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1 month ago | 
greekreporter.com | Declan McVeigh
St. Patrick may be thought of almost universally as a Roman Catholic figure, but a church in Grevena, in northern Greece, has always celebrated Ireland’s beloved patron saint. While revelers in Irish pubs in Athens, Thessaloniki and elsewhere paint the town green with Guinness, while listening to lively Celtic music, others stay true to the day’s religious roots.
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Dec 3, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
A motorist in Dubai uses a mobile phone while driving. Many drivers have an exaggerated sense of being in control while behind the wheel. Pawan Singh / The National DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES Ð July 15: Motorist still using mobile phones while driving on the roads in the UAE despite various Traffic awareness campaigns, Fines and Accidents on the roads. (Pawan Singh / The National) For Weekender *** Local Caption *** PS05- CAR & PHONE.jpg
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Oct 21, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
An artist's impression of lunar base. As humans inch closer to permanent stays in space, the time has come to think harder about agreed rules to avoid a dystopian future. Photo: ESAAn artist's impression of lunar base. As humans inch closer to permanent stays in space, the time has come to think harder about agreed rules to avoid a dystopian future. Photo: ESAIt's time to lay down the law on space explorationDeclan McVeigh is a staff opinion writer at The NationalOctober 22, 2024
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Aug 27, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
Great Britain's Terry Bywater and Lucy Shuker at the Arc de Triomphe ahead of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games. Smarter and more effective promotion of these games suggest that society is moving closer towards truly appreciating disabled sports. PAGreat Britain's Terry Bywater and Lucy Shuker at the Arc de Triomphe ahead of the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games.
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Jun 3, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
In his 1997 satirical novel Great Apes, the English author Will Self pokes fun at humanity’s self-regard as the planet’s dominant species. The novel’s protagonist wakes up one day in a London where it is Pan troglodytes – chimpanzees – who rule the Earth, not Homo sapiens.
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Apr 29, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
If there’s one experience that binds together many bearers of non-English names such as myself, it is the dreaded Starbucks interaction – that moment in the transaction where, when asked for my name to complete the order, I’ll hesitate before mumbling, shamefaced: “Err, John.” In my defence, I like to think I’m making life easier for those on both sides of the counter: the barista doesn’t have to grapple with spelling a Celtic name they’re probably unfamiliar with, and I get my americano that...
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Mar 25, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
Until 2020, the town of Brookline, Massachusetts was probably best known for being the birthplace of US president John F Kennedy and for having what American landscape designer Andrew Jackson Downing in 1841 called “quite an Arcadian air of rural freedom and enjoyment”.
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Mar 15, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
Every sport comes with its own terminology, but many people may struggle to identify in which games they’d come across a “free out”, a “sideline cut” or – more ominously – a “fair shoulder”. For the many men and women living in the UAE who were reared on the traditional Irish sports of Gaelic football and hurling, such terms are like a native language. But although this lexicon may be baffling to a newcomer, the skill, action and drama on the pitch need little explanation.
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Mar 13, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
We are now in the first week of Ramadan, and millions of Muslims across the Middle East and beyond are adjusting to this year’s month of fasting, prayer and contemplation. But another community with deep roots in this region is preparing to embark on its own period of reflection. According to 2016 data from the Pew Research Centre, almost half of all Christians in the Middle East belong to the Orthodox tradition.
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Jan 11, 2024 | 
thenationalnews.com | Declan McVeigh
There’s no denying it – the shaky smartphone videos showing the darkened interior of a juddering Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 as it made an emergency landing in Oregon last week are unforgettable footage. The knowledge that they were shot by ordinary passengers is arresting and poignant – people on an everyday flight suddenly found themselves confronting what many clearly thought were their final moments.
