Latest news with #U2
Irish Independent
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Darragh McManus: Forty years on and several classic gigs later, Croke Park is still U2's spiritual home
The opening song on The Unforgettable Fire, U2's 1984 album, is A Sort of Homecoming. The following summer, 40 years ago tomorrow, they played a gig that suited that title to a tee.
Irish Independent
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Was a cluster of serial killers in the north-east US partly caused by industrial toxins, a new book asks
Non-fiction A recent rewatch of Se7en, David Lynch's 1995 thriller, was a reminder of a strange time in western culture: when serial killers were all the rage. From the mid-1980s to mid-1990s, these monsters and their 'Grand Guignol' crimes were everywhere. Every second movie had a serial killer villain, as did TV phenomenon Twin Peaks; American Psycho and Hannibal Lecter were literary sensations. Even bands got in the act: Antrim rockers Therapy? with Trigger Inside, off the Troublegum album, U2 with Exit from The Joshua Tree.
Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Lord Mount Charles obituary: aristocrat who turned castle into rock venue
'Lord Henry', as the 8th Marquess Conyngham liked to be known in his native Ireland, was a figure of riotous incongruity. Aristocrat and entrepreneur, bohemian and businessman, a sometime poet, journalist, publisher, parliamentary candidate, publican and peer of the realm; he was primarily known as the man who transformed his family's estate at Slane, Co Meath, into one of the most glamorous rock venues in Europe. Though born into the purple of the Anglo-Irish nobility, he realised from an early age that it was a birthright which might, had he embraced it more fully than he did, have excluded him from his claim to his Irish identity. Accent, class and an English public school education were usually enough to cause people like Mount Charles to be frequently asked in their own country the derogatory question: 'How are you enjoying your holiday here?' However, Mount Charles ignored the naysayers. He went on to forge an exceptional career whose apogee is sometimes described as the moment he introduced U2 at one of their first main public appearances at Slane Castle in 1981. Had it stopped there, this would have been sufficient to grant him a place in the pantheon of music promoters. A veritable cornucopia of headline acts followed at Slane, including Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, Queen, David Bowie, Oasis and Neil Young. The pastoral setting, provided by a natural amphitheatre that sloped down to the River Boyne, wasn't always tranquil. Shortly before Dylan took to the stage, a wave of drunken fans rioted in Slane village, smashing windows and attempting to burn the police barracks. Security was tightened for later events at the 80,000-capacity venue, and Slane Castle achieved something akin to Glastonbury in the international concert calendar. Henry Vivien Pierpoint Conyngham, 8th Marquess Conyngham, Earl of Mount Charles, Viscount Slane and Baron Minister of Minster Abbey in the County of Kent was born in 1951. His mother, Eileen (née Wren Newsome), was of Anglo-Irish stock and a legendary huntswoman. She showed the doughty spirit inherited by her firstborn, Henry, when Slane Castle was invaded by protesters objecting to the Mount Charles ownership of fishing rights over the River Boyne. She let in 50 rescuing police officers by throwing the castle key in a jar of face cream out of her bedroom window. Lady Mount Charles's divorce from her husband, Frederick Conyngham, the 7th Marquess, known as Mount, divided Anglo-Irish Society. From the dashing couple who hosted hunt balls and glamorous dinners, they became estranged when Mount married a lover. Henry's mother never married again. The marquess moved to the Isle of Man as a tax exile when Ireland introduced a wealth tax. Lady Mount Charles lived on in Ireland until the age of 92, claiming, jokingly, that her longevity was solely aimed at annoying her children. Mount Charles was educated at Harrow and Harvard. His father was disappointed that he did not take the more traditional Oxbridge route, dismissing Harvard as 'not the sort of place where a descendant of Sir Christopher Wren will find solace'. At Harrow, he was known for his wit and dramatic flair rather than for any scholastic achievements. Prowess on the sporting field also evaded him. He only ever won a running event, memorably wearing odd socks, a habit he then adopted as being talismanic for the rest of his life. The young Viscount Slane, as he then was, adapted quickly to the American way of life. He described his time at Harvard as 'both a cultural awakening and a moral education, which shaped my confidence to speak out on a whole range of topics that might have escaped me had I become one of the oafs at the Bullingdon'. One of the topics was the Vietnam War. In his journalism, he often referenced his Harvard-era student debating background, especially noting the parallels between Nixon's Watergate and later American political turbulence. Mount Charles married Juliet (née Kitson). They had a daughter and two sons, the eldest of whom, Alexander, succeeds his father in the peerage as the 9th Marquess Conyngham. He divorced his first wife in 1985 and married Lady Iona Grimston, daughter of the 6th Earl of Verulam, who was a Conservative MP and later sat as a Conservative peer in the House of Lords. They had one daughter. He is survived by his wife, children and two brothers. In the mid-1970s, when Lord Mount Charles, as he had then become, took over Slane Castle from his father, Ireland was navigating a challenging economic malaise during which the large estates of the Anglo-Irish struggled to survive. Mount Charles had been working as an editor at Faber & Faber and enjoying a London life when he was obliged to return home to take over a chipped and faded mansion and a substantial tract of land. On inheriting, he said that he was 'ill-equipped' to run a large estate because the only thing he had learnt from his father was 'how to drink good claret at an early age and how to stand still while wearing heavy tweeds'. On moving into Slane Castle, he immediately set up a restaurant and a nightclub in the castle, which attracted patrons such as the controversial politician Charles Haughey, who had recently been embroiled in a law trial in which he was charged with the importation of arms into Ireland for use by the IRA in Northern Ireland. The Troubles cast a long shadow over Ireland at the time, and the houses