Book Review: The Contemporary House of Lords by Meg Russell

A Venerable Puzzle

Like the late Rodney Dangerfield, the House of Lords don’t get no respect. Many observers dismiss it as politically irrelevant, and the media often ignores it. But while it’s undeniable that the House of Commons is the dominant chamber, it would be wrong to write off the Lords as a moribund anachronism. Those who actually study the upper house see a rather different picture. They see a chamber that is increasingly willing to flex its muscle and stand up to the government. In The House of Lords and Contemporary Politics, veteran Lords-watcher Dr. Meg Russell of UCL’s Constitution Unit provides a valuable analysis of how the chamber works in today’s Parliament.

The first part of the book provides a historical and theoretical framework for Dr. Russell’s approach. Her look at the powers of other second chambers is particularly illuminating because it emphasizes the fact that, despite the formal and informal limits on the Lords’ power, it…

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Qoute from George Washington

“The situation in which I now stand for the last time, in the midst of the representatives of the people of the United States, naturally recalls the period when the administration of the present form of government commenced, and I can not omit the occasion to congratulate you and my country on the success of the experiment, nor to repeat my fervent supplications to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe and Sovereign Arbiter of Nations that His providential care may still be extended to the United States, that the virtue and happiness of the people may be preserved, and that the Government which they have instituted for the protection of their liberties may be perpetual.”
..Washington’s final annual message to congress – december 7, 1796

Dublin Theatre Festival 2015: what we know

Dublin Theatre Festival 2015 runs from 24 Sept – 11 Oct. The full 56th festival programme will be announced in July, with all tickets on sale to the public from August. As well as tickets for The Night Alive, audiences can also purchase tickets online now for The National Theatre of Great Britain’s production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, which will be staged at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre from 6 – 10 October.

Dublin Theatre Festival is principally funded by the Arts Council.

Dublin Theatre Festival is proudly supported by sponsors including The Doyle Collection and The Irish Times.

Prince Charles: Royal Activist?

A Venerable Puzzle

BBC Radio 4 has aired an interesting program to mark the 45th anniversary of Prince Charles’ investiture as Prince of Wales. Entitled “The Royal Activist,” it examines the extent to which he influences public policy, as well as the constitutional propriety of that influence.

It’s well known that Prince Charles is passionate about a range of issues, from architecture to the environment. He is not afraid to discuss them publicly, nor does he shy away from sharing his views with ministers. His outspokenness has generated controversy in the UK, and he’s frequently accused of ‘meddling.’ Basically, Prince Charles is stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea. If he didn’t take an interest in the world around him, people would attack him for being lazy. But when he does, people attack him for being too involved.

The heraldic badge of the Prince of Wales on the gate of Oriel College, Oxford. Image courtesy…

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Prince Charles’ Super Secret Letters Revealed

A Venerable Puzzle

The Cabinet Office has finally released letters that the Prince of Wales’ wrote to various figures in Tony Blair’s government (the full set can be seen here). All in all, they are a fairly anodyne read. Not surprisingly, they deal with issues such as agriculture, the environment, complementary medicine, and the preservation of historic buildings, which are all issues of longstanding interest to the Prince.

Whatever the merits of his views, Prince Charles makes constructive arguments, and he does not presume to command the Government. It’s clear that Ministers felt no obligation to accede to his requests. For example, Ruth Kelly (then Education Secretary) politely declined a request to fund professional development and initial teacher training provided by the Prince of Wales Education Summer Schools.

When Ministers did act in accordance with Prince Charles’ wishes, it’s far from clear that his influence was the deciding factor. Although he wrote to Tessa Jowell (then Culture Secretary) to…

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The Field at 50

Pat Moylan, Donal Shiels and Breda Cashe in association with MCD

50th Anniversary Production

THE FIELD by John B Keane
Directed by Padraic McIntyre

DATES: 23 April – 16 May 2015
TICKETS: From €22.50
Low Priced Previews April 23 – 27
Opening 28 April
TIMES: 7.30pm and Saturday matinees at 3pm
BOOKING: In person at The Gaiety Theatre Box Office PHONE BOOKINGS: 0818 719 388

Starring MICHAEL HARDING, who will play The Bull McCabe, the cast also features:

AIDAN MCARDLE (Lord Loxley in UTV’s Mr Selfridge)
ARTHUR RIORDAN (Digging for Fire)
CATHERINE BYRNE (Fair City)
CONOR DELANEY (Stones in his Pockets)
FIONA BELL (Three Sisters, Wuthering Heights)
GEOFF MINOGUE (Fair City)
IAN LLOYD ANDERSON (Love/Hate)
MARIA MCDERMOTTROE (Killinascully)
MARK O’REGAN (Juno and The Paycock)
SEAMUS O’ROURKE (The Quare Land, The Pitch)
STEPHEN O’LEARY (The Critic)
TERRY BYRNE (Tuesdays with Morrie)

Set Design by Liam Doona
Costume Design by Kate Moylan
Lighting Design by Eamon Fox
Sound Design by Daniel Egan

To mark the 50th anniversary of John B Keane’s The Field, a major new production will run at The Gaiety Theatre from April 23 – May 16.

