Journal of Flann O'Brien Studies

10. The Society in Strabane Podcast Episode · Radio Myles: the Flann O'Brien Podcast · 15/10/2025 · 38m

Very cool audio conference report by @maebhm.bsky.social from this summer's International Flann O'Brien Society conference in Strabane - both helping and exacerbating my FOMO for having missed it.

podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/1...

Review of Sam Dolbear and Esther Leslie, <em>Dissonant Waves: Ernst Schoen and Experimental Sound in the Twentieth Century</em> (Goldsmiths Press, 2023) Dissonant Waves tells the life story of Ernst Schoen, a pioneer of early radio and the Leader of the Programming Department at Südwestdeutsche Rundfunkdienst AG (SWZ), the Frankfurt regional radio station. It also tells the story of his social milieu – musicians, artists, philosophers and writers which included Walter Benjamin, Theodor Adorno, and other well-known figures. The writers follow in the spirit of Ernst Schoen’s experimental aesthetics, innovating the biographical genre by presenting a fragmented, non-linear narrative, especially in the first part of the book. For Flann O’Brien scholars and enthusiasts, the volume offers an insight into the avant-garde possibilities of mass communications media and radio in particular. Both Flann and Schoen challenged the distinction between high art and popular culture in their own ways and engaged in a search for new means of expression. 

New in The Parish Review / @theparishreview.bsky.social > Einat Adar reviews "Dissonant Waves: Ernst Schoen and Experimental Sound in the Twentieth Century" by Sam Dolbear & Esther Leslie:

I'm so pleased to see the Einat Adar's review of my book, 'Breaking the Limits: Flann O’Brien’s Avant-garde Aesthetics', appear in the esteemed Litteraria Pragensia!

The journal is publicly available and you can read the review here: litterariapragensia.ff.cuni.cz/wp-content/u...

A quick reminder that The Parish Review is open to all, saor in aisce.

Sonic Materiality in Brian O’Nolan’s Fiction This article argues that Brian O’Nolan’s fiction consistently stages sound as a material force, one that becomes most tangible at the moment of its mediation. Drawing on theories of sonic materiality ...

New in @theparishreview.bsky.social > “Sonic Materiality in Brian O’Nolan’s Fiction" by Zan Cammack: doi.org/10.16995/pr....

The Cover for 9.1 Journal of Flann O’Brien Studies features a cartoon by Micheal O Nuallain. It shows a man under a tree about to smash a radio with an axe.

The first article in the Journal of Flann O’Brien Studies 9.1 is out! Zan Cammack’s work is great start to the issue on Flann and the Radio, which features a truly excellent cover. A+ work guest editors @tobias-w-harris.bsky.social and Joseph LaBine!

parishreview.openlibhums.org/article/id/2...

It's very exciting to see our special issue of the Parish Review dedicated to Flann O'Brien and RADIO appear with its first article, broadcast by Zan Cammack!

I'm excited to read this special issue of the @theparishreview.bsky.social on "Flann O'Brien and the Radio", edited by @tobias-w-harris.bsky.social and Joseph LaBine!

The first article is Zan Cammack's "Sonic Materiality in Brian O’Nolan’s Fiction"

Available to read here:🔗👉 doi.org/10.16995/pr....

The Journal of Flann O'Brien Studies is sad to learn of the death of Breandán Ó Conaire, author of the pioneering 1986 study "Myles na Gaeilge".
Read Breandán's 2018 TPR article on O’Nolan’s Irish language background for free via @openlibhums.bsky.social: parishreview.openlibhums.org/article/id/3...

Death Notice of Breandán Ó Conaire (Portmarnock, Dublin) | rip.ie The death has occurred of Breandán Ó Conaire of Portmarnock, Dublin Ireland, on 21/07/2025. You can view the full death notice and add your condolences here.

The International Flann O’Brien Society is sad to hear of the death of Breandán Ó Conaire. In addition to research on Flann O’Brien, Breandán conducted important work on Tomás Ó Criomhthain, Seán Ó Ríordáin, Máirtín Ó Cadhain and Douglas Hyde. We mourn him and the loss to his family and community.

‘Our own good Editor’: Brian O’Nolan, Niall Montgomery and the Drafts of the <em>Cruiskeen Lawn</em> Although the Niall Montgomery papers housed at the National Library of Ireland shows that Niall Montgomery contributed to the Cruiskeen Lawn, researchers without access to Dublin have been unable to i...

New in @theparishreview.bsky.social > “‘Our Own Good Editor’: Brian O’Nolan, Niall Montgomery, and the Drafts of the Cruiskeen Lawn” by Maebh Long (@maebhlong.bsky.social), Jessie Burnette (‪@jessiepb.bsky.social) and Marie Theunisz: doi.org/10.16995/pr....

