Tom McCaughren: The chilling three-letter acronym used by both sides during the Troubles
Old habits die hard. Just hours after Pope Francis died, a band at an Apprentice Boys' parade in Lisburn, Co Antrim, played No Pope of Rome, an offensive song that mocks the Catholic faith.
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Irish Daily Star
2 days ago
- Irish Daily Star
Liam Neeson says people ‘live vicariously' through his violent movies and love it
Liam Neeson is one of the biggest action stars in Hollywood, so it can be easy to associate him with violence. The 72-year-old actor who grew up in Northern Ireland has played the 'tough guy' role in countless films like Taken and The Commuter. He also starred in the 2019 movie Cold Pursuit where he played Nels Coxman, a quiet snow plow driver who becomes enraged and vengeful when his son is murdered. In the movie, Neeson's character transforms from an upstanding citizen to a coldblooded vigilante. While doing promo for the movie, Neeson discussed his own relationship to violence, both on and off the big screen. Read More Related Articles Melania Trump signals her 'anger' at Trump in humiliating and very public way Read More Related Articles Fears Trump 'rapidly deteriorating' as he falls walking up Air Force One steps The actor discussed how seeing a lot of violence on screen can impact audiences, and responded to accusations that the kind of films he typically stars in, can radicalize people and make them violent. 'I think audience members live to see [that violence on screen],' Neeson told the Independent. 'They can kind of live vicariously through it. People say, 'Yeah but violence in films makes people want to go out and kill people.' I don't believe that at all.' Liam Neeson's best known role is probably in the Taken franchise (Image: film still) 'I think the average moviegoer thinks, 'Yeah, punch him. Punch him,'' Neeson continued. 'And they get a satisfaction out of seeing somebody else enact it, and they leave the theatre and they feel satiated in some way.' Neeson previously admitted that he drew on the experiences he had, growing up 'surrounded by violence' in the north. He was one of four children in a Catholic family in Ballymena, Co Antrim . Though he rarely speaks about it, he has shared snippets of his turbulent teenage years, where he admitted that his friends were caught up in the sectarian violence, some even dying in the 1981 Hunger Strike. Neeson isn't done with violent films anytime soon, though he admitted that he knows his days as an action man are numbered. 'Audiences are innately intelligent and they'll know when you're past your prime in regards to throwing punches and firing guns, but I'm not there yet,' he told the Hollywood Reporter. When the time does come, Neeson doesn't need to worry about what film genre he'll delve into next. Fans hail his historical dramas as some of his best work, including his depiction of Irish revolutionary Michael Collins, and 1993 war film, Schindler's List. For the latest local news and features on Irish America, visit our homepage here .
The Irish Sun
3 days ago
- The Irish Sun
Nursery teacher turned OnlyFans star to SUE student's dad who leaked x-rated pics to football mates and got her sacked
A CATHOLIC nursery school teacher turned OnlyFans star is set to sue the dad of a pupil who got her sacked after leaking her X-rated snaps. Elena Maraga, 29, became the centre of a scandal after her erotic online account filled with adult content was leaked to a football team's group chat. Advertisement 6 Nursery school teacher Elena Maraga (pictured) was fired after her OnlyFans acount was discovered Credit: Newsflash 6 The teacher is now suing the dad she claims leaked her pictures on a football group chat Credit: Newsflash 6 Elena Maraga poses for her OnlyFans account Credit: Newsflash 6 Her X-rated pictures spread like wildfire before the dad's wife reported the miss to the school authorities Credit: Newsflash She was suspended without pay from her job at a nursery in north Although she fought fiercely to stay, church leaders said her adult content had exposed the school to "reputational risks". Now Elena is suing the dad she says found her OnlyFans profile and leaked the subscriber-only pictures to a football fans' group chat. The racey snaps spread like wildfire before the dad's wife reported the miss to the school authorities. Advertisement read more world news Elena said: 'There are parents who accused me, but they are the same ones who paid to see me. It's embarrassing. "They made me look like a harlot, but who is the immoral one? "I want to give voice to all those women who, like me, have felt condemned or punished for doing things that men also do without facing any consequences. "Me, who can do what I want with my body in my spare time, or them, who pay to watch and then condemn? Advertisement Most read in The US Sun Exclusive Exclusive "I'm tired of the injustices I've suffered." Elena also filed complaints against three social media users for allegedly defamatory comments posted after the revelation broke. OnlyFans star Merve Taskin ARRESTED over offering Valentine's night with fan for £9k…& listing what she'd give in return The miss turned OnlyFans star is also facing a second legal battle in an appeal for financial compensation against school officials who she says dismissed her without reason. She said: "Despite everything, I miss the children - but not the problems related to that job that I loved. Advertisement "But today I would not go back." School authorities said her contract would be terminated "for just cause with immediate effect. It claimed that her OnlyFans account "contrasts with the The controversy was unearthed after the father of one of her pupils allegedly bought photos from her Advertisement Maraga claims that the man's wife found out after he distributed the pictures to a But the 29-year-old has blasted the way her former employer handled the matter. She said: "They attacked me, saying I was seeking media attention. "Taking compromising photos has never compromised my professionalism at work. Advertisement "The school has never wanted to talk to me, they have always acted with letters and have never wanted dialogue. 6 The 29-year-old was suspended without pay last month after refusing to delete the account Credit: Instagram 6 She had been working in a Catholic nursery for five years Credit: Instagram "I am surprised that a Catholic school that preaches morality treats an employee in this way." Advertisement The Italian education ministry has signalled its intent to draw up a new code of ethics to prevent Maraga told Italian media she has a degree in Educational Sciences and that she had been working in a Catholic nursery for five years. She told Il Messaggero: "I love being a nursery school teacher, it was my vocation since I was a child." She added that she opened the account one month ago "partly for fun, partly out of curiosity, partly to see if you could really earn Advertisement She said: "In one day I get a month's salary."
