Emma O'Kelly

Dublin

Education and Science Correspondent at RTÉ

RTÉ Education Correspondent. Views own, not RTÉ’s. https://t.co/H079QsS93l [email protected]. Also Chair NUJ Dublin Broadcasting.

Articles

Discover Scotland's top seven wild saunas

1 month ago | scotsman.com | Emma O'Kelly

As saunas pop up on beaches, riverbanks, hilltops and woodland clearings across Scotland, the writer of a new guide to the phenomenon chooses seven of her favourite locationsWhat is a wild sauna? Let’s start by saying what it’s not. A wild sauna is not tucked away in a forgotten corner of a gym – dark, smelly and claustrophobic. It’s not an add-on to a costly spa, where guests in fluffy robes and disposable slippers sip prosecco. It’s not a space where bathers with gadgets track their heart rates.
An innovative sustainable housing unit combines biochar – burnt organic waste – and mortar

1 month ago | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

When Swiss construction giant Holcim created a way to blend carbon-guzzling biochar with cement and mortar, it turned to Chilean architects Elemental to create a project for the Venice Biennale; concrete can be a hard sell in the West these days, but in developing countries it’s often the affordable, reliable material of choice, and therefore, it's important to improve its sustainable architecture potential.
I've visited dozens of the UK's new saunas - here are 12 of my favourites

1 month ago | inews.co.uk | Emma O'Kelly |Jaymi McCann

A wild sauna is not tucked away in a forgotten corner of a gym. It’s not an add-on to a costly spa, and it’s not a space where bathers with gadgets “optimise” their sweating and track their heart rates. Read NextRead MoreMany wild saunas perch – sometimes literally – on Britain’s untamed fringes; they battle unpredictable elements to offer a healthy hit of outdoors and an exhilarating blast of hot and cold – with the latter coming from sea, lake, river, ice bath or outdoor shower.
Asus Zenbook A14 review: a laptop shaped by new materials

1 month ago | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

With colourful cases, key fobs, straps and stickers, we can say a lot about ourselves though our smartphones. But laptops? With these we undergo a personality by-pass, reduced to black or grey slabs that say nothing about us yet hold our entire lives within their frames. It’s something of a grey area, and one that Taiwanese tech firm Asus has neatly stepped into.
The secret life of the Isle of Man’s polymathic design hero, Archibald Knox

2 months ago | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

He may have died almost 100 years ago, but Archibald Knox is the Isle of Man’s most famous designer. His Art Nouveau silverware, his Arts and Crafts furniture, his Manx-engraved jewellery and headstones and his delicate watercolours can be found all over the island, not least at the Manx Museum in Douglas. Here, the largest ever show of Knox’s work brings together more than 200 pieces.
UK Wild Saunas: Discover Unique Locations for Outdoor Sweats & Cold Dips

2 months ago | britishtraveljournal.com | Emma O'Kelly

With Britain’s wild sauna movement heating up, the author of a new book on the subject recommends 10 places across Britain to give the experience a go this summerMany wild saunas perch on Britain’s untamed fringes; they battle unpredictable elements to offer a healthy hit of outdoors and an exhilarating blast of hot and cold, the latter coming from sea, lake, river, ice bath or outdoor shower.
The Wallpaper* wellness report: thermal bathing is an ancient art set to rise in 2025

Mar 11, 2025 | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

The global practice of thermal bathing has been around for millennia. But, in 2025, this ancient activity is experiencing a contemporary boom, as we shun screen time in pursuit of meaningful connection. As Wallpaper’s wellness report outlined last month (February 2025), the rise of traditional saunas, onsens, hammams and banyas receiving a contemporary twist are a few examples of this phenomenon, beloved for their communal atmosphere.
The little-known story of Welsh modernism

Feb 28, 2025 | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

Cabin Crew showcases the work of Cardiff-based practice Hird & Brooks who, from the 1950s-1980s, built sleek villas in the Vale of Glamorgan and holiday parks and cabins in the Welsh woodlands. As the UK continues to nurture ties with Scandinavia, this new book reveals Danish-inspired cabin culture in Wales and is published next month by The Modernist.
Remembering Yrjö Kukkapuro, Finnish grand master of design (1933-2025)

Feb 12, 2025 | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

Yrjö Kukkapuro, Finnish grand master of design, died last week aged 91. Almost everyone in Finland has sat on a Kukkapuro chair – in a school, hospital, office or home. Over his seven-decade career, he created comfortable, functional best sellers that tapped into the trends of the time, and even in his eighth decade managed to create pieces that looked arrestingly modern. I interviewed Kukkapuro in 2020, days before the first lockdown, at his studio on the outskirts of Helsinki.
The Wallpaper* wellness report: Joining 150 people in the sauna at London’s first contrast therapy centre

Feb 11, 2025 | wallpaper.com | Emma O'Kelly

Many wellness-enthused Brits are saying that the ‘sauna is the new pub’. Or at least that’s what the consensus seemed to be at the opening night of Arc, a new wellness spot in London’s Canary Wharf, which boasts the status of the largest communal sauna in the UK. Here, more than 150 semi-naked, sweaty bathers were huddled onto benches sipping mocktails, before cooling off in ice baths and noisily congregating on red leather banquettes in a sunken chill-out pit.