“Not with a bang but a whimper”: uncovering pandemic strains in Flann O’Brien’s later works During the 1950s and 1960s influenza was a recurring theme in the Cruiskeen Lawn, a satirical column by Myles na Copaleen (Flann O’Brien) in The Irish Times. The columns’ engagement arose from Irel...

And finally, the last nominee for the 🌟Flann O’Brien Awards🌟 is Maebh Long’s ‘“Not with a bang but a whimper”: Uncovering Pandemic Strains in Flann O’Brien’s Later Works’. Long emphasises responses to the symptoms and strains of pandemics and outbreaks in O’Brien, particularly the 1957-58 pandemic.

Read the superb programme for the 8th International Flann O’Brien Conference, this week in Strabane!
With talks on diverse aspects of "Home, Heritage & Origins" in O'Brien's writing; screenings; exhibitions & tours of O'Brien's home town
Registration & schedule👉 www.alley-theatre.com/whats-on/25-...

‘Information, Please’: Brian O’Nolan and the Radio This article proposes Irish radio broadcasting as an unexplored context for new directions in Flann O’Brien studies. Brian O’Nolan’s involvement in Irish radio spans at least two decades, from the ear...

The countdown to the Flann O'Brien conference is on! Our ✨penultimate nominee✨ for the award is Joseph Labine with ‘“Information, Please”: Brian O’Nolan and the Radio’. Labine's article draws on original radio schedules and archival material to how how radio aesthetics influenced O’Nolan’s writing.

Flann O’Brien’s Vibrant Atmospheres This article explores how the meteorological, societal, social, and literary senses of atmosphere fertilise each other in Brian O’Nolan’s writing through the theoretical frameworks and analytical tool...

Next up for the Flann O'Brien award for best article is @pauleamonnfagan.bsky.social's 'Flann O'Brien's Vibrant Atmospheres'. Fagan shows O'Brien countering 17th to 19th century formulations of atmosphere with a depiction of atmosphere that is embodied, trans-corporeal and affective.

‘Cultural Affairs’: A Newly Discovered Myles na Gopaleen Article This note details ‘Cultural Affairs,’ a newly discovered article that Brian O’Nolan contributed, under the pen name Myles na Gopaleen, to a 1953 special supplement of The Statist magazine dedicated to ‘The Economy of Ireland.’ In its primary aim of advertising Irish industry to English investors, ‘The Economy of Ireland’ reflects the shift in post-war Irish economic policy away from the protectionist Free State era and towards the increasingly open economy of the 1950s and 60s. Myles’s contribution addresses the supplement’s theme by arguing for a form of cultural liberalism that rejects isolationism and bad-faith nationalism by opening Irish culture to foreign influence, rather than packaging it for export to foreign markets. However, ‘Cultural Affairs’ also departs from the economic supplement’s focus on courting foreign investment by advocating for meaningful government subsidies for Irish cultural regeneration. 

Out now in the @theparishreview.bsky.social‬ > Read Paul Fagan's (@pauleamonnfagan.bsky.social‬) note ‘Cultural Affairs’: A Newly Discovered Myles na Gopaleen Article: doi.org/10.16995/pr....

‘Cultural Affairs’: A Newly Discovered Myles na Gopaleen Article This note details ‘Cultural Affairs,’ a newly discovered article that Brian O’Nolan contributed, under the pen name Myles na Gopaleen, to a 1953 special supplement of The Statist magazine dedicated to...

For those hungry for more original material by Flann O'Brien/Myles na gCopaleen, @pauleamonnfagan.bsky.social has located a 💥new article by Myles💥, published in 1953! Read all about 'Cultural Affairs' by Myles na Gopaleen, published in a 'Statist' special on ‘The Economy of Ireland.👇

"From the cradle to the grave, the bottle has been the solace and the sustenance of mankind".
@flannobriensoc.bsky.social

Milesian Rewritings of the Annunciation to the Virgin in ‘The Martyr’s Crown’ via Petronius, Dante, and Shakespeare Reading &lsquo;The Martyr&rsquo;s Crown&rsquo; as a parody of the Biblical Annunciation to the Virgin Mary, this article presents a previously unrecognised intertextual source to which the title of Br...

The next nominee in the ✨Flann O'Brien awards✨ is Dieter Fuchs for ‘Milesian Rewritings of the Annunciation to the Virgin in “The Martyr’s Crown” via Petronius, Dante, and Shakespeare’. Fuchs reads O'Brien's tale as a parody of literary engagements with the Biblical Annunciation to the Virgin Mary👇

‘Cultural Affairs’: A Newly Discovered Myles na Gopaleen Article This note details ‘Cultural Affairs,’ a newly discovered article that Brian O’Nolan contributed, under the pen name Myles na Gopaleen, to a 1953 special supplement of The Statist magazine dedicated to...

