For the first three months of this year the country was obsessed with a trial. A rape trial involving two famous Irish rugby internationals Paddy Jackson and Stuart Olding, and an unnamed woman (as opposed to unidentified – her name was all over social media despite reporting restrictions). In June 2016, after the rugby players had returned from a tour kicking a ball somewhere, and chasing it, they’d gone out on the town in Belfast. They drank oceans of alcohol and were treated like kings – our society lionises men who can run fast after a ball – be that a rugby ball, a football, or a sliotar. After the VIP lounge at some Nite Klub, they repaired to Jackson’s house for a party. Present were four men and four women. Continue reading The Paddy Jackson trial →

I am wearing a pedometer. This is a device that you connect to your belt which counts the number of steps you take. I am aiming for 10,000 steps per day for the next 100 days. You might be wondering why I am involved in such a suspiciously healthy sounding activity? Well these little devices are being handed out free at work, and we have been placed into teams of five. The mission is to get the staff moving, through teamwork and competition. ‘Make fitness FUN’ in other words. Obviously I have no truck with the team building part of this campaign. That sounds sinister and corporate – and as a secret communist, I’ll be having none of that kind of lark. While it may be true that no man is an island, I have no issue with being a peninsula – not cut off from my colleagues entirely, but nonetheless at a safe distance from their heart-warming tale of suburban, heterosexual married bliss. Continue reading A target for inclusion? →

June 2018 marks the quarter century anniversary of the decriminalisation of homosexuality in the Republic of Ireland . To mark this event Acting Out Theatre in conjunction with Outhouse (the Dublin LGBT community and resource centre) and Dublin Pride have commissioned a series of monologues inspired by this momentous occasion. The show is called ‘The Decriminalisation Monologues’. One of the writers approached to write a piece was my good self. If someone asks me how I managed to get such an illustrious gig, I peer over my lorgnettes, give a knowing, throaty chuckle, and hoarsely whisper ‘I was commissioned. Darling.’ Continue reading The Decriminalisation Monologues : ‘The Number’ →

As I left my flat this morning, instead of turning right to go to the LUAS stop, I swung left. Today I planned to walk to the bus stop, instead of my usual semi-conscious slouch on the tram. Not because I had turned over a new leaf and now loved mornings however. By walking to the bus stop, I would pass the St. Laurence O’Toole primary school – my local polling station. In my grubby, little paws was clenched my voting card. In my stylish man-bag, my passport in case the Feds asked me for ID. With a purposeful strut I entered the school. Not a student was to be seen. As a child, I loved general elections and referenda, for the simple reason that it always meant a day off school – primary schools being the usual location for the physical practice of democracy. Continue reading Lovely day for a ‘YES’ →

Last night I went to see ‘Passing on’ at the Teachers’ Club – my latest excursion to the 15^th International Dublin Gay Theatre Festival. This was a co-production between  the Acting Out theatre group and the Blue Heart Theatre company. Written by Sean Denyer and directed by Howard Lodge it tells the tale of a thirty-something gay couple Brian and Tom. Together for a decade they decide to venture into a brave new world – that of parenthood. Their friend Jane agrees to act as surrogate for the couple. There is a slight worry however. Having been adopted by his parents as a baby, Tom requests a background health check on his biological family –  in case of any hereditary conditions; or potential health issues that might inform the decision as to which of the couple will be the sperm donor. Continue reading Theatrical: ‘Passing on’ →