The Field is a compelling and masterful piece of writing, acclaimed as ‘a magnificent play’ (Evening Herald). Starring Michael Harding in the iconic role of the Bull McCabe, one of the greatest roles ever played on an Irish stage, don’t miss the only Irish performances of this brilliant play.

First produced in 1965, John B Keane based the story on the 1959 murder of Moss Moore, a bachelor farmer in Co. Kerry. The Field captivated audiences with its dark portrayal of life in north Kerry and continues to strike a chord with audiences throughout the world. At its core is the enduring link between the Irish people and ‘the land’.

The Association of Drama Adjudicators President, Terry Byrne is currently engaged in acting on stage in this production

Aylmer case study

Lucy and Maria Aylmer look completely different to one another despite the fact they are 18-year-old twins.

Classmates had no trouble telling the sisters apart at school as Lucy has white skin and straight red hair and Maria has dark skin and thick curly locks.

Because of a rare scientific quirk as a result of their mum and dad’s mixed-race pairing, they were born with different coloured skin.

Doctors say the rare occurrence is said to have a “million to one” chance of happening.

The girls’ mum Donna is half Jamaican while dad Vince is white.

Blue-eyed Lucy said: “It was such a shock for mum because things like skin colour don’t show up on scans before birth.

“So she had no idea that we were so different.

“When the midwife handed us both to her she was just speechless.”

The twins, 18, are the youngest of five children.

“Our brothers and sisters have skin which is in between Maria and I,” Lucy said.

“We are at opposite ends of the spectrum and they are all somewhere in between.

“But my grandmother has a very fair English rose complexion, just like mine.

“No one ever believes we are twins.

“Even when we dress alike, we still don’t look like sisters, let alone twins.

“Friends have even made us produce our birth certificates to prove it.

“Most twins look like two peas in a pod – but we couldn’t look more different if we tried.”

The girls have different interests as well as different looks.

Maria is studying law at Cheltenham College, and Lucy is studying art and design at Gloucester College.

Lucy said: “Maria was outgoing whilst I was the shy one.

“But Maria loves telling people at college that she has a white twin – and I’m very proud of having a black twin.”

The Seven Year Gap:Durrant case study

Big sisters Hayleigh, left, and Lauren Durrant, right, hold their new siblings Leah, left, and Miya, right. Scientists say the odds of their parents, Dean Durrant and Alison Spooner, having two sets of fraternal twins with strikingly different skin tones and eye colors is ‘one in millions.’

A mixed-race UK  couple has defied the odds — twice — by producing two sets of twins in which one sibling appears to be black and the other white.

Dean Durrant’s newborn daughter Miya has dark skin like him. Twin sister Leah has fair skin like her blue-eyed, red-haired mother, Alison Spooner.

Their older siblings Lauren and Hayleigh, born in 2001, also have strikingly different skin tones and eye colors.

“There’s no easy way to explain it all. I’m still in shock myself,” Durrant, 33, told Sky News on Wednesday.

Both sets of twins are fraternal rather than identical, meaning they are the product of two separately fertilized eggs, so it is not unusual that they don’t look alike. Miya’s skin color was more influenced by her father’s genes, while Leah takes after her mother.

But scientists say it’s rare for a couple to have two sets of twins, end even rarer for them to have such different appearances.

“Even non-identical twins aren’t that common,” Dr. Sarah Jarvis of Britain’s Royal College of General Practitioners told Sky. “Non-identical twins from mixed parents, of different races, less common still. To have two eggs fertilized and come out different colors, less common still. So, to have it happen twice must be one in millions.”

The phenomenon is so uncommon that there are no statistics to illustrate its probability, although it is thought likely to become more common because of the growing number of mixed-race couples.

The twins were born prematurely in November in Frimley, southern England, and spent several weeks in the hospital. They are now at home with their parents in Fleet, 40 miles southwest of London.

Looking For A Hypnotist

Nick Brunger

Help – I’ve lost a stage hypnotist!  My wife took a call a few weeks ago from a stage hypnotist, based in the Swansea area, who was interested in joining the newly-formed Carmarthen Magic Circle.  She took a note of his name and number and I promptly lost it.  Is it you?  Give me a call on 01267 290819 if it was.  Or even if it wasn’t and you want to join  this new group please get in touch.

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Set Building At Picton Castle

Nick Brunger

Set building today at Picton Castle, getting ready for three day’s worth of Halloween hauntings starting next Wednesday afternoon.  This Beast Behind Bars is actually my mate Karl putting up our “Ghost Train”-style maze.  If you’re able to come next week (and do come for the adult tours in the evening – much more fun!) watch out for our Seance Room, the Nasty Nursery and meet our Alien Invaders.

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