From James Joyce to Maeve Binchy
PDX HIBERNIAN INDEPENDENT 28 May 2026
More than an email. Less than a newspaper. Weekly newsletter of the Portland Hibernian Society. Delivered every Thursday.
Bloomsday is right around the corner at Kells Restaurant
The annual Portland Hibernian mid-June celebration and contemplation of Irish writing at its finest is happening on Thursday, June 18. Since late in the last century, we’ve been bringing Bloomsday to the Pacific Northwest. This year, Hibernians Erin Walsh and David O’Longaigh will put the focus on The Role of Nature in the Works of James Joyce. Example from the short story The Dead: It had begun to snow again. He watched sleepily the flakes, silver and dark, falling obliquely against the lamplight. Yes, the newspapers were right: snow was general all over Ireland. It was falling on every part of the dark central plain, on the treeless hills, falling softly upon the Bog of Allen and farther westward, softly falling into the dark mutinous Shannon waters.Join us on June 18 at Kells Restaurant 112 SW Second Ave. No-host dinner at Six P.M. Presentation at Seven P.M. (Yes, we know that Bloomsday falls on June 16. But we meet on June 18 and figured Joyce wouldn’t mind.)
Ulysses this weekend...like you’ve never seen it
Your only opportunity to see You’ll see... is this weekend. It’s described as an intimate telling of James Joyce’s Ulysses created especially for children eight years and older and families. This epic story of one day in Dublin (June 16, 1904) is brought to life based on Ireland’s most notorious book for audiences aged 8 and upwards, and for all those who haven’t got around to reading it yet. (Moi, moi?) Corrib Theatre and NW Children’s Theater are presenting two shows Saturday and two Sunday. Tickets here.
Members of the All Ireland Cultursl Society gathered at the Oregon Potato Famine Memorial on Memorial Day 2026.
COMING SOON - A second Brendan McGloin masterpiece
Greater Portland will soon be home to two of the finest examples of the Celtic High Cross anywhere in the world. The president of George Fox College was in Ireland (May 24) to receive the Drumcliffe Cross, which was begun by sculptor Brendan McGloin and completed by his mentors after his untimely death in April 2025. It is expected to arrive in Newberg later this year. McGloin’s best known work, the Cross of the Scriptures, currently stands at the Oregon Potato Famine Memorial at Mt. Calvary Cemetery. Here’s the full story on the PHS website.
COMING SOON TWO - Meet the most popular politician in Ireland
Meet Michelle O'Neill, the First Minister of Northern Ireland, who also happens to be the Vice President of Sinn Fein. That a Catholic advocate of a United Ireland has risen to the top of the NI government is historic. Read more on her background and find out about her upcoming west coast appearance.
Scotland awake!
The mother of all local Scottish gatherings has returned. But this year you’ll have to head west rather than east if you want to find it. The Portland Highland Games are moving from Gresham to Hillsboro. The Games begin tomorrow, Friday, May 29 at the Washington County Fairgrounds (they used to take place in late July). If you live on the west side and skipped the Games in the past because of the drive east, there is now no excuse not to check out how our Scottish brothers and sisters celebrate their culture with games, music, dancing, food, vendors and whisky tastings. Here's the info you need.
NEWS FROM IRELAND
Ban sunbeds?
Ireland’s having a heat wave. Temperatures from 83 to 88 F. broke previous records this week. (That’s 28.6 to 30.6 Celsius, by the way). So, for a few days at least, Irish people seeking a deeper tan could use real sun. That would be their only option under a plan being pushed to ban sun beds. Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said he is "in favour" of banning sunbeds, calling the move a "no-brainer". Melanoma rates soar for those who use tan beds, say the advocates of a ban. Besides, Irish people are genetically disposed to developing skin cancer, they claim. The Sunbed Associationwarns that such a ban would move the industry into homes, back rooms and to underground black market settings. Here in America, a proposal for a federal ban on sunbed use by kids was withdrawn this year, but most states already have youth bans on the books. Australia banned sun beds for everyone ten years ago.
Irish presence on Gaza Flotilla makes news
Doctor Margaret Connolly of Galway City was one of the Irish activists taken from a boat that was attempting to deliver aid to Gaza, RTE reports. Her sister is Catherine, the President of Ireland. "Israel believes that if they punish people enough, people will give up. They believe if they punish the Palestinians enough, the Palestinians will give up. I think at this stage it has been proven that they will not give up. As a country raised on songs and stories of our own occupation, we feel that resistance," the GP told reporters after being released from custody by Israeli Defense Forces. “This flotilla has once again proved to be nothing more than a PR stunt at the service of Hamas. Israel will continue to act in full accordance with international law and will not permit any breach of the lawful naval blockade on Gaza.” Times of Israel. Fifty boats were intercepted and 428 participants from more than 40 countries were detained, per the IDF.
Happy Birthday Maeve Binchy
When reviewers needed a term to describe the secret of Maeve Binchy’s success, “her Irishness" was inevitable. The journalist-turned-author may be the most-read Irish author of all time with sales of 40 million books and still counting. If critics considered her a literary lightweight, so what? “I’m mainly an airport author, and if you’re trying to take your mind off the journey, you’renot going to read ‘King Lear,’ ” she told The Irish Times in 2000. “I’ve seen a lot of people buy my books and then fall asleep on the plane soon afterwards.” Celebrate her birthday by watching the movie she co-wrote based on her novel, Circle of Friends, starring Minnie driver, Chris O’Donnell and Alan Cummings.
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Go raibh maith agat.