Last March I embarked on a photographic quest to depict the essence of our much-derided domestic football league.
Historical, sometimes dilapidated but always characteristic, League of Ireland clubs’ stadia still retain a quintessential flavour of the game in its simplest form, something that is regrettably absent in the new generation of modern super-stadiums which have come to prominence around the globe.
Luke ‘Ming’ Flanagan – TD for Roscommon/South Leitrim – has put forward a private members bill in the Dáil for the decriminalisation of cannabis – similar to the line that many U.S states have taken in recent months.
I took to the streets of Dublin to find out what the general public view on the bill was, and whether they wished to see the law on cannabis amended.
Held on the 27th of October in the stunningly beautiful location of Glendalough House, County Wicklow, Samhain festival was the hot ticket of this year’s celestial season.
In association with Life festival, Bodytonic and others, this was the first year the “one night fancy dress musical feast” has been staged, but if the preternaturally positive atmosphere on the night was anything to go by it won’t be the last.
Featuring over 20 acts across four stages and set against the breath-taking backdrop of the 1,500 acre estate of Glendalough house, this festival, which also happily happened to be BYOB, was definitely a more spiritual experience than a school disco.
Efficiently organised and smoothly ran, Samhain was nothing short of a massive success. Acts such as Todd Terje and Nina Kraviz almost managed to upstage the venue. However some of the most interesting sights to behold that night were the revelers themselves. Luckily TheCity was on hand capture images of all three.
The Web Summit officially opened today bright and early at 9am with found Paddy Cosgrave taking to the main stage.
The day was split up between numerous stages in the RDS with some of the biggest names in tech talking about the industry, innovation and moving forward.
Big names of the day included Kevin Rose of Google Ventures alongside Tony Hawk, known primarily as a professional skateboarder.
Gary Vaynerchuk gave an empowered and passionate rant about the industry and how he wants change in the way business is done, citing how he works harder and smarter than most people out there.
Father of the Internet, Prof. Kleinrock gave a discussion on “A Brief History of the Internet and Its Dynamic Future”, opening the floor to questions which he answered openly and honestly when discussing controversial topics such as drones.
“Drones are a technological wonder, they’re also a nightmare… It’s in the eye of the beholder” he said, whilst pointing out that innovators were never expected to think about the implications of what they were creating.
The halls were full of companies advertising their wares, showcasing new apps and mediums of social interaction as well as bizarre utilities such as machines for collecting analytical data on bees.
Many companies brought along gimmicks to attract an audience in the form of video games, and oxygen bars, with many going the extra stretch to give out as much free merchandise as possible, all in the name of exchanging business cards.
The Web Summit is expanding into The Summit in coming years with more events going on around it consisting of the Food Summit which took place in the adjacent Herbert Park, served up by Good Food Ireland, as well as the Night Summit which is providing entertainment throughout the evening for the 10’000 attendees whilst promoting some of the best bands in Ireland.
Audio extract from ‘Dracula in the Cathedral’, Saturday 26 October 2013 in St Patrick’s cathedral, Dublin. Performance by Gerard Lee (Jonathan Harker) and Michael James Ford (Count Dracula).
It was a filthy night. The rain beat against our backs and bounced up onto our bodies, as we weaved our way heads-down, hoods up, through the torrent of water, towards the Everyman Theatre on MacCurtain Street.
We passed a lone saxophonist propped against a lamp-post, seemingly unaware of the deluge, immersed in his own melody.
It was the first night of the biggest, most exciting Jazz Festival yet to be seen in Cork, with 800 performers in 45 venues and 40,000 jazz fans.
Efterklang, Chic & Nile Rodgers and Primal Scream were playing at the Opera House, but we came to see Rene Marie, the award-winning American singer, who gave a sensual rendering of Eartha Kitt’s “C’est Si Bon” and “I Want to Be Evil” in the Everyman Theatre.
The real jazz, according to the organisers, was at the Triskel Christchurch, across the river on Tobin Street, where 16 concerts were staged in the three days of the festival.
