Little to guess which is fake. Little, like 70 per cent of texters, chooses the wrong poem. Higgins, meanwhile, spots the sources 'scraped' by AI to imitate her style: 'I can see things I said in interviews.' Either way, host and guests – and surely listeners too – are unsettled by the experiment. After all, as Little notes, AI doesn't just play fast and loose with copyrighted content, it uses data based on the worst biases and prejudices of social media. It's not just people who need sensitivity training. Moment of the Week Music lovers of a certain vintage enjoy a flutter of nostalgia on Lyric FM on Monday evening, as John Kelly closes his consistently wonderful show Mystery Train . 'I think it's Donal later,' the host says, 'You're in safe hands.' He's speaking of Donal Dineen, who plays a dizzyingly varied selection of tracks as guest host on The Blue of The Night . 'There was a time when these two shows used to dock at the same station,' says Dineen, referring to the halcyon days when his show Here Comes the Night would follow Kelly's Eclectic Ballroom on Radio Ireland (now Today FM): both programmes brought new life to Irish music radio. It's good to hear the old gang back together again, however fleetingly.
Irish Independent
15-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Galway International Arts Festival 2025: Locals and visitors react as festival opens in Eyre Square
Now in its 48th year, the festival started on Monday July 14 and will run until July 27. Despite the wet start, with Met Eireann issuing a thunderstorm warning for most of Monday afternoon, the event has already attracted hundreds of expectant people from far and wide. Ames: New to Galway, excited for first arts festival Speaking to the Irish Independent at the Festival Garden in Eyre Square, Ames, who has only been living in the town of the Tribes for five weeks, said he loves the atmosphere already. 'It's absolutely lovely. Everybody's very cheerful and the arts are absolutely beautiful. Talking about the shows ahead, he added: 'I'm going to be looking at the schedule soon. It's all new to me, but it's very exciting. I was a big, big fan of the arts festivals in the States and I come from Tucson, which is known for gemstones and art festivals. So I'm just super excited.' John: Galway native celebrates festival tradition Not too far from him we met Galway city native John, who said he has enjoyed GIAF since he was a child. 'It's quite a fun time, it always brings a lovely vibrant energy to the city. I love to just exploring and walk around.' 'There's a lot of stuff when you finish work, people in the city can just run up to it and have a look at it. I think that's what makes the Galway Arts Festival so unique. 'It's so accessible for everyone. We've just walked up the city there and we've been to two installations already and I think that's what makes it so unique. It's kind of alive. It's not in a gallery, behind a building or something, it's alive,' he said. Eve: 20-year resident says festival has 'something for everyone' Eve is also a festival regular as she has been living in Galway city for 20 years. She explained that her favourite thing about the festival is that 'there's something for everyone'. She added: 'I think everybody from Galway loves [the festival],' she said. 'It brings a real great vibe and you get to see nice things. It's something different, like the circus last night was amazing with Sabotage. So I'd say anyone out there, come to Galway.' The festival is also a special event for staff and business owners. The much-loved Tiny Traders Market has been set up in the festival garden and will use the opportunity to showcase some of its vendors. Martha Begley Schade: Author calls festival stall 'fantastic honour' One of those sellers is children books author, Martha Begley Schade, who said it is a 'fantastic honour and pleasure' for her to be part of it and have a stall at the Festival Garden. She said: 'I think it's absolutely wonderful. The atmosphere here is just really great. People are friendly and there's a class, a class feeling about being here. I'm never asked 'are you the author?' Because people just take it for granted that this is the standard that we're bringing. 'It's a wonderful opportunity to actually showcase your products and a bit of Galway to right around the world and it's a lovely feeling because I do feel I'm representing Galway in a small way. 'My dream is that the books will have an impact, so that I have a positive influence on children growing up and being better adults. So can you imagine taking that out onto an international stage? It's a wonderful feeling and I'm really appreciative of the fact that I could be here. Plus all this staff here, the security guys, the guys with the coffee, it's a really fantastic honour and pleasure to be here.' Headline acts and diverse programming A variety of acts are on offer at this year's festival. Locally formed band The Stunning return to familiar territory when they perform at the Heineken Big Top on July 26. Further headline acts consist of Irish bands Kingfishr (July 20), Picture This (July 21-22) and the Mary Wallopers (July 19), while Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Natasha Bedingfield will also take to the Big Top on July 17. There is plenty more on offer outside of just music. A variety of visual arts performances, talks, and theatre shows will take place in venues across the city. The hefty list of shows includes Oh… a solo show by Mikel Murfi set in the main tank of Galway Atlantaquaria and shows Scorched Earth by Luke Murphy and The Cave by Caitríona McLaughlin and starring Aaron Monaghan, Judith Roddy and Tommy Tiernan.
