Friday, 10th February 2012

Poetry of Michael D. Higgins

A new collection of poetry has been described by one critic as ‘Lame, stale and stilted’. It doesn’t get much worse than that you may think. But now add in "bland, imprecise and ultimately incomprehensible" and go on to describe the poet as guilty of ‘crimes against literature’ and one is left in no doubt that it’s a ‘thumbs down’.

The critic is Professor Kevin Kiely and the author, our own dear President Michael D Higgins. Kevin Kiely and Des Kenny, of Kenny’s bookshop in Galway joined Pat this morning.

Greece

A meeting between Eurozone Minsters broke last night as the Chairman of the meeting Jean-Claude Juncker, saying Greece needs to find an extra €325m in savings to meet the terms of their new bailout. For their part the Greeks left the meeting saying they have to decide whether to stay in the euro.

Pat was joined from Brussels by Elmar Brock of the CDU Party in Germany, by former Greek Finance Minster Stefanos Manos and by Arthur Beesley, European Correspondent with the Irish Times.

Household Charge

It has been doing the rounds in cyber space over the past week or so that a legal loophole exists which means that if you don’t register for the household charge then you don’t have to pay it. The suggestion was that because the bill is a statute it only carries the force of law if you consent to it or in this case register for the charge.

We were on to the Department of the Environment yesterday and a spokesman confirmed that there’s no basis whatsoever to the theory but some of our listeners are still confused.

So joining Pat on the line, to throw some light on the issue - barrister and author - Tim Bracken.

Darkley House

Almost twenty nine years ago, three protestants were murdered in what has become known as the Darkley Gospel Hall Massacre.
Today, just across the fields, an old mill owner’s house bears witness to reconciliation within the South Armagh community. Valerie Cox went to Darkley House.

Recipe Corner

Valentine’s Day means unwanted romantic pressure for a lot of people and booking a special restaurant is one way of resolving the annual question of what to do. But a restaurant full of couples is not for everyone. Maybe a chance to show off your home cooking skills would make for a more romantic night, and impress your partner more.

Chef Christine O’Sullivan of Masterchef fame has come up with some ideas.

Crazy River – A Plunge into Africa

by Richard Grant (Little Brown)

Richard Grant travels differently than the rest of us. While most of us head for the comforts of big resorts, he journeys deep into places in the world where there is little to no information available and no guide book ever written. Even when it means heading into areas classified by international agencies as dangerous and lawless, or plagued by disease-carrying mosquitoes and bandits he is not swayed.

In his most recent book, Crazy River, he attempted the first full navigation of the Malagarasi River, the second longest river in Tanzania. Dodging bullets, hippos, and crocodiles, he finally emerges in war-torn Burundi, having had a very different journey from the one he imagined.

Friday Gathering

Joining Pat for this morning’s Gathering were Dan O’Brien, Michael Clifford, Kieran Allen and Noirin Hegarty.