Brendan Nash

The Director and a new reprint of The Landlady are both available in our new online shop. Signed/dedicated copies too! Go on, treat yourself! baxterjardine.com

Isherwood’s Neighbourhood tours are Saturdays at 11:00

The Embassy is aware of an incident this afternoon in Leipzig city centre. Irish citizens in the area should follow the instructions of local authorities. Irish citizens who need to contact the Embassy can do so at +49 30220720.

Brendan Nash - The Artistes Isherwood’s Neighbourhood walking tour - a deep-dive into 1920s Weimar-era Berlin. Two hours. €20 per person. Cash, card or contactless.

Deptford Jack in the Green procession tomorrow and a whole weekend Deptford Full Bloom May Day festival transpont.blogspot.com/2026/04/deptfo… (plus an 1862 report of a riotous Jack in Woolwich)

Today in 1994, at the Point Theatre in Dublin, a seven-minute interval act at the Eurovision Song Contest changed the world's perception of Ireland, and arguably changed Ireland's perception of itself. The show that year had already made history before Riverdance took the stage. Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan won the contest with 'Rock 'n' Roll Kids', written by Brendan Graham, giving Ireland its third consecutive Eurovision victory, a winning streak that has yet to be matched. But it wasn't even the highlight of that night. Riverdance was the brainchild of Bill Whelan, a Limerick-born composer who had previous Eurovision form, having written the interval act 'Timedance' performed by Planxty for the 1981 contest in Dublin. For 1994, Whelan expanded the concept into something more ambitious, drawing on traditional Irish music, choral singing, and a reimagined approach to Irish dance. The choreography was the work of Jean Butler and Michael Flatley, two American-born Irish dancers who brought a physicality and theatricality to the form that had never been seen before. The performance began with a two-minute segment called 'Cloudsong', sung by the choral ensemble Anúna, before Butler emerged from a traditional Irish cloak and Flatley burst onto the stage with an energy that rewrote the rules of what Irish dance could be. Twenty-four other dancers joined them before the end, the whole thing building to a climax that brought an audience of 4,000 to their feet. An estimated 300 million television viewers watched at home. Gerry Ryan, co-presenting the show with Cynthia Ní Mhurchú, turned to the audience afterwards and asked, 'Was that, or was that not, the most spectacular performance you have ever seen?' Moya Doherty had commissioned the piece for RTÉ and served as executive producer of the Eurovision broadcast. Just as her own life was transformed by Eurovision 1994, she said, so too was the cultural image of Ireland. Irish music and dance was taking its place on the world stage with new confidence. She and her husband, director John McColgan, invested over a million dollars expanding the seven-minute act into a full stage show. Riverdance: The Show opened at the Point Theatre on 9 February 1995, with ticket sales of over 120,000 for a five-week run that sold out within days of going on sale. The Riverdance single, released immediately after the Eurovision broadcast, debuted at number one on the Irish charts and stayed there for eighteen weeks, the longest run at the top in Irish chart history at the time, and it remains the second best-selling single in Ireland of all time. The stage show has since been performed over 11,000 times, across 46 countries, on six continents, to an audience estimated at 25 million. Over three billion people worldwide have seen some version of it on television. Bill Whelan's score won a Grammy. What began as a seven-minute fill between songs is now woven into the fabric of what Ireland means to the world. Buy the Dublin Time Machine a pint and support the DTM Book ko-fi.com/buchanandublin…

We are thrilled to present you the first in a series of videos featuring Christopher Isherwood’s biographers Kathleen Bucknell & @PParkerWriting discussing the 4 new editions of Isherwood’s novels published this summer. Video: @NamanMChaudhary #christopherisherwood @vintagebooks

This Sunday, May 3rd is the 75th anniversary of the opening of the Royal Festival Hall. I am running a walk on that day exploring the history of the South Bank, Festival of Britain and Royal Festival Hall. Details and tickets here: eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-south-ba…

En l’honneur de la #lesbianvisibilityweek À toutes les lesbiennes qui ont pris soin des hommes gays au début de l’épidémie de VIH-SIDA dans les années 80, alors que l’État, les médecins, familles les laissaient crever Ce n’est pas pour rien que le L est la première lettre de LGBT

Until last night President Trump had never attended the White House correspondence dinner as President. Oddly himself and nearly his entire cabinet attended this one, the one where there was an assassination attempt. Oh and Erika Kirk, left her home and her babies flew from AZ to DC to attend this and then after the shooting she begs to go home on camera, when that is where she should have been in the first place. Made for TV movie, that's what this is.

The Guardian has just dropped a massive deep dive into Christopher Harborne, the billionaire bankrolling Nigel Farage. If you care about where political power really comes from, you need to see this⬇️ Harborne has handed over more than £22m to Reform UK. That is two-thirds of their entire budget. One man is effectively keeping the lights on for Farage’s political alternative. Experts are calling this a massive 'red flag'. We have a major British party dependent on a tycoon living in Thailand, whose business is linked to the 'wild west' of finance. Protecting a crypto empire? #ReformUK #NigelFarage #Politics #Tether #UKPolitics

No one, and I do mean no one, has said more critical things about Piers Morgan than me, but silently letting this play out was broadcasting genius. x.com/i/status/20477…

Meanwhile in London And they say spelling is so over😂

The German Ambassador to South Africa visited (former German colony) Namibia and it’s going really well

Such a beautiful piece of television from Elsie and Johnny. The day Geoff found out he was adopted and that defining moment when Noreen stopped being his “PA” and finally became his mam ❤️ RIP Elsie Kelly #Benidorm #Noreen

So very sad to hear of the passing of our Benidorm Queen, Elsie Kelly. The most wonderful and the most funny lady both on and off the screen. Such a huge loss to our Benidorm family. RIP Darling Elsie ❤️

So sad to hear Elsie Kelly has died💔 Noreen had some of the best line deliveries I've ever seen in Benidorm. RIP

Elsie was one of the kindest,most generous and talented people with whom I’ve worked.Doing a night shoot with her in Spain on a windswept balcony shrieking with laughter between takes is a memory I will always treasure. RIP #ElsieKelly

Isherwood’s Neighbourhood walking tours are Saturdays at 11:00. A deep-dive into 1920s Weimar Berlin. 2 hours. €20 per person. Cash, card or contactless.

ELSIE KELLY