Not sure who to catch at the Picnic, and who to leave to the ants? Never fear! The intrepid, well-travelled, and extremely attractive Culch.ie music team are here to guide you gently into making the right choice, no matter your creed. Seán Recommends: BP FALLON: Irish legend who has been labelled muso, journalist, PR man, charlatan?… who cares what else, is giving a talk as part of the panel entitled ‘Unknown Pleasures‘ as hosted by Dave Fanning at Mindfield at EP. Check it out at Saturday 4pm at the Levithian tent. Remember ‘leccy picnic’s not ONLY about the music (although...

The proposed amendments to the Draft Dublin City Development Plan 2011 – 2017 will be on public  display from 18th August 2010 to 15 September 2010 at the following locations in the South East Area during normal office opening hours: Civic Offices, Wood Quay, Dublin 8 Ringsend/Pembroke Area Office, Portview House, Thorncastle Street, Ringsend, Dublin 4 Rathmines Pembroke Community Partnership, 11 Wynnefield Road, Rathmines, Dublin 6. The proposed amendments to the Draft Dublin City Development Plan 2011 – 2017 will also be on display at the following libraries in the South East Area from 18th August 2010 to 15 September...

Still plenty of ifs and buts in determining final cost to taxpayer – The Irish Times – Wed, Sep 01, 2010 The meter on the bailout has reached €22.88 billion. Some €18.88 billion has come through promissory notes, or State IOUs, which, the Government says, allows it to spread the cost over a “manageable” 10 to 15 years. I’ve been sticking my head in the sand over this. I find it hard to hold in my head the idea of what a billion is, let alone €20bn. It takes necessary thinking labour time, of which I don’t have a great...

The resignation of Monica Mc Williams as Chief Human Rights Commissioner in Northern Ireland, is no loss to those of us who value the rights of all people. The Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission is funded and directed by the British State, it has no value in the real fight for Human Rights in Northern Ireland.The majority of the Human Rights industry in the north has become the anti-thesis of the Human Rights genre. People in the pay of the British State can never represent the demand for Human Rights by those who are marginalised in society. Those on inflated...

I am surprised that the launch of Microsofts Kinect, the long expected arrival of internet TVs by year end and the never ending expansion of cloud based services has not generated more debate about the potential impact on PR and social media. In the not too distant future instead of the collection of different remote controls, DVD/VHS players, games consoles and related bits you will eventually have a very large screen with a built in sensor that can pick up and interpret your movements.  This will all be connect to a ultra fast broadband connection which pulls down the different services you are...

I’ve been watching Jamie Oliver’s New European Series - so far I’ve seen him in Morocco, Spain and, most recently, Greece. This episode was all about simple ingredients simply put together. He went spear fishing, met up with some bee keepers and nibbled on some goats cheese with a Greek Orthodox monk. Some of the dishes he covered were a classic Greek salad, Honey and Pistachio Cake, tasty looking kebabs, fisherman’s stew made from sea water and fresh Tuna with Lemon Sauce. All very inspiring stuff. He also did a segment on Mezze which is a selection of small dishes...

I was at the Guns N’ Roses concert at the O2 in Dublin, and I was appauled at the behaviour of so called fans when Guns N’ Roses eventually took to the stage at around 10:30pm. The support act were late finishing and for 1h 30 minutes there was a gap. For the most part it was good humoureed with a few Mexican Waves, cheers and so forth. However once it came near 10:15pm booos started to ring out. The band took to the stage at 10:30 to a tirade of boos and jeers. Then bottles and cups full of...

30th August 2010 PRESS RELEASE Murphy Calls For Changes to Repeat Leaving Cert System Fine Gael Councillor, Maria Murphy has called on the Minister for Education & Skills, Mary Coughlan TD to give our Leaving Certificate students a break. "The demand for Repeat Leaving Certificates has increased in recent years as our students chase the points system for their chosen profession. Often the students are short a small number of points for their desired course. The need for students to repeat the Leaving Certificate puts students under a lot of pressure and is very costly for parents. "After another year...

A Turn at Tara.On a windswept but sunny day a large crowd turned out for a celebration of poetry and song at Tara today, though given that some of Ireland's best known poets were in attendance it was only to be expected. Or if you're coming next year, come early if you want to get parking! I think the event was sponsored by "Poetry Ireland" and organised by the singer songwriter Susan McKeown, who was able to hold the crowd without the aid of a microphone or sound system but then she has a great voice! Having said that a...

