Family Lunch at Skuna Bay

I had invited all the family who were at the Golden Wedding Anniversary Party to lunch in our Wexford house in Skuna Bay. Before this we went to mass in Star of the Sea church in Ballygarrett celebrated by Fr William Howell. My head wasn’t quite ready for mass, but I struggled through it without falling asleep. At the end of mass Fr Howell congratulated Mum and Dad from the altar. He gave Mum a bunch of flowers and the congregation applauded them – Mum and Dad were beaming.

We had 28 people altogether at the house. Roma had been working very hard preparing food and had a fantastic spread for all. My contribution? Well…..first, I didn’t get in the way. I also poured drinks and did lots of washing up to make up for my lack of input into the food. Roma, as always, has a knack with presentation – every one commented on the smashing food. We had lots of chat. I was particularly delighted that as well as Mum and Dad, Aunt Breda and Uncle Seamus, Aunt Mary and Uncle Donal, Mum’s cousins Brendan Byrne (and his wife Collette), and Madeline Shelly (and her husband Kevin)

, my cousin Declan and his wife Marguerite, Joe/Miriam and family (David, Niall, and Maeve), Kathleen/Jim and family (Eileen, Brendan, Michael, and Daniel), as well as Roma, Claire, Kate, and Vicki – were all there. 

Picture below is me with (from left) my aunts Breda and Mary, and my Mum's cousin Madeline.

Roma and I were tired when all had left. We were both falling asleep by nine o’clock and went to bed early. The day was a great success – 28 people are the most we’ve ever had at our Wexford home. The sun came out and the place looked beautiful. Mum and Dad really enjoyed the day and went home happy.

Golden Wedding Anniversary Party

The O’Loughlin Clan gathered in the Amber Springs Hotel in Gorey on Saturday 25^th October, 2008 to celebrate the Golden Wedding Anniversary of my Mum and Dad (Phil and Joe). With us were all the in-laws, neighbours, and friends of Mum and Dad – about 60 people altogether. Unfortunately, bad weather on the Irish Sea meant that Brian could not travel over from England – I spoke with him earlier in the day and while he was disappointed not to be with us, he was very much in our hearts and thoughts. We had a toast to Brian during the after dinner speeches.

For me the party started early – I went to the hotel at about 4.30 to set up the presentation that I had planned. I have spent a lot of time preparing the presentation, collecting photos, searching through my own photograph collection (both film and digital), selecting background music, and working with my cousin Janet Edwards to get some video messages from Mum’s Canadian family into the presentation (thanks Janet for all your help, especially at a sad time for your family). I was as excited as a Rolling Stones Roadie setting up a concert. I had my laptop from work (thanks NCI), my iPhone, speakers, projector, scanner, and camera, all connected – it looked like an AC/DC concert with wires everywhere. I set up everything fine and was ready to go – I wanted to include some final pictures, which Mum brought, and some photos of their arrival at the hotel. Despite the bad weather I got some nice shots of their arrival. Kathleen and Eileen worked hard setting up the tables – the layout with mirrors, stones, and candles really added to the sense of occasion. I felt sorry for the hotel representative who was looking after us – Eileen worked for Hotel Kilkenny and was expecting high standards from the Amber Springs! 

Mum and Dad arrived in a Rolls Royce at about 7.00 pm and were greeted at the hotel entrance by all their guests. We had a nice sherry reception (I’m not a sherry person, so I had a pint instead!). It was great to meet up with all the family – the last time I had met them all was at Uncle Charlie’s funeral last year. 

For dinner, we all settled down before Mum and Dad arrived to a great reception from everybody. I had a poster created for them which was posted just outside our function room – this was very much appreciated. We had a very pleasant dinner followed by some speeches. Dad’s brother Paddy spoke first – he was, as usual, very funny, and told some stories from the time Mum and Dad were courting. Dad spoke next and was his usual confident self – he particularly thanked Mum for her support and friendship over the past 50 years, a special moment. Mum spoke to thank everybody, especially Uncle Paddy whom she presented a bottle of Paddy whiskey to as a “Thank you” for his discretion 50 years ago. My nephew Brendan Kelleher spoke on behalf of the younger generation – while nervous, he was very good and he represented his cousins very well. Dad’s sister Eileen also spoke before my big moment arrived. Mum's cousin Brendan Byrne spoke on behalf of the Byrne side of the family. I had not prepared a speech – deliberately, as I wanted to speak from the heart. I’m very proud of my Mum and Dad and I hope it showed in my words. All of above was ably managed by Joe. 

I started my presentation with some photos of Mum and Dad before they got married – the background music was “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong. Next I had a series of news items from 1958 (music – “The Washington Post” marching band music) culminating in the news that Mum and Dad got married in 1958. Next up was some pictures of Mum’s parents Kathleen and Paddy Byrne – I played their 1958 wedding message recording during this section (this is playable from one of my earlier blog posts). I followed this with a “Next 50 years” section – lots of photos of family over the years. I did this with background music from Edith Piaf (“Je ne regret rien”) and Barbra Streisand (“The Way We Were”). Then it was time for the Canadian video messages – this worked very well and added to the sense of occasion. Finally, I had a “Moments in Time” section (Music – Whitney Houston and “One Moment in Time”) – this used all my favourite photos of Mum and Dad. I also had a couple of photos of their arrival at the hotel. The presentation got a great round of applause at the end – Dad wants it on DVD! Maybe I’ve a career in the movies ahead of me! It was a relief that all went as planned and I could now relax a little bit more – phew!

As you would expect with a party involving Mum and Dad and a lot of their Carnew Musical Society friends there was a lot of singing after dinner. Each table sang a song from a musical – this “competition” was judged in X-Factor style by Fr William Howell who was attending a wedding downstairs and is a long time friend of Mum and Dad. Loads of people got up to sing afterwards. Dad, Joe, and I sang “The Bold Gendarmes”. Joe and I also sang “Fifty Years Ago” as well as “When I’m Sixty Four”. Highlight of the singing was Dad’s rendition of “The Mountains of Mourne”. 

It was a late night, which we rounded off in the Resident’s Bar of the hotel. Joe stayed with us in Skuna Bay and we got a late taxi home and got to bed at about 4.30 am. 

Today was a great day for our family – especially for Mum and Dad. We love you both, and many congratulations on achieving 50 years.

Golden Wedding Anniversary - 22nd October, 2008

Yesterday was a great day for our family when Mum (Phil) and Dad (Joe) celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary - they were married in Ballybrack Church on 22nd October, 1958. Dad's uncle, Monsignor Charles Hurley was the mass celebrant. 

