Dublin Advertisements, 1936

The following advertisements have been scanned from the Capuchin Annual, 1936. We’ve a decent collection of the annuals here and I’m a big fan of the insight they offer into a Dublin long gone through the advertising pages at the front and back. Some of these companies are still with us, but trading in different [...]

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‘Campus Unsigned’

This is a great idea from the folks at the University Times in Trinners. Essentially, what they’re doing is finding bands and acts from among the student body and recording them in some unusual locations on campus. The cricket pitch, the arts block, next to Lecky the historian in his big chair, inside the war [...]

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Once Upon A Time in Michael’s Hill

Stunning view of Christchurch Cathedral, from St. Michael’s Hill, before the development of Wood Quay. Reminds me somewhat of those classic, atmospheric depictions of 1920s New York with the steam and silhouettes of people. Captured so well in Once Upon A Time In America (1984):

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A recording of the History Ireland Hedge School on Frank Ryan.

Following the screening of ‘The Enigma of Frank Ryan’ at the IFI yesterday, there was a History Ireland Hedge School across the street in Filmbase. As editor Tommy Graham put it, this was sort of a ‘Pop Up Hedge School’, arranged days before the screening and taking advantage of the planned second screening. History Ireland [...]

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Costello’s ‘Illosophical’ now available to stream.

“I was rapping with an American accent til I was about fifteen or sixteen and someone turned around and went ‘here you’re not from the Bronx. You’re from the Blanch – you should rap like it.’ -Costello I saw Costello with the other Street Literature lads at a fundraiser for Rabble magazine last Saturday (issue [...]

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Di Mascio’s (1938)

Giuseppe Cervi opened up Dublin’s first Fish and Chip shop on Brunwick Street (now Pearse Street) in the 1880s. Here is a lovely snap of Eduardo Di Mascio’s shop on Marlborough Street from 1938. Mairtin Mac Con Iomaire (author of The History of Seafood in Irish Cuisine and Culture) has identified that Eduardo Di Mascio [...]

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An excerpt from W.J White’s ‘Inside Trinity College’ (The Bell, April 1945)

I had to jot this down recently when I stumbled across it, excellent. The railings of Trinity College Dublin are now fair-game for natives, tourists, large groups of Spanish secondary school backpackers or anyone else to sit on it seems. Once upon a time, the students of Trinity College were in the habit of spending [...]

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Channel D, when television went pirate.

In the past, we took a brief look at some unusual Dublin pirate radio stations here on the site, such as Radio Jacqueline, a 1967 schoolboy effort which made its way into the national media. With RTE television turning 50 this year and much nostalgic feeling coming with that, perhaps some of you will remember [...]

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Before The Phoenix, The Bell collected funny clippings….

I’ve long been a fan of The Bell, which ran from 1940-1954, a fantastic monthly magazine under the editorship of the great Sean Ó Faoláin and then Peadar O’Donnell. The magazine featured Flann O’Brien, Hanna Sheehy Skeffington, Ernie O’Malley, Patrick Kavanagh and many other excellent writers among its contributers, and was an outspoken voice of [...]

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The Swan on York Street

A striking image of The Swan on York Street from, I’m assuming, the 1950s or 1960s. Little has changed.

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A Few Quick Snaps…

“The delights a stroll around Dublin can bring you. I’ve always carried my camera around with me, but have only recently started to take it out and not give a shite that I look like a tourist.“ These lines I used for the start of a similar piece around this time last year. Sometimes in [...]

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History Ireland Hedge School on Frank Ryan.

Good news folks. Lots of people missed out on ‘The Enigma Of Frank Ryan’ shown as part of the Jameson Dublin International Film Festival last week, myself included. We posted notice to our Facebook page of a planned second screening in the IFI set for this Sunday due to demand, and thankfully History Ireland have [...]

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