Pádhraic Quinn

Congratulations Nazaret!

‘I write all my poems with a quill by candlelight’: John Cooper Clarke on the joy of life without tech The punk poet has no smartphone, no email, not even a computer. Everyone should try it, he says

People’s natural skills have started to atrophy due to technology. I get asked, "What do you do when you’re out of the house without a mobile phone and you get lost?" Well, I don’t get lost. As long as you’ve got a tongue in your head, you’ll find your way.

www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

First time in Private Eye. I just wish it was for something a bit more positive.

“An unintended effect of the dominant state model is to obscure an understanding of mid-twentieth century Irish migrants’ lives.”

Máirtín Mac an Ghaill @birminghamnewman.bsky.social on anti-Irish racism, black-white dualisms and the limits of British sociology.

#OpenAccess buff.ly/PVU07hR

Great news. Congratulations to Amanda!

Tomorrow evening, we are launching Old Irish: A Beginner’s Guide. Authored by Dr Rebecca Shercliff this volume offers a step‑by‑step introduction to the language and literature of medieval Ireland and is written with absolute beginners in mind.

‪@department-asnc.bsky.social‬

A great piece examining how creative industries reward privilege over talent and originality.

"Younger adults from working-class backgrounds are 4 times less likely to work in creative industries compared to their middle-class peers."

Bliss.

Éilís Ní Dhuibhne is new Laureate for Irish Fiction The writer takes over the laureateship from author Colm Tóibín

Congratulations to Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, the new Laureate for Irish Fiction

www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...

Inklings submissions open from 1st to 31st August - Saraband Inklings submissions open from 1st to 31st August

In case you miss it amongst the news, we're delighted that @saraband-books.bsky.social will be continuing the Inklings series and they open for submissions in August! The process is very similar to our own but check out the guidelines and get your pitches ready.

saraband.net/2025/07/11/i...

Lovely to meet you too Sarah! And so looking forward to seeing where your project goes.

I’m hiring a reporter for London Centric, looking for someone smart who can use a phone, knock on doors and wants to cause trouble. Don’t care if you’ve got qualifications, just want evidence of caring about news. Initial six month contract, pay above national rates. www.londoncentric.media/p/jobs

What a beautiful edition!

Congratulations to you too Sarah! Can't wait to meet you and everyone else.

Thank you for the kind words Stephen!

Great news. Such a superb piece of work.

So happy to announce that I am one of The London Library's Emerging Writers for 2025/26. Humbled and inspired by the chance to write where Dickens, Darwin, Kubrick and Woolf found inspiration.

www.londonlibrary.co.uk/the-london-l...

Good luck with the next step Brian.

Ireland in Iceland - book launch Come join us for the launch of "Ireland in Iceland" where we'll explore the fascinating connections between these two beautiful countries

On 11 June I'm giving a talk at The Fumbally Café in Dublin 8 to mark the launch of my new book, Ireland in Iceland: Gaelic Remnants in a Nordic Land.
I'll be selling and signing this book, as well as all my previous ones.
www.eventbrite.ie/e/ireland-in...

Bloomsday on the roof in Barcelona a few years ago.
#bloomsday

Children’s reading enjoyment falls to lowest recorded level in UK Annual survey of young people’s reading habits which began two decades ago shows its lowest-ever result, most pronounced among boys aged 11 to 16

Maybe, just maybe, it’s time for a debate about the kinds of books our children are given to read.

www.theguardian.com/books/2025/j....

It’s publication day for The Penguin Book of Polish Short Stories. It took 39 authors 100 years to write, and me about 4 years to compile and translate, with the help of 11 other translators. It aims to show the variety and brilliance of modern Polish literature.

Stunning cover Antonia. Looking forward to reading!

Free school meal rule change to make 500,000 more pupils eligible Charities have broadly welcomed the plans, saying they hope it is a sign of more to come.

Great to see progress on Free School Meals; a vital step in tackling child poverty. But we can’t stop here. It’s time for government to make auto-enrolment trending news too.

No child should miss out because of red tape. #FreeSchoolMeals

www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

We're open for submissions! We'll be welcoming work in all forms, in English and Irish, for Issue 13 until 30 June ✨️

Full submissions guidelines at channelmag.org/submissions/

The Beadlean Library Strange to recall, but for 20 years from the early 1980s, a short, grinning, bearded mischief-maker dominated the ITV prime-time schedules. Jeremy Beadle developed, produced and co-presented Game for…

For many years, I've wanted to track down Jeremy Beadle's library, legendary in certain quarters. I did so for @thefence.bsky.social for their brilliant 23rd issue (the significance of the number will not be lost on Ken Campbell fans) www.the-fence.com/the-beadlean... @forteantimes.bsky.social

The best recent translated fiction – review roundup The Propagandist by Cécile Desprairies; Lovers of Franz K by Burhan Sönmez; Back in the Day by Oliver Lovrenski; Waist Deep by Linea Maja Ernst

The best recent translated fiction – review roundup www.theguardian.com/books/2025/m...

Great thread Jonathan. This has been on the list for a long while so will have to give it a go. Currently floating through The Name of the World, another of his first person POVs, another voice that lodges its soft hooks in your heart and drags you on.

Here’s my latest mini 🧵 as part of my ongoing 2025 Reading 🧵: The Laughing Monsters by Denis Johnson.

Polish those manuscripts! We're delighted to be opening our submissions window for the whole month of June. Send us your best literary fiction, non-fiction, history, memoir, essays or biography. For full guidelines on how to apply, go to www.lilliputpress.ie