Covers broadcasting, film, popular music, radio and popular culture. This title includes essays which show the media's role in the process of 're-imagining Ireland' including aspects of cultural identity and (re)construction of notions of Irishness and contemporary implications of the peace process in the North and the 'Celtic Tiger' in the South.

From an analysis of the Guinness brand’s reflection of Irish identity to an exploration of murals and film portrayals of political prisoners, this pioneering collection of essays seeks to present Ireland’s relationship to visual culture as a whole. While other works have explored the imagistic history of Ireland, most have restricted their lens to a single form of visual representation. Ireland in Focus is the first book to address the diverse range of visual representations of national and communal identity in Ireland. The contributors examine the politics of visual representation from both historical and contemporary perspectives. Drawing from the areas of cultural theory, postcolonial studies, art criticism, documentary and archival history, and gender studies, the essays provide novel insights on a variety of visual-cultural forms, including film, theater, photography, landscape art, political murals, and the visual iconography of commercial marketing. Bringing together established scholars and emerging young critics in the field, Ireland in Focus breaks new ground in showcasing the essential dynamism of visual culture and its relationship to Irish studies.

This book explores the differences between 'high' and 'low' cultures in an Irish context, arguing that these differences need constant redefinition. It examines the boundary between élite and popular culture using objects of study as various as canonical Irish literature, postcards, digital animation, surfing and the teaching of Irish mythology.

This book uses popular culture to highlight the intersections and interplay between ideologies, technological advancement and mobilities as they shape contemporary Irish identities. Marshalling case studies drawn from a wide spectrum of popular culture, including the mediated construction of prominent sporting figures, Troubles-set sitcom Derry Girls, and poignant drama feature Philomena, Anthony P. McIntyre offers a wide-ranging discussion of contemporary Irishness, tracing its entanglement with notions of mobility, regionality and identity. The book will appeal to students and scholars of Irish studies, cultural studies, as well as film and media studies.

This volume explores Irish rock's relationship to the wider world of international popular music through detailed analysis of the island's most prominent artists and bands such as U2, Van Morrison, Sinéad O'Connor, The Boomtown Rats, and Horslips - and key musical movements including the beat scene and the folk revival.

A stimulating overview of the intellectual arguments and critical debates involved in the study of British and Irish cinemas British and Irish film studies have expanded in scope and depth in recent years, prompting a growing number of critical debates on how these cinemas are analysed, contextualized, and understood. A Companion to British and Irish Cinema addresses arguments surrounding film historiography, methods of textual analysis, critical judgments, and the social and economic contexts that are central to the study of these cinemas. Twenty-nine essays from many of the most prominent writers in the field examine how British and Irish cinema have been discussed, the concepts and methods used to interpret and understand British and Irish films, and the defining issues and debates at the heart of British and Irish cinema studies. Offering a broad scope of commentary, the Companion explores historical, cultural and aesthetic questions that encompass over a century of British and Irish film studies—from the early years of the silent era to the present-day. Divided into five sections, the Companion discusses the social and cultural forces shaping British and Irish cinema during different periods, the contexts in which films are produced, distributed and exhibited, the genres and styles that have been adopted by British and Irish films, issues of representation and identity, and debates on concepts of national cinema at a time when ideas of what constitutes both ‘British’ and ‘Irish’ cinema are under question. A Companion to British and Irish Cinema is a valuable and timely resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students of film, media, and cultural studies, and for those seeking contemporary commentary on the cinemas of Britain and Ireland.

An accessible, comprehensive overview of contemporary Irish cinema, this book is intended for use as a third-level textbook and is designed to appeal to academics in the areas of film studies and Irish studies. Responding to changes in the Irish production environment, it includes chapters on new Irish genres such as creative documentary, animation and horror. It discusses shifting representations of the countryside and the city, always with a strong concern for gender representations, and looks at how Irish historical events, from the Civil War to the Troubles, and the treatment of the traumatic narrative of clerical sexual abuse have been portrayed in recent films. It covers works by established auteurs such as Neil Jordan and Jim Sheridan, as well as new arrivals, including the Academy Award-winning Lenny Abrahamson.