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| Badfellagate - a wise decision |
| Newspaper critics of all persuasions will be sleeping better in their beds following the judgement of the Court of Appeal in Northern Ireland overturning the verdict in what I think of as 'Badfellagate', a case in Northern Ireland in which a restaurant proprietor sued a critic over an adverse review.
Anthony Lester QC, an architect of the UK Human Rights Act, fighting the appeal on behalf of the Irish News, said it would be “perfectly ludicrous” if libel proceedings could be issued every tim... |
| THE CHARMS OF WEXFORD - Part 1 |
| a GUIDE TO MY FAVOURITE COUNTY
I have just celebrated my 20th anniversary of coming to Dublin to live. When I arrived on 28th August 1987 the place was closed for business. Emigration, albeit not in famine ships, seemed to be the fate of Ireland's populace once more. The ferries leaving Dun Laoghaire sat several feet lower in the water than the one that brought me to land. Did somebody actually shout “When you get in, turn the lights back on” or was that a trick of my imagination?
Now, or ... |
| CHARMS OF WEXFORD part 2 |
| All this said, it's 'the other Wexford' that claims my affection, to the extent where friends have taken to calling me 'The Ambassador'. It begins with a left turn on the N11 at Ferns towards the picturesque town of Enniscorthy. One the way you pass Salville House, a weekend retreat that enables you to do an extensive sampling of your own fine wines while someone else (in this case the talented proprietor Gordon Parker) worries about the food. I have never stopped to eat in Enniscorthy but have... |
| Fruitful Search |
| What do Scarlet Crofton, Cabbage Stalk, Yellow Pitcher, Widow's Friend, Sam Young, Ross Non Pareil, Piltown Early Red, Rawley's Seedling, Green Chisel, April Queen mean to you?
They meant nothing to me until I started casting around for a brace of apple trees to replace some ancient and not very productive ones grubbed up in a recent redesign of our garden.
In the process I came across this wonderful website: http://www.irishseedsavers.com. I was determined to have a r... |
| Bringing Home The Bacon |
| BRINGING HOME THE BACON
There's an old Irish saying that “Nothing goes to waste in a house where a pig is kept”. I used to think it was meant to be taken literally until I realised that my wife was using the epithet to draw attention to my gargantuan appetite and my reputation as the ultimate omnivore. Nevertheless, there is a deal of truth in the old saw. What's more, in olden times, there was no waste on a pig either, for our ancestors used everything but the grunt.
Descended from the wild... |
| COFFEE - Roasting Your Own |
UPDATE: Since writing this piece I've now almost hit 50 roasts - hopefully theres still a bit of blood in my caffeine stream.
My love and respect for the HotTop programmable grows and grows.
Current fave blend is 222g El Salvador Finca La Fany Bourbon + 28g Costa Rica Tarazzu to add a bit of 'bite'. I roast to my own version of what's called 'City +', i.e. dark but not glossy. That way you get g... |
| In the wake of the Belfast News 'Goodfellas' libel case I thought it would be relevan |
| The common view of the courts has been that a fair critique of a restaurant, movie, TV show, or theatre play is not libellous, even though the comments or criticism are disparaging and may result in a loss of business or reputation. Reviews are reasonably understood to be one person's opinion.
The recent judgment in the Goodfellas franchisee v Belfast News/Caroline Workman case would, if followed by the courts here, make it extremely difficult for restaurant reviewers to engage in any meaningf... |
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