of people like the Conynghams were sometimes viewed with suspicion by republicans. In his autobiography Public Space — Private Life: A Decade at Slane Castle (1989), he wrote: 'I was an Anglo-Irish anachronism … returning to an Ireland I loved but still a country bedevilled by division and much hypocrisy.'' In the television documentary A Lord in Slane (2024), he commented on the difficulties of navigating sectarian suspicion and the threats aimed at him by republicans when he hosted the U2 concert in 1981. Politically, he was aligned with the Fine Gael party, led until 1987 by Garret FitzGerald. Traditionally, it was seen as the Irish party more sympathetic to the Anglo-Irish ascendancy class as it embraced a policy of pluralism and inclusivity. In the 1992 Dail elections, Mount Charles stood as a Fine Gael candidate, polling a respectable 4,161 votes but failing to win a seat. He was also approached by the party to run for the European parliament, but eventually became disillusioned with what he called 'the stagnation of the party's constitutional agenda'. Mount Charles leaves behind a unique cultural legacy that paved the way for other enterprising landowners in Ireland to save their crumbling houses and breathe new life into an often-stagnating heritage. A gifted raconteur with a flair for publicity, he became a flamboyant media personality unafraid to express his controversial views on politics in a changing Ireland. He became the master promoter of the idea that the old Irish aristocracy could embrace change without surrendering its identity. Mount Charles was not beyond sending up his ancient background. He particularly enjoyed telling stories of his great-great-great-grandmother's affair with King George IV and pointing out items at Slane Castle which he would describe as 'got through the King's mistress'. Lord Mount Charles, 8th Marquess Conyngham, rock promoter, was born on May 23, 1951. He died of cancer on June 18, 2025, aged 74
RTÉ News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
Lord Henry Mount Charles remembered as a 'people person'
Lord Henry Mount Charles has been remembered as someone who lived his life with the "conviction" that music is a universal language that can bring people together. The funeral service for the 8th Marquess Conyngham - who died last week aged 74 - took place at St Patrick's Church of Ireland in Slane, Co Meath this afternoon. As the service came to an end, a recording of U2's song 'Bad' rang out in the packed building. Lord Henry was then laid to rest in the adjoining graveyard. In attendance were U2 bassist Adam Clayton, as well as Denis Desmond of promotors MCD, and Dundalk musician David Keenan, who gave a rendition of 'The Parting Glass' during the service. Aide-de-camp Commandant Joe Glennon represented both Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris at the service. Former taoiseach Leo Varadkar was in attendance, as was local TD and Minister for Education Helen McEntee. Such were the numbers in attendance, and the size of the church, a live stream of the service was shown in a nearby pub, which too was full. Lord Henry's son Alex led the tributes during the service. He said that, in the midst of "palpable political tension", his father was "driven by a conviction that music is a universal language that brings people together". "That's exactly what happened that day in the field at Slane. People came from all four quarters of the island and there was no trouble, just music. "That day, the Slane Castle estate was also saved by rock and roll," he added. Alex said: "Thankfully, the legacy of the concert has continued to protect and sustain it [the estate] ever since and long may it continue to do so." He said his father was always grateful to the community of Slane and the concerts would not have been possible without their support over the decades. Alex added that while Lord Henry was never elected to the Dáil or Seanad, he relished the opportunity of knocking on doors when canvassing and listening to people's thoughts and opinions. In 1992, Lord Henry ran in the general election for Fine Gael, polling fifth in the then-four-seater Louth constituency. Alex also said that his father taught him about the power, importance and value of making time for people - something he said Lord Henry felt was now being eroded in modern life. His father, he said, found other ways to express himself in life too, particularly in his weekly column for The Irish Mirror that he was initially "coaxed" into writing. However, Alex said his father soon loved working for a "red top as opposed to a high-brow broadsheet". The tribute was also filled with moments of Lord Henry's mischief and his quick turn of phrase through the years. He was remembered as someone who had a connection with people, both in the Slane community and the wider public. His son reflected that his father was not a lord that locked himself away in his castle, but rather a people person who shared what he had, creating unforgettable moments for hundreds of thousands since the first Slane concert headlined by Thin Lizzy in 1981. This was a funeral service very much centered around Lord Henry's family and friends. His daughter, Tamara Conyngham, also gave a heartfelt tribute to her father titled 'Lessons from Dad'. She said that he taught her a number of important life lessons, including to be generous with your time, to surround yourself with good people who will get you out of trouble and that if "you're lucky to grow up somewhere as beautiful as Slane, share it". The number of stories that the family had been told by people over recent days was testament to how generous Lord Henry had been with his time, she added. Recalling an anecdote about being admonished for going to bed before the last of our guests, Tamara said: "He fought for so long because he didn't want to leave the party and all we can do now is party on in his memory." An old friend of Lord Henry's, Nick Koumarianos, spoke about the many memories the pair shared. Although, he said some details would have to be omitted as he was aware he was speaking in a church. The second reading was read by Adam Clayton, whom Lord Henry considered a close friend and someone who he credited with helping him to get sober. The choice of 'Bad' by U2 at the end of the service was a nod to the band's 'The Unforgettable Fire' album that was recorded at Slane Castle. Perhaps, one of the most poignant moments of the day, as Lord Henry Mount Charles left Slane Castle for the final time - a venue that put Ireland on the map for the world's biggest rock 'n' roll and pop stars.
