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Marjorie Brennan

@marjbrennan.bsky.social

Arts and culture writer. Former parliamentary reporter and recovering sub-editor. Books Are My Business @ Irish Examiner. Déiseach in Cork 💙❤️

235 Posts1258 Follower 467 Folgt

Eoin Lettice @eoinlettice.bsky.social · 8mo ago

If you thought Bishop Lucey Park was the only nature lost in #Cork lately, think again. Today, Cork City Council removing trees and grass to lay concrete for parking of council vehicles in Blackpool. No planning permission, no 'Part 8', no public consultation. Just green space & nature wiped out...

Eoin Lettice @eoinlettice.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Good to see @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social covering the vanishing green space problem in Blackpool #Cork in today's Irish Examiner.

Irish Examiner@irishexaminer.bsky.social · 8mo ago

Kevin O'Brien @kevob777.bsky.social · 8mo ago

To read this reply from CCC to @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social piece in the Examiner today, it's impossible to know that not only was the tree removed, but the area concreted over too. Essentially, an area that once had grass and 4 mature trees in recent years, is now a car park.

Justin Myers @theguyliner.bsky.social · 9mo ago

ICON. 💔

The amazing Prunella Scales, starring as Sybil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers. She is smoking a cigarette and holding a bonkbuster novel in her hand.

Kevin Burke @kevburkeie.bsky.social · 12mo ago

Can't disagree with a word of this. Words won't work, automatic enforcement needed. Beyond frustrating that automatic cameras have not been rolled-out nationwide. Let's free up Garda resources and court time from challenges.

Irish Examiner@irishexaminer.bsky.social · 12mo ago

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · 12mo ago

I was sent this pic by Denis Murphy of Bantry Library, with a selection of books inspired by the desert island picks in the weekly Books are my Business feature I do in the @irishexaminer This has made my day, week, month, year! Cherish your libraries and librarians ❤️

Boze the Library Owl @sketchesbyboze.bsky.social · last yr.

If you're using AI to write essays, eulogies, a text to your wife, I do think less of you as a person. Ceding your mental and creative abilities to a machine is an embarrassing thing and people should be ashamed to admit doing it in public.

$[quoting a tweet by fractalcounty that reads, “today I learned that there are actual people irl who get genuinely upset if they catch you using chatgpt. like they view it as a serious moral failing in certain circles”]$

Michael Moynihan @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social · last yr.

As they say on LinkedIn, delighted to share news of my new book about the future of the GAA - more details to follow but feel free to circulate this message. More Than A Game: The GAA and Where It's Going is published soon by Gill Books

Barnaby Edwards @barnabyedwards.bsky.social · last yr.

An alert to all creatives using #WeTransfer. Basically, stop immediately! As of August, they will begin scraping everything you send for AI purposes (see the new paragraph in their Terms and Conditions below). If, like me, you’re a voice artist, they’ll clone your voice. Avoid at all costs.

TheBookshop.ie @thebookshopie.bsky.social · last yr.

4 forthcoming Irish Sport themed titles - all from the new Gill Books catalogue - Including titles from Brendan Fanning on the evolution of Irish Rugby, Marc Ó Sé on Kerry GAA, @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social on the future of the GAA, and David Gillick on athletics and after. #preorders #irishsport

In a county where success is weighed in medals, the Ó Sé brothers all hung up their boots with heavy hearts but even heavier pockets: a combined total of 16 All-Irelands, 28 Munsters and 12 All-Stars
making their way back to An Ghaeltacht – a haul which is unlikely to be surpassed by a set of siblings any time soon. Marc Ó Sé is the youngest member of the most famous footballing family in Ireland – the Ó Sé family. As such his football path was clear and his mission was understood. Not only did Marc have his brothers to emulate; in Kerry the voices from the past can often speak loudest. How loud is that volume when your own uncle is the inimitable Páidí Ó Sé?
More than just a revealing account of Marc’s own glittering career, Ó Sé is laden with the tales and anecdotes, and the successes and failures that have marked the storied history of this footballing dynasty.