Out now!
My new note for @theparishreview.bsky.social which details my discovery of "Cultural Affairs", a previously unknown article Myles na Gopaleen contributed to British financial journal The Statist in 1953!
Open-access from @openlibhums.bsky.social:
parishreview.openlibhums.org/article/id/2...

I'm thrilled to have been nominated for the IFOBS Best Article 2023-4 Prize for "Flann O'Brien's Vibrant Atmospheres" in @theparishreview.bsky.social.
All the nominated articles are great, it's a real honour to be considered in their company
Open-Access🔗👇 parishreview.openlibhums.org/article/id/1...

Flann O’Brien and the European Avant-Garde, 1934–45 Crossing the boundaries of a single-author study, this book uncovers Flann O'Brien's attempt to forge a commercially successful Irish literary project from inte…

Next in our shortlist for the book-length Flann O’Brien Society award is💥Flann O’Brien and the European Avant-Garde, 1934–45: Dublin’s Dadaist💥 by @tobias-w-harris.bsky.social. Harris reveals links between O’Brien and English comic magazines, Dadaist photomontage, Expressionism, Borges & Kafka.

📻 Wind up the phonograph, warm up the gramophone, tune in your radio, the next instalment of Radio Myles is here! 📻 Listen to Oisín Ó Nualláin share fascinating insights about his uncle, Flann O’Brien himself, as well as his father, Micheál Ó Nualláin. Hosted by @tobias-w-harris.bsky.social

An Saol Bocht - Leabhar Breac An Saol Bocht: Leabhar tábhachtach ar shaothar Bhriain Uí Nualláin, a thugann faoina bhfuil scríofa faoi a scrúdú as an nua, agus a chuireann leis sin eolas úr atá tagtha chun solais ó shin.

The final shortlisted work for the International Flann O’Brien Society book award is Brian Ó Conchubhair’s ‘Myles na gCopaleen agus Flann O’Brien: An Saol Bocht’. Already the recipient of two awards from Oireachtas na Gaeilge, Conchubhair’s biography reconfigures the tragedy of O’Nolan's life.

Oisín Ó Nualláin: Eccentric state builders Radio Myles: the Flann O'Brien Podcast · Episode

New podcast episode! Join me and Oisín Ó Nualláin, Flann O’Brien’s nephew, to explore the the writer as a paternal figure, an accomplished joiner (!) and member of a formidable Northern family: the Ó Nualláins as voracious intellectuals, inventors and ‘ex-centros’ builders of the Irish republic.

Very excited to have signed the contract to contribute a chapter on "The Third Policeman" to the forthcoming "Cambridge Companion to Flann O'Brien", edited by Catherine Flynn!

This is a very exciting step for the field, and I'm very honoured to be a part of it. Watch this space everybody! 👀

‘The Play, boy, of the Wet, Stern World’: Flann O’Brien and John Millington Synge This article explores Brian O’Nolan’s (Flann O’Brien’s, Myles na gCopaleen’s) relation to John Millington Synge. Synge (1871–1909) was the premier dramatist of the Irish Revival, and O’Nolan’s respons...

💥First in the shortlist for the Flann O'Brien Awards for best article is Joseph Brooker's ‘“The Play, boy, of the Wet, Stern World”: Flann O’Brien and John Millington Synge’. Brooker's piece provides a detailed mapping of O'Brien's references to Synge, illuminating their cultural significance.

Flann O'Brien and the Nonhuman - Cork University Press Flann O’Brien and the Nonhuman is the first book to explore in detail the author’s interest in the agency, materiality, and potential sentience of enviro...

The first nominee for the 2025 International Flann O’Brien Society Awards: @kebury.bsky.social, @pauleamonnfagan.bsky.social, and @johngreaney.bsky.social's 'Flann O’Brien and the Nonhuman: Environments, Animals, Machines’. Reviewed by @jessiepb.bsky.social as 'equal parts ambitious and exciting’!

I am reading - or trying to read - Beckett's "Molloy", and from the start I've sensed a bit of "The Third Policeman". Then I look up "ataraxy" - and find it is now a type of bicycle seat.
Had Sam read "TTP"?
@pauleamonnfagan.bsky.social
@flannobriensoc.bsky.social
@theparishreview.bsky.social

2025 International Flann O’Brien Society Awards Shortlist Announced! Sincere thanks to all who voted in the 2025 International Flann O’Brien Society Awards. The votes have been tallied and we are now delighted to announce the shortlisted candidates. Based …

The shortlist for the 2025 International Flann O’Brien Society Awards have been announced! Thank you to everyone who voted and hearty congratulations to the nominees. #FlannO’Brien #speirgorm