50 years later they spent the day together. First, they went to Mass in Tomacork Church. I called them to wish a "Happy Anniversary" and they were in great form. Later they went to lunch in Lawless's Hotel in Aughrim. They had several callers and well wishers on the day.

We are partying on Saturday night in the Amber Springs Hotel in Gorey - all the family, neighbours, and friends will be there. A good night is in prospect.

Congratulations Mum and Dad!!!

Your loving son,

Eugene

Ireland 1 Cyprus 0

I got two tickets for a birthday present to the Ireland vs. Cyprus World Cup Qualifier in Croke Park last evening. My good friend and former colleague in SmartForce, Ciarán O'Connell, came to the match with me. We had Premium seats with an excellent view of the pitch.

Robbie Keane scored the only goal of the game in 5th minute - we had a perfect view of his header into an empty net. Ireland had most of the opportunities in the first half, but could not add to the lead. Our defence and attack played well, but midfield seemed to be lost. The crowd were calling for Andy Reid quite early on, but Ireland Manager Giovanni Trappatoni made no substitutions other than a time wasting one in the last seconds of the match.

Cyprus were shite all through the game, and Ireland were shite in the second half. Cyprus rarely threated to score, though they did get some opportunities near the end but Richard Dunne resisted all attempts to score. Dunne was man-of-the-match for me, but the press gave the award to Kevin Doyle.

The view in the papers and on radio this morning is that a "win is a win". The heavyweights in our qualifying group, Italy and Bulgaria, won't be shaking in their boots at the prospect of playing Ireland. Italy won again last night (2-1 vs Montenegro) , while Bulgaria drew (0-0 vs Georgia).

We left the ground happy with the win, but it was not an impressive performance by Ireland - especially in midfield. Darren Gibson, who is 9th choice for Manchester United's midfield, failed to impress, as did Glenn Whelen, who can't get into the Stoke City team. Andy Reid, a first choice at Sunderland, was kept on the bench. Trappatoni rules!

We finished the evening with a pint in the Lagoona Bar and a good chat.

Book Launch - "The State of the Unions"

I attended a book launch at the National College of Ireland last evening. The book is entitled The State of the Unions, and it is edited by Dr Tim Hastings, a colleague from the Associate Faculty at the College. It is the second book in the series of books published by NCI and Liffey Press - the series is called The Changing World of Work. The book launch is mentioned in today's Irish Times.

The book launch was opened by Dr Paul Mooney, President of the College. Dr Hastings also spoke about putting the book together - it is a series of chapters by leading labour movement figures in Ireland, including Ruarí Quinn (former Minister for Labour), Dr Brendan McPartlin (a former lecturing colleague in NCI), and Davig Begg (General Scretary of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions - ICTU).

I don't have much time for unions. I am one of the few members of academic staff in NCI who are not in a union - and have no intention or desire to join SIPTU, the union most staff in the College are members of. However, the highlight of the evening was hearing and meeting Jack O'Connor, President of SIPTU, who formally launched the book. He de-bunked the myth that union membership is falling, and claimed that unions are now more relevant than ever before to stand up for workers who have to work for somebody else. I have to say he is an inspiring speaker - I had also heard him on RTÉ radio in the morning calling the new one percent employment levy in the Budget as a crude instrument that disregards the principle of ability to pay and will inflict further hardship on those on middle to lower incomes.

I bought a copy of the book and had both Tim and Jack sign it. I will give the book to my Mum's cousin Brendan Byrne who is a retired SIPTU official. I had invited him to the launch, but he didn't make it. I don't think I'll read it myself.

New Shoes

I called to Arnotts in Henry Street today to buy a new pair of shoes. I have three pairs of shoes already, but all are worn and need to be thrown out. All three existing pairs of shoes are by Ecco and I had convinced myself that the quality of Ecco shoes was not as good as it used to be. I would try another brand.

When the shoe salesman asked me how long I had had these old shoes - several years, he told me not to expect more than two years from any pair, and that Ecco were the best. So I bought a pair of Ecco shoes having intended not to buy them in the first place (good salesmanship!).

I add this trivial post to record the day I bought the shoes so that I'll know in a few years time when I bought them.

How To... Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) in Excel

I have added a new video to YouTube on how to calculate Net Present Value (NPV) for two projects. NPV is used by Project Managers as one of the tools to help them select a project. This short video describes how to make the calculations in simple steps.

Institute of Business Analysis and Consulting Annual Conference

I attended the Institute of Business Analysis and Consulting (IBAC) Annual Conference yesterday held in the Davenport Hotel. The title of the Conference was From Business Support to Business Influencer - The Evolving Role of the Business Analyst. There were about 60 people present - I'd say about 12 were graduates of NCI's Diploma in Business Analysis and Consultancy course that I teach on. The course was also mentioned by one of the speakers.

The first presentation was by Sue Stockdale who is a motivational speaker, executive coach, and people development consultant. She spoke on Thriving in the Extreme World of Business. She once skied across Greenland and used her story of the expedition to compare her adventures with business issues. She was excellent! I also got to sit beside her at lunch and we had a great chat - I told her about putting lectures on iPods/iPhones and she was fascinated. I promised to send her details about how to do this.

Next up was a presentation from Alan McGilton who spoke on How to Change your Approach to the Market and Stay Ahead of the Competition – The Case of Ignition at Hibernian. This was a very interesting presentation and focused very much on a Business Analyst as an agent for change. The following speaker was Kathy O’Reilly of UCD Michael Smurfit Graduate Business School. Her topic was Business Analysis in Ireland: Evolving Roles, Changing Landscapes which was about research conducted on the role of the BA by two of her students. I was also sitting beside Kathy at lunch and we had a great chat comparing our courses (it was she who mentioned NCI in her presentation). The final speaker in the morning session was Michael Cullen, CEO of Beacon Medical Group. His topic was Stakeholder Management in the Healthcare Sector - a bit long, but an interesting account of how the Beacon hosiptal was set up. He also had a go at Joe Higgins of the Socialist Worker's party.

After lunch, there was a choice of three breakout workshops - I picked Applying Six Sigma Principles to Customer Experience Management – How to Develop Profitable Relationships with Internal and External Customers by Jeremy Heaven of Distinct Business Consulting. This wasn't particularly good and I wished I had gone to the one on virtual teams instead. The final speaker was Adrian Beggan of Google who spoke on Forget Tomorrow! What about the Next 5 – 10 years? Seizing the Opportunity to Shape the Trajectory of the ‘Business Analyst’. He was very good, though overdid the innovation bit and kept repeating himself. The learning from his session was to always be creative and innovative, and he described how Google cultures this within their organization.

