Maev MacCoille

Now there’s a historical reference where I feel we need to go back several hundred years to revisit some starting assumptions.

Not unusual when talking to English people about Irish history, but even so.

Just received a student discount without asking for it (since I’m not a student).

Does this mean I’ve still got it, or that I drastically need to improve my personal grooming?

It’s the degree of violence inflicted during the Wars that strikes me as early modern - outside of religious conflicts (think the Albigensian crusade), I don’t think medieval armies could inflict that level of destruction.

The devastation of the War of 5 Kings feels closer to the War of 3 Kingdoms.

I will die on the hill that Martin is far more inspired by the early modern period in Europe than the medieval - and the fact that he doesn’t realise it is extremely telling.

(Which isn’t to say it’s an accurate depiction of the early modern period either, just closer).

There are certain issues that manage to turn otherwise sensible people into “this is the thin end of the wedge” lunatics.

For me it’s people playing music out loud on public transport (which I think is more justifiable than whatever this is, but that may just be the illness speaking).

Some stereotypes are absolutely worth living up to - I had to at least try it!

The only thing more frustrating than the ending of this play (which is an excellent play but SOOO eternally unfulfilled love frustrating) is getting out to discover ANOTHER Euro 2025 match is heading into penalties.

Damn and blast me and my bad timing.

I dare you to watch Intimate Apparel and not question whether maybe corsets weren’t such a bad thing after all. (I want the blue one. For reasons).

Can it be? A historical drama that acknowledges the relentless, backbreaking labour and brutal physical pain poor women endured to keep the rest of the world dressed in clean clothes?

Lynn Nottage, take (even more of) my money.

How do you make a choice when you nothing about the options?

The gas to my building is being shut off, meaning I have to buy an induction cooker.

Thing is…I know nothing about induction cookers (and looking online you just get “would you like this built-in induction hob” which is useless to me).

a man in a suit and tie stands in a crowd ALT: a man in a suit and tie stands in a crowd

Have you watched Slings and Arrows?

Fair enough - I guess they were always playing Kilkenny in their finals.

Still calling it historic is a bit of a stretch, surely?

Dear BBC Sports,

A Cork-Tipperary All Ireland Hurling is the opposite of historic, do some research. It’s the equivalent of a Germany-Brazil World Cup final.

If Donegal, or Armagh were in the final, now THAT would be historic.

Please note, ITVX did not interrupt a penalty shootout with an infuriatingly pointless question. I am noting this for the future.

I’d happily take credit, but I don’t think it’s my phrase…

A weird aspect of that…strain of thought, is that it seems to be able to sit quite comfortably with out and out anti-semitism (not always, but often enough to be noteworthy).

There are a bunch of Irish stories that were clearly Christianised as they were written down (Oisín and the Children of Lir probably are the two most prominent), but the Tara thing always struck me as especially nuts, because the timelines don’t match AT ALL.

Is this where the madness about the Hill of Tara containing the Ark of the Covenant comes from?

The British-Israelist attempt to dig it up in the 1930s has always struck me as thematically rich (speaking as a playwright).

Would have made Raiders of the Lost Ark a very different film.

I can feel a Roy Keane “teenagers shouldn’t be taking penalties” rant incoming - that’s a senior player’s job.

Poor girl, it’s a lot to take for an 18 year old.

In the middle of a penalty shootout is not the time for a “are you still watching?” message, BBC iPlayer, what are you playing at?

Feels the BBC’s set-up for filming half-time commentary on the England-Sweden match wasn’t designed with eleven foot tall Swedish giants in mind.

I feel like that’s an oversight.

“Authentic Japanese cuisine with chicken tenders.”

I don’t think those words belong together.

Getting to the point where I want to see a corporate executive in a science fiction story say some version of the following:

“No, I will not do this insanely dangerous and/or immoral thing, because as a sensible business person I don’t want to waste my investment.”

It would at least be refreshing.

It does make you wonder what Slow Horses is doing right that everyone else is doing wrong.

I suspect the answer is not having to do a ton of effects or cgi, but it would be interesting if there was something on the writing side.

There isn’t really a player called Al Dente on the Italian team, is there? Surely my ears are deceiving me.

I am the least sporty person in the world, but man do I love it in football when they do that misdirect-no-I’m-going-right thing.

Cracking Spanish goal.

I’d take London over New York…but I wish I could transplant Central Park, and at least one Upper West Side deli/bakery (I can’t resist a New York black and white).

Proof that good casting can save a by the numbers script. Ali and Bailey have weapons grade charisma (though making Bailey do an American accent was baffling).

Two missed calls from a number that “is not recognised” whenever I call them back.

These are not the kind of paradoxes one expects to encounter in press officer life.