Author Jude Collins

Oh boy. The DUP didn’t have to choose the Education portfolio up in Stormont, but it did. Likewise the party didn’t need to appoint Paul Givan as their Education minister but they did. Right now that looks like two very bad decisions by the DUP. Talkback on Raidio Uladh is buzzing over the fact that […]

Picture this. A woman sits in a court room, listening while a man who broke her arm and punched her face so hard the scars are permanent, is tried. The man is found guilty and sent to jail. The judge commends the woman, saying she showed great courage in coming to court and refusing to […]

So now we know – both Simon Harris and Micheál Martin are willing to have Michael Lowry help them form a government. Simon Harris:“That’s the way our democracy, our parliamentary democracy, works. And the deputy [MichaelLowry] has been elected.” Micheál Martin: “Michael Lowry has been elected by the people of Tipperary three times since 2016, and […]

  Since 1970, people involved in the GAA have been targeted and murdered by MI5, Loyalist killers and the British army.  Many others were harassed and threatened by British soldiers and the RUC. A new book, ‘Lost Gaels-Remembering the Members of the GAA Killed during the Conflict in Ireland’ by Peadar Thompson from West Belfast recalls many […]

What is Elon Musk playing at? First he hints he’s going to give biiiig money to ReformUK, then he says Nigel Farage isn’t fit to lead ReformUK. And he claims Keir Starmer presided over the grooming of children by paedophile gangs and should be put on trial. Does being the richest man in the world […]

  A classmate of mine in Rockwell from 1957 to 1959, Philip MacAllister, from Donabate I had forgotten for 35 years, had joined the Holy Ghost Fathers and had laboured heroically in Africa for decades before being martyred, with others in Sierra Leone in March 1994. Philip had Gaelicised his name to Felim while the […]

    In my recent BLOG – “Teachers, Pupils and Parents” (January 4th 2025) I recalled how the universally loved Thady O’Connor, a Holy Ghost Father, was a life-long friend of Eamon de Valera. I quoted my Mother’s advice “Show me your companions and I’ll tell you what you are.” More evidence of the stature […]

  In my BLOG I met a traveller from a Distant Land  I recalled how the man himself a distinguished journalist, diplomat and statesman, recalled having lunch with Eamon de Valera at Arus an Uachtarain. A Moslem, he had been taught by Irish Priests in Calcutta  under the Raj and both of his daughters were Convent  educated, […]

Bono, the lead singer of U2, is a polarizing figure. Here are five reasons some people might dislike him: 1.Perceived Hypocrisy: Critics often highlight Bono’s advocacy for social justice and environmental causes while pointing to U2’s use of tax havens to minimize their own taxes. This perceived double standard undermines his activism for many. 2.Overbearing […]

    Ted Howell dedicated his adult life to the reunification of Ireland. When the news of the death of Ted Howell was confirmed, there was genuine sadness among the former members of the Irish Government delegation who took part in the Good Friday negotiations and subsequent interactions with Sinn Féin. Ted was especially well […]