I was surprised that I knew so many people at the Conference and met quite a few new people too. I discovered that I was mentioned as a possible speaker for this Conference - who knows, I might be asked for the next one!

Holyhead Lions Charter Night

As President of the Killiney Lions Club (of which I am not a member), Roma get invited to Annual Dinners of other Lions Clubs. Killiney is twinned with the Holyhead Lions Club in Wales. We set off on the 11.30 ferry from Dún Laoghaire to Holyhead and were picked up by Lion colleagues of Roma, David and Jim - there were seven people associated with Killiney Lions attending. We decided not to take the car as it is very expensive and we didn't really need it.

The Hotel where we were staying, and where the dinner was, is the Valley Hotel in the village of Valley, on the Isle if Anglesey. It is a small hotel, nothing fancy. We had lunch on arrival, and as it was raining heavily we stayed in the hotel for the afternoon.

Dinner was a black tie affair, and was full of Lions ceremoney. Holyhead Lions only recently voted to allow women members, and some of the speeches bordered on sexist (they have no women members yet). We were sitting beside a couple from the West of Ireland who had emigrated to Britain in the 1950s - so we had some interesting chat about that. I'm guessing that I was either the third or fourth youngest person there, Roma was one of the people younger than me. After dinner there was some music and dancing and the night finished up before 12. I had an interesting evening with a Rev James - not a vicar/priest, but a beer by Welsh brewing company Brains!

Before our return home to Dún Laoghaire we were invited to lunch in Holyhead Golf Club in Treardur Bay by the Holyhead Lions. It was pleasant sunny day and we had a nice walk along the Bay first.

Kate picked us up from the ferry in Dún Laoghaire - very handy having a daughter who can drive my car. Overall, an good weekend. However, most of the Lions we were with are in their 60s and 70s - they seem to all want to "look after" the younger people. They were constantly asking if we were OK - as if they were our parents. I had enough of this, and was glad to be home.

Chez Max Restaurant Review

After the Art Garfunkel concert last Friday Roma and I went for a quick bite to eat at Chez Max in the corner of Palace Street beside Dublin Castle. We had looked to eat there before but it was always booked out. It is a small restaurant - very French. We were late, and past last orders, but they took us in anyway. It was very dark and even though I actually had my reading glasses with me I could not read the menu without holding a candle up to it. I had a steak, which turned out to be a bit oily - but OK. It is a nice intimate atmosphere and I enjoyed discussing the Garfunkel concert with Roma and reminiscing about 1982 when we last saw him. Due to the late hour we only had time for one course and a glass of wine.

Chez Max - recommended, but I'd like to go back and take a bit more time to enjoy it more.

Art Garfunkel at Vicar Street

Roma and I went to the Art Garfunkel concert in Vicar Street last Friday evening. I bought the tickets several months ago and was looking forward to the concert as a birthday treat for a long time. Roma and I had been to a Simon and Garfunkel concert at the RDS way back in 1982 - one of our earliest dates. I remember this mainly for the bottle of white wine that Roma "smuggled" into the concert arena - this was my first gig at a major international artist and I felt that we were certain to be ejected from the arena for drinking.

Garfunkel has aged quite a bit and was a bit stooped at times. His voice has lost none of its gentleness and he is still a magnificent interpreter of songs. A bit of the power has gone, but that's OK for a guy who is 66 years old. I couldn't see the connections between his wig and his head - it was very well fitted.

He sang all the stuff we came to hear - "Bright Eyes", "The Sound of Silence", "Bridge Over Troubled Waters", "Scarborough Fair", and many more. As always at concerts of artists who have been around for a long time he also sang stuff from his "new" CD - not what we went to hear.

He seemed a bit uncomfortable - Vicar Street is a small venue and he took exception to a couple chatting in the front row while he was singing. He stopped the  song to confront the couple! Maybe he felt he should be singing before more people. When we last saw him at the RDS there were several thousand people present - on Friday there were just a few hundred. Celebrity spotting - Tony Ward and Joe Duffy were there too.

Nevertheless,  a brilliant concert that was thoroughly enjoyable. We were only about 5m from Art and it was incredible to be so close to the man who sings one of the most famous songs of all time - Bridge Over Troubled Waters. Great evening!

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1001 Spams

I reached a milestone today as I have 1001 spam emails in my Gmail. This is the first time it has exceeded 1000. These are only the spams for the last 30 Days as Gmail messages that are in Spam more than this time are automatically deleted. 

Gmail is great for filtering spam and I rarely get a spam message in my Inbox. The Spam is mostly about drugs, watches, software offers, penis enlargement - the most recent one was for a degree or diploma based on work experience. No thanks!

I rarely view my spam list as I have never had a legitimate email labeled as spam by Gmail. I trust Gmail to sort the genuine email from the spam. Death to all Spammers!

Curry's Good, Harvey Norman Bad

Don't you just hate it when you realise that someone is trying to rip you off, and just love it when you find out that you can beat them at their own game?

Yesterday, Roma and I went to Carrickmines Retail Park to buy a new dishwasher. We started out in Harvey Norman and looked at their selection of dishwashers - they have a good range. We had already decided that we would also check out Curry's across the car park. Curry's has a more limited range but their prices seemed to be a lot lower - an average of about €100. As always, it also seemed that there were different brands and models between the two shops - so it was difficult to compare like with like. However, I did note that a Zanussi model that we liked looked the same as one I had seen back in Harvey Norman. I noted the model number, and the price - €429. We decided to go back to Harvey Norman and lo and behold - the EXACT SAME dishwasher was €529 - a whopping €100 more expensive - and Harvey Norman were having a Sale! Needless to say we bought the one from Curry's. We asked the Curry's Salesman why there could be such a massive price difference - but he didn't seem to understand my question (he wasn't Irish).

The lesson is "shop around" and avoid Harvey Norman. With the difference in price we also bought a George Foreman Grilling machine. Good on you Curry's!

How To...Create a Pareto Chart in Excel

I have added a new video to YouTube to describe how to create a Pareto chart in Excel 2003. For my Business Systems Analysis module in NCI I have a Pareto Analysis exercise, and I had previously created a Word document showing the steps using screen shots. Now I have a video doing the same - I will link to this from the course resources page on NCI's Moodle LCMS so that future students who prefer to watch rather than read can learn how to create a simple Pareto chart.

A Pareto chart is based on the Pareto Principle (named after Vilfredo Pareto) - it is more commonly know as the 80/20 rule, ie - 80% of problems come from 20% of sources.

I'm getting an iPhone!!!

Exciting news - I just got an email from O2 this evening offering to provide me with a free iPhone! Wow!

I sent them a video podcast last week (that could be viewed on an iPhone) pitching for an iPhone to use in education at NCI. It was a long shot, but I pulled it off.

