Cooking for Gaza – make a difference
Turn your next meal into a force for good this month with Cook for Gaza, Concern Worldwide’s new fundraising campaign. Host a dinner, coffee morning, or lunch and bring friends, family, or colleagues together over a meal to support those in Gaza and help raise vital funds. Participants receive a toolkit with three authentic Palestinian recipes, a za’atar spice mix from Zaytoun, and placemats to spark conversation. Raise over €200 and earn a Concern apron as a thank you. Every euro helps deliver clean water, improve sanitation, and support displaced communities. It’s simple: cook, share, and make a real difference – proving that a shared meal can feed hope across the world.
Find out more at cookforgaza.concern.net
Different food prepped for Concern's Cook for Gaza campaign.
The Linenhall in Castlebar is buzzing with excitement as Roola Boola Children’s Arts Festival returns, 18 October – 1 November. This year’s highlight is Cat Crainn agus Madraí Uisce, a joyful collaboration between artist Corrina Askin and writer Manchán Magan. Bursting with colour, story and sound, it celebrates the magic of Irish words for nature. Another highlight includes Family Art Sessions on 30 October at 10.15am and 12.15pm. Places are free but advanced booking is recommended. With gallery tours, creative workshops, circus, puppetry, storytelling, music and more, Roola Boola promises wonder and fun for children and families alike. See thelinenhall.com.
Cat Crainn agus Madrai Uisce - Corrina Askin's vibrant artwork combined with a bilingual soundscape inspired by the magic of Manchán Magan.
Families farming together
The Family Farm Programme supports Irish families in keeping their farms thriving for generations to come. Through practical on-farm visits, weekly learning sessions, and expert guidance in sustainability, animal health, and farm business, every family member can get involved – from children to grandparents. By blending tradition with innovation, the programme helps families plan for the future, work together, and build resilient,
sustainable farms that celebrate Ireland’s rich agricultural heritage. See loetb.ie.
Families farming together. \iStock
Well-known music venue and pub, DeBarra’s Folk Club in Clonakilty, Co Cork will welcome Doireann Ní Ghlacáin (pictured below), for her debut solo show, Studies on the Cailleach. A gifted traditional musician, sean nós singer and storyteller, Doireann reimagines the Cailleach through song, story and ritual – inviting us on a spellbinding journey of folklore, womanhood and winter wisdom. Join her in the intimacy of DeBarra’s for a night of music, myth and meaning on Tuesday 28 October at 8pm. Tickets priced €20.50. See debarra.ie.
Doireann Ní Ghlacáin ,TV presenter and co-host of the bilingual podcast How to Gael with Louise Cantillon and Síomha Ní Ruairc.
Great Irish Wives
As the saying goes – or let’s be honest, how it should go – ‘behind every great man there is usually a remarkable woman
shaping history in ways that go unrecorded’....
In Nicola Pierce’s book Great Irish Wives, she celebrates 10 remarkable Irish women whose influence has often been hidden in history’s shadows. From Constance Wilde, Emily Shackleton to Sinéad de Valera, these wives shaped Ireland in ways big and small, leaving legacies that deserve recognition. Pierce brings their stories to life, proving that history isn’t just about famous men – sometimes, the women behind them are the true heroines. Great Irish Wives by Nicola Pierce is published by O’Brien Press and €19.99 from easons.com.
Great Irish Wives.
Lament for a Small Field by James Hesnan
Ochón my little field,
A stooped old farmer cries,
Where gone are the men
in waistcoats,
Who walked and talked and toiled.
Where gone are the
fruits and berries,
That once my heart
beguiled,
Where hare and
rabbit scurried,
Amidst haycocks
neatly piled.
Where gone are the
freckled faces,
Picking daisies and
mushrooms wild,
Where paths from
myriad places,
To cowsheds singly filed,
No hedge to house
the fairies,
No nest for eggs to hide,
No cover to conceal
the figaries,
Of natures engine oiled.
Cravings by the
hungry dollar,
Spread destruction
far and wide,
Shame on those
who blindly follow,
To ensure my field
has died.
Ochón my little field,
I hear your saddened sighs,
As beasts concerned
for the greater yield,
Plough fifteen furrows wide.
Ochón my little field,
A paradise abruptly foiled,
Ochón my little field,
‘Twas progress spoiled your smile.
