News
War of Independence ambush the focus of new play
The dramatic story of the IRA ambush of members of the Crown Forces near Milltown in 1921 is being presented as a new play in the local Community Hall this November.
Ballymacandy is based on the best-selling book by local historian and author Owen O’Shea and involves a cast of almost 30 locals, all of whom live near where five RIC and Black and Tans were killed on 1 June 1921, just six weeks before the end of Independence.
Tickets for the highly anticipated play, which is written by Owen O’Shea and directed by Mike O’Halloran, are now on sale and can be booked online at www.owenoshea.ie. The play will run for five nights on November 3, 4, 5, 11 and 12, all at 8pm at the Muintir na Tíre Hall in Milltown. Doors at 7pm.
“As with the book, the play attempts to portray these events from all of the different perspectives, those of the IRA and Cumann na mBan, the RIC and Black and Tans, as well as the perspectives of local civilians in Milltown and Castlemaine who were caught up in the events. The ambush involved IRA men from the locality as well as from Tralee, Castlegregory and Keel, so we hope the play will have a wide appeal,” Owen O’Shea said.
“Rehearsals have been going now for months and the cast, most of whom have never been on stage before, have put an enormous amount of work into the preparations. They have really embraced the story and have been moved to portray events based on the evidence we have about what actually happened.”
Owen said that after the pandemic, there is also a great sense of excitement about a local community initiative which will bring people together again, in this case, to present our local history in a new way.
Among those killed in the ambush was RIC sergeant, James Collery, who lived in Milltown and left a wife and eight young children, and whose story is portrayed in the play. Also told is the story of the local IRA members like Jack Flynn and Dan Mulvihill and the members of Cumann na mBan, many of whom were on the receiving end of the violence of the rampaging Black and Tans.
“Writing the play was a challenge because these were real people and not fictional characters,” said Owen, “but thanks to the directing skills of Mike O’Halloran and the professionalism of such a great cast, I think we will do the story great justice.”
Tickets for Ballymacandy, priced just €15, are now on sale on www.owenoshea.ie and must be booked in advance for collection at the door by 7.30pm on each night.
News
New local date for Hozier this summer
With over 22 billion global streams Hozier, whose other shows are completly sold out, has announced a new date in Killarney this summer. Not only will the Grammy-nominated, award-winning multi-platinum […]
With over 22 billion global streams Hozier, whose other shows are completly sold out, has announced a new date in Killarney this summer.
Not only will the Grammy-nominated, award-winning multi-platinum singer and songwriter, perform in Malahide Castle and The Academy, but he has announced a gig at the Gleneagle INEC Arena on June 27.
Driven by the thought-provoking quintuple-platinum anthem, ‘Take Me To Church’, ranked the 30th most listened to song on Spotify, the track is the 103rd song to ever achieve the rare milestone of Diamond certification and the highest certified solo Alternative single in RIAA history.
‘Take Me To Church’ has surpassed 2 billion streams, the only Irish artist to achieve this feat.
Hozier’s success hasn’t been confined to the UK and US with the album also achieving Multi-Platinum status in Belgium, Canada, Australia, Germany, France, Italy, Denmark, Ireland, Russia, Sweden, Poland, Switzerland, Austria and the Netherlands.
Major TV appearances have helped spread the gospel including stand-out appearances on Later with Jools, Jimmy Fallon , David Letterman, Saturday Night Live, Ellen, Jimmy Kimmel, and Graham Norton. Following a year of sold out shows and festival appearances across the US, Canada, Europe and Australia, VH1 crowned Hozier ‘Artist of the Year’ and he received the honours ‘Top Rock Artist’ and ‘Top Rock Songs’ at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards.
In addition, he scored nominations for ‘Song of the Year’ at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards at which he performed alongside Annie Lennox and ‘Favourite Artist – Alternative Rock’ at the American Music Awards.
He won BBC ‘Song of the Year’ and the coveted Ivor Novello award for ‘Song of The Year’.
As Hozier prepares to release his third album ‘Unreal Unearth’ in 2023, his 3-track EP ‘Eat Your Young’ was released on March 17 in honour of his birthday and St. Patrick’s Day.
Tickets for Hozier go on sale this Thursday at 9am.
News
First born Kerry Calf of the year is a girl!
The first born Kerry Calf of 2023 was born at Muckross National Park this week. Both mother and calf are doing very well. The rare and native bred is distinguished […]
The first born Kerry Calf of 2023 was born at Muckross National Park this week.
Both mother and calf are doing very well. The rare and native bred is distinguished by its black colour, grazing outdoors in all seasons and is extremely hardy. The newborn calf can expect a long and peaceful life grazing in the National Park – the half moon close to Torc Waterfall is a popular grazing field.
Kerry cattle are a rare breed of dairy cattle – native to Kerry, descended from the Celtic Shorthorn, brought to Ireland as early as 2000BC. They are considered one of the oldest breeds in Europe, known for their milk quality and gentle nature.
Killarney National Park recognises the importance of conserving the historic Muckross herd. Former owners of Muckross Estate, Arthur Rose Vincent, were passionate about the Kerry Calf. Today, the rare bred are cared and managed by Chief Herdsman, Mike Fleming, particularity for preservation and agricultural heritage.
Another prolific breed is the ‘Cahernane Kerry’ owned and bred by dairy farmer, Ms Hilliard of Cahernane, Killarney. Ms Hilliard is one of the strongest advocators in the preservation and conservation of the bred. She is life-long secretary of the Kerry Cattle Society.
New local date for Hozier this summer
With over 22 billion global streams Hozier, whose other shows are completly sold out, has announced a new date in...
First born Kerry Calf of the year is a girl!
The first born Kerry Calf of 2023 was born at Muckross National Park this week. Both mother and calf are...
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Gold Cup evokes great memories for the people of Killarney
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Our women’s teams still need more support
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