They're burying Mick Lally in Dublin today, and the world's the poorer for it. At age 64, Lally rolled and rumbled when he spoke, his timbre recalling a rough plane of soft pine. He showed a kind character to match the grain. He was an actor's actor of stage and screen, a man of the West with a face turned to the world.Born in the Mayo Gaeltacht, Lally was a native Irish speaker who moved between worlds. As a young man on the boards, he spread his home country's influence by revitalizing Irish culture. He filled the stage. In 1975,...

Director Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuss) sets himself a difficult task with his latest project. In an age where comic book adaptations adorn our screens at every turn, the honeymoon period is quickly coming to an end. Kick-Ass tried to do the very same, injecting hipster sensibilities into the preexisting formula, failing early on to carve a substantial niche for itself. But in the mysterious wilds of Toronto, practically anything is possible. Drawing from the pulsating series by Bryan Lee O’Malley, Pilgrim (Michael Cera) is the jilted bass guitarist of Sex Bob-omb, a group in need...

Prizes: 1st £1000, 2nd £500, 3rd £250 & 20 prizes of £20 each Deadline: Friday 15th oct 2010 Judges: Gwyneth Lewis, Maurice Riordan Both judges will read all poems submitted. Rules: Poems must be in English, must each be no longer than 45 lines, must fit on one page of A4, must be the original work of the entrant and must not have been previously broadcast or published (in print or online); Fees: All entries must be accompanied by fee of EITHER £5/€6/$8 per poem, if fewer than 4 poems, OR £4/€5/$7 per poem if 4 or more poems submitted;...

Arcade Fire – the mere mention of these words lately seems to bring out bloggers and commentators in a rash of hastily-slung insults and rabidly constructed defences. First, there was their by-all-accounts limp Oxegen performance; then they had the temerity to announce a date in the O2, follow it up with a second (after the first sold out in nanoseconds), and they had the cheek to charge €75 for the privilege (Jim Carroll and On the Record have been doing a grand job of stoking that particular Arcade Fire here). Now, though, with a nose for publicity that Max Clifford...

In September we would like to giveaway up to €1,000 in One4all Vouchers in packs of €20 each. That’s 50 vouchers to give away until September 21st. To get your hands on on a €20 Voucher, simply post 25 reviews, which will give you at least 1,200 WhoseView points. Post 50 reviews and get 2 x €20 Vouchers. Once you’ve posted your 25 reviews simply claim your Voucher on the One4all page here. Terms & Conditions: 1. This offer begins from the 1st of September 2010. Therefore only reviews posted from 1st of September can be counted. 2. We have...

For those of you now suffering from post-summer hang over, taking part in sporting events is probably the last thing on your minds. If, on the other hand, some of you out there have an interest in observing the extremities of different high octane sports through the lenses of numerous award winning photographers, then this exhibit should be right up your alley! The Red Bull Illume Image Quest 2010, an open air exhibition featuring the best 50 photos from nearly 23,000 action and adventure sports images, last night officially opened at Trinity College, Dublin, to widespread critical acclaim. The highly anticipated...

One of the more disturbing things I’ve come across recently is this poll figure from the US saying that 18% of people polled believe that  President Obama is a Muslim. What’s particularly worrying, indeed surreal, is that the number of people who believe that he is a Christian (which he is, although I can’t believe we actually have to discuss this stuff) has dropped from 48% to 34%. In other words, people who actually were aware of the truth have now swung over to believing the lie. What is truly scary about this is the Goebbels-size lie that it is,...

Tonight is the big night for American telly. The Emmys, those Oscars of the small screen are on tonight. Actually, I should specify, The Emmys are so big now that they are split into two groups: The Daytime Emmy Awards that Ellen owns and the The Primetime Emmy Awards, which are on tonight. This year, Glee has been nominated in most categories, but insiders agree that they probably won’t win any of the big ones. Glee is an Emmy anomaly in that it’s youth-led; based in high-school with unknown actors. Most of the acting nominees have been around for years....