We took our pews in this reverent setting and listened to the Perico Sambeat Quartet, enthralled. Perico, born in 1962 in Valencia, Spain, played the alto saxophone with Albert Sanz on piano, Alex Davis played the double bass and the Irishman, Stephen Keogh was on drums.
Dino Saluzzi, from Argentina, followed on from Perico Sambeat. He took to the altar, crossing his hands and holding them to his chest, as he spoke in a low, sermonic voice, “all we need is “lealtad, humilidad y amor” (loyalty, humility and love), he preached.
Dino played the bandoneon, which is designed to play religious music, with his brother, Felix, on the tenor saxophone and clarinet and Anja Lechner on cello , forming the Saluzzi Lechner Saluzzi Trio. As we watched and listened, a couple above us danced a gentle tango.
Our appetite for jazz was insatiable, as we once again crossed the river to the Metropole Hotel, or the Met, as it is known in Cork, where 4 rooms were dedicated to jazz, funk, soul and blues with artists from Ireland, Germany, The Netherlands, UK and Denmark.
Almost 14500 people ran in the Dublin marathon on Monday.
The men’s race was won by Irishman Sean Hehir with a time of two hours, 18 minutes and 19 seconds with Dublin’s Maria McCambridge winning the women’s race in two hours, 38 minutes and 51 seconds.
Liz O’Brien, Irish Girl Guides leader, completed the Marathon in eight hours 30 minutes, making her the first Irish woman to complete a marathon on crutches.
Below is a series of images from the finishing line at the marathon.
The Dublin Web Summit hits Dublin again with the party kicking off tonight. Tomorrow we get down to business with everyone from tech, design, and start ups to advertising and music, pouring into the RDS from around the world.
Now if you haven’t gotten a ticket, there’s a limited number left, but for the 10’000 attendees who have, we have a list of what’s going on and where.
The Web Summit has grown exponentially over time and is now more than just a Web Summit with intentions of rebranding themselves as just the Summit, taking on music, food, among numerous other endeavours. This is the place to network and see potential giants in the industry before they truly kick off.
First off, registration starts early, with the doors opening at 7am, and there will be a queue, these things are inevitable.
Along with some engaging speakers, the Web Summit plays host to the Night Summit and the Food Summit too. With the Night Summit taking place around Dublin showcasing some of the best acts on the Irish Music Scene including Le Galaxie, The Cast of Cheers, Tieranniesaur and many more.
The Food Summit takes place in Donnybrooks own Herbert Park showcasing over 60 Good Food Ireland approved businesses.
One focus of the Web Summit is social interaction and meeting people you’d never normally meet, as well as checking out what companies are up to now, and what we can expect from them in the future.
But let’s be honest, the main focus of the entire event this year is who’s talking what.
Unfortunately Tony Hawk has had to pull out last minute due to a family emergency, a real shame considering the greatest skateboarder that ever lived is also the curator of Tony Hawk foundation which has donated more than $4.4-million to 529 communities in all 50 States.
But alas there are many more to take the stage over the two days.
Dropbox is probably the most common replacement for the USB key ever. Dropbox was a game changer which completely revolutionized how we store our data on the web. If you’ve ever seen an interview with this man you’ll understand he’s incredibly smart, make sure to catch him the Web Summit this year.
Casey is only 13 years old, and is a self taught programmer who has created several games at his tender young age. He’s no stranger to taking to the stage either, he has showcased at numerous other events and the Web Summit is just another notch in his belt. Impressed? You should be.
Shane Smith is the founder and CEO of Vice, the global media youth brand. A respected visionary and acclaimed journalist, Smith launched Vice in 1994 and since grown it into an international network of digital channels.
Kevin Rose is a Partner at Google Ventures, where he primarily focuses on early-stage and seed investments. He previously founded Digg among numerous other endeavours. Don’t miss this man speak.
David Carr has never invented, launched or run anything of consequence. As a reporter and columnist for the New York Times, he talks to many people who have done all of those things. He serves as a Boswell on the excellence of others. And he’s a genius who spends far too much time on Twitter.
