Author Archives

Mike

Liverpool born poet and writer Michael Walsh traces his Liverpool roots back to 1865. This was the year his Irish great-grandmother arrived in the Second City of Empire. His parents were born at the turn of what was to become the most tumultuous century in history. Michael's father, Patrick, fought in three major conflicts before reaching his fortieth birthday. His mother, Kathleen, was a former nun turned gun-running renegade.
On leaving school at 15 years of age, Michael spent 12 weeks at the Merchant Navy School for Sailors in Sharpness, Gloucestershire. During his years at sea, he was to visit and work in over 60 countries.
The journalist and broadcaster since provided articles and columns for numerous magazines and international news media. In 2011 he was awarded Writer of the Year by the publishers of Euro Weekly News, Europe's highest-circulation newspaper of its kind. He has authored, edited and ghosted over 70 book titles.

The Bravest American

Born on the morning of 24 April 1906 at 1377 Herkimer Street in New York, the intellectually gifted William Joyce had an Irish family tree to be proud of. Theirs was a family whose merits had given an entire region of Galway its name, ‘Joyce’s Country’. The Joyce family roots could be traced back to William the Conqueror’s colonisation of medieval England and the later crusades. Among Joyce’s ancestors were three archbishops, three founders of the Dominican College at Louvain, several mayors of Galway, an historian, a nineteenth century poet-physician, an American revivalist preacher, and the noted author and poet James Joyce.

Twelfth Night (holiday) – January 5

Twelfth Night (also known as Epiphany Eve) is a festival in some branches of Christianity that takes place on the last night of the Twelve Days of Christmas, marking the coming of the Epiphany. Different traditions mark the date of Twelfth Night as either 5 January or 6 January, depending on whether the counting begins on Christmas or 26 December.

Be Afraid Be Very Afraid

As a guest at a medieval manse, I recall my bravado when late at night I was invited to enter the unsealed wooden door of a forbidding garret. My hosts stood well back as cautiously I opened the door to peer into a blackness. Other than the darkness I couldn’t see anything but was aware of what I describe tersely as a hideous malevolent entity inviting me to enter. Slamming the garret door shut I fearfully retreated.

Dia de Los Reyes Magos (Three Kings’ Day) – January 6

January 6th is a very important holiday in Spain as the entire country celebrates the Epiphany, or Dia de Los Reyes Magos. On the eve of Epiphany (January 5th), every city, town, and village prepares for the arrival of the Three Kings of the Orient by organizing various processions and fiestas, including the famous La Cabalgata de los Reyes Magos, an exciting parade and a cultural experience in its own right.

Has Populism Risen to Power in Romania?

The Alliance for the Unification of the Romanians (AUR): An Inside View: As the after effects of the Romanian Parliamentary Elections, which took place on December 6, 2020, begin to subside, the newest revelation of the Romanian political scene is just preparing to take centre stage.