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Canon Sheehan's 1901 novel Luke Delmege contains a rare contemporary fictional depiction of a Magdalene laundry.

Canon Sheehan, the Magdalene Laundries and Irish incarceration

History • 17 hrs

Genevieve Lyons: "audiences prefered to go to Dun Laoghaire to see Lyons as Sally Bowles than go to see Harris in the same role on the big screen". Photo: NUI Galway Archives

How one of the world's biggest musicals found its star in Dublin

Brainstorm • 08 Jan

"Undoubtedly, Mrs Doyle from Father Ted spoke for vast swathes of Irish people when, disgusted by the TeaMaster salesman who assured her that his contraption took the misery out of making tea, she retorted, 'Maybe I like the misery.'"

What's behind the Irish obsession with death and misery?

History • 07 Jan

Gallery visitors examine a Hilary Heron sculpture at the Living Art Exhibition at the National College of Art, Dublin in 1963. Photo: RTÉ Stills Library

The fascinating life and work of Irish artist Hilary Heron

History • 08 Jan

Who needs Die Hard when you have Mrs Brown?

What will the rest of Europe be watching on TV over Christmas?

Christmas • 17 Dec 20

The man on the right is responsible for 13% of Spotify's most popular Christmas songs. The man on the left is a national treasure.

What makes Christmas songs so Christmassy?

Christmas • 18 Dec 20

Shane MacGowan: "if he can ultimately let it go, surely we all can?"

Why 'Fairytale of New York' ends up in the spotlight every year

Fairytale of New York • 07 Dec 20

"Far from any film set, Lynch has channelled his singular artistic vision into a very different medium: that is, homemade daily weather announcements for his LA locale."

'Blue skies and golden sunshine': David Lynch's weather reports

Film • 02 Dec 20

"The legacy of AIDS in Ireland has left a long imprint upon its society and culture"

Remembering Ireland's early AIDS history

World AIDS Day • 01 Dec 20

Begorrah: Emily Blunt and Jamie Dornan in Wild Mountain Thyme

Wild Mountain Thyme is not Hollywood's only Irish romcom hot mess

Film • 12 Nov 20

Anya Taylor-Joy as chess prodigy Beth Harmon in The Queen's Gambit. Photo: Netflix

Does playing chess make you smarter?

Chess • 11 Nov 20

Dublin's Theatre Royal on Hawkins Street in 1912. Photo: National Library of Ireland via Flickr

How Irish cinemas stayed open during the 1918 flu pandemic

Cinemas • 02 Nov 20

From Croke Park 21 Novembre 1920: Dimanche Sanglant à Dublin by Sylvain Gâche and Richard Guérineau. Copyright: 2020 Groupe Delcourt, Éditions Delcourt

How a French graphic novel tells the story of Bloody Sunday 1920

bloody sunday • 29 Oct 20

"We can never prescribe a certain type of music to promote relaxation, but we can prescribe when and where it might be helpful."

How music helps us relax

Music • 23 Oct 20

US president Donald Trump dances to "YMCA" at a campaign rally in Virginia. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Why is Donald Trump dancing to "YMCA"?

US Election 2020 • 20 Oct 20

"There is possibly no better reference point than this book for anyone anxious to get an insight into what it was like to live in rural Ireland during the middle decades of the 20th century" Photo: Paul Butler

Why John McGahern's Amongst Women is still a masterpiece

Books • 16 Oct 20

Artemisia Gentileschi's Judith Beheading Holofernes (1620). Image: National Gallery

How artist Artemisia Gentileschi created her own #MeToo moment

visual arts • 29 Sep 20

Edvard Munch's The Scream on display at Sotheby's auction house in 2012 before it was sold for $120 million. Photo: Oli Scarff/Getty Images

Why Edvard Munch is a painter for this time of great anxiety

art • 28 Sep 20

The way things were: the audience at the last Electric Picnic

Are alcohol-free live music events really a good idea?

Health • 24 Sep 20

Gulliver at rest in the Liffey in 1988 as part of Dublin's Millennium celebrations. Photo: Dublin City Photographic Collection, Dublin City Council

How literary locations help us understand the world we inhabit

Culture • 04 Sep 20

The Galway team take the pitch for The Big Game in Castlebar in 1987. Photo: Macnas Archives

A game of two halves: when Irish sport meets theatre

Culture • 21 Aug 20

Meeting the British by Paul Muldoon with artwork by Mary Farl Powers. Photo: Great Book Of Ireland/UCC

How did they make Ireland's modern day Book of Kells?

History • 19 Aug 20

Who wore it best: Taylor Swift, Marilyn Monroe or Tommy Clancy?

The rise, fall and rise again of the Aran jumper's fashion appeal

Ireland • 02 Oct 20

'Both Kevin and Sadie are described as restless and easily bored, so it is ironic that their youthful defiance involves them embracing the most expected institution of all: marriage' Photo: Getty Images

Normal people: Kevin and Sadie's teenage love story

Books • 11 Aug 20

'If senior management, councillors and TDs made a genuine effort to understand what it is that the arts are providing to the community, they would have a greater appreciation of the value of it'

What are local authorities doing to help artists and the arts?

Culture • 10 Aug 20

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