Mary McAleese

McAleese was ‘extremely generous’ with time she gave to British, newly released UK papers show

Then president was at ‘her frank and engaging best’ in a 2001 meeting, British ambassador reported

The presidency is not a Rose of Tralee contest for over-35s

The argument that the role of president is devoid of real power is an odd perspective to cling to after 35 consecutive years of radical presidencies

As Europe risks fracturing, the message of St Columbanus needs to be heard again

Rite & Reason: As Pope Leo XIV has reminded us, the Irish missionary’s perspective is as relevant now as it was more than 14 centuries ago

‘It makes us look like Neanderthals’: UDA leader laments loyalist street violence but sees role for ‘paramilitary influence’

The complete disbandment of loyalist paramilitaries would leave a dangerous vacuum, argues Jackie McDonald

Race for the Áras: Mike Ryan and Bertie Ahern among names circulating but parties wary of ‘knee-jerk’ selection

Irish presidential election campaign momentum hits doldrums amid fears of chilling effect on prospective candidates of personalised attacks

Fianna Fáil sounds out possible presidential runners, but may not nominate candidate, says Micheál Martin

Political parties no longer have ‘own entitlement’ to the presidency, says Taoiseach

‘Dublin city centre is turning into an unadulterated kip’: Joe Duffy’s Liveline highlights

The veteran presenter was always adept at tapping into his audience’s concerns. People talked to Joe, after all

So far nobody wants the Presidency and its quarter-of-a-million euro salary. Why?

Campaign savagery proves the system works because it weeds out the inexperienced, self-deluded and fantasists

TV guide: Love Island, Not Going Out and the other best things to watch this week

TV highlights for June 8th-13th, including From that Small Island – the Story of the Irish and Fubar

TV guide: the best new shows to watch, starting tonight

May 11th-16th: including Legacy, Elsbeth, and the Eurovision semi-finals

Mary McAleese is right to call out Catholic Church over its exclusion of women from ordination

Former President of Ireland has a solid grounding in pointing out flawed arguments

Michael McDowell ‘a man with a fearsome devotion’ to Ireland, says ex-president Mary McAleese

Tribute paid to former minister for justice and attorney general on launch of The Definite Article – a collection of his Irish Times columns

De Valera’s condolences on the death of Hitler continue to provoke 80 years on

Notorious second World War incident is still cited today by those critical of Ireland

Death of Pope Francis: Derek Mooney leads RTÉ’s coverage to intermittently jaw-dropping effect

Radio: The shocked host sounds vaguely peeved at the disruption to his wildlife special

Pope Francis put women on a pedestal, where they could do no harm

In many ways, Francis was a good and unpretentious man who eschewed personal pomp. But he did little to advance the position of women in the Catholic Church

Mary Hanafin ‘open to conversation’ with Fianna Fáil on presidential run

Former minister for education and Dún Laoghaire TD says the decision will ultimately be up to Taoiseach Micheál Martin

Happy birthday, Mr President. Like Ireland, you’re not perfect but you broke the mould

Had AI been asked to choose the ideal candidate for the Park, the Bull McCabe would have stood a better chance than an ex-Hot Press columnist with hippy ideas and bloated vowels

The Irish are a nation of storytellers, and our president is the storyteller-in-chief

Has the story we wish to hear about ourselves changed? This coming presidential election will tell us

Trinity College Dublin celebrates renaming former Berkeley library after poet Eavan Boland

Trinity Chancellor Mary McAleese said move was part of dealing with ‘colonial legacies’

Shaping the Century: 25 brilliant Irish women in 2025

This century has brought us many landmark moments, provided by remarkable Irish women who are an inspiration to others

Séamas O’Reilly: ‘My little boy is the same age now as I was when my mother died’

Conversations with Parents podcast with Jen Hogan

Well, Holy God by Patsy McGarry: An eternal life as a religious correspondent in turbulent times for Irish Catholicism

McGarry is notably fair to all sides, despite him often being perceived by many insiders as a liberal crusader intent on damaging the Catholic Church

Irish First Ladies and First Gentlemen, 1919-2011 by Bernadette Whelan: All the presidents’ spouses

An informative and eminently readable work about an undefined but important role in Irish public life

Council of State meets to advise President on Bill bringing changes in Defence Forces

Members share their views on the constitutionality of the Defence (Amendment) Bill 2024

Michael D Higgins is proof that age is not Joe Biden’s biggest problem

Wisdom, that great compensation for the vanished stamina of youth, seems to have bypassed the US president

Justin McAleese was ‘terrified’ as a gay teenager at Catholic schools, says former president

Mary McAleese and Mary Kennedy speak to GAA president Jarlath Burns about Pride, partition and hurling in new weekly podcast

Referendums: What will you be voting on and what are the Yes and No arguments?

What are Friday's referendums in Ireland all about? With voters set to go to the polls in two referendums on March 8th, the Yes and No camps offer very different assessments of the stakes, and some questions remain unanswered

Referendums: Yes votes will see ‘new realities’ put into dated parts of Constitution, McAleese says

Former president says proposals being voted on next Friday ‘part of a journey’ and ‘not a destination’

British feared McAleese attendance at Omagh memorial service would make queen look bad

Department of Foreign Affairs official told his British counterpart that as far as he was aware the prime minister and the royal family had ‘received nothing but praise for their gestures of sympathy’

Eamon Ryan ‘regrets’ abandoning 2004 presidential race but rules out 2025 bid

Green Party leader dropped out when it became clear other candidates would not challenge Mary McAleese

Taoiseach ‘very encouraged’ by Pope Francis’s declaration to allow priests bless same-sex couples

Ursula Halligan of We are Church group says declaration ‘a small step in the right direction’ but that conditions attached are ‘mean, stingy, and grudging’

Letter to Pope Francis says Synod report will ‘wound’ Catholics worldwide

Former president of Ireland Mary McAleese among signatories of letter

The Pope and LGBT Catholics: Francis faces a conservative backlash

As the pontiff apparently seeks to create a more welcoming Catholic Church, a cadre of conservatives become emboldened in airing ferocious criticism

25th anniversary of Island of Ireland Peace Park to be marked with ceremony in Belgium

Peace Park, which remembers Irishmen who died in first World War, was made a UNESCO world heritage site last month

Chronicle of Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland launched by Dr Mary McAleese

Former President says new book tells the story of an institution that has grown to become an ‘internationalist hub of inclusion and diversity’

Why is Patrick Kielty stuffing The Late Late Show with bloody foreigners?

Donald Clarke: In reality, this supposedly prevalent partitionist mindset seems to be largely the stuff of comedy

Mary McAleese: Vatican authority over Catholics is ‘legally and morally questionable’

Dr McAleese criticises church at Spirit Unbounded, a lay-led synodal process taking place in parallel with Vatican Synod on Synodality

Tourists in Belfast only want to hear about ‘The Three Ts’: Troubles, Titanic and (Game of) Thrones

Guiding visitors around Belfast requires maintaining a careful balance: thankfully most people come looking for enjoyment, rather than a fight

Presidency was John Hume’s ‘for the taking’, says Mary McAleese

Hume’s son believes the prospect of the presidency was ‘never under serious consideration’

Mary McAleese: Pope’s U-turn on blessings for gay couples a ‘complete contradiction’ of previous stance

Former president welcomes comments from Francis on blessings and says they are a result of listening to the faithful

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE...

Stardust

Inquests into the nightclub fire that led to the deaths of 48 people

Common Ground

How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands