WMaeve Binchy Snell was an Irish novelist, playwright, short story writer, columnist, and speaker. Her novels were characterised by a sympathetic and often humorous portrayal of small-town life in Ireland, and surprise endings. Her novels, which were translated into 37 languages, sold more than 40 million copies worldwide, and her death at age 73, announced by Vincent Browne on Irish television late on 30 July 2012, was mourned as the death of one of Ireland's best-loved and most recognisable writers.
WVincent Browne is an Irish print and broadcast journalist. He is a columnist with The Irish Times and The Sunday Business Post and a non-practising barrister. From 1996 until 2007, he presented a nightly talk-show on RTÉ Radio, Tonight with Vincent Browne, which focused on politics, the proceedings of tribunals on political corruption and police misconduct. From 2007 to 2017 he presented Tonight with Vincent Browne on TV3, which was broadcast from Monday to Thursday at 11:00pm.
WKevin Cassidy is an Irish-Scottish Gaelic footballer, businessperson, columnist and commentator. Though born in Glasgow, Scotland, he has been living in Gaoth Dobhair, County Donegal from a young age.
WAlexander Claud Cockburn was an Irish-American political journalist and writer. Cockburn was brought up by British parents in Ireland but had lived and worked in the United States since 1972. Together with Jeffrey St. Clair, he edited the political newsletter CounterPunch. Cockburn also wrote the "Beat the Devil" column for The Nation as well as one for The Week in London, syndicated by Creators Syndicate.
WMark Dooley is an Irish philosopher, writer and newspaper columnist. A specialist in continental philosophy, theology and the philosophy of religion, he is the author of several books, including The Politics of Exodus: Kierkegaard's Ethics of Responsibility (2001), Roger Scruton: The Philosopher of Dover Beach (2009), and Why Be a Catholic? (2011).
WThomas 'Tom' Dunne is an Irish radio broadcaster with Newstalk.
WÉamon Martin Dunphy is an Irish media personality, journalist, broadcaster, author, sports pundit and former professional footballer. He grew up playing football for several youth teams including Stella Maris. Since retiring from the sport, he has become recognisable to Irish television audiences as a football analyst during coverage of the Premier League, UEFA Champions League and international football on RTÉ.
WBill Graham was an Irish journalist and author. He attended Blackrock College and Trinity College, Dublin and resided in Howth. In addition to authoring several books, Graham wrote for Hot Press magazine from its founding. He died of a heart attack at forty-four on 11 May 1996 being survived by his mother Eileen.
WPat Ingoldsby is an Irish poet and TV presenter. He has hosted children's TV shows, written plays for the stage and for radio, published books of short stories, and been a newspaper columnist. Since the mid-1990s, he has withdrawn from the mass media, and is most widely known for his collections of poetry, and his selling of them on the streets of Dublin.
WJoseph Denis Irwin is an Irish former professional footballer who played as a left back from 1983 to 2004.
WColum Kenny is a journalist, barrister and historian. He is Emeritus Professor at Dublin City University (DCU), in Dublin, Ireland. He was formerly chair of the Masters in Journalism programme at DCU in the School of Communications 1982-2015.
WHugh Leonard was an Irish dramatist, television writer and essayist. In a career that spanned 50 years, Leonard wrote nearly 30 full-length plays, 10 one-act plays, three volumes of essays, two autobiographies, three novels, numerous screenplays and teleplays, and a regular newspaper column.
WJohn James Bernard (J.B.) Malone was an Irish hill-walking enthusiast who popularised the pastime through his television programmes and books. He was responsible for the establishment of the Wicklow Way as a recognised walking trail, having first proposed it in 1966.
WMartin George Southcote Mansergh is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Minister of State at the Department of Finance and Minister of State for the Arts from 2008 to 2011. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Tipperary South constituency from 2007 to 2011. He was a Senator for the Agricultural Panel from 2002 to 2007.
WDavid McWilliams is an Irish economist, writer, and journalist. He is a faculty member of Trinity College, Dublin business school. McWilliams initially worked as an economist with the Central Bank of Ireland, UBS bank and the Banque Nationale de Paris. Since 1999, he has been a broadcaster, writer, economic commentator and documentary-maker. He has written five books, The Pope's Children, The Generation Game, Follow the Money, The Good Room and Renaissance Nation, writes two weekly economic columns and has made various documentaries.
WRónán Thomas Mullen is an Irish senator and former delegate to the Council of Europe. He is the leader of the Human Dignity Alliance, an anti-abortion political party formed in 2018. He was elected by the National University of Ireland Seanad constituency in July 2007 and re-elected in 2011, 2016 and 2020. He has topped the poll in every NUI Seanad election since 2011. Mullen is a frequent media commentator on social and political topics. The first National University of Ireland senator appointed to the Council of Europe, he received international coverage for his role in defeating the controversial McCafferty Report which sought to limit the right to conscientious objection for medical staff in the case of abortions.
WGraham William Walker, known professionally as Graham Norton, is an Irish television and radio presenter, comedian, actor, author, and commentator based in the United Kingdom. He is a five-time BAFTA TV Award winner for his comedy chat show The Graham Norton Show and an eight-time award winner, overall. Originally shown on BBC Two before moving to other slots on BBC One, it succeeded Friday Night with Jonathan Ross in BBC One's prestigious late-Friday-evening slot in 2010.
WEoin Ó Broin is an Irish Sinn Féin politician and writer who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for Dublin Mid-West constituency since the 2016 general election.
WDara Ó Cinnéide is an Irish former sportsperson. He played Gaelic football with his local club An Ghaeltacht and was a member of the Kerry senior inter-county team from 1995 until 2005. Ó Cinnéide captained Kerry to the All-Ireland title in 2004.
WBreandán Ó hEithir was an Irish writer and broadcaster.
WBrian O'Nolan, better known by his pen name Flann O'Brien, was an Irish novelist, playwright and satirist, considered a major figure in twentieth century Irish literature. Born in Strabane, County Tyrone, he is regarded as a key figure in modernist and postmodern literature. His English language novels, such as At Swim-Two-Birds and The Third Policeman, were written under the O’Brien pen name. His many satirical columns in The Irish Times and an Irish language novel An Béal Bocht were written under the name Myles na gCopaleen.
WAbie Philbin Bowman is an Irish comedian and journalist. His One Man Shows include Jesus: The Guantanamo Years, Eco-Friendly Jihad and Developing the Country as a Hole. He has worked on RTÉ programmes, including Arena, CAKE, Callan's Kicks and Irish Pictorial Weekly.
WJohn Augustine Waters is an Irish columnist and author whose career began in 1981 with the Irish political-music magazine Hot Press. He wrote for the Sunday Tribune and later edited In Dublin magazine from 1985-1987 and Magill. Waters has written several books and, in 1998, he devised The Whoseday Book — which contains quotes, writings and pictures of 365 Irish writers and musicians – raising €3 million for the Irish Hospice Foundation.