Chris Philpott

Paul McGrath with the loose header out. Unusual for him

Rutger Bregman uses that story as an example to illustrate the main theme in his book "Humankind: A Hopeful History"

From the Irish language, piseog (or pisreog): a charm, spell or superstition

Street musicians including a man with a flowing white beard playing the bones, a second man playing guitar and a lady seated playing the bodhrán traditional Irish drum, surrounded by a crowd of listeners

At the Fleadh Cheoil Irish Music Festival, Wexford, Ireland August 2025

A tree has fallen across a forest path, blocking the way

No way through

The Copper Coast, Waterford, Ireland

View of the Oweniny River, County Mayo, Ireland

"Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing" - Tommy Sopwith

In Ireland back then, football of the Gaelic variety was just called football, and rural types who preferred the national game called our sport "soccer". Us city boys, regarding ourselves as more sophisticated, simply called our game football, as if there was only one type of boot/ball game

Homework was called "exercise", which, by the same process, became "ekker". Growing up in Dublin, Ireland, I often heard an anxious student ask "Have you done your ekker?". 2/3

I'm surprised that this still causes controversy. The simplest explanation is the correct one. In English public schools, words were shortened and the suffix "er" added. Hence "Rugger" for Rugby Football. The root of "soccer" can be found in another example: 1/3

That ciggie could never have lasted from the start to Ballaugh Bridge (17 Miles)! He must have "stopped to make adjustments" in the previous mile or so 🙂

A rare gem, for sure

Fully restored 616cc 1921 Wander V-twin Motorcycle

Found this, for sale at Bonham's. What it could look like when restored

Memorial Plaque noting the bravery of Jack Moyney of the Irish Guards at Ypres in 1917

Spotted in Co. Laois, Ireland @sommecourt.bsky.social

Thanks for the tip, Isidor. And the best part, Supermassive is a free VST from Valhalla

A picture of a statue of a black horse at Cabra Castle, Ireland. There is a sign in front which reads "PLEASE Do Not Mount The Statue"

Spotted at Cabra Castle, Ireland

Mood: There was a cabaret and there was a Master of Ceremonies and there was a city called Berlin in a country called Germany. It was the end of the world, and I was dancing with Sally Bowles, and we were both fast asleep.......

A seal pod in a sheltered cove on the Wicklow coast, Ireland

Wes Montgomery's jazz guitar playing is deceptively difficult to emulate #WestCoastBlues

A copy of Sarah McQuaid's book on using the DADGAD guitar tuning in Irish music

A very useful guide to using the Davy Graham tuning in Irish music @sarahmcquaidmusic.bsky.social

Common also in Ireland. By the time you are called in, you usually have the full backstory of at least two other patients

Wexford Arts Centre building photographed through a window on a rainy night, showing a wash of colour

Wexford Arts Centre, rainy night

A view of Wexford Town at sunrise

Wexford Town at sunrise

A woodland with a stream running through it, and some yellow wildflowers in the foreground

Edenvale

The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry

The Peace of Wild Things by Wendell Berry: a great poem for troubled time...

A statue of a heroic woman points a sword high into a clear blue sky

We can aspire to higher things

A young couple walking past a building with the graffito "Balla tutta la notte, sei bella", "Dance all night, you're beautiful"

Verona, Italy: Balla tutta la notte, sei bella - Dance all night, you're beautiful #streetphotography

🫢

A framed poster advertisement for Smith's Cigarettes from 1923, featuring a uniformed man with a pipe, and noting that time in Holland is 19 1/2 minutes fast compared to Greenwich Mean Time. It also features a comparison between the Dutch Half-Guilder and the Penny

Spotted in the pub, from 1923, Smith's Cigarettes