Press release: Councillor Matt Waine (Socialist Party) Minister and politicians celebrate M50 upgrade today while ignoring scandal of wilful destruction of small Irish firm on the project Two former unemployed steel fixers from Tallaght bankrupted by race to the bottom “Mr. John Gallagher and Mr. Terence Farrell, former unemployed steel fixers from Tallaght, set up [...] [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]...

Scottish rockers Twin Atlantic played a blistering set in The O2 Dublin in support of headliners Blink 182. They played to a packed and eager Blink 182 audience for about 45 minutes and it's safe to say they won them over by the time they finished with fan favourite, A Guidance From Colour. I was there to enjoy and take photo's and here are some below.Sam Mctrusty from Twin AtlanticRoss...

Michael - Can you send an email address to editor@irishdigest.com which is located in the north west up here, regarding the book you are writing on the Civil war etec in...

I've been a big fan of Dahlia's for a long time now and I'm very excited about the newest collection; tapping into all things fiercely floral and sweetly sixties mixed up with a vintage hunter feel and quirky wild child attitude. Blau's picks...Babydoll and the PlaysuitsBlau...

THE CONSTRUCTION of the controversial new national children’s hospital on the Mater site in central Dublin is to be fast-tracked through the planning process, it has emerged.The change in approach means the project will not be scrutinised by Dublin city council planners and a planning application will go directly to Bord Pleanála instead.Minister for Health Mary Harney told the Dáil last April that the development board for the project, formally known as the National Paediatric Hospital, would submit a design application to the council in June 2010. This was later pushed back to August, when a media briefing for the...

Wondering why there was a flood of hits on the blog coming from Iain Dale's blog, I discovered that - unbeknownst to me - Alan in Belfast had been entered into Total Politics vote for Top Northern Ireland Blog, and made it into the top 20.For what it's worth, AiB came 14th ... but I wouldn't put too much trust in the science or judgement behind inclusion in the list, never mind...

Mr Blair's book, A Journey, reveals the extent of the rift between two men who dominated British politics from the moment New Labour stormed to power in 1997 to its capitulation at the polls in May.The former PM says he was put under "relentless personal pressure" by Mr Brown but could not sack his Chancellor because he feared it would lead to him being ousted from No. 10.He writes: "It is easy to say now, in the light of his tenure as Prime Minister, that I should have stopped it; at the time that would have been well-nigh impossible."The words...

1969 - I was five years old when I first fell in love. Her name was Diane and I used to walk home from Nettlefield Primary School with her. When we would get to her house I would give her a puckered-lip kiss and say goodbye. Diane lived at number 32 and so did I - it could be nothing else but love. That was until I met Julie the following year. Julie was a real woman - six years old with the body of a woman of seven.The relationship with Julie was much more intense than with Diane. One...

Arcade Fire – Ready to Start From the album The Suburbs (Merge Records; 2010) oooOOOooo Of Montreal – Coquet Coquette From the impending album False Priest (Polyvinyl) oooOOooo Male Bonding – Weird Feeling From the album Nothing Hurts (Sub Pop Records; 2010) oooOOOooo Baths – Lovely Bloodflow From the album Cerulean (Anticon Records; 2010) oooOOOooo The Thermals – I Don’t Believe You From the forthcoming album Personal Life (Kill Rock Stars) oooOOOooo Grass Widow – Fried Egg From the album Past Time (Kill Rock Stars; 2010) oooOOOooo Antony & The Johnsons – Thank You For Your Love From the album...

Energy Regulator to discuss electricity price hike and disconnection of customers with Committee on Economic Regulatory AffairsAugust 31 2010 Energy regulator Michael Tutty will appear before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Economic Regulatory Affairs tomorrow, Wednesday 1 September to discuss concerns over a planned increase in electricity prices and the record numbers of electricity and gas customers being disconnected due to their inability to pay their bills. Michael Moynihan, TD, Chair of the Committee on Economic and Regulatory Affairs said: “The planned 5 per cent increase in electricity prices the Public Service Obligation (PSO) levy from next October will hit...

With their second album The Body of Christ and the Legs of Tina Turner garnering widespread critical acclaim in advance of its nationwide release, it is safe to say that there was a strong air of anticipation surrounding this special album launch. A limited number of wristbands were available in Tower Records from 9am on Thursday morning and were snapped up within the hour, leaving many fans disappointed – but certainly not the FLApes faithful who queued outside the store from as early as 3am. Lucky competition winners were granted early access to the store for a meet & greet...