Sunday World
5 days ago
- Sunday World
Irish TikTok sensation dreaming big after penning songs for powerful Troubles doc
Jolene Allison Burns wrote songs for new documentary The Flats about a community impacted by the Troubles Jolene, who got to sing in the documentary, is now releasing her own album A young Belfast woman who wrote songs for a powerful new documentary is now pursuing her dream of becoming a singer-songwriter. Jolene Allison Burns penned songs for a new documentary about a tower block community that was heavily impacted by The Troubles. The Flats recalls the memories of some of the largely Catholic residents of the city's New Lodge flats and how those events shaped their lives. Encouraged by the huge response to the film here and internationally, Jolene is following a long-held dream to record her own album — and her songs have become a viral sensation on TikTok. 'I got to write the music for the whole show. I got to sing in it,' says the thrilled young mum. 'From then, it's given me opportunities to write a lot of my own songs. I have songs on Spotify and iTunes, 25 different platforms. I'm dropping an album. I'm releasing an album very soon. And I started TikTok,' she says, adding that she was delighted at how her songs have drawn huge interest on the platform.' The Flats, from Italian filmmaker Alessandra Celesia — who lives in Belfast and France — focuses on a few residents of the New Lodge apartments in North Belfast, as they process their memories of The Troubles and beyond and how those memories shape their lives and communities. The Flats features chats with residents of the New Lodge . . Jolene speaks movingly about her beloved sister Coleen, left in need of full-time care after damage caused by an incident of drugs use. 'Coleen, out of the whole family, she was the girl that I grew up with. We shared a room together. She was my rock. And she can't walk, she can't talk, she can't eat. She's in a hospital bed. It's horrible.' Jolene remains concerned about drugs in her native city, but she loves Belfast and its people and wants the best life for her daughter, Holly. Northern Ireland's turbulent history, she feels, has made life more difficult, even in the years after the peace agreement. 'I think that a lot of people just have to carry on with things. A lot of people turn to just being able to cope with things. I have seen a lot of people struggle. But as time has gone on and things have happened over the years, I feel that I do love this place. I will always call this place home, but I still feel that I need to get out, and I feel like a lot of trauma has been left, in families, generations through.' Jolene, who got to sing in the documentary, is now releasing her own album News in 90 Seconds - 7th June Among the songs by Jolene that feature in The Flats is a song she wrote called Just the Way We Are. 'It's basically about living in Belfast, and how everyone has traumas and struggles. Every person goes through pain and suffers in their own way. Some people look at people and think life can be perfect, and influencers and all this can make things look like life's perfect, but everyone has struggles. 'It's just the way we are. You can't change who you are as a person. You just have to be who you are and try to move on. I hope that I can inspire people that there's always light at the end of the tunnel, even when you can't feel it.' The Flats features chats with residents of the New Lodge . . Encouraged by the reaction to the film and her songs, Jolene recorded more songs on social and online media and her talent has generated interest from TV executives. "I always wrote my own songs. I started going into recording studios and started just recording them all, put all the music together myself. I was like: 'This is what I want'. And I came up with some really cool songs. I'm excited to drop my album.' She has travelled to film festivals abroad — including Switzerland and Copenhagen — to talk about the film, which has been widely well received. It also won the George Morrison award for best documentary feature at this year's IFTAs. It was made by Italian filmmaker Alessandra Celesia, who married a Belfast man and moved to the city in 1997. 'I arrived in the North for the first time just before the Good Friday Agreement and I said I would never make a film about the Troubles,' Alessandra has said. 'It's the past, it's finished, and now we're looking for something else. And I kept my promise until I found New Lodge, where it's just so clear there is this whole generation traumatised by this thing that they never got over. For any war, this is exactly what happens.' Jolene's great hope is that The Flats will help drive awareness of and support for upcoming generations in Northern Ireland. 'We would love a lot more help for our generation, and for them to be notified and aware of what went on in the past, which is why I think this film is a great thing for people to watch, to be able to know what went on in the past.' She's also glad that through the seriousness of the subject matter in the film, the warmth, sense of humour and resilience of the people of Belfast frequently shines through. 'I think there is a lot of laughter,' she says of her home city. 'I think we're very kind people — in Ireland, there's a lot of kind people. People are very helpful, and they would stop and talk to you. They would give you a helping hand. If you were to ask someone from the New Lodge: 'Oh I have no milk', they would give you their milk. They would give you their last penny, even if they haven't got much themselves. It's just born in our nature to be kind and funny and there's a lot of humour and a lot of funniness in Northern Ireland.'
