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Wales features prominently among the Last Voices of the Irish Revolution

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THE IRISH CIVIL WAR ended in 1923. The yearlong conflict had been fought between those who opposed and supported the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921 – a key component of which was the continued partition of Ireland and the fact that dominion status rather than an Irish republic had been achieved in the south (it would become known as the Irish Free State). Between 1919 and 1921, the Irish War for Independence had taken place followed by a twelve month truce period.

Eighty years after the end of the civil war, author and documentary-maker Tom Hurley wondered if there were many civilians and combatants left from across Ireland who had experienced the years 1919 to 1923, their prelude and their aftermath. What memories had they, what were their stories and how did they reflect on those turbulent times?

 
In early 2003, he recorded the experiences of 18 people in Ireland, conducting two further interviews in the United States in 2004. Tom spoke to a cross-section (Catholic, Protestant, Unionist and Nationalist) who were in their teens or early twenties during the civil war.

The chronological approach he has taken to his book spans fifty years, beginning with the oldest interviewee’s birth in 1899 and ending when the Irish Free State became the Republic of Ireland in 1949.

Among those interviewed for the book was Mai McMahon, born in 1902, in County Clare. She was a neighbour of a man named Art O’Donnell who was arrested after the 1916 Rising which was an attempt to overthrow British rule in Ireland and establish a republic.

The rising failed and O’Donnell who worked as a teacher and was sent to Frongoch Internment Camp in Gwynedd along with hundreds of other Irish rebels. He was released some months later.

Another interviewee is George Cooper, born in Dublin, in 1910. His uncle had also participated in the 1916 rebellion and interestingly in 1922 his older sister Harriet Maud Victoria, married Corporal Baden Percy Lawrence of the 2nd Battalion, Welsh Regiment, in a Dublin registry office.

The author also spoke to William Geary from County Limerick who was aged 105 at the time. He recalled his friend Patrick O’Sullivan who was killed in 1917 during the First World War.

He had enlisted in the British army in Cardiff in 1915. The name of David Lloyd George from Llanystumdwy is salient throughout the book which isn’t surprising as he served as British Prime Minister from 1916 until his resignation in 1922.

He had therefore played an important part in the negotiation of the Anglo-Irish Treaty of 1921. There are numerous other references to locations, landmarks and personalities connected to Wales contained in the book also.

100 years after the Irish Civil War ended, these 20 interviews recorded by Tom Hurley come together to create a unique oral account of the revolutionary period and the tensions that were brewing in the run-up and aftermath.

Together, theirs are the Last Voices of the Irish Revolution.

Last Voices of the Irish Revolution by Tom Hurley is available in bookshops throughout Ireland and the UK and can also be ordered online. It is published by Gill Books.

 

Entertainment

One Night in Dublin returns to the Torch with a brand-new show

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ONE NIGHT IN DUBLIN is heading back to the stage at the Torch Theatre with a lively new production fronted by renowned Irish singer Danny Muldoon.

Tickets are already selling fast for the feel-good celebration of Irish music, which promises two hours of songs, stories and plenty of craic.

Backed by an award-winning five-piece band, Muldoon leads audiences through a packed set of sing-along favourites including Galway Girl, Tell Me Ma, The Irish Rover, Dirty Old Town, Whiskey in the Jar, The Wild Rover and The Galway Shawl, along with many more well-loved classics.

The show recreates the atmosphere of a bustling Dublin pub, complete with fiddle, whistle, guitars, banjo, bodhrán, accordion and driving drums, transporting the audience straight into “Murphy’s Tavern” for an unforgettable night of live entertainment.

Fans can also expect hits from Irish legends including The Pogues, The Saw Doctors, The Dubliners, The Fureys, Flogging Molly and Dropkick Murphys.

One Night in Dublin comes to the Torch Theatre on Thursday, March 26 at 7:30pm.

Tickets cost £26.50. Visit the theatre website or call the Box Office on (01646) 695267 to book.

 

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Entertainment

New appeal in search for missing Manic Street Preachers musician

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Family and charity issue fresh appeal for information about guitarist 31 years on

THIRTY-ONE years after the disappearance of Richey Edwards, a new public appeal has been issued urging anyone with information to come forward.

Edwards, guitarist and lyricist with Manic Street Preachers, vanished on January 31, 1995, in a case that has become one of the most enduring mysteries in British music history.

Missing for over 30 years: Richey Edwards

The then 27-year-old was last seen at the Embassy Hotel Bayswater in west London, where he had been staying ahead of a promotional trip to the United States. He checked out of room 561 but never reached his destination.

Despite numerous reported sightings over the years, none have ever been confirmed. Edwards was officially declared presumed dead in 2008, though his family continue to mark the anniversary of his disappearance and keep hope alive that answers may still emerge.

Anniversary appeal

The charity Missing People has released a statement in collaboration with Edwards’ sister Rachel, asking the public to remember the case.

In a social media post, the organisation said: “It is 31 years since Richard went missing, please keep his family in your thoughts.”

They also repeated key identifying details from the time he vanished. Edwards was described as white, around 5ft 7in tall, slim, with brown eyes and a shaved head. He had several distinctive tattoos, including a rose with the words ‘Useless Generation’, the phrase ‘I’ll surf this beach’, and a scar on his lower left arm where he had scratched the words ‘4 REAL’.

Unanswered questions

His car was later found near the Severn Bridge services, close to the Welsh border, prompting widespread searches but yielding no firm clues about what happened next.

At the time of his disappearance, the band were on the brink of international success. Edwards’ intense, literate songwriting and striking image had already made him a defining figure in Welsh rock music. More than three decades later, fans still hold vigils, create murals and share tributes across Wales and beyond.

Police say the case remains open.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Metropolitan Police Service on 101 or use their online reporting service, quoting reference CONNECT REF 01/764429/24. Missing People also operates a free, confidential helpline on 116 000.

 

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Entertainment

Turner and Constable brought to life on the big screen at the Torch Theatre

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ART lovers in Pembrokeshire will have the chance to experience the lives and rivalries of two of Britain’s greatest painters when a new documentary, EOS: Turner & Constable, arrives at the Torch Theatre this March.

Celebrating the 250th anniversary of their births, the film explores the intertwined stories and enduring legacies of J.M.W. Turner and John Constable alongside Tate Britain’s major new exhibition. Exhibition on Screen has been granted exclusive behind-the-scenes access, bringing their extraordinary art and personal histories vividly to the cinema screen.

Born just a year apart, Turner and Constable helped redefine landscape painting in Britain – and were fierce competitors. Both captured a nation in transition, yet their styles could not have been more different. Turner’s dramatic skies, blazing sunsets and atmospheric scenes from his travels contrasted sharply with Constable’s gentle, nostalgic portrayals of the English countryside and familiar rural life.

Their opposing visions divided critics and audiences alike, famously described at the time as a clash of “fire and water”.

The documentary offers rare, intimate access to sketchbooks, letters and personal artefacts, alongside insights from leading curators and art historians. It also ties in with Tate Britain’s landmark exhibition, running in London from November 2025 to April 2026, which reunites the two masters’ works side-by-side.

This cinematic event gives audiences the chance to see their masterpieces in stunning detail and discover unexpected sides to two artists whose rivalry shaped British art history.

Turner and Constable will be screened at the Torch Theatre on Sunday, March 15 at 4:30pm.

Tickets are £13. For bookings, visit www.torchtheatre.co.uk or call the Box Office on 01646 695267.

 

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