☀️The Friday View 31/01
January ends and February starts with a long weekend and celebrations across the city and county for St Brigid. Plus, our round-up of things to see and do.
Hello and welcome to the Friday View. Let’s get to it!
And then there were four: Eyes were rolled last week when the full line-up of ministers in the new coalition government revealed there are as many ministers named James as there are women. The gender balance didn’t improve much with the announcement of the junior ministers, three of whom are from Cork.
One man who is surely glad he was (eventually) added to the Fine Gael ticket late last year is Cork South-Central TD Jerry Buttimer, who is now one of three Cork TDs to be given a junior minister role. Joining him at the junior minister level are TDs Michael Moynihan and Christopher O’Sullivan, both of Fianna Fáil. Their party leader, Micheál Martin, the Taoiseach, is the only other Cork TD in the cabinet
Houses not car parks: Up to 140 affordable homes are set to be built in the city centre on a City Council-owned car park close to City Hall. Construction will be led by the Land Development Agency (LDA, otherwise known as the "get it done" agency).
But here comes the but: subject to planning approval, expected to be lodged this year, construction isn’t likely to start until 2027, with the homes ready to move into by 2030. In a press release, LDA boss John Coleman thanked Cork City Council “for working with us on this project and for making its land available to address the city’s pressing housing need.” As he noted, the homes will make good use of an “underutilised” site right in the middle of the city centre.
More’s the pity that the potential of this site wasn’t flagged more than a decade ago. Still, better (way) late than never.
The business of sport: Up to 30,000 fans are expected at Páirc Uí Chaoimh this Saturday evening to see the Cork hurlers renew their rivalry with Limerick. The Corkmen went two to nothing against Limerick in the Championship last year. This time out, it’s the league. But for those unable to make it down to the Marina to see the match, after some background calls, TG4 has now been cleared to air the match live online. At the same time, the Irish-language broadcaster will be showing Dublin v Donegal on TV. Throw-in is at 7:30 pm.
Awning: The Roundy on Castle Street has applied for planning permission and permission to retain the retractable awnings on the city centre pub. The building, which dates back to 1850 and is unique in the city centre owing to its curved appearance, is a protected structure and is therefore subject to oversight from the City Council’s conservation department, which doesn’t look kindly on awnings being used as advertising boards for alcohol companies. Included in the planning application is the removal of two fixed umbrellas and the addition of a new section of awning. Last year, the Shelbourne Bar on MacCurtain Street was refused retention for its awning. Down it must come.
Run, parkrun, run: The single greatest free way to get fit, stay active, and tell the world about it is a parkrun. And the good news for East Cork is that Midleton is about to get its own, starting this weekend on the Greenway. There are three parkruns in the city, at Tramore Valley Park, Ballincollig Regional Park, and the Glen Park (shoutout to the last one as it’s the least crowded:). They all get underway at 9:30 am every Saturday.
Who runs? The world and its mother: yuppie parents pushing buggies that cost about as much as a small car, elderly uber-fit men and women, people new to Cork, and those on a "witness the fitness" revolution. As with every parkrun, the Midleton run is a 5km course, in this case, on the shiny new Greenway, which connects Midleton to Youghal along the old rail line, and you run at your own pace. The parkruns wouldn’t be possible or sustainable without volunteers, who turn up faithfully each Saturday morning to ensure everything runs smoothly. They are the cliched unsung heroes, John Spillane should write a song about them. All the info you need about Midleton Greenway parkrun, including volunteering, is here.
Travelling in style: Passengers waiting for the delayed 6:15am train to Dublin on Thursday this week at Kent Station looked on as a crew of hospitality staff prepped a stationary train on the adjacent track making sure that it was all ready to rock and roll on time. And who was that train for? It was a private booking for Heineken. Hopefully it departed on time.
Out+About
Film of the week: Adapted from the book of the same name by Pulitzer-prize-winning author Colson Whitehead, Nickel Boys is a harrowing story of Elwood Curtis, a young man accused of a crime he did not commit and being sent to Nickel Academy, a reform school in 1960’s Florida. While there, Curtis encounters another ward, the seen-it-all Turner. An incredible adaptation from director RaMell Ross, this movie is one of the rare exceptions where the screen version is every but is sublime as the book. More information and times here.