The GAA is more than a game. It’s a cornerstone of Irish identity — woven into parishes, families, and the national psyche. But behind the passion and pride lies a question that has never really been
asked. Where is the GAA going? In this revealing and timely book, acclaimed journalist Michael Moynihan explores how the GAA is changing, and what it means for the Ireland it serves. Is it still a grassroots, amateur participation movement? Is it a delivery system for elite sport? Is it a real estate organisation with thousands of premises? With sharp insight and deep research, Moynihan tackles
the big questions — from unregulated payments to stadium sponsorships, broadcasting
controversies, and postponed games for pop concerts. Moynihan lifts the lid on the inner workings of the GAA at a crossroads. At once thoughtful, balanced, and bold, Moynihan shows us the organisation behind the headlines — and why its future matters to us all.

Ireland went to the 2023 Rugby World Cup as the number one ranked team in the world. They had a unique Test series win in New Zealand on their list of achievements; they were the reigning Grand Slam holders; and still they came home early. Getting to the last four has become an obsession. But is this the only measure of success?
This ambition is a country mile removed from the awfulness of Irish rugby as the game went from amateur to professional during the nineties. We were all over the shop, and the men behind the counter were lost and disgruntled. But by the arrival of the Six Nations in 2000, pain gave way to change. There were real signs of growth. From Eddie O’Sullivan, who kicked it off and then was deported to a limbo where he couldn’t get a decent job, to men of massive influence like Joe Schmidt and Stuart Lancaster, to David Nucifora – the first tsar of Irish rugby in the pro era – rugby here became unrecognisable from its old days.

$The Race offers an exhilarating, behind-the-scenes look at the cut-throat world of elite athletics. With vivid recall, David Gillick, one of Ireland’s most celebrated 400m sprinters, describes the sacrifices, triumphs and devastating setbacks that define a life spent chasing greatness. From the punishing grind of training camps to the mental anguish of injuries and the darker side of athletics, this memoir captures the intensity of a career defined by fractions of a second. As an Irish athlete competing against the odds, Gillick recalls the unique challenges of representing a small nation: limited resources, enormous expectations, and the constant push to prove you belong among the world’s best. But The Race is more than a story of sport. It’s an exploration of human resilience and the fight to find balance in a life consumed by the pursuit of perfection. It’s about enduring heartbreak, overcoming burnout, and discovering who you are when the race is over.$

West Cork Literary Festival @wcorklitfest.bsky.social · last yr.

Alan Hollinghurst at WCLF has long been a dream of ours & it's finally coming true. Alan will be in Bantry Fri 11 July with his fabulous novel Our Evenings @picadorbooks.bsky.social 🎟️ www.westcorkmusic.ie/events/2025/alan-hollinghurst/ www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/ar... @marjbrennan.bsky.social

Author interview: ‘Gay life and history keeps on developing and changing’

The world of LGBTQ+ fiction is a completely different proposition now, and is flourishing thanks in no small part to writers such as Alan Hollinghurst

irishexaminer.com

West Cork Literary Festival @wcorklitfest.bsky.social · last yr.

Great interview with Bantry Librarian, Denis Murphy, in the @irishexaminer.bsky.social Books Are My Business column. We host #FreeEvents in #BantryLibrary every day during WCLF www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/ar... @marjbrennan.bsky.social

Books are my business: Librarian at Bantry Library Denis Murphy

'Approaching high summer, the West Cork Literary Festival concentrates most of my attention'

irishexaminer.com

Siobhán McElduff @siobhanmcelduff.bsky.social · last yr.

I feel like @dublininquirer.com could do a great story on whatever stroke is being pulled here.

Smart Tourism Workshop with DCC & OpenAI - Smart Dublin

In early 2024, Dublin City Council and ChatGPT creator, OpenAI, formed a partnership as a part of the European Capital […]

smartdublin.ie

Chris Addison @mrchrisaddison.bsky.social · last yr.

Ireland, that most literary of countries with the most poetic version of the English language, choosing to ignore all its homegrown brilliance & slop up workaday words-by-numbers as its own face. Choosing to promote itself in a way that undermines one of the very things the world loves about it.

Post nicht verfügbar.

Michael Moynihan @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social · last yr.

Is Cork safe? @irishexaminer.bsky.social city column following on from city councillors' debate recently www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/colu...

Michael Moynihan: Cork city is neglected and dirty — but is it really unsafe?

The blighted cityscape is bad enough, but the message of neglect and dismissal it carries is worse. It lowers people’s self-esteem and makes visiting the city a chore

irishexaminer.com

Cork Cycling Campaign @corkcyclingcrew.bsky.social · last yr.

