News of The Past

18th November 2017

Mass for the Deceased Members of the Clongowes Union – Sunday November 19th The autumn season is always rich in colour but as November moves towards its end the very richness of those colours is the sign that nature must face up to the fact that – to regenerate next spring – all growth must…read article

31st October 2017

Mass for the Deceased Members of the Clongowes Union The autumn season is always rich in colour but as November moves towards its end the very richness of those colours is the sign that nature must face up to the fact that – to regenerate next spring – all growth must fade and die. As nature…read article

31st October 2017

Daniel O’Connell Memorial Debate This year’s Past vs Present Debate for the Daniel O’Connell Memorial Trophy will take place on Wednesday 8th November in the Music Performance Area in Clongowes at 6pm. This annual even always provides an excellent level of debate and an all round good night’s entertainment. (Last year’s participants pictured above). This…read article

22nd September 2017

It is easy to keep in contact these days. All sorts of social media and messaging platforms help you chat and glance occasionally at the lives of others. But there is something different about meeting up as a group – especially after a long period of time – in rekindling old friendships and also having…read article

20th September 2017

  The Annual Clongowes Union Business Lunch Friday, 20th October 2017 @ 12.30pm Conrad Hotel, Dublin Guest Speaker: Denis O’Brien Denis O’Brien is Chairman of the privately owned telecommunications company Digicel Group, which operates in 32 markets with over 14.5 million subscribers. Denis is a Director on the US Board of Concern Worldwide and a…read article

11th September 2017

Fr Willie Doyle SJ – a lesson for Europe In a lengthy article for the UK Independent, renowned British writer and journalist Robert Fisk has used the exemplary life and death of Irish war chaplain Fr Willie Doyle SJ as an anti-Brexit morality tale. “The image of an Irish Catholic going to the aid of a (Protestant?)…read article

24th July 2017

An exhibition on Fr Willie Doyle SJ is taking place at Dalkey Library, Dublin from Tuesday, 18th July until Friday, 18th August 2017. Fr Doyle was a Jesuit who taught in Clongowes at the turn of the 19th century, when he also founded and edited ‘The Clongownian’. The exhibition by Irish Jesuit Archives, which was launched…read article

7th June 2017

Nationalist politician and soldier William (‘Willie’) Hoey Redmond (13th April 1861 – 7th June 1917), nationalist politician and soldier, was born in Liverpool, but grew up in County Wexford. He attended Clongowes in 1873-6. He was the younger brother and close confidant of John Redmond, although much more outgoing in personality. He spent time as a merchant…read article

4th June 2017

Richard Thomas Wins Top Prize At The 2017 Trench Award Richard Thomas (OC’13) claimed the overall prize at The 2017 Trench Award with a mesmerising performance on violin during the inaugural Birr Festival of Music & Voice at Birr Theatre & Arts Centre last Sunday night (28th May). Now in its fourth year, the Trench Award…read article

10th May 2017

Ducks can fly, but pigs…? The Clongowes Duck has migrated and mutated into a pig in New South Wales (NSW), courtesy of Richard Fleming (OC’06) and Justin Fleming (no relation), who visited Clongowes in 2004 as a GAP Exchange student. Richard (on the right) and Justin (on the left) decided to apply the successful Clongowes Duck…read article