While Thatcher's government demonised Irish identity through state-sanctioned paranoia, the children of immigrants were quietly staging a hostile takeover of the British charts. From the punk vitriol of Johnny Rotten to the ethereal subversion of Kate Bush, this is the story of how the displaced sons and daughters of the Irish Underground…

Donald Trump's latest intervention in Irish affairs has demonstrated a striking lack of appreciation for the constitutional and political sensitivities that continue to shape relations on the island of Ireland. During his visit to Dublin, the American president departed from the carefully guarded neutrality traditionally maintained by U.S.…

DOMHNAIGH -- On September 13, 1803, John Barry (left), of Ballysampson, Co.Wexford, considered by many to be the 'Father of the U.S. Navy,' died in Philadelphia. At a young age, Barry went to sea as a fisherman; by age 20, he had a master's license. He emigrated to Philadelphia in…

First responders carry Fr. Mychal Judge's body from the rubble of the World Trade Center…

Rocker Larry Kirwan, the founder and front-man of Irish rock mainstay Black 47, had a close-up perspective on the mayhem of 9/11. He shared the following reminscence of that day with subscribers to the band's newsletter in 2006. (Kirwan mentioned to readers that the excerpt is based upon a chapter from his memoir, "Green…

Many Irish who contributed significantly to this nation have been undeservedly excluded from the pages of our school’s history books and their stories remain untold. One such is John Patton. Born in 1745 in County Sligo, John immigrated to Philadelphia about 1765. He met and married Jane Davis on 7 March…

Chicago Times correspondent John Finerty wiped his brow, drying the sweat from the hot July 7^th afternoon, as he looked up to the top of the grassy knoll where scout Frank Grouard was scanning the horizon with his binoculars. They were near the valley of the Little Bighorn in what is…

Born near Kill, County Kildare, in 1842, John Devoy would go on to become a man described by the London Times as ‘the most dangerous enemy of this country [Britain] Ireland has produced since Wolfe Tone’. His republican career began when, as a teenager, he met the Young Irelander John…

Last week, in his sleep, in his small palace in Rome, 400 years ago, one of the greatest figures in Irish history passed away, Hugh O'Neill. . With him in his final moments may have been his teenage son, John, whom he had nominated to succeed him as Earl of Tyrone and as The O'Neil. Also, there…