House of the Dragon, House of the Shmagon, that’s what I say
This Game of Thrones spinoff goes big, and like much CGI, it often looks like a rich and creamy soup with human-shaped croutons floating in it
Russian author Jana Bakunina: ‘In the West, people don’t know what it’s like to be absolutely helpless’
The exiled Russian writer, who is coming to Dalkey Book Festival next week, talks about the ‘inner emigration’ of her friends under Putin and how even her father accepted regime propaganda
Brexit Britain now: Patrick Freyne revisits Leave voter heartlands 10 years on
A decade after the UK decided to leave the EU, many in Britain regret the outcome – but not the vote
Patrick Freyne: The true and wonderful weirdness of Dubliners always surfaces
My favourite form of reporting is not the celebrity interview or political profile; it’s approaching ‘people’ in ‘places’ and asking them questions about ‘stuff’
Marty Whelan: ‘I’d like to be paid more, particularly when I see what other people are on’
The avuncular veteran broadcaster, who is turning 70, on facing some hostility on his return to RTÉ, his moustache, and his ‘threat’ to keep working for as long as he can
Patrick Freyne: I lose count of how many people the Punisher kills over 50 minutes
Patrick Freyne: I lose count of how many people the Punisher kills over the course of 50 minutes
30 years since Nuala O’Faolain’s Are You Somebody? ‘Vibrating with hurt. It leaves a mark’
In her best-selling memoir the Irish author and journalist ‘excavated her own soul and, in so doing, helped us look more closely at ourselves’
Growing up in care: ‘I remember a lot of people not being allowed to be friends with me in school’
Four young adults who have spent time in Ireland’s care system tell Patrick Freyne about their lives
Rivals: The Irish Times Trust has told me to stop being sexy. So here it goes...
Subscribers to Irish Times Nites will still get the dirty bits. We really like to service all of our readers
‘You’re much more likely to be an incel if you live with your parents, if you can’t find a stable job’
James Bloodworth, author of Lost Boys: A Personal Journey Through the Manosphere, on how boys and men go from looking for a girlfriend to extreme misogyny
Imelda May: I was told, ‘You will amount to nothing. Aim for not getting pregnant’
Working-class children were routinely underestimated when the singer was at school. She wants her gigs to give people the sense of connectedness that sustained her community
Retro riding: A history of sex on Irish TV, from The Late Late Show to Rivals
Jilly Cooper’s bonkbuster is back on Disney+. Here’s how such shows have developed since TV introduced sex to Ireland in the 1960s
Aidan Turner: ‘I’d be sitting in the trailer going, ‘God Almighty. Can you just give me a cop drama?’’
The Dublin actor says the main trick to being a professional is doing the work and learning the lines. ‘And then just staying as healthy and as fit as you can. There’s no excuse’
Twelve of the most expensive TV shows of all time: Patrick Freyne’s cost-benefit analysis
Netflix, Prime Video and Apple TV clearly have money to burn on big-budget series, but are they worth the eye-watering cost?
Everyone should have a groundskeeper like Freyne. In fact he’s like one of the family
Patrick Freyne: I often take him refreshments when he is powerhosing my drive or insulating my shed, and I break from writing deep thoughts