More about this in future blogs!

Lunch at Nosh in Dalkey

Roma and I went to Nosh in Dalkey for lunch yesterday (Sunday). It was a glorious day and we cycled all the way - the first time the two of us had cycled anywhere in many years. We set out on spec as we had not booked anywhere and were disappointed to find InDalkey closed due to a fire. Nosh looked good, so we took a table at the window to watch all going by. The menu was very limited and I had a Caeser salad. I can't believe I'm having salad in a restaurant - feckin' high blood sugar levels!

We cycled back via Coliemore Harbour to see the boats and a seal. I was looking at my watch a lot 'cos the All-Ireland final between Tyrone and Kerry was starting at 3.30. I got home in time to see Tyrone run out deserved winners.

Cycle to lunch with Roma on a Sunday - must do this again.

Google Chrome

I have started to use Google's new Internet browser called Chrome. Google describes Chrome as "a browser that combines a minimal design with sophisticated technology to make the web faster, safer, and easier". It is easy to install and use. It looks good and I particularly like the use of the address bar for both searching and entering web addresses. Google shows great suggestions for everything you type in and is very good at "guessing" what you are trying to access. No doubt there are some developers in Google trying to figure out how to get some advertising into this! I also like the spell checker in web text boxes - this is super for someone like me whose fingers are still finding their way around a keyboard 25 years after first using a computer.

On the negative side there is still lots of things that Google needs to do. This browser is a long way from being useful for business. Plug-ins need to be reinstalled, some web pages won't work at all - for example, in NCI the College's Student Management System (QuercusPlus) will not operate at all in Chrome. In Moodle, the usual WYSIWYG editors for creating content do not display - you have to be content with simple text editor. It is a bit annoying to have to switch back to Windows Explorer just to use Moodle. This could revive the old Netscape vs. Explorer wars of the past.

Another annoying thing is that the End key brings your cursor to the START of the next line rather than the end of the current line.

I think critical to Google is to get some tyle of toolbar working - like the one available for Windows Explorer. Not being able to autofill web pages is annoying - expecially when there is one available from Google for Explorer! It also has an incognito mode, but Explorer now has that too.

I'll continue to use Chrome at home, but not so sure if I'll continue to use is at work. I'm looking forward to seeing what Google does next with this browser and how it will be developed. If I were Microsoft, I'd be worried about this development.

Brandon-Hall Judge 2008

For several years now I have been a Judge for the Excellence in Learning awards from Brandon Hall Research. They used to be the Excellence in e-Learning awards. They send all judges a nice Certificate of Recognition that we can display, and also list us on the Judges List.

Each year I judge two e-Learning entries, usually in the Custom Content category - I was once Director of Custom Content while working for SmartForce. Being a judge is enjoyable work and I get to see lots of different types of e-Learning courses that I might not otherwise come across. It's a good way to keep up with the latest technologies in the e-Learning industry.

Unpublished letter to Editor of the Sunday Independent

I tried again to get a Letter to the Editor published in a newspaper - this time the Sunday Independent. It was not accepted - so I publish here anyway (isn't blogging great? - I am my own editor!). I titled the letter "Conscription and the moral mire"

Sir,
I read with interest Clodagh Sheehy's report in last Saturday's Irish Independent that conscription into a European army was one of the "main fears" for those who voted No to the Lisbon Treaty. In the Sunday Independent, Patricia Redlich writes that the nation's young people have been left to "to sink or swim in the moral mire" as they party on a cocktail of drink, drugs, and casual sex. Perhaps conscription might not be a bad idea after all?

Eugene F.M. O'Loughlin,
2 Richmond,
Blackrock,
Co. Dublin.

Level 1 - Start Sailing (RYA)

Last evening I completed Irish Sailing Association/Royal Yachting Association Level 1 course at the Irish National Sailing Club in  Dún Laoghaire Harbour. Even though this is but one small step up the sailing ladder, I feel a sense of achievement at having completed the course. I got a Level 1 - Start Sailing certificate to show I had successfully completed the course. The certificate is awarded by the Royal Yachting Association (RYA) and it means that I can now progress onto Level 2 (Competent Crew course). I thought about doing this straightaway, but I will now wait until the Spring instead - I have the impetus now to keep going. I'm setting a personal target of being able to sail properly by the summer, and possibly buy a boat.

We used a Laser Pico dinghy (like the one pictured, but not me sailing it) this time instead of the Topper used last Saturday. It was slighlty bigger (12') and much easier to handle. We were towed out to a pontoon in the harbour where we had to rig the boat. Not having rigged a Pico before, and being slightly different from the Topper, I was very awkward getting it together - I needed help from one of the instructors. Once I got going I felt comfortable, though I was still a bit stiff after Saturday's efforts. We sailed around a short course that helped us practice what we had learned before. There were 13 people in the class and the short course got a bit crowded at times. I was proud of myself this time in that I didn't fall in, but there was plenty of bad tacking/jibing, and a few bangs on the head from the boom to remind me that I was not yet a round the world sailor!

Darkness decended very quickly and the class ended at about 8.00pm. We were towed back to the slip where I was the last of the 13 boats to get out of the water. In all, we had just about one hour's worth of sailing (advertised class - 6.30-9.30) - a bit short, but rewarding for me nonetheless. I'm looking forward to the next class and sailing again next year.

My only regret is that I have waited 48 years to learn how to sail - I should have done this a long time ago. But it is never to late to start (I was not the oldest person in the class last evening!).

I am sailing!

Yesterday I had my first sailing lesson at the Irish National Sailing School. This course runs on the syllabus of Irish Sailing Association/Royal Yachting Association Level 1 and is aimed at total beginners. There were five people (Deirdre, Susanne, Marco, Leon, and me) in our class which was ably led by Brian - none of us had had sailing lessons before so I was in good company. We were first kitted out in wetsuits and life jackets and taken to a classroom for some theory. This was about the wind and Beat, Reach, and Run - the class lasted about 5 minutes and we were brought to our boats. The boat I had for the day was an eleven foot Topper - like the one in the picture here (that's not me in the boat). After we set the boats up it was into the water and we were sailing! We learned the basics - one of the first things I learned after about five minutes was how to right the boat after I was rammed by one of my classmattes and it capsized, dumping me into the waters of Dún Laoghaire Harbour. This was the first of four times I fell into the water during the day.

While the day was beautiful there wasn't much wind - just a gentle breeze. This was fine for getting used to the boat, but after a while it would have been nice to have a slightly stronger breeze. However, we had a great time learning the basics of jibing, tacking, and directing the boat - this was good fun. We had lunch in The Purty Kitchen - seafood of course! After lunch it was more sailing - we practised running and zig-zagging around marker buoys. It was also a bit cold.

