Coming out of DJ retirement for LESBIAN DEATH BED at the Dublin Fringe Festival on Sept 4th, which should be great fun. The show part of the evening is sold out, but you can get tickets to the afterparty here:

LESBIAN DEATH BED - CLUB NIGHT

The official after-party following LESBIAN DEATH BED. Come dressed for the funeral. Stay for the afters.

fringefest.com

Looking forward to chatting with Jeanie Finlay following a screening of her latest film, All Rivers Spill Their Stories to the Sea, in Dublin next month. It's part of the IFI's Documentary Festival, and you can buy tickets here: ifi.ie/film/ifi-doc...

I always think it’s such a pity the site where Meta built a massive office it didn’t need in Dublin wasn’t used for housing.

The Irish Times@irishtimes.com · last wk.

Dublin’s empty offices: White elephants and grey spaces in the ‘shadow market’

“This gaming of the truth is the rust that corrodes trust in democracy. It feeds the toxic cynicism in which lies no longer matter.” - Fintan O’Toole

Here’s a radical idea for the Government: Start telling us the truth

Its lack of candour on big issues such as Aughinish and data centres is rust that corrodes trust in democracy

irishtimes.com

William Orbit: Music producer for Madonna, U2 and more dies aged 69

William Orbit: Music producer for Madonna, U2 and more dies aged 69

Orbit was most famous for his collaboration with Madonna on her 1998 album Ray of Light

irishtimes.com

Abdul El-Sayed was outspent 9-to-1 by AIPAC and corporate Super PACs in the most expensive Senate Democratic primary of all time. Last night, he proved that organized people can beat organized money.

AIPAC just burned $32 million.

The New York Times@nytimes.com · 2w ago

Breaking News: The progressive Abdul El-Sayed narrowly won Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary, a victory for the left in a crucial state.

Another masterclass in communication from Dublin City Council 🙃

Dublin City Council official ‘sick of people’ saying capital ‘filthy’

Wheelie bin users face fines for leaving waste containers on street after collection times

irishtimes.com

Saw the restored version of DREAD BEAT AN BLOOD for the first time this week. So wonderful. What a remarkable artist Linton Kwesi Johnson is. Go see if it’s showing near you.

DREAD BEAT AN BLOOD • Official Trailer HD

YouTube video by Seventy-Seven

m.youtube.com

Shocking and so sad. Thinking of all of his family, friends, bandmates, and wider music community in Dublin and around the world.

The Irish Times@irishtimes.com · 3w ago

Oscar-winning musician and actor Glen Hansard dies in Dublin motorbike crash

“The famine is over! The curse be damned!! Hit the nuclear button! Mayo have won the All-Ireland!!” An all-time great sports commentary moment from Stephen Grealis and Martin McHugh on Mayo’s Midwest Radio. #gaa

Daire Hickey: Politicians are more interested in looking tough on RTÉ than making a decision to fund it

Daire Hickey: Politicians are more interested in looking tough on RTÉ than making a decision to fund it

No enterprise could absorb an 18-year price freeze on its primary revenue stream while costs keep climbing

irishtimes.com

Facebook parent Meta launches legal challenge to Coimisiún na Meán investigations

Facebook parent Meta launches legal challenge to Coimisiún na Meán investigations

Meta Platforms seeking court order halting inquiries started in May, relating to recommender feeds on Facebook and Instagram

irishtimes.com

Taking a short break from my Monday Irish Times column, and delighted to get the opportunity to be in such great company at Medill.

Medill accepts 10 Fellows into George R.R. Martin Summer Intensive Writing Workshop - Medill - Northwestern University

Ten writers have been accepted into this year’s George R.R. Martin Summer Intensive Writing Workshop at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communicat...

medill.northwestern.edu

Thousands attend Trans and Intersex Pride in Dublin.

Thousands attend transgender and intersex pride march in Dublin

‘Our bodies, our lives, our right to decide’: demonstrators call for bodily autonomy and better access to healthcare

irishtimes.com

Worth revisiting this great profile on Robyn while her current tour brings so many people such great vibes.

Robyn, on Her Own

The pop star brings motherhood and middle age to the dance floor.

newyorker.com

Hard to keep impressing upon people in Ireland how wild this is as government has normalised it and are working to rewrite the legislation underpinning our electricity infrastructure to facilitate more data centres.