Irish Independent
15-07-2025
- Irish Independent
View from the street as Galway International Arts Festival kicks off – ‘It's a fantastic honour to be here'
Now in its 48th year, the festival started on Monday July 14 and will run until July 27. Despite the wet start, with Met Eireann issuing a thunderstorm warning for most of Monday afternoon, the event has already attracted hundreds of expectant people from far and wide. Speaking to the Irish Independent at the Festival Garden in Eyre Square, Ames, who has only been living in the town of the Tribes for five weeks, said he loves the atmosphere already. 'It's absolutely lovely. Everybody's very cheerful and the arts are absolutely beautiful. Talking about the shows ahead, he added: 'I'm going to be looking at the schedule soon. It's all new to me, but it's very exciting. I was a big, big fan of the arts festivals in the States and I come from Tucson, which is known for gemstones and art festivals. So I'm just super excited.' Not too far from him we met Galway city native John, who said he has enjoyed GIAF since he was a child. 'It's quite a fun time, it always brings a lovely vibrant energy to the city. I love to just exploring and walk around.' 'There's a lot of stuff when you finish work, people in the city can just run up to it and have a look at it. I think that's what makes the Galway Arts Festival so unique. 'It's so accessible for everyone. We've just walked up the city there and we've been to two installations already and I think that's what makes it so unique. It's kind of alive. It's not in a gallery, behind a building or something, it's alive,' he said. Eve is also a festival regular as she has been living in Galway city for 20 years. She explained that her favourite thing about the festival is that 'there's something for everyone'. She added: 'I think everybody from Galway loves [the festival],' she said. 'It brings a real great vibe and you get to see nice things. It's something different, like the circus last night was amazing with Sabotage. So I'd say anyone out there, come to Galway.' The festival is also a special event for staff and business owners. The much-loved Tiny Traders Market has been set up in the festival garden and will use the opportunity to showcase some of its vendors. One of those sellers is children books author, Martha Begley Schade, who said it is a 'fantastic honour and pleasure' for her to be part of it and have a stall at the Festival Garden. She said: 'I think it's absolutely wonderful. The atmosphere here is just really great. People are friendly and there's a class, a class feeling about being here. I'm never asked 'are you the author?' Because people just take it for granted that this is the standard that we're bringing. 'It's a wonderful opportunity to actually showcase your products and a bit of Galway to right around the world and it's a lovely feeling because I do feel I'm representing Galway in a small way. 'My dream is that the books will have an impact, so that I have a positive influence on children growing up and being better adults. So can you imagine taking that out onto an international stage? It's a wonderful feeling and I'm really appreciative of the fact that I could be here. Plus all this staff here, the security guys, the guys with the coffee, it's a really fantastic honour and pleasure to be here.' A variety of acts are on offer at this year's festival. Locally formed band The Stunning return to familiar territory when they perform at the Heineken Big Top on July 26. Further headline acts consist of Irish bands Kingfishr (July 20), Picture This (July 21-22) and the Mary Wallopers (July 19), while Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Natasha Bedingfield will also take to the Big Top on July 17. There is plenty more on offer outside of just music. A variety of visual arts performances, talks, and theatre shows will take place in venues across the city. The hefty list of shows includes Oh… a solo show by Mikel Murfi set in the main tank of Galway Atlantaquaria and shows Scorched Earth by Luke Murphy and The Cave by Caitríona McLaughlin and starring Aaron Monaghan, Judith Roddy and Tommy Tiernan.