One thing I wasn't expecting was that I would have sore legs the next day - the Topper is a small boat and I was kneeling down for most of the day. I was tired at the end of the day, but definitely worth it. I'm looking forward to the second part of the lesson tomorrow evening. I definitely like sailing and would like to get my own boat - hopefully for next year. I can picture myself sailing off the coast at Skuna Bay in Wexford.

Evelyn (Byrne) Letko

Mum's sister, my Aunt Evelyn, passed away yesterday. She had been ill for some time and was only in her late 50's. I think she is 18 years younger than Mum - that would make her 56. She emigrated to Canada from Ireland as a small child in the 1950's.

She last visited with us in August 2004. Kathleen hosted a party for Mum's 70th birthday (and Claire's 16th) in Kells which Evelyn attended. We also had Sunday lunch in Lawless's Hotel in Aughrim the Sunday before. The photo to the left of Evelyn and me was taken in the lobby of the Hotel.

Evelyn stayed with us in Blackrock for her last two nights in Ireland before travelling on to Slovakia. She toured some of the sights in Dublin and I brought her to her former home in Temple Cottages near Dublin City centre (click here to see a map of where this is - Temple Cottages should be at the centre). She didn't remember the street very well, but we went into Comiskey's Pub which is around the corner from Temple Cottages for a jar. Evelyn got talking to some of the locals (she wasn't a bit shy), some of whom remembered the Byrnes and Mrs Ruddle (next door). Evelyn very much enjoyed herself talking to them all.

It is  a sad time for the Canadian side of the family as Geoff Edwards, Mum and Evelyn's brother-in-law also passed away this week after a short illness. He was married to Mum's sister Patsy (Cathy to the Canadians) who died several years ago. I don't recall ever meeting him though Mum says he and Patsy visited Ireland in the 1960's.

God be good to both Evelyn and Geoff.

22nd Wedding Anniversary

Yesterday, 13th September, was our 22nd Wedding Anniversary. Roma and I were married in Newport Co Mayo in 1986 - the photo to the left was taken outside the church - we were probably only married for about 30 minutes when this was taken. 1986 was of course pre-digital camera days and this is a scan from our wedding album - quality is not so good. Roma still looks great today, but I seem to have aged a bit - less hair and more grey!

We went out to Dali's Restaurant in Blackrock to celebrate. We were late (9.30pm) as we had a call from the restaurant earlier to tell us that there had been a blackout in the area. I was also quite tired as I had been sailing earlier. Nevertheless, we had a most enjoyable meal - I had scallops for starter and sole for main course. Delicious.

Here's to the next 22 years!

An Ideal Husband at the Abbey

I went to see Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband" at the Abbey Theatre last night with Roma, Dorothy, and Peter. We first had an excellent dinner in the Mermaid Cafe on Dame Street. I had scallops for starters and ray for main course - excellent (I write this here because I never remember what I had previously in a restaurant if I ever go there again).

An Ideal Husband is a very funny play - it is a blend of humour, intrique, farce, and morality that explores human frailty and social hypocrisy. We all have to pay for what we do is the theme, and Sir Robert Chilton has a secret that is discovered and exposed. His fortune is based on an early version of insider dealing. The wonderfully over-acted Mrs. Cheveley threatens blackmail over a letter and the ruin of Sir Robert's career. But she is not beyond reproach herself. What follows is lots of humour with unexpected twists and intrique - the difference between men and women is constantly examined. Wilde wrote this when his marriage was breaking up and he was being blackmailed by the owner of a homosexual brothel over a letter written to his lover. Wilde is present in the three main characters - Sir Robert Chiltern, Lord Goring, and Mrs Cheveley. He mocks London society at every opportunity.

I don't go to the Abbey (or plays) enough - this was a wonderfully entertaining evening in good company and I should make a greater effort to see more. Roddy Doyle's version of "The Playboy of the Western World" is coming up in Decemeber - I'll be sure to catch that.

An Ideal Husband also sounds likes a series of one liners. Wilde is quoted so often that the play could be considered a selection of his quotes being joined together to form a story. My favourite quote was "If one could only teach the English how to talk, and the Irish how to listen, society here would be quite civilized".

Happy Birthday Maria!

Had a great night out last night at Maria Bourke's 40th birthday party - Maria is Roma's sister-in-law. The party was in the Maria's Mum's place in Shrewsbury Road. Kate and her friend Niamh were doing the cloakroom so we had to bring them in early. Roma and I headed down to the nearby Ice Bar in the Four Seasons for a jar, and also to be a little bit late for the party. Style is king and queen at the Ice Bar - there were plenty of beautiful women all dressed up. Roma reckoned there must have been a Brown Thomas fashion show in the Four Seasons as there were a lot of BT gift bags around.

At the party I was sitting beside Progressive Democrat Senator Fiona O'Malley and we had a great chat. I have to say I would normally have no time for her or the PDs, but we got on great.

Lots of delicious food and wine at the party - as I'm trying to lower my carbohydrate intake I enjoyed an almost totally meat only dinner: beef, crab, salmon, and prawns. Delicious!

Yesterday was also my brother Joe's birthday - he's 48. For the next month we will be the same age until I turn 49 in October. So Happy Birthday Joe! The next whiskey is on me.

The Naughty Ladies' Book

I read a book in 20 minutes! Yes really! I read the book while standing in the queue to board my Ryanair flight from Liverpool to Dublin - it sure was a fun way to pass the time and I sped throught the 368 pages in no time.

The book is "The Naughty Ladies' Book" by Helen Exley and I bought it in Lime Street train station in Liverpool on my way to the PNE vs Charlton match last Saturday. I thought it would make a nice present for Roma. It is about 3 cm thick, but only 6x4 cm in size. It is a tiny book. It has 368 pages of quotes - the title of the book gives away the subject of the quotes.

I liked the one by Burt Reynolds "Happiness is seeing your favourite girl in a two-piece outfit - slippers". Also the one by Woody Allen - "My brain? It's my second favourite organ". And "I dress for women - and I undress for men" by the beautiful Angie Dickinson.

My favourite quote however, was a simple one. When asked what she wore in bed, Marilyn Monroe is reputed to have answered "Chanel No. 5" Now there's a thought!

All-Ireland Football Semi-finals

Kate and I attended the All-Ireland football semi-finals in Croke Park yesterday to see the replay between Cork and Kerry, and the meeting of Tyrone and Wexford. Kate was decked out in her Wexford jersey and I bought two mini-scarves for us outside the ground - €2 each! We had seats in the upper tier of the Hogan Stand and an excellent view of the pitch.

The Kerry vs Cork match was very exciting with plenty of excellent scores and good football to watch. Like last week, Kerry built up a big lead and squandered it only to win out at the end - as the Irish Times put it Kerry survive stormy passage. In the end it was Kerry 3-14, Cork 2-13. The better team won, but Cork did make a match of it.

In the second game we were of course up for Wexford even though Tyrone were hot favourites to win. Despite Wexford scoring the first point, Tyrone powered ahead scoring points almost at will racking up a lead of nine points after 25 minutes. It looked ominous for Wexford with memories of the 23 point beating by Dublin still on the mind. However, they dug deep and came back to within two points with 20 minutes to go. However, Tyrone showed us what they were made of winning by a flattering six points in the end and snuffed out the Wexford dream - final score Tyrone 0-23, Wexford 1-14.

Claire, Kate, Vicki, and I took Roma out for dinner to Valparaiso restaurant in Monkstown to celebrate her birthday. Lucky me - out to dinner with four beautiful girls!

Preston North End 2 - Charlton Athletic 1

I was at Deepdale in Preston yesterday for to see the Preston North End vs Charlton match in the English Championship - and of course also to see my Bro' Brian! PNE have had a good start to the season and hopes are high this year of a challenge for promotion to the Premier League. This is my third time in just over a year to go and see a PNE match - I'm beginning to feel like a regular!

Early flight with Ryanair from Dublin to Liverpool followed by a cheap (£1.50) bus journey in to Liverpool Lime St station for a train to Preston. I met Brian at the station and we went to Preston Harley-Davidson for a look at some bikes and to buy a T-shirt. Brian liked the bikes and I felt like an expert showing him the different models. After this we had lunch in a Japanese restaurant during which the Japanese cook cooked our meal with a lot of ceremony right in front of us - delicious. We walked up to Deepdale just in time for a beer before the match.

Preston played very well in the first half but fell behind to a daft penalty after Mawene tripped Varney as the ball was going wide (19 mins). In the second half PNE upped their game and were dominant, and were eventually rewarded with an excellent goal by Neil Mellor on 58 minutes - we had an excellent view of this as Mells cracked the ball into the roof of the net, 1-1. PNE pushed forward for the lead goal and Barry Nicholson obliged in the 66th minute. PNE in front and looking good. At full time PNE were deserving winners and kept an unbeaten start to the season intact - after three visits to Deepdale this was my first win. Fantastic! Brian took the picture to the right of me in my PNE shirt at half time.

After the game we adjourned to a pub called the Moor Head for a noisy pint - we quickly moved on to the more sedate surroundings of Hartleys where we caught up on family chat and of course an analysis of the game. At 18.50 I caught the train back to Liverpool.

In the airport there were a lot of Everton fans heading back to Dublin and Belfast - Everton had lost at home to Portsmouth (0-3) and the fans were not in celebratory mood. I'd be conservative in guessing that 70% of the flight back to Dublin was made up of Everton fans. Footie is good for Ryanair! Bizarrely, I was sitting beside the same bloke in the last row on the way home as I had been in the morning - he was on a day visit to Liverpool, but not for football.

Oh, and by-the-way - yesterday was Roma's birthday. I gave her an Apple iPod Nano and then dissappeared to Preston for the day. I won't ask her which was the best present!!!

Sailing lessons

Today I finally booked some sailing lessons at the Irish National Sailing Club in Dún Laoghaire! I will have two lessons - one on 13th September, and the second on 15th September. The course is an "Introduction to Sailing – Beginner Dinghy". The dinghy used is a small 9' Laser Pico - I'm already nervous!

I have practically no sailing experience (other than being a passenger). I once took a lesson in 1994 when on holiday in Club Med in Ibiza, but I did not get on well - my instructor seemed to think I should be able to sail after about five minutes of his instruction! He had to sail the boat back into shore.

So - all going well I will no longer be a total land-lubber. I'll be sure to blog my experiences.

All-Ireland Football Semi-final

Today Kate and I went to Croke Park for the All-Ireland football semi-final between Cork and Kerry. This is our first trip to GAA HQ of this year's All-Ireland Championship. Kate drove to the IFSC where we parked our car in the NCI car park. We had lunch in New York Grind after which we headed to Croke Park.

There were 35,000 people at the match - Croke Park still looks empty even with this amount. We were entertained by the Cork and Kerry supporters arround us - lots of shouting at players and arguing between themselves - good humoured banter.

As for the match itself - Kerry were very good and Cork were woeful. Even though Kerry missed loads of chances they were eight points up with five minutes to go and cruising. Many Cork people had already left the stadium in disgust. Two goals in injury time for Cork levelled the match - the Irish Times described it as "Like Lazarus, Cork rise from the dead". The Cork supporters celebrated as if they had won the All-Ireland itself! A great exciting finish to what was a good match.

On our way back I called into the College to pick up an office chair - this I hope to turn into a bar stool using my old Harley Davidson leather seat.

Weekend in Mayo

Roma, Kate, Vicki, and I spent last weekend in Mayo - we stayed in Roma's brother Bryan's holiday house in Rosmoney. The occasion of this rare visit West was an anniversary mass for Billy (16th) and Mary Rose Bourke (2nd) - my mother and father in law. This was held in Islandeady Church on Saturday morning.

We spent most of the afternoon in Westport - we had a late lunch in Cosy Joe's on Bridge Street. After this I watched the Wexford vs Armagh game on TV in the bar (Wexford won 1-14 to 0-12 - hurray!!!). In the evening we had a barbecue dinner in Bryan's house - Roma's other brothers Peter and Angus were also there with their families.

I took the above photograph to get as many of the Bourke cousins together as possible - it was quite an effort and after several attempts the above came out the best. David Bourke could not be persuaded to join in. From left (all Bourkes except Kate and Vicki): Kate, Rory, Cecille (French exchange student), Vicki, Emma, Sarah, Marina, Maeve, Laura, James, and Conor. Other cousins that are missing are Karen, Billy, Ruth, and Claire (O'Loughlin).

On Sunday we went for a walk down to the Mayo Sailing Club where I looked at some boats - I fancy something like a Laser 16 and got some expert advice from Bryan on the workings of such a boat. I've decided to look further into the possibility learning how to sail and perhaps even owning a boat. Bryan also took me out into Clew Bay on his Rib inflatable boat - this is a fast machine. Great buzz when Bryan opened it up!

On our way back to Dublin we stopped off at the Knockranny Hotel in Westport for an excellent lunch. We bumped into two old friends (Sheila and Ger Ber) as we were leaving.