The Irish Times@irishtimes.com · 2mo ago

Data centres account for almost one quarter of Irish electricity usage in 2025

Wrote about the rise of “competitive socialising” as an entertainment (and commercial property) phenomenon.

Una Mullally: From axe-throwing to augmented darts: what’s behind the rise in ‘competitive socialising’?

Arcades used to primarily be the preserve of children’s birthday parties, but a changing attitude to socialising means games are no longer just for kids

irishtimes.com

Were the energy generated in Dublin last night captured effectively when CMAT appeared on stage with Robyn to perform Call Your Girlfriend, we would have no issue with grid security. What a moment, and what a way to kick off Pride weekend. Happy Pride! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Police were warned for months about addresses targeted in Belfast riots

Police were warned for months about addresses targeted in Belfast riots

Exclusive: PSNI repeatedly warned by monitoring group for eight months after a so-called hitlist of addresses began circulating in far-right networks A monitoring group repeatedly warned the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) over the past eight months that anti-immigration activists were circulating the addresses of properties that were targeted in this week’s Belfast riots. The Accountability Project Northern Ireland, a volunteer group formed last summer to monitor anti-immigration activity online, sent dozens of reports to police between November 2025 and June 2026. Continue reading...

theguardian.com

Immigrants make higher fiscal contribution than Irish-born, ESRI study finds

Immigrants make higher fiscal contribution than Irish-born, ESRI study finds

ESRI migration

irishtimes.com

Love this.

Patrick Freyne@patrickfreyne.bsky.social · 2mo ago

You're going to get so sick of me soon. I'M sick of me. Here's an essay I did for the Guardian about being the hip young gunslinger of Irish literature: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

Today, I'll brief the Joint Committee on Artificial Intelligence on a new working paper which quantifies the potential energy and emissions from data centres into the future under the new Large Energy User Connection Policy, should 5.8 GW of new capacity (estimated through a market survey) emerge.

The Irish Times@irishtimes.com · 2mo ago

Data centre electricity demand could exceed power usage of entire country

If you're heading to Beyond the Pale this weekend, I'm doing a bunch of stuff: - Friday: Grianstad: the Trip (8.30pm) - Saturday: Sliver Salon (3.30pm) - Sunday: Seán Ronayne's birdwatching walk (11am) and Untold Sounds talk (1pm) Weather forecast is looking good, and the lineup is excellent.

Beyond The Pale | Festival

Caribou, Soulwax, Father John Misty headline Beyond the Pale In Glendalough, just 30 mins from Dublin, Ireland this June.

itsbeyondthepale.ie

Always nice to read and hear about the impact my dad had (and continues to have!) as an English teacher. Some lovely words from Fiachna Ó Braonáin here.

Fiachna Ó Braonáin’s Leaving Cert: ‘I stayed up very late at night, drinking coffee and cramming’

The musician and broadcaster sat the exams in the summer of 1984

irishtimes.com

Why does the Irish government insist on telling a uniquely positive story about the scale and impact of data centre development? I wrote about how Irish exceptionalism underpins this attitude, while common sense tells us something different.

Una Mullally: Over 870,000 jobs created by data centres? Don’t make me laugh

You simply cannot attribute that many jobs to data centres, no more than you can attribute every job in Ireland people commute to by car to the existence of traffic lights

irishtimes.com

‘Staggering’ Irish slump pushes Eurozone economy into reverse

‘Staggering’ Irish slump pushes Eurozone economy into reverse

Economists say Ireland’s GDP ‘impossible’ to predict because of cross-border flows from multinationals

irishtimes.com

Rusal, the company that owns the Co Limerick industrial plant Aughinish Alumina, continues to be controlled by sanctioned Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, according to a confidential report by Swedish tax authorities. www.irishtimes.com/ireland/2026...

Putin associate still controls Aughinish Alumina parent company, Swedish investigators allege

Oligarch Oleg Deripaska is under EU sanctions over his role in supporting the invasion of Ukraine

irishtimes.com

Interesting piece by Megan Specia on Ireland's defence, shadow fleets, spy ships, and spending. Great imagery from Paulo Nunes Dos Santos as usual.

Ireland, Seen as a Weak Link in Europe’s Defense, Is Trying to Bulk Up

nytimes.com

If you're in Dublin, I highly recommend seeing THISISPOPBABY's 0800 Cupid by Emer Dineen at Project Arts Centre. It's funny and moving and brilliant. Runs until June 13th.

0800 CUPID - Project Arts Centre

projectartscentre.ie