On This Day
One of the many things Dr Éamon was renowned for was his On This Day column in the Irish News.
Expertly chosen, the column chose a day in history and brought it in its significance to the modern reader.
The column was usually placed down the right-hand side of a news or features page, and the page number varied from edition to edition.
But wherever it was placed, the mix was variously enlightening, eclectic, sometimes sad, but always interesting.
Éamon loved doing the column, from the 1980s right up to late 2022. On This Day continues in the Irish News to this day under a new author.
These items are an invaluable historical record – old reports curated by an expert and brought to life again in modern media.
Over time we plan to greatly add to this collection of Éamon’s On This Day contributions. We are very thankful to Ireland’s Department of Foreign Affairs and the Magill Trust for funding this project.
Please note:
The Foundation has worked hard to recreate Eamon’s distinctive voice through AI. Since this is an emerging technology, occasional imperfections may be audible.
On This Day – 8th October 1971
Publication date:
October 8, 2021
Reference date:
19711008
Stories Included:
1971: Conn McCluskey warns that nonviolent civil rights influence is declining, while concerns are raised over the emergence of a defence association in Rathcoole
Latest On This Day Posts
Published: November 25, 2020
On This Day – 25th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: 3 IRA prisoners shot dead at Dublin Castle were ‘trying to escape’; Furious Commons exchanges continue in wake of Croke Park massacre
Published: November 24, 2020
On This Day – 24th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Tory cries of “Kill him” as Falls MP questions Dublin Croke Park massacre; Ireland Secretary defends Crown forces’ actions
Published: November 23, 2020
On This Day – 23rd November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Reports detail the aftermath of Dublin’s Bloody Sunday; IRA strikes Cairo Gang, British respond with Croke Park massacre
Published: November 21, 2020
On This Day – 21st November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Head Constable John Kearney gunned down in Newry; unionists advance plans for a new Ulster police force shorn of many RIC officers
Published: November 20, 2020
On This Day – 20th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: ‘Mrs Quinn was sitting on a road wall with a baby. She was shot and killed’
Published: November 19, 2020
On This Day – 19th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: British ministers challenged over shooting of prisoners; Greenwood’s ‘preposterous’ poison gas claim
Published: November 18, 2020
On This Day – 18th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Ireland’s growing tit-for-tat horror: priest abducted in Galway, three British military officers dragged from a Cork-bound train
Published: November 17, 2020
On This Day – 17th November 1970
Stories Included:
1970: ‘Unprecedented gangster-style double murder’ of two local men shocks west Belfast… and foretells the future
Published: November 16, 2020
On This Day – 16th November 1970
Stories Included:
1970: SDLP hailed their first electoral outing as an “honourable baptism”; Death of colourful nationalist intellectual Prof James Scott
Published: November 14, 2020
On This Day – 14th November 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Nationalist MPs accuse Ireland Secretary Sir Hamar Greenwood over British reprisals at Granard and Tralee
On This Day Posts by Year
Please select a year to see the series of articles written by Éamon.
Latest On This Day Posts
(384 Posts)
Published: September 15, 2020
On This Day – 15th September 1920
Stories Included:
Bleeding Crucifixes of Templemore stir 1920s Ireland; Abhorrence at UK govt’s auxiliary police force plan
Published: September 14, 2020
On This Day – 14th September 1920
Stories Included:
1920: Appointment of Sir Ernest Clarke is key move in establishment of partition
Published: September 12, 2020
On This Day – 12th September 1920
Stories Included:
1920 Loyalist ‘Soviet’ victimises workers; East Belfast RIC Resignations
Published: September 11, 2020
On This Day – 11th September 1920
Stories Included:
Terror at Tullow, Co Carlow; Gun raids in Glens of Antrim, Tyrone partition propopsal lost
Published: September 10, 2020
On This Day – 10th September 1920
Stories Included:
Battle of Belfast’s York Street 1920 leaves nine dead: inquest hears details
Published: September 9, 2020
On This Day – 9th September 1970
Stories Included:
No Peace Without Work, Derry tells minister; Blast Victim’s IRA Funeral in Belfast
Published: September 8, 2020
On This Day – 8th September 1920
Stories Included:
Craig gets UVF enrolled in new Ulster Special Constabulary, Donegall Avenue ‘cleared of Catholics’
Published: September 7, 2020
On This Day – 7th September 1920
Stories Included:
Banbridge 1920 Murder Sensation, Belleek Barracks destroyed in daring locked-doors plan
Published: September 5, 2020
On This Day – 5th September 1970
Stories Included:
‘Fantastic Risk’ from RUC Shots into Divis Flats, JFK widow to visit Harland and Wolff shipyard
Published: September 4, 2020
On This Day – 4th September 1970
Stories Included:
Bloody 1920 Banbridge Siege Recalled 50 Years Later
Published: September 3, 2020
On This Day – 3 September 1920
Stories Included:
Protestant Home Ruler Sued Edward Carson, Family of DI Swanzy Regret Lisburn Sectarian Reprisals, 1920 Gilford murder
Published: September 2, 2020
On This Day – 2nd September 1920
Stories Included:
Unionist military force to be launched, ‘Spotters’ drive Belfast evictions