All in all - a nice weekend away. The only drag is the distance - it takes 3.5 hours to drive either way, I'm glad I don't have to do this too often.

Book Review at Amazon

I wrote a review of Peter Hart's "1918 - A Very British Victory", which I bought in Chester, for Amazon.co.uk - see all my reviews by clicking here. The review is reproduced in full below.

1918 - A Very British Victory

Excellent book about the end of a terrible war, 11 Aug 2008

I heard Peter Hart being interviewed about his new book "1918" on RTÉ radio a few of weeks ago and made a mental note to watch out for it the next time I was in a bookshop. Hart in the interview described the end of the war as a savage time and how even in victory, the British suffered enormous casualties - life was indeed cheap.

This book starts out well and gets better and better. Hart makes no apologies for labelling the book "A very British victory" though a more accurate title might have been "A very British victory (with a little help from our French, Canadian, Australian, and American friends)". One minor critique - though the maps are excellent and useful, there are many references to locations not shown on the maps and it can be sometimes hard to figure out where events actually happened.

The way this book is written makes it stand out from others I have read. As the oral historian in the IWM Hart has access to huge archives of first hand accounts of the action that he expertly links together with the context of events. It is a tough job to write about events from the point of view of the ordinary Tommies going "over the top" and the generals commanding at the same time, but Hart pulls this off magnificently. It is almost as if Hart interviewed each man personally at the time - excellent!

For balance, I would have liked to have had more first hand German accounts - but as this book is written from a very British point of view this is forgiveable. As I write this review, Wikipedia lists only 11 known surviving First World War veterans - it is important that books such as this one record the personal accounts of what happened for posterity. Very soon there will be nobody living who will be able to recall either military or civilian events from 1918.

Read this book and enjoy, you will not be disappointed - 5 stars.

Weekend away in Chester

In October 2002, I stopped off in Chester on my way from London to the ferry in Holyhead with my Sportster. I had several hours to kill and decided to check Chester out – I had never really heard much about it before. What I found was a lovely city full of Tudor-style buildings and a unique high street with two rows of shops on each side of the street (called The Rows). I promised myself that I would return with Roma for a few days – so nearly six years later I fulfilled my promise!

We had excellent weather and Chester was very busy. We arrived at the Crowne Plaza hotel in the city centre and went to The Victoria pub for a late lunch. Following this we toured the city centre – especially The Rows where there is plenty of variety. We went to the city walls where you can walk along the top – they are beautifully kept and are a real tourist attraction. We walked along the river Dee and explored inside the ruins of an old chapel beside St John the Baptist Church. After this went to the excavated Roman Amphitheatre and stood in the centre – about 2,000 years ago gladiators fought each other to the death on this spot. We then went inside St John the Baptist Church for a look – bleak but interesting. We stopped for beer in The Custom House and The Watergates Bar and enjoyed relaxing for the evening. Not feeling terribly hungry we decided to go for tapas in a Spanish style Bar and Restaurant called Fiesta Havana. This was an extremely noisy place and I felt about 15 years too old compared to everybody else that was there – but it was buzzin’.

Saturday morning I bought a Barmah Australian bush hat in The Hat Store. As I have a 63cm diameter head it has always been very difficult for me to buy any type of cap or hat – 63cm is an XXXL size (must be the brains!). They had to stretch it with heat and steam to get it to fit a bit more comfortably – but now I can go around with a Crocodile Dundee look! Following some more shopping we went to The Falcon pub for lunch. I had been speaking to the owner of the pub in 2002 as I had parked my Sportster on the path outside and it turned out that he was a big Harley fan. We also visited Chester Cathedral and did the tour inside. A really historic and magnificent building – a digital guide expertly told us about everything. Late afternoon Roma went for a pedicure in the hotel and I headed for the Cheshire Military Museum, but was too late to gain entry – I went Waterstones instead and bought Peter Hart’s new book on the First World War, 1918 – I had heard him interviewed about the book on RTÉ radio last week. For dinner we went to a Middle Eastern restaurant called Meze on The Rows - we had a table right on the balcony and enjoyed people watching. There seemed to be a lot of stag and hen parties – very boisterous, but stylish.

On Sunday we took a Walking Tour of Chester at the local tourist office. There were just us and our guide Christine. Despite the fact that the tour was around the same sights as we had already seen it was very interesting and informative. After this walking tour we felt we had earned a nice lunch which we had in the front window of Chez Bernard. Following this we split and this time I did get to the Cheshire Military Museum. There were lots of interesting displays and stories about the Cheshire Regiment down through the ages. Most interesting was one of the pens used during the signing of the Japanese surrender to the Americans in 1945 on display. This museum is well worth a visit. I met up afterwards with Roma who was shopping. We both had a look at the new iPhone 3G in an O2 store – I really like it. Fingers are crossed that I get one of these for my birthday in October.

For our final evening we went to a Mediterranean Restaurant called La Tasca for tapas. Despite only ordering three items each we were barely able to eat it all. It was very late and the restaurant staff was clearly wrapping up for the night and unfortunately ignored us after our main course. I had to get up and go to the bar to pay (they weren’t pleased with this). I left no tip and afterwards discovered that they had not charged us for wine on our bill. I did not feel the urge to go back and point out this error.

On Monday morning we did some last minute shopping. We bought a Sue Howells signed limited edition print at the Watergate Street Gallery and stopped off at a Tesco to buy some wine and beer which were slightly cheaper than in Ireland. Our final activity for the weekend was to stop off at the Treardur Hotel in Treardur Bay which is beside Holyhead. Roma’s parents, Billy and Mary Rose, once stayed there and knew the then owners whom they had met on a skiing trip. We both thought that Treardur Bay was very like Achill Island.

On arrival in Dún Laoghaire we were the third last vehicle out of the port and also had to deal with a traffic jam. There are only two ferries a day in Dún Laoghaire port and it is annoying that the port authorities don’t do anything to relieve the traffic congestion caused by the traffic coming off the boat. There are Harbour Police who could help traffic get out of the port – it would only take two half hour sessions a day. However, they are probably too busy clamping cars who are parked five minutes longer that their ticket allows. Rant over.

Newmarket and a day out with my Dad

Both of my paternal grandparents, PJ O’Loughlin and Kathleen Hurley, were natives of Newmarket in Co. Cork – they moved to Tomacork, near Carnew, in 1929. Dad often speaks about Newmarket and recently we decided that we would go there for a day to see where Kathleen and PJ grew up. The picture to the right is taken from a group photo of my Mum and Dad's wedding on 22nd October, 1958. It shows Kathleen and PJ at the front - my Dad's aunt Eileen Hurley (know to us all as the wonderful Mrs. D) is the lady in the centre.