And Finally…
Only added last minute, what hasn’t this man done… Elon Musk, founder of Paypal, Tesla Motors and SpaceX, is to be the closing speaker at the Dublin Web Summit this week. If you don’t understand what any of these things are, you shouldn’t be at the Web Summit. This one will be a tough one to get into.
Paddy Cosgrave Web Summit founder and CEO said “Elon Musk is the greatest entrepreneur of his generation. He is disrupting numerous industries simultaneously in a way that few have ever even attempted.”
Dubbed “Davos for geeks”, the Web Summit is Europe’s largest festival of ideas and events – this year over 10,000 attendees will travel from 100 countries to attend.
There’s something endearing about a band that repeatedly thanks the audience for coming out to see them. It’s a refreshing display of humility and gratitude in an industry that is becoming increasingly dominated by money. But as Bastille took to the Olympia stage on Friday night, it was clear that the London quartet are still getting to grips with their newfound fame.
What’s not casual however, is their performance. Flashing strobe lights, snare drums and questionable, yet infectious dance moves are all a loud accompaniment for the band’s blend of indie-rock and electronic pop.
Not one to chitchat, lead singer Dan prefers to let his voice do the talking as he effortlessly rattles his way through popular hits Overjoyed and Things We Lost In The Fire.
At one point during the night, Dan decides that he wants a piece of the action and jumps into the crowd while launching into a rendition of Flaws much to the delight of his many admirers.
The setlist is an eclectic mix of new records such as Campus and Brave combined with old familiars like Laura Palmer, These Streets and Weight of Living Pt. II.
They even throw in a cover of City High’s What Would You Do? which instantly goes down a treat among their predominantly young spectators. It’s a generous delivery of 17 songs that is more than enough to satisfy the masses.
During the encore, Dan playfully asks the audience to join in on his dancing during club anthem Of The Night, and of course the crowd are only happy to oblige.
As they bid farewell with their most well-known hit Pompeii, every single concertgoer jumps to their feet, a sure sign of an enjoyable night.
“An amateur game played at a professional level” was how Colm Begley described Gaelic football this week.
“The gap has been closed” between GAA and AFL in recent seasons stated the former Brisbane Lions Rookie of the Year, speaking ahead of last weekends second International Rules test.
Echoing Ireland captain Michael Murphy’s comments last week, Begley believes that the only real difference between football and professional sport is that while GAA players are “focused on work or college, anything like that”, professionals can concentrate on rest and recovery.
The 2011 Laois senior captain also warned that if the GAA don’t address the problem of burnout in their players, the recent upward trend in physical preparation will result in long-term damage to the game.
“If they don’t look at it in the next few years, they’ll see a lot of players retiring at a younger age. Players love playing, but it’s just a massive, massive effort, and very mentally draining for those who don’t get a break”.
Begley, who in addition to Ireland and Laois will also represent DCU and Dublin club Parnells this year, pointed to a recent change in AFL preseason training where players will only be allowed train three days a week to prevent burnout as”something the GAA will maybe have to look into”.
The rise in strength and fitness levels has aided Ireland in the International Rules series however, Colm pointing to the fact that “we’re not being physically out-matched”, players endurance and speed levels on par with their professional opponents.
This increase in training has led to a more competitive domestic game as well; “In the past, the top six or seven teams in Ireland would be fitter or stronger, whereas now teams are realising if we cant match them skillfully, we’ll try and surpass them in training, in strength or endurance. We’ll outrun them, out-tackle them. If you can control a players playing ability, skills etc, you can control how fit or strong they are”.
“Whatever people say, it is professional”, continues Begley, “The game is getting faster and faster, all the small details are being looked at; Body Mass Index, GPS, stats, all the things that really, in an amateur game, you wouldn’t have to look at, but it’s not amateur anymore, it’s run in a professional way”.
While he stops short of calling for professionalism in GAA, Begley does admit he would like to see some rewards for inter-county players. “I’m not sure how they’re going to do it, even its just some form of tax benefit or even expenses being increased a little more. Players don’t want alot, just a bit of a benefit for the effort they put in during the year”.
Ireland carry a 57-35 lead into the second test, to be played in Croke Park at 7PM on Saturday.
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