Cooking for Gaza – make a difference
Turn your next meal into a force for good this month with Cook for Gaza, Concern Worldwide’s new fundraising campaign. Host a dinner, coffee morning, or lunch and bring friends, family, or colleagues together over a meal to support those in Gaza and help raise vital funds. Participants receive a toolkit with three authentic Palestinian recipes, a za’atar spice mix from Zaytoun, and placemats to spark conversation. Raise over €200 and earn a Concern apron as a thank you. Every euro helps deliver clean water, improve sanitation, and support displaced communities. It’s simple: cook, share, and make a real difference – proving that a shared meal can feed hope across the world.
Find out more at cookforgaza.concern.net
Different food prepped for Concern's Cook for Gaza campaign.
The Linenhall in Castlebar is buzzing with excitement as Roola Boola Children’s Arts Festival returns, 18 October – 1 November. This year’s highlight is Cat Crainn agus Madraí Uisce, a joyful collaboration between artist Corrina Askin and writer Manchán Magan. Bursting with colour, story and sound, it celebrates the magic of Irish words for nature. Another highlight includes Family Art Sessions on 30 October at 10.15am and 12.15pm. Places are free but advanced booking is recommended. With gallery tours, creative workshops, circus, puppetry, storytelling, music and more, Roola Boola promises wonder and fun for children and families alike. See thelinenhall.com.
Cat Crainn agus Madrai Uisce - Corrina Askin's vibrant artwork combined with a bilingual soundscape inspired by the magic of Manchán Magan.
Families farming together
The Family Farm Programme supports Irish families in keeping their farms thriving for generations to come. Through practical on-farm visits, weekly learning sessions, and expert guidance in sustainability, animal health, and farm business, every family member can get involved – from children to grandparents. By blending tradition with innovation, the programme helps families plan for the future, work together, and build resilient,
sustainable farms that celebrate Ireland’s rich agricultural heritage. See loetb.ie.
Families farming together. \iStock
Well-known music venue and pub, DeBarra’s Folk Club in Clonakilty, Co Cork will welcome Doireann Ní Ghlacáin (pictured below), for her debut solo show, Studies on the Cailleach. A gifted traditional musician, sean nós singer and storyteller, Doireann reimagines the Cailleach through song, story and ritual – inviting us on a spellbinding journey of folklore, womanhood and winter wisdom. Join her in the intimacy of DeBarra’s for a night of music, myth and meaning on Tuesday 28 October at 8pm. Tickets priced €20.50. See debarra.ie.
Doireann Ní Ghlacáin ,TV presenter and co-host of the bilingual podcast How to Gael with Louise Cantillon and Síomha Ní Ruairc.
Great Irish Wives
As the saying goes – or let’s be honest, how it should go – ‘behind every great man there is usually a remarkable woman
shaping history in ways that go unrecorded’....
In Nicola Pierce’s book Great Irish Wives, she celebrates 10 remarkable Irish women whose influence has often been hidden in history’s shadows. From Constance Wilde, Emily Shackleton to Sinéad de Valera, these wives shaped Ireland in ways big and small, leaving legacies that deserve recognition. Pierce brings their stories to life, proving that history isn’t just about famous men – sometimes, the women behind them are the true heroines. Great Irish Wives by Nicola Pierce is published by O’Brien Press and €19.99 from easons.com.
Great Irish Wives.
Lament for a Small Field by James Hesnan
Ochón my little field,
A stooped old farmer cries,
Where gone are the men
in waistcoats,
Who walked and talked and toiled.
Where gone are the
fruits and berries,
That once my heart
beguiled,
Where hare and
rabbit scurried,
Amidst haycocks
neatly piled.
Where gone are the
freckled faces,
Picking daisies and
mushrooms wild,
Where paths from
myriad places,
To cowsheds singly filed,
No hedge to house
the fairies,
No nest for eggs to hide,
No cover to conceal
the figaries,
Of natures engine oiled.
Cravings by the
hungry dollar,
Spread destruction
far and wide,
Shame on those
who blindly follow,
To ensure my field
has died.
Ochón my little field,
I hear your saddened sighs,
As beasts concerned
for the greater yield,
Plough fifteen furrows wide.
Ochón my little field,
A paradise abruptly foiled,
Ochón my little field,
‘Twas progress spoiled your smile.
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