tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59134729916950177192024-03-18T21:14:34.476-07:00Daly PlanetA collection of arts and movie interviews, feature articles and opinion pieces by Susan DalySusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.comBlogger210125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-82665023950905998252010-11-24T04:58:00.000-08:002010-11-24T05:09:53.394-08:00Scarier than the IMFJeff Wayne was the guy who composed the famous 1970s Gordon's Gin ad jingle that was sampled by the Human League so often (recognise this?). He also happens to be the guy who composed the iconic musical interpretation of HG Wells's War of the Worlds into a double album in 1978. I got to meet him when he was in Dublin in March of this year - today's Indo carries my interview with him as he Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-39716490194775286222010-11-03T14:48:00.000-07:002010-11-03T15:00:57.552-07:00Ann and Rachel: A tale of two sistersSometimes you meet a character so outstanding, courageous and powerful that they make you breathless with humility.One such person is Rose Callaly, the mother of murdered Rachel O'Reilly. Her other daughter Ann - so often seen propping her family up during the subsequent murder trial of Rachel's husband Joe in 2007 - died of cancer in late September this year. Two days after she buried her lovelySusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-51902727778654225752010-11-03T14:34:00.000-07:002010-11-03T14:45:56.144-07:00Whatever happened to....?What happens when an ordinary person gets caught up in the whirlwind of a national news story? With news available from so many different sources these days, perhaps don't stories just don't hang around as long as they used to.I looked at a number of stories that were huge in Ireland in the 1980s onwards and asked some of the people at the centre of them how it felt to be in the Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-36303755963051292172010-11-03T14:21:00.000-07:002010-11-03T14:32:47.414-07:00Read all about it!Hello! It's been a while since I posted my goings-on - partly because there have been so many goings-on.You might like to look at an exciting new website I'm involved in called TheJournal.ie - a one-stop shop for the day's main news, business, international, sport and off-the-wall news.It gives me a chance to take a slightly skewed view of the day's hot topics like this, this or even this.Keep anSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-32833634597708567302010-10-02T12:12:00.000-07:002010-10-02T12:21:53.473-07:00Witch or woman ahead of her time?My Twitter handle is 'Biddy Early' - I chose it because I wasn't sure what exactly Twitter was when I joined and wanted to depersonalise my account. And I've always thought Biddy Early - a local 'witch' whose name was often invoked to send children scurrying to their beds when I was growing up in Munster - might have been more misunderstood than 'evil'.Here's a little piece I put together for theSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-6549471296747807882010-10-02T12:06:00.000-07:002010-10-02T12:12:12.143-07:00See us, not the DSOlympians, political activists and TV reporters -- people with Down Syndrome are living their dreamsThe condition was recently highlighted when journalist Brendan O'Connor wrote so movingly about his new baby daughter Mary. Here Susan Daly talks to those who have grown up with it, but refuse to be defined by it.From Irish Independent, Wednesday September 22 2010When Declan Murphy moved away from Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-79577414364959169812010-09-22T11:54:00.000-07:002010-09-22T11:57:58.003-07:00Nightwatch: When it comes to hens, I'm chickenCall me old-fashioned, but a hen party's not a hen party without a good selection of Willies. Oh, unshield thine eyes. It wasn't THAT kind of evening. For one thing, the hen didn't want to be called a hen.There were to be no L-plates, no presents of edible underwear, no undie-cover stripper policemen, no banana splits topped off with provocative balls of strawberry ice-cream. I'm with the hen whoSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-55471879735926416512010-09-22T11:49:00.000-07:002010-09-22T11:54:41.936-07:00Celebs self-helping themselvesBy Susan DalyWednesday Sep 15 2010Even the wealthy, the beautiful and the famous need a hand to be happy from time to time. Religion, after all, is not only the opiate of the masses.Tom Cruise gets his jollies from Scientology, Richard Gere found peace with Buddhism and Madonna has embraced Kabbalah.As for those who believe that God helps those who help themselves, the self-help industry is Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-20893769517682092742010-09-22T11:42:00.000-07:002010-09-22T11:49:25.720-07:00The girls are back in townAgain, this is a post-dated, er, post. This was printed on September 8 as the fourth series of Mad Men began on BBC4. Looking forward to it coming to RTE in the new year.By Susan DalyWednesday Sep 8 2010Rolling Stone magazine likes its sexy covers and the current issue is very hot off the presses. It features the three lead female actors from TV series Mad Men -- January Jones (Betty), Christina Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-60388324214358667932010-09-22T03:02:00.000-07:002010-09-22T03:08:49.999-07:00"I don't want to be a happy person in a wheelchair"I wrote this piece on September 6 to coincide with the television premiere on RTE1 of Blind Man Walking, a documentary by Ross Whitaker about adventure athlete Mark Pollock becoming the first blind man to reach the South Pole on foot. Events in Mark's life took a tragic turn after the filming of the documentary and this interview was conducted over the phone with him as he lay in his hospital bedSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-48660973091492612742010-09-19T05:19:00.000-07:002010-09-19T05:29:20.140-07:00What drives a mother to kill?This is the cover story I wrote for the Irish Independent's Weekend magazine of September 4 last. Hard to report on, but not half as harrowing as being a relative of any of the parties involved in these cases.MOST parents’ idea of a nightmare would be to outlive their children. No wonder then that when a child dies at the hands of a parent, it provokes outrage and disbelief. When that parent is aSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-33855151274000539062010-09-02T15:44:00.000-07:002010-09-02T15:47:09.869-07:00Tales from the frontlineDuring the economic boom, private industry seemed to be the place to earn the big bucks.Now that the Celtic Tiger has slunk away, a pensionable job in the traditional public service sector seems an attractive prospect once again.But has the job of Garda, teacher or nurse really been a steady ship throughout the years of boom and bust?We asked three workers who have been on the frontline of their Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-73870153468018869002010-08-30T02:19:00.000-07:002010-08-30T02:25:57.567-07:00"My mother blamed herself till the day she died."Last week, a Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman's report on the bombings in Claudy of 1972 accused the Catholic Church and British Government of protecting Fr James Chesney, a local priest suspected of involvement in the massacre. I met some victims of the car bombing for the Irish Independent's Review last Saturday, including Mark Eakin (above) whose 8-year-old sister Kathryn died beside him.The Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-81816894151130549052010-08-23T09:17:00.000-07:002010-08-23T09:19:57.095-07:00The grey matterMy piece on the vogue for dyeing hair... grey - from the Indo's Weekend mag last Saturday.Elizabeth Taylor, hair still blue-black into her 78th year, has not got the memo that grey is in vogue. Stars such as Helen Mirren, Jamie Lee Curtis, Diane Keaton and Emmylou Harris have been noticeably growing old grey-cefully in recent years and earning applause for it.But the appearance of gunmetal and Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-2827988346729366462010-08-23T09:07:00.000-07:002010-08-23T09:15:49.865-07:00We're notty snotty yachtiesSusan Daly finds out that it's easy to join the wet set in Howth as they gear up for one of the most prestigious events in the world's sailing calendar.Saturday August 21 2010Something big is coming to the salubrious harbour of Howth this week. Huge roadside signs welcome the Etchells World Championships 2010 at every few kilometres on the approach to the north Dublin village. The sailing event, Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-41275605438595079892010-08-23T08:44:00.000-07:002010-08-23T09:01:39.598-07:00Que Cera, CeraMy interview with Michael Cera - star of Juno, Superbad and now, Scott Pilgrim vs The World. From Day and Night mag in Irish Indo.Geek heroSharp-witted Michael Cera breaks out of the supernerd mould and beefs up for his latest role, writes Susan Daly, who chats to him about school, being cool and coping with fame.Friday August 20 2010The first thing you notice about Michael Cera are his glasses. Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-18996750326751426432010-08-19T10:29:00.000-07:002010-08-19T10:34:09.512-07:00Travel: Cote VermeilleForget the overcrowded, glitzy resorts of the Côte d'Azur -- Susan Daly discovers unspoilt charms and affordable indulgence on Côte Vermeille in the south of FranceSaturday August 14 2010You couldn't miss the couple strolling hand-in-hand along the harbourside. They were both decked out in dazzling white, top to open-toed sandal.There is a franchise of popular French boutiques called Blanc du NilSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-38522305260454458512010-08-18T14:59:00.000-07:002010-08-18T15:01:38.612-07:00Silly Ideas Amnesty DayWe all make mistakes but some of us are better at admitting them than others. Certain politicians, for instance, are quite incapable of holding up their hands in public. What goes for the most macho of men, goes doubly so for those in public life. Never show weakness. Never say you’re sorry. Never say: I was wrong.This might explain why the ridiculous 30kph speed limit along the north and south Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-33674051169046927112010-08-18T14:55:00.001-07:002010-08-18T14:59:25.894-07:00The Secret to (her) successThe author who found The Secret to success with a best-selling self-help book is about to unleash a new tome on having it all.(I wrote this for last Saturday's Review section in the Irish Independent - The Power was published yesterday)The key to success is apparently now one of the world's worst-kept secrets. When self-help manual The Secret was published in 2006, it claimed to contain a formulaSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-19978190820542350332010-08-13T05:35:00.000-07:002010-08-13T05:36:26.576-07:00Sing like you mean itYou're either a singsong person or you're not. Most Irish people are singsong merchants. At any given gathering of my extended family, you can't clink a spoon against a glass for fear someone takes it as their cue to tune up.This ditty diarrhoea is the one cultural presumption that I don't mind people making about the Irish. Failte Ireland should make a merit of it and get the Yanks back in by Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-62411356036138320482010-08-12T08:00:00.000-07:002010-08-12T08:05:20.491-07:00Rent-a-friend?By Susan DalyTuesday Aug 10 2010Loneliness is considered a relatively modern affliction. Even though communications technology has advanced beyond our grandparents' wildest dreams, many people feel disconnected. Community and family ties have loosened and it is possible to feel isolation in the most crowded city.Perhaps this is why a service has launched in the UK for lonely people to hire Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-3282760971168731482010-08-12T07:44:00.000-07:002010-08-12T07:56:40.580-07:00What's the magic number?How many lovers in a lifetime is too many?Susan Daly finds that today's world is not as sexually liberated as we think it is.Monday August 09 2010If you thought the dreadful Sex and the City 2 had hammered the final nail into that particular coffin, think again. For Christina Saunders, the SATC-inspired empowerment has only just begun now that she has reached her target of sleeping with 1,000 menSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-16072616925546858912010-08-12T07:16:00.000-07:002010-08-12T07:22:14.667-07:00Jeepers creepers, where'd you get those peepers?By Susan DalySaturday Aug 7 2010Lady Gaga's cartoon-style eyes have sparked a dangerous craze for the doe-eyed anime look, with teens buying large circular lenses on the internet reports Susan DalyThe outrageous Lady Gaga has set quite a few trends in her brief time at the top of the pops, from metal-spiked shoulder pads to precision-cut peroxide bobs.We didn't see this one coming though: fans Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-82704511209952263232010-08-12T07:02:00.000-07:002010-08-12T07:13:19.584-07:00Would you buy sperm from these men?As the world's first 'test-tube baby' celebrates her 32nd birthday, Susan Daly looks at IVF in the 21st CenturySaturday August 07 2010Few postal workers have their birthday marked by the media every year. Louise Brown, the world's first so-called 'test-tube baby', is an exception. Now the mother of a two-year-old boy in Brighton, England, she celebrated her 32nd birthday last Sunday, a fact notedSusan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5913472991695017719.post-6743375815367329772010-08-03T15:01:00.000-07:002010-08-03T15:10:18.563-07:00Prayers for BobbyWHEN Mary Griffith was a teenager in the 1960s, she never heard the words gay or homosexual. “People would be described as sissies,” she says. “That was the word we used – and I wasn’t even sure what that meant.”Astonishing then that Mary would later become a leading figure in the American gay rights movement - and more astonishing still for the fact that when her own son Bobby told her he was Susan Dalyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10599263535046963833noreply@blogger.com0