Today we’re rolling into the Marina for #BikeWeek2025! 🚲✨ Ever wondered about cargo bikes? Come take one for a spin or flaunt your own. Family? Friends? Pets? Bring them all! No booking needed — just show up. Fun activities for kids too!

readywriting @readywriting.bsky.social · last yr.

JFC. This is depressing. I feel like “kids these days” are looking at us like we’re Don Quixote tilting at windmills when we rage against this rampant use of AI and just refusing to evolve. But even us slacker Gen-Xers never imagined this level of disregard for learning and education and *work*

Kevin P. Taylor@ktaylor.bsky.social · last yr.

This was a depressing semester for me dealing with inappropriate AI use by students (including graduating seniors). Then, a colleague sent me this and I was like, that doesn’t help. #EduSky #AcademicChatter #Academia archive.ph/2025.05.07-2...

Michael Moynihan @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social · last yr.

@irishexaminer.bsky.social city column. Where should a new library for Cork go? And more importantly, where it shouldn’t. www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/colu...

Michael Moynihan: Cork deserves better than a 19th-century building for its 21st-century city library

Cork’s proposed city library move raises serious questions about civic ambition, architectural fit, and long-term cultural vision

irishexaminer.com

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

Yup, as a former page designer on a newspaper, and kerner of headlines, this is absolutely shocking.

Gavan Reilly@gavreilly.com · last yr.

@jameskelleher.pilcrow.ie saw this and thought of you www.fastcompany.com/91324550/ker...

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

Literally and figuratively.

Eoin Lettice @eoinlettice.bsky.social · last yr.

Hat tip to fellow northside native @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social for flying the flag. We can and must do better for the northside and the city as a whole. #Cork

Irish Examiner@irishexaminer.bsky.social · last yr.

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

About to get even more unaffordable then. Most people I speak to in Cork now swerve staying there because of hotel cost or drive up and down to gigs in the same night. It’s not a capital that serves the citizens of its country.

Irish Examiner@irishexaminer.bsky.social · last yr.

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

The irony that I now bring headphones everywhere to block out the noise of people listening to stuff on their phones without any. Sartre wasn’t wrong.

Mairéad Hearne | Swirl and Thread Book Blog @maireadhearne.bsky.social · last yr.

I went to the Cork Arts Theatre last night to see The Cure, with a mesmerising performance by Ciaran Bermingham. He had us all enthralled with his one man performance set in Cork. Written by @conalcreedon.bsky.social Running for another few nights so do go if you can Highly recommend 👌 #cork

Woman dressed in black standing in front of the Cork Arts Theatre

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

Maybe we’ll finally stop lionising this pair.

Charlie Taylor@charlietaylor.bsky.social · last yr.

Stripe co-founder and chief executive Patrick Collison has joined Meta’s board of directors, the tech giant has said www.businesspost.ie/tech-news/st...

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

Heart of Glass, Hangin on the Telephone….the hits keep coming. What a band.

Marjorie Brennan@marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

They are showing a Blondie concert from 46 YEARS ago on BBC4 right now, in honour of Clem Burke. Dreaming, followed by Union City Blues and Atomic. Absolute bangers and the band is still impossibly and timelessly cool 😎❤️

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

The O’Brien Press @theobrienpress.bsky.social · last yr.

The O’Brien Press supports Publishing Ireland’s call upon the Irish Government and the EU to uphold copyright law and hold Meta to account. For more information visit: www.publishingireland.com/reports-of-w...

REPORTS OF WHOLESALE COPYRIGHT THEFT BY META - Publishing Ireland

Publishing Ireland condemns Meta’s alleged use of pirated versions of millions of copyright- protected works in order to train its AI model, Llama 3. This was highlighted in The Atlantic on March 20, 2025 under the headline ‘The Unbelievable Scale of AI’s Pirated- Books Problem’. The Atlantic alleges that Meta decided that seeking permission and […]

publishingireland.com

Marjorie Brennan @marjbrennan.bsky.social · last yr.

On this, I am in the city regularly enough. The paths are absolutely filthy. I never see cleansing crews washing them. Compare to somewhere like Malaga where they are out in the morning and evening every day 🤷‍♀️

Michael Moynihan @mikemoynihanex.bsky.social · last yr.

Today's @irishexaminer.bsky.social city column. Maintenance in cities is important for safety, pride, hygiene and a host of other reasons. Why is it so difficult in Cork, then? www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/colu...