Tommy May's and the Liffey Swim

The corner shop, that endangered species... One such local institution in Dublin 7 is - or rather, was - Tommy May's. Remember May's, near the bottom of Infirmary Road, on the wild western fringe of Stoneybatter, where Pat Kenny - the Pat Kenny - was born?

The Sheela-na-gigs of Stoneybatter

There's no general agreement on how to spell them (Sheela na gig, Síle na gcíoch, Síle na gCíoc...) or what they stand for.  But there are at least four tiny stone-like figures that might very well be sheela-na-gigs in Stoneybatter, making it the sheela-na-gig capital of Ireland.

More on the docks, and Leo Varadkar

Ireland's latest taoiseach (prime minister) happens to be gay, young (38) and have a dad from India. Cue plenty of international headlines making out like our country has suddenly become ultra progressive. As if.

The Jobstown House, Jobstown

The Jobstown House gets a quick mention in book #4 of the Moss Reid series, The Rebel Type. I first found out about the Dublin pub via its brilliant viral videos, starting with its entry in the "Mannequin Challenge" last year (above).

A map of Stoneybatter (sort of)

As far as I know there's no official map of Stoneybatter, but here's one I made earlier (as they say on the best cookery shows). Click here for a much larger version.

As I explained in an earlier post, some of its borders are fairly clear-cut and uncontestable, others - particularly to the east where it meets Smithfield - are much less so.

The horseman of Stirrup Lane

Less than a month after the tribute to Stormzy went up in Dublin's Smithfield district, another cool mural has arrived just around the corner, in Stirrup Lane. It's brilliant too.