Latest news with #Ireland-born
Scottish Sun
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Father Ted creator Graham Linehan vows to continue trans rights fight after pleading not guilty to hate crime charges
He is accused of abusing trans activist Sophia Brooks on social media and smashing her phone in October TRANS RAP Father Ted creator Graham Linehan vows to continue trans rights fight after pleading not guilty to hate crime charges Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) FATHER Ted writer Graham Linehan vowed to continue criticising trans rights as he denied hate crime charges in court. The five-time Bafta award winner, 56, pleaded not guilty to harassment and criminal damage. He is accused of abusing trans activist Sophia Brooks on social media and smashing her phone in October. They are described by prosecutors as hate crimes — but Linehan remained defiant after his court appearance yesterday. He told supporters outside Westminster magistrates court: 'I have pleaded not guilty and will defend this case at trial. In doing so, there is far more at stake than my own name. For six years, ever since I began defending the rights of women and children against a dangerous ideology, I have faced harassment, abuse and threats. 'I have lost a great deal but I am still here and I will not waver in my resolve.' The IT Crowd co-creator, who has also written for Brass Eye and The Fast Show, has a long-standing history of criticising the trans-rights movement. He has previously said that the charges relate to an incident at the Battle of Ideas conference in London last year. The Ireland-born writer was bailed at yesterday's hearing on the condition he does not contact his alleged victim. His trial was set for the same court on September 4. Dozens of supporters, many unable to get inside owing to a lack of space, greeted Linehan outside the court. He thanked them for the support, also urging people to join the Free Speech Union.
The Irish Sun
13-05-2025
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
Father Ted creator Graham Linehan vows to continue trans rights fight after pleading not guilty to hate crime charges
FATHER Ted writer Graham Linehan vowed to continue criticising trans rights as he denied hate crime charges in court. He is accused of abusing trans activist Sophia Brooks on social media and They are described by prosecutors as hate crimes — but Linehan remained defiant after his court appearance yesterday. He told supporters outside Westminster magistrates court: 'I have pleaded not guilty and will defend this case at trial. In doing so, there is far more at stake than my own name. For six years, ever since I began defending the rights of women and children against a dangerous ideology, I have faced harassment, abuse and threats. 'I have lost a great deal but I am still here and I will not waver in my resolve.' Read More on TV The IT Crowd co-creator, who has also written for Brass Eye and The Fast Show, has a long-standing history of criticising the trans-rights movement. He has previously said that the charges relate to an incident at the Battle of Ideas conference in London last year. The Ireland-born writer was bailed at yesterday's hearing on the condition he does not contact his alleged victim. His trial was set for the same court on September 4. Most read in News TV Dozens of supporters, many unable to get inside owing to a lack of space, greeted Linehan outside the court. He thanked them for the support, also urging people to join the Free Speech Union. 1 Graham Linehan vowed to continue criticising trans rights as he denied hate crime charges in court Credit: PA
RTÉ News
01-05-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Watch: Australia's first-time voters have their say
Concerns over the cost of living, climate action, student debt, and the increasing influence of the far-right are key issues for first-time voters in the upcoming Australian federal election. The power is in the hands of the younger generations for the 2025 election as millennials and generation Z outnumber baby boomers, a shift that could reshape the nation's political landscape. Around 18 million Australians are set to vote, with 43% of them millennials and generation Z, compared to the 33% representation of baby boomers, data from the Australian Electoral Commission shows. Among these younger voters is a growing Irish diaspora. The number of Ireland-born residents in Australia has now passed 100,000, according to the latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Many first-time voters expressed disillusionment with the two-party system, struggling to find positives in either the Labor or Liberal coalition parties. "I think [Liberal Party leader] Peter Dutton would be worse, but I think there's no positive case for the Labor party either," said 22-year-old architecture student Jasmine Al-Rawi, who recently gained citizenship after relocating from New Zealand. Whilst it's predicted that generation Z will swing the result to the left, 18-year-old politics student Ava Cavalerie Johnson cautioned against the generalisation of her cohort. "I don't think it's true that the entire Gen Z population is voting towards the left," she said. "There are still a lot of conservative beliefs in politics. I think there will be a bigger shift to the left, but I don't think there'll be a full shift." A 2022 report by the Australian Election Study group indicated a trend among millennials and generation Z voters moving away from the two major parties. The report stated: "At no time in the 35-year history of the AES has there been such a low level of support for either major party in so large a segment." However 18-year-old arts and science student Darcy Palmer worries that there is not enough awareness around Australia's unique preferential voting system, which may discourage his peers from voting outside the two major parties. "A lot of young people will vote for Labor just so Dutton doesn't come in, instead of voting for who they actually want to vote for, like an independent or the Greens," he said. The result of the US election also weighs heavily on the minds of young voters, many of whom are scared that Australia will follow suit in a shift to the right. "I'm viewing the current election just in the sense of trying to avoid the situation that's happening over there," said 19-year-old arts student Jessica Louise Smith. "I feel not as focused on the genuine politics in Australia as I am simply avoiding the worst possible option." The Australian general election will be held on 3 May.
