After 10 years at the helm of Irish Studies at QUB, with various ups and downs over the last decade, I’m handing over to our new leadership team from Monday. Many thanks to Peter and @siobhraaiken.bsky.social for stepping up to take forward Irish Studies in Belfast! www.qub.ac.uk/schools/Iris...

New Irish Studies Leadership

After 10 years as Director of the Institute of Irish Studies, Prof Peter Gray is handing over to a new leadership team from the start of August 2026.

qub.ac.uk

The happy lundays! Well done @clairemitchell.bsky.social for all your courage and good humour. May there be many more happy lundays to join you as we work together for a better and shared future.

Claire Mitchell@clairemitchell.bsky.social · 6d ago

Yesterday was some craic.This in the Irish News and a Féile panel on Irish unity. I wanted to say something about the emotional journey many of us are on with all this.

The stunning portrait of Glen Hansard by Colin Davidson sums up the grief I feel hearing the tragic news of the musician’s untimely death. He has made such an important contribution to Irish culture and will be badly missed. My deepest condolences to his family. RIP Glen 💔

MAYO!!! My cousins in Crossmolina are going to have one hell of a night. So long in the waiting and so well deserved! 👏

WELL DONE SPAIN. Trump insulted you - and now he has to hand you the World Cup trophy. GO SPAIN!!!

Absolutely!!!

Marie Le Conte@youngvulgarian.marieleconte.com · 2w ago

I want the boys of the beautiful Pedro Sanchez to defeat the hooligans associated with the off-putting Javier Milei

#DIBLives 'Tell them I have done my duty.' General of Antrim & Commander-in-Chief of the United Irish army of the north, Henry Joy McCracken was court-martialled & sentenced to death. He was executed #OTD 1798 having refused to name other leaders in exchange for clemency. www.dib.ie/biography/mc...

It’s hard to be shocked these days but this is a whole new level of misogyny and depravity.

Brendan Harkin@brendanjharkin.bsky.social · 3w ago

The French Nazis that Loyalists brought over to Sandy Row last night have spray painted a message of support for Gisèle Pelicot's rapist husband just in case you thought the "protect our women" brigade are anything other than human tumours

Erling Haaland and the rest of the Norwegian men's team are paid the same as the women's team. In 2017, they took a voluntary pay cut to allow the women's pay to be increased. The move came from the players' union, not management.

The Irish Labour History Society and the Women’s History Association of Ireland are hosting a conference, 24/25 July, Lissadell, Sligo to mark the centenary of the death of Eva Gore-Booth. Early booking is advised for what will be a gathering of historians & feminists to consider Eva’s legacy. 👇🏼

The Anaka fundraiser is still going, almost £260,000 now chuffed.org/project/1854...

Support people and groups impacted by racist attacks

We are raising funds to support people who have been attacked, displaced and traumatised in racist attacks in Belfast.

chuffed.org

I really don't love how now the Jeffrey Donaldson headlines are "he had sex with men!!!!!" and not "he abused children, sexually assaulted at least one woman, and is a gigantic hypocrite".

I love him! He always does the right thing, and with such coolness. 😍

Spectrum News NY1@spectrumnewsny1.bsky.social · last mo.

New York City residents are celebrating the reopening of public pools — including Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who jumped into the water while wearing a suit at an East Harlem pool on Saturday. Outdoor public pools will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day through Sept. 13.

A beautiful way to go 💚💜

Dr Mary McAuliffe@drmarymcauliffe.bsky.social · last mo.

On this day, 25/06/1957, Irish revolutionary women Elizabeth O'Farrell died. She was walking on Bray seafront with her life long partner and fellow revolutionary Julia Grenan. She had a sudden heart attack and died in Julia’s arms. They are buried together in Glasnevin cemetery #irishqueerhistories

At last. Justice for two very brave women. We now need our society and all institutions to look again at how it can meaningfully respect and protect girls and women and listen to them when they speak up. We believe them.

Virgin Media News@virginmedianews.bsky.social · last mo.