Tuesday 22nd July was the day out to Newmarket. I stayed with Dad on Monday night and even got in a couple of pints in Jim Byrnes in Carnew where we planned our day. I don’t really remember ever having a whole day out with my Dad – just the two of us, and I was looking forward to the day. We had lots of chat in the car on the way down about grand-parents, uncles, aunts, cousins, and O’Loughlin and Hurley family history.

We arrived at about 11.00 and our first port of call was to see Dad’s second cousin Breda Collins (nee Murphy). Breda was full of chat about my grandfather PJ, whom she called “Paddy”. She also told us that the reason he left Newmarket was that another man died in an accident involving a horse and cart for which his family blamed PJ. Breda also treated us to one of the biggest fry-ups I’ve ever had – enormous quantities of black and white pudding, sausages, rashers, and tea. It was very welcome as we had our breakfast very early. Breda mentioned old photographs of Dad as a youngster, but disappointingly she could not find them to show us. We left with promises to come back again for a longer visit.

Next stop was main street Newmarket to see my Grandmother Kathleen Hurley’s old house. This house is across the street from a now disused Protestant church in whose graveyard Sarah Curran (of Robert Emmet fame) is reputedly buried. The Hurley house is now the Newmarket Cattle Breeding Society sub-station.

We then went out to the local graveyard in Clonfert outside the town. We were looking for Hurley and O’Loughlin graves. Dad recalls being at some funerals in this graveyard and had some idea where to look. In no time we found the grave of a grand aunt of Dad – Hannah Murphy who died in 1961.

After this we looked for Dad’s grandparents’ graves. We soon found the grave of Thomas and Bridget Hurley. Bridget, who is my great grandmother, died on 3rd July, 1916. Thomas, who is my great grandfather, died on 20th February, 1921. It’s strange seeing these graves of great grandparents who died long before I was born, and well before Dad was born (1931). I know nothing about them. Apparently they were well off and had a good business in Newmarket. Despite a good search, we had no luck finding any O’Loughlin graves. They are in the graveyard somewhere, but there were a lot of unreadable and broken headstones – no doubt they are buried under one of these. I would have been interested in seeing a grave for a Eugene O’Loughlin who was Dad’s grand uncle. There is also an 1845-1847 Famine Memorial at the top end of the graveyard – the memorial poignantly states “An event has happened upon which it is too difficult to speak and impossible to be silent”.

Following the graveyard we went up to a place (still outside Newmarket), called Barnacurragh to see where PJ O’Loughlin grew up. We had some difficulty finding it and had to ask for directions twice, but once we drove up beside it Dad recognised it straight away. The house is no longer used as a dwelling, but Dad does remember staying there at least once when he was young and the roof was thatch instead of galvanise iron. We peered inside and Dad was able to tell me which room was which. There is a huge open fireplace in the centre – no doubt our O’Loughlin ancestors had many a conversation around this fireplace.

We went back into Newmarket and stopped at a pub called Dan Hourigans. This is home to another of Dad’s second cousins – Joan Hourigan (nee Murphy). The pub is closed during the day time. It had recently celebrated 40 years in business. I also met Joan’s daughter Paulette who is of course a third cousin to me. Her brother, Tim, is mentioned in one of my earlier posts about finding a picture of PJ O’Loughlin in the 1927 Newmarket GAA team. Though we would have loved to have taken Joan up on her offer of a pint in the pub we settled for tea instead. We looked over lots of photographs of the 40th anniversary celebrations and had many cousins pointed out to me.

Our final port of call was to visit with yet another of Dad’s second cousins - Joan Hickey. This was a quick visit, but was still full of chat and reminiscences about the O’Loughlins and Hurleys.

Late afternoon we set off home via Waterford, stopping on the way in Cappoquin for a coffee. We still chatted about our day, and who was who, in the car. It was a most enjoyable day for me. Dad is great company and is full of knowledge about the family – I think he enjoyed the day too. Who knows if I’ll ever be back in Newmarket again – it took me 48 years for my first visit, I hope it won’t be as long for my second.

Nelson: Britannia’s God of War

I bought a book about Horatio Nelson after seeing the HMS Victory in Portsmouth on my way home from France. I have written a review in Amazon, the text of the review is posted below:

I recently visited Portsmouth Historic Naval Dockyard and was fascinated in particular by HMS Victory – Nelson’s flagship. In the dockyard bookshop I bought Andrew Lambert’s Nelson: Britannia’s God of War. This book is described as a “thrilling new appraisal of Horatio Nelson”. I haven’t read any previous books about Nelson, so I can’t vouch for the “new” part of this, but it is definitely a “thrilling” read. Nelson is most famous for the Battle of Trafalgar and the manner in which he died – but there was more to him than Trafalgar.

Lambert expertly describes Nelson’s early life without going into too much detail. The book deliberately avoids going into too much detail about his private life and there is little detail about his wife or mistress other than references to his letters. The book concentrates on Nelson as a navy man – how he lead from the front, was fearless, devoted to his God, and certain of his own abilities. The descriptions of naval battles and Nelson’s activities ashore are well done – again without too much detail to overload readers who are not looking for in-depth descriptions.

There is no doubt that Nelson was (and still is) a hero to many generations of British people. It is very obvious that Nelson is very much a hero to Lambert, who defends him and his actions almost without question. For him, Nelson could do no wrong. Much of the book is taken up with events after Nelson died (page 307 of 446 in the book) and how he has been interpreted since.

One can’t help be inspired by the dedication to duty, leadership qualities, and professionalism of Nelson. Lambert captures the essence of this expertly and leaves the reader with a sense of awe at how one man could be so complete. Had he survived Trafalgar, I’m sure that he could have had a long career in politics like the Duke of Wellington (they once met briefly). There are descriptions of other books written about Nelson and while this is good as a reference point and for analysing the legacy of Nelson – I feel that this is overdone a little. Definitely overdone are the descriptions of paintings and monuments to Nelson – without pictures or drawings in the text, these are mostly meaningless unless you have seen them separately. While some are reproduced in the centre section, others should have been included for the reader unfamiliar with them. Perhaps there were cost reasons for omitting them.

While I really enjoyed reading this book, it does assume that the reader already possesses a lot of knowledge about people and events in Europe during this period of history. There are several duplications (we are told twice about the IRA blowing up the Pillar in Dublin in 1966), and annoying introduction of irrelevant material. For example, the reference on page 332 to Captain Pell having “lost his leg in battle” comes out of the blue – who is Captain Pell, he was not mentioned before or after this section. I suspect sloppy editorial work here.

Overall, a very worthwhile read that makes the reader want to know more about Nelson and the events of the late 18th and early 19th century.