Gulf Today
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Gulf Today
Women of ‘Andor' see their roles get bigger in Season 2
Mon Mothma was first introduced to 'Star Wars' fans as the rebel leader who appears only long enough to move the plot forward by delivering battle plans in hushed tones. But in the last moments of the most recent 'Andor' episodes on Disney+ (spoilers for already released episodes ahead) she is a patrician senator who, soaked in high-end space and potent emotions, tears up the dance floor to a bass-and-drums rave-up at her daughter's wedding. The scene would play as comic if it weren't tragic. None of her fellow revellers know that she has just taken a major step in her rise — or descent — into radicalism by washing her hands of an old friend who may be a threat to the burgeoning Rebel Alliance. The size of the scene — and its subtleties — shows off the new levels of depth and breadth given to actors Genevieve O'Reilly, Adria Arjona and other central women in the second season of 'Andor'; three new episodes drop on Tuesday. 'It's a techno-galactic dance moment, but it's also this moment of internal chaos for this woman,' O'Reilly said in an interview. 'She's tacitly agreed to have her friend murdered. She's dancing to stop herself from screaming. It's deeply painful. It is that one moment where we can actually see Mon Mothma wrestle out of this straitjacket and dance with terrified abandon.' Mothma's conflict is in some ways even more central to the show's premise — what does it take to make a revolution? — than that of the title character, played by Diego Luna. Like many real-life figures past and present, she is trying to maintain a facade of respectful, and respectable, opposition to tyranny while feeling the pull of open rebellion. 'If she drops that mask of diplomacy, she's useless,' O'Reilly said. 'She's only effective if she maintains composure.' 'Andor' creator Tony Gilroy said that Mothma's 'journey is the hardest, I think. Because she has to do everything, and has to be observed. She can't move.' The character originated as a brief-but-memorable role for Caroline Blakiston in 1983's 'Return of the Jedi.' The 48-year-old Ireland-born O'Reilly, who has lived much of her adult life in Australia, was first cast in the role of the young senator when the 2005 prequel 'Revenge of the Sith' was shooting there, because, she says with a laugh, she was the 'palest person in Sydney.' All of her 'Sith' scenes were relegated to DVD extras. But she would reprise the role in 2016's 'Rogue One,' to which 'Andor' is a prequel, and has played the part in the Lucasfilm properties 'Star Wars: Rebels' and 'Ahsoka.' But it's in 'Andor,' especially Season 2, where the origin story of the leader from the planet Chandrila is truly told. 'You really feel that she's of value to this world that is created,' O'Reilly said. 'That's the gift that every actor wants.' Gilroy wrote the first three episodes of Season 2, and says he insisted on including the elaborate and difficult-to-produce three-day wedding ceremony that ends with the scene set to a chaotic dance-club remix of composer Nicholas Brittel's 'Niamos!' from Season 1. Gilroy says the expanded roles for his show's women came in part from him learning the talents of the performers. 'You get a big show like this where time is really your friend in a way,' he said, 'and you watch who rises.' Gilroy knew O'Reilly from 'Rogue One,' which he also wrote, but said she's basically 'a piece of furniture' in that movie. He brought her to 'Andor' as a legacy character without giving it much thought. But then he got to see her work. 'It was like, 'My God, look what she can do, she can do anything,' Gilroy said. 'She's a freaking Steinway. Let's go for it.' He had a similar experience of discovery with Elizabeth Dulau, whose character Kleya had an intriguing but small part in Season 1 as the lieutenant of violent revolutionary Luthen Rael (Stellan Skarsgård). Associated Press
RTÉ News
30-04-2025
- Business
- RTÉ News
Number of Ireland-born residents in Australia passes 100,000
The number of Ireland-born residents in Australia has passed 100,000, according to official figures. The data, from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), shows that 103,080 people born in Ireland were living in Australia as of last June, up from 94,540 the previous year, an increase of more than 8,500. The figure has almost doubled in the last 20 years. It has risen by 87% since 2004 when 55,020 people born in Ireland were living there. It increased sharply following the 2007 economic crash, peaking at 96,360 in 2013. The figure fell to 85,660 in 2022 and rose by almost 9,000 in 2023. There was a much smaller increase in the number of Northern-Ireland born residents during the same period. Some 25,920 residents born In Northern Ireland were living in Australia in 2024, up 860 on the previous year. The figure has risen by 14.9% in the last 20 years. Ireland's increase stands in sharp contrast to most other European Union countries. The figure for Italy fell from just under 223,000 people in 2004 to 156,000 last year. The country also dropped out of Australia's top 10 countries of birth for the first time since 1901. In 2024, 31.5% of Australia's estimated resident population were born overseas, up from 30.7 per cent in 2023. For 9 facts about Australia's overseas-born population, see — Australian Bureau of Statistics (@ABSStats) April 30, 2025 Overall, of the 27.2 million people resident in Australia, 8.6 million were born abroad. England, India, China and New Zealand are the countries of birth with the largest populations. The ABS said that almost every country in the world was represented in Australia's overseas-born population last year.