Former DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson has been found guilty of rape and 17 other sexual offences. The charges span a period between 1985 and 2008 and involve two girls. The verdict was delivered following his trial at Newry Crown Court. 📺 More on Virgin Media News at 5:30pm

Very timely in view of the Reavey case today and the eventual admission that the 3 murdered brothers were totally innocent victims of the murderous Glenanne Gang which included RUC members.

Paddy Hillyard@paddyzemia.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Launched tonight in No Alibis. Ware shows in a meticulous analysis how the NCND dogma was used to cover up the impact of MI5’s 1981 counterinsurgency strategy in which state agents were allowed to murder and we’re protected, corrupting the rule of law and the administration of justice.

"The most recent survey evidence shows that many people are joining the march towards Irish unity. It is Prof Shirlow’s case for maintenance of the union that rests on an outdated picture." Mike Burke

Aerial PARTIAL view of the anti racist, anti fascist crowd in Belfast right now. City Hall to the left for scale. This - this is the real Belfast. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

Elaine is great and you should all definitely follow her

Tony - Pod Guy - Groves@tonygroves.bsky.social · 2mo ago

While the “protesters” kicked in doors in Belfast, community support groups stepped up. The State was found wanting. The majority of the people were not. @elainecrory.bsky.social on the tortoise shack. No paywall 👇 podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/t...

Northern Ireland has a very high level of gender based violence, mainly committed by white Northern Irish men. I’ve yet to see riots after a woman has been violently attacked or killed. Seems like the issue isn’t qwhite about violence but who gets to commit it! www.ulster.ac.uk/research/res...

Research uncovers eye-watering levels of violence against women and girls in NI

Based on responses from more than 540 women, the report also found seven out of 10 experienced some form of violence or abuse in the last 12 months.

ulster.ac.uk

Based in North #Belfast, #Anaka is a women's collective dedicated to empowering and supporting migrant women as they build their lives in #Belfast. They ask for support for all affected by #MuskRiots #MuskMob #Donate www.instagram.com/anakacollect...

Support people and groups impacted by racist attacks

We are raising funds to support people who have been attacked, displaced and traumatised in racist attacks in Belfast.

chuffed.org

This Belfast womens collective is raising funds to help victims. chuffed.org/project/1854...

Support people and groups impacted by racist attacks

We are raising funds to support people who have been attacked, displaced and traumatised in racist attacks in Belfast.

chuffed.org

The family of the Belfast stabbing victim have released a statement saying - like the family of Henry Nowak last week - that the attack should not be used to "divide people or fuel hostility" They condemned disorder and praised the "valuable contribution" by migrants inews.co.uk/news/politic...

Seriously?? I was really looking forward to Playboy of the Western World’ tonight. Ok, it’s middle class problem for me, but I worked in QFT during the conflict and I don’t remember ever closing for something like this.

The Pat Finucane inquiry opened today. It will explore the role of state agents involved in his murder. Ironically, they were drawn from the loyalist communities, the same communities who created mayhem last night. The ‘legalised lawlessness’ of the past continues to have consequences today.

When you get an emergency school closure message and have to sprint at the end of giving parliamentary evidence to find the children, you know you live in what should not be normal times. My heart in the last twenty minutes of that committee session. Wired.

And brilliant people like my daughter are busy working in hospitals - are they supposed to abandon their patients because of these thugs? I’ve lived through the troubles, remember the house burning of Bombay St etc and I just despair.

Lee Hurley@hleehurley.com · 2mo ago

All buses are stopping in Belfast after 5pm and no trains after 6pm. Get yourself home folks.

the Women’s History Association of Ireland (WHAI) has teamed up with the Women’s History Network to offer a joint annual book prize which awards £500 for an author’s first single-authored monograph in women’s or gender history. Entries close on 31 July 2026. womenshistorynetwork.org/womens-histo...

Women’s History Network/Women’s History Association of Ireland Joint Book Prize

We are delighted to announce that the WHN has teamed up with the Women’s History Association of Ireland to offer a joint annual book prize which awards £500 for an author’s first single-autho…

womenshistorynetwork.org