Blogs

British Labour Party leader Keir Starmer has shed any green credentials he might once have held by vowing to give English councils more powers to allow developers to build on green belt land. In British town planning, the green belt is a policy for controlling urban growth, the aim being to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land. Under current planning rules in England, new buildings can only be constructed on green belt land in exceptional circumstances. Keir Starmer would give councils more power to concrete over protected sites.

Seán Keane, fiddle player with The Chieftains, has died on 7 May 2023 at the age of 76. The Irish Traditional Music Archive described Mr Keane as "one of the greatest ever exponents of Irish traditional music". Amongst those paying tribute was the President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins. He said Seán Keane’s "incredible talent as a fiddle player brought so much joy to so many and was enjoyed and admired by audiences all over the world".

The ocean liner RMS Lusitania was built by John Brown and Company of Clydebank, Scotland and was launched by Cunard in 1906. At one time it held the coveted Blue Riband, which is the accolade given to the passenger liner crossing the Atlantic Ocean in regular service with the record highest speed. Lusitania  was also briefly the world's largest passenger ship. The ocean liner was travelling from New York to Liverpool in 1915 on its 202nd cross Atlantic trip, when on the afternoon of 7th May it was hit by a torpedo fired from a German U-boat.

TS Queen Mary is a Clyde steamer launched in 1933 at the William Denny shipyard, Dumbarton, for Williamson-Buchanan Steamers. In its heyday TS Queen Mary carried 13,000 passengers each week and was affectionately known as "The Glasgow Boat."  The steamer was eventually retired in 1977 and spent a number of years as a floating restaurant on the River Thames in London. In 2009 it was towed to Tilbury, on the Lower Thames, where it remained unused. After a funding campaign Friends of TS Queen Mary's bought the steamer in 2015 and in 2016 it was returned back home to Scotland.

A 2000 year old gold coin thought to be in circulation during the reign of legendary Celtic Queen Boudicca has been sold at auction. Boudicca or Boudica was a queen of the ancient Celtic Iceni tribe in the area of England now known as East Anglia. At the end of her reign in 60 or 61 AD the warrior Queen led a rebellion against the Roman annexation of her kingdom, killing 70,000 Romans and setting Colchester, St. Albans and London ablaze. Such was the initial success of the rebellion that Roman Emperor Nero considered withdrawing all his imperial forces from Britain.

The Brecon Beacons National Park is changing its name so that it is officially known by its Welsh name Bannau Brycheiniog. Parc Cenedlaethol Bannau Brycheiniog is the Welsh name for the park. Bannau means 'peaks' and Brycheiniog refers to the old kingdom of Wales' fifth century ruler, Brychan. This reflects the park's commitment to Welsh culture, language and heritage.

Breton - Pask Seder

Cornish - Pask Lowen 

Irish - Cáisc Shona duit/Beannachtaí na Cásca ort

Manx - Caisht sonney dhyt

Scottish (Gaelic) - A' Chàisg sona

Welsh - Pasg Hapus

At 10 am on 29th September, 1895 the cargo steamer SS Walachia departed from Queen’s Dock, Glasgow. On board was Captain Walton, a crew of twenty one and one passenger. It had a cargo that included whisky, gin, beer, acids, glassware, earthenware and other items. There journey was slow due to foggy conditions. Disaster struck when out of the fog loomed the 1406 ton Norwegian steamer Flos and there was a collision. Twenty five minutes after the original collision the Wallachia sank and fortunately all the crew and passenger survived.

London Manx Society (Yn Cheshaght Manninagh Lunnin)

Annual Lunch Saturday 13th May at 1pm

An afternoon of Manx Music and Dance with

Chloe Woolley, Manx Music Development Officer at Culture Vannin

Chloe will talk to us about Manx Music and she, and her family, all talented musicians, will perform

Price of £30 includes 3 course silver service lunch. Plus:

Saint Patrick is the primary patron saint of Ireland and Saint Patrick's Day is observed on 17th March, which is said to be the date of his death. Celebrated inside and outside Ireland as a religious and cultural holiday, it is also a celebration of Ireland and all things Irish. Patrick was a 5th Century missionary, who came from Roman Britain and first arrived in Ireland as a slave. Patrick tells us he came from an area called Bannevam Taburniae.