Recognise Oasis’s Irish links, says Mayo county councillor
Monday, January 5th, 2009A Mayo county councillor intends to rectify the “long-standing injustice” done to Manchester-born Noel and Liam Gallagher – also known as Oasis. Michelle Mulherin of Fine Gael is tabling a motion at this month’s meeting of Mayo County Council to honour the brothers, whose mother came from Charlestown. They are frequent visitors to the town, and often visited their maternal grandmother before her death in 2000.
Cllr Mulherin told the Evening Herald:
“The story of Liam and Noel Gallagher is that of so many of the Irish diaspora, it’s the Irish dream fulfilled. They stayed close to their mother’s homeplace and to Irish culture. Mayo is not just in their blood, it’s etched in their hearts.
“When they came to visit the home-place as children, they came to a place with no running water, which wasn’t uncommon in that era. They always talk fondly about their memories of going fishing and berry-picking, and going into the local shop for Silvermints or a Brunch. Those are memories so many Irish people identify with.”
The question of awards for members of the Irish diaspora is one that has been raised before. The 2002 Task Force report on Irish emigrants called for an award to recognise the achievements of the Irish abroad.
Read the entire article on the Evening Herald website.
Fulbright scholar for UCC’s Diaspora studies MA
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2008A noted historian who has done important work on the Irish diaspora has been selected as a Fulbright Scholar and will lecture in spring 2009 at University College, Cork.
William H. Mulligan, Jr. is professor of history at Murray State University. He will work with UCC to develop and promote their new master’s degree programme in Irish Diaspora Studies. He developed and taught one of the first university-level courses on the Irish Daspora in the US. His research has focused on the nature of Irish identity in the diaspora, and more specifically, migration from copper-mining areas in Ireland to the Michigan Copper Country from the mid-19th century.
The Fullbright programme is America’s flagship international exchange programme, operating in more than 150 countries worldwide.
Related links:
- Willam H. Mulligan’s website at Murray State University
- Irish Diaspora Discussion link
- MA in Contemporary Migration and Diaspora Studies at UCC
- Press release: Mulligan selected as Fulbright Scholar
Emigrant film dominates Irish awards
Friday, January 11th, 2008The emigrant-themed film Kings has dominated the nomination for the Irish Film and Television Awards. The film, which tells its story mostly through Irish, depicts the troubled lives of a group of Irish emigrants who left Galway for London in the 1970s. It received 14 nominations, including the categories of best Irish film, best actor (Colm Meaney), best supporting actor (Donal O’Kelly and Brendan Conroy) and best screenplay (Tom Collins). The awards ceremony will be held on 17 February.
The film, based on Jimmy Murphy’s play “Kings of the Kilburn High Road”, has also been put forward by Ireland to the Oscars for consideration for the best foreign language-film. The film is getting mixed reviews in the US, however. Several commentators have noted their opinion that the film is too confined by its theatrical roots.
Visit the IFTA website.
Read the reviews on the Reuters and Boston Globe websites.