Powys County Times
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Powys County Times
Family of Lord Henry Mount Charles say to ‘party on in his memory'
The loved ones of Slane Castle's Lord Henry Mount Charles will 'party on in his memory', his funeral service has been told. His funeral was held at St Patrick's Church of Ireland in Slane on Wednesday, following his death at the age of 74 last week after a long battle with cancer. During the service, Alex Conyngham said his father 'truly loved' Ireland despite initially struggling with his Anglo-Irish identity. Since 1981, Lord Henry, a rock fan, hosted a series of open-air concerts at his ancestral home of Slane Castle in Co Meath. The Slane estate, which acts as a natural amphitheatre due to its sloping lands, has played host to several top acts including The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, Queen, U2 and Madonna. The last Slane Festival was in June 2023, when Harry Styles performed for 80,000 fans. His son, the ninth Marquess Conyngham, recalled a joke by Frank Kelly that described his father being 'born with a silver dagger in his back' with his unconventional but privileged position at Slane Castle. He said his father was 'immensely lucky' to have had a 'colourful string of people' working on the estate for which he was grateful as they 'rolled through the good times and the occasional dark days' including when the castle was significantly damaged by a fire in 1991. Alex Conyngham said: 'Dad initially struggled with his Anglo-Irish identity, and described it as feeling like he had a leg either side of the Irish Sea with each side treating him as something of an outsider. 'It was when he went to Harvard and immersed himself in the study of Irish history that that fog of uncertainty lifted.' He said it was there that he realised that, as an Anglo-Irish aristocrat, he belonged to one of the 'many streams' that fed Ireland and could make positive contributions towards the country. 'Politically, he was a passionate constitutional Republican, and he truly loved this country, its culture and people, and he counted himself blessed to be an Irishman.' However, he noted that not everyone agreed with this perspective and the castle walls had previously been defaced with aggressive, negative graffiti. 'But this only emboldened dad to strive all the harder.' Alex Conyngham said his father had a great commitment towards peace, and it also came to him that he had to open up the castle gates while being 'driven by a conviction that music is a universal language that brings people together.' The first 'real breakthrough' came with a Thin Lizzy concert in 1981, with U2 and Hazel O'Connor also on the bill. At a time of financial difficulty, he said Slane Castle was 'saved by rock and roll'. Alex Conyngham also paid tribute to Lord Henry's interest in politics, saying his father 'loved to connect'. Although his political ambitions were unrealised, he found other ways to express his opinions – including the 'Lord Henry' column in the Irish Mirror. After saying Lord Henry was blessed to enjoy the love of two remarkable women – his first wife Eileen and his second wife Iona, he thanked his father for trusting him with his legacy. He added: 'Dad's thanks and mines to all of you in Slane and online who have gathered here to say 'slan' to Henry.' The service featured readings by Lord Simon Conyngham and Wolfe Conyngham, as well as U2 member Adam Clayton. Lord Henry's daughter Tamara read a tribute called 'lessons from my dad', which included: 'Never give up, ever.' She said: 'Dad was one of the most determined people that I know and he proved what can be achieved when you truly put your mind to it.' Also recalling an anecdote about being admonished for going to bed before the last of her guests, she added: 'He fought for so long because he didn't want to leave the party and all we can do now is party on in his memory.' The final tribute during the service came from Lord Henry's friend Nick Koumarianos. Mr Koumarianos said he knew Lord Henry as a 'hell of a cool dude', adding: 'He was tall, he was handsome, he was titled and, by the way, he knew it.' However, he said there was 'no silver spoon' for the aristocrat, saying the castle needed serious attention. Amid stories about Henry's business abilities and 'sense of mischief', he said his friend had 'put Ireland on the map' for generations of pop music fans around the world. in a remark met with widespread laughter, he added: 'He had real commercial skills although on one occasion I do remember him saying: 'always do your accounts in pencil – and don't press too hard'.' Mr Koumarianos said Lord Henry was a glutton for punishment who seemed to be refreshed by adversity, including clashing egos at concerts, the fire at the castle and its reconstruction, success of Slane whiskey and then his final illness. He said Lord Henry was 'always relished the challenge, adding that he was a 'mighty man' who bore his illness with 'remarkable courage'. Following the service, his coffin was carried out of the church while Bad by U2 played.
