Irish Interest

From its opening in 1796 to finally closing its doors in 1924, Kilmainham Gaol has held an iconic place in Irish history. Built as Dublin's County Gaol, it held hundreds...

For a long time the lofty grandeur and imposing presence of Mount Errigal in Co Donegal has charmed painters, photographers and film- makers. This great iconic peak of the North...

Named after the peoples of Ciarraige who inhabited the ancient territory, Kerry possesses a rich tapestry of history, legend and folklore unparalleled by many others. In this book, authors Gary...

Ireland holds a special place in people's hearts - even for many who haven't been there. To some the appeal is its natural beauty, to others it's the history; to...

Did You Know? Belfast's motto is Pro Tanto Quid Retribuamus: 'What shall we give in return for so much?' In 1170, the first Belfast Castle was established in what is...

James Joyce remains a mysterious figure, and yet his books concern his own life: his friends, loves, and above all the city of Dublin. Professor Chester Anderson here examines Joyce...

An important tool of a birdwatcher is a good identification guide. Most cover the birds of Europe and few deal exclusively with Ireland. This first photographic identification guide to the...

Newgrange is simply the best example of a passage tomb in Western Europe and its solstice phenomenon, in particular, has made it famous throughout the world. It is also conveniently...

For generations, stories of 'the fairies' have been filling the pages of Irish literature, as well as enriching a wealth of oral tradition. They could do no evil or good,...

The Irish Times Top 10 Bestseller!From war to revolution, famine to emigration, The Darkness Echoing travels around Ireland bringing its dark past to lifeIreland is a nation obsessed with death....

Bestseller & Winner of the Popular Non-Fiction Irish Book Award. 'Thought-provoking, irreverent and often laugh-out-loud hilarious' Irish Independent. "Motherfocloir" [focloir means 'dictionary' and is pronounced like a rather more vulgar...

Martin Parr has been taking photographs in Ireland for 40 years. His work covers many of the most significant moments in Ireland's recent history, encompassing the Pope's visit in 1979,...

'Don't mind me, I'm only your mother.'World-renowned for her unique perspective on life, there is no-one quite like the Irish Mammy. From the weather to your choice of clothing the...

Ireland is a place of mystical, enduring appeal, especially for the many millions of Americans who claim its special heritage, more than one in six according to the last U.S....

A deft interweaving of architectural and social history For aristocrats and gentry in 18th-century Ireland, the townhouses and country estates they resided in were carefully constructed to accommodate their cultivated...

Although it is approaching a century in existence, the Irish border is currently one of the most topical issues in British politics. For most of its existence, the border rarely...

Grand, awe-inspiring and beautiful, the `Big House' is widely viewed as a jewel in the Irish landscape today. Despite this, the relationship between the country house and the state has...

The Million Dollar Decision incisively diagnoses the causes of educational disadvantage in Ireland. From creche to university, we see how educational practices nurture or negate a student's potential. Stretching beyond...

Irish houses have a character and personality quite different from that found anywhere else. Quixotic, often whimsical and definitely quirky, they provide a sanctuary from the Irish climate, which is...

The Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland (EMIR) is the first comprehensive attempt to chart Irish musical life across recorded history. It also documents Ireland's musical relations with the world at...

This revised edition of a bestseller was Kevin Dwyer's response to a steady flow of constructive feedback from all around Ireland. In a spectacular bird's eye journey around Ireland's glorious...

This beautifully illustrated volume examines the nationally and internationally important holdings of the Library of the Royal Irish Academy, Dublin. The book celebrates the diversity of the works that the...

What can we learn from the folk wisdom of our ancestors? For centuries, Irish proverbs or seanfhocail have provided memorable insights into everyday experiences such as love, marriage, happiness and...

The Irish landscape is alive with pagan powers, gods and spirits. Inside every hill are feasting halls of otherworldly beings who sometimes emerge into our realm, or entice the unwary...

What kind of a world was St Patrick born into? Why were his visions and dreams considered so dangerous by the early church? How much do we really know about...

Did you know that Muckross literally means 'the pleasant place of swine'? Or that the poet Percy B. Shelly thought the Arbutus Islands of Killarney superior to Lake Como of...

In 2019, Caz Mooney and her family embarked on a Low-Spend Year - a year without spending unnecessarily on takeaways, nights out, new clothes, holidays or extracurricular activities. By the...