Time, date, place: February 2-5, Triskel Arts Centre Cork
To celebrate St. Brigid’s Day, Myo Cafe will be hosting a grand opening of a new Garden of Peace on Pope’s Quay (see above) in conjunction with Bierhaus, Coffeescape and Myx Tiq. Featuring a mosaic wall installation designed by Davy Dummigan and embedded QR codes leading to a virtual peace wall, the central element of this garden is a large, white peace flag. There will be music, songs and stories to celebrate the unveiling between 1pm and 5pm Sunday.
Time, date, place: 1-5pm. Sunday February 2, Pope/s Quay
Creative Bandon have packed schedule of events to celebrate St Brigid as part of their Brigid’s Festival which kicks off today and runs through the bank holiday weekend. Highlights include one of Armahh’s finest folk musicians, Ríoghnach Connolly who will be joining local multiintrumentalist and activist Martin Leahy at the Bandon Folk Club. Elsewhere, there will be outdoor sketching, public readings, meditation, a coffee cupping workshop and swimming. It’s a mighty and inclusive line-up. Full details of all events can be found at Creative Bandon.
Time, date, place: The Brigid Festival takes place at various venues in Bandon and nearby from Friday, January 31 to February 3.
The White Pube, a duo of British art critics Gabrielle de la Puente and Zarina Muhammad, are most vocal in their criticism of the art world. They wrote most of their recent book, Poor Artists, while on a residency at the Sirius Arts Centre in Cobh. Gabrielle discusses the book with Miguel Amado on Saturday, more information here.
Time, date, place: 2-4 pm, Saturday February 1, Sirius Arts Centre, Cobh
St Brigid will be the focus of folklorist Shane Lehane who will be giving a free public lecture today, Friday January 30, in Tramore Road Campus, Cork College of FET. Entitled “Unravelling Brigid, Goddess, Saint and Folklore” Lehane’s lecture will look at the woman in full. Free to attend.
Time, date, place: 1 pm, the Lecture Theatre, Tramore Road Campus, Cork College of FET, Tramore Rd, Ballyphehane, Cork.
Pulp at Market Gallery in Douglas Shopping Centre opened last night with a few words by Sean O’Sullivan of Badly Made Books. As the title suggests paper is the overarching theme of the second exhibition at Market Gallery and its a celebration of the paper in all its wondrous forms. Included in the line-up is collage artist Silvio Severino and origami artist Sachiko Kobayashi. Exhibiting artists include Abbey Curran, Deirdre Morgan, Denise Cronin, Tetiana Milshyna, Colin O’Connor, David Kavanagh, Declan O’ Meara, Ellen O’Connor, Inge Van Doorslaer, Tom Campbell,Michelle Dalton, Amber Broughton, Joanna Kaminska and Éadaoin Glynn. It’s a new gallery and supporting local artists, so do drop by perchance to spread the love and money.
Time, date, place: Runs until March 8. 2025, Douglas Shopping Centre, Douglas.
UCC Trad Fest kicks off next week and we’ll flag it again here next week. The annual Ó Riada Lecture will be delivered by scholar and sean-nós singer Dr Síle Denvir in the University’s Music Department at 5:15pm on Thursday, February 6 . Included in the line-up for the weekend music fest are musicians Méabh Ní Bheaglaoich (accordion, vocals), Nicole Ní Dhubhshláine (flute, concertina), Kyle Macaulay (guitar, bouzouki), and Niamh Varian-Barry (fiddle, viola, vocals) otherwise known as CUAS, along with the Drombeg Céilí Band and many, many others. More information here.
Time, date, place: Various locations across UCC, from February 6-9.
That’s it for this week’s Friday View. As always, any tips, comments, news or events you’d like to share with Tripe+Drisheen, you can contact us at tripeanddrisheen@substack.com. We are always happy to speak to people off the record in the first instance, and we will treat your information with confidence and sensitivity. Get in touch. Have a lovely long weekend.
This week on T+D: We took a look at Open Walls at The Roundy
