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The threat of another famine in 1879, within living memory of the horror and catastrophe of the Great Famine some 29 years earlier, brought renewed terror to the vulnerable tenant farmers in the west of Ireland. This time it was not just the humble potato, but severe weather conditions which devastated crops and feed stuffs over a three year period. Farm incomes dropped dramatically, landlords fussed that rents would not be paid. Whereas some landlords were patient, others warned that evictions would follow if rents were not paid on time.

PAT MCCABE’S rollercoaster new play, The Bridge Below The Town, set in 1950s small-town Ireland, is coming to the Town Hall Theatre and promises audiences a swirling drama of life, love, Butlins, and nuns who make márla men, set to a classic soundtrack.

The tragedy of the Great Famine was compounded by the fact that our seas were full of fish, yet the lack of a sustainable fishing industry, and a general dislike of fish among the peasantry, left untouched this abundant food source. As the appalling statistics of hunger, riots, death, fever and evictions began to penetrate the British government, some action was at last taken*. Unsuitable as it was for Irish palates, vast quantities of American maize was imported, and distributed. Public relief schemes, such as canal-building and new roads were introduced to provide some employment, and efforts were made to establish a fishing industry.

You’ve been drenched; you’ve been flooded; you’ve been kicked, battered, and depressed by the economic shenanigans. Truly, there has not been much to smile about lately. And Christmas is just around the corner! What you need is a good dose of laughter, administered freely by Athlone Little Theatre’s next show. Don’t miss this great antidote to the winter blues that runs from November 25 to December 1 at the Little Theatre in St Mary’s Place, Athlone. This is their second show in their Diamond Jubilee year and features three one act comedies from the pens of David Tristram, Deirdre Kinahan, and Jim Cartwright.