Patrick Freyne
@patrickfreyne.bsky.social
Irish Times writer & author of OK, Let's Do Your Stupid Idea & now, out in June, Experts in a Dying Field. You can preorder here: https://linktr.ee/expertsinadyingfield
Pinned
Patrick Freyne
@patrickfreyne.bsky.social
· Nov 27
I've written a novel, Experts in a Dying Field. It's out on Penguin Sandycove in June. It's about about a band and a tragedy & art for art's sake & aging & loss & community & Dublin. There's a fox in it. & sheet music. The beautiful cover's by Jack Smyth. You can preorder: linktr.ee/expertsinady...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Also: finished the Lowdown and it is my favourite TV show. A noir detective story that isn't filled with cynicism about humanity - in fact, kind of the opposite - which is really rare.
January 18, 2026 at 11:32 AM
Also: finished the Lowdown and it is my favourite TV show. A noir detective story that isn't filled with cynicism about humanity - in fact, kind of the opposite - which is really rare.
On my third Tessa Hadley book of the month - Accidents in the Home. She really is very good
January 18, 2026 at 11:32 AM
On my third Tessa Hadley book of the month - Accidents in the Home. She really is very good
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Really blown away by The Black Pool by Tim MacGabhann so far – about 2/3 through it. Perhaps hits harder that I spent some time with Tim and know what a gentle person he is, to see how hard his life became. This is a memoir about his slide into drinking, heroin use. A slow surrendering of the self.
January 17, 2026 at 9:52 AM
Really blown away by The Black Pool by Tim MacGabhann so far – about 2/3 through it. Perhaps hits harder that I spent some time with Tim and know what a gentle person he is, to see how hard his life became. This is a memoir about his slide into drinking, heroin use. A slow surrendering of the self.
I wrote about the rise and fall of Twitter (with great insights from @marklittle.bsky.social and @kateconger.com and @jonronson.bsky.social) www.irishtimes.com/life-style/p...
The rise and fall of Twitter: From a hub for democratic discourse to a bigoted, toxic sinkhole
Elon Musk’s site has evolved from one that influenced culture and helped foment revolution to one where users ‘get nothing back except rage’
www.irishtimes.com
January 18, 2026 at 10:56 AM
I wrote about the rise and fall of Twitter (with great insights from @marklittle.bsky.social and @kateconger.com and @jonronson.bsky.social) www.irishtimes.com/life-style/p...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Seems unfair that you only get to use the bouncy slide to get off a plane when things have gone wrong. The bouncy slide should be a treat they give to the best passengers who did the flight correctly.
January 17, 2026 at 4:17 PM
Seems unfair that you only get to use the bouncy slide to get off a plane when things have gone wrong. The bouncy slide should be a treat they give to the best passengers who did the flight correctly.
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Positively shocked that the house magazine of the Manhattan Institute is upset that my book refuses to attribute America's record-high homelessness to "personal choices"—rather than, say, rents outpacing income gains by 325 percent since 1985.
“There Is No Place for Us”: A Sympathetic, but Skewed, Portrait of the Working Homeless
Brian Goldstone’s new book downplays the role of personal choices.
www.city-journal.org
January 17, 2026 at 2:34 PM
Positively shocked that the house magazine of the Manhattan Institute is upset that my book refuses to attribute America's record-high homelessness to "personal choices"—rather than, say, rents outpacing income gains by 325 percent since 1985.
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
New York Times hiring a London-based video journalist to focus on breaking news, live journalism & news video reporting on the weekend. job-boards.greenhouse.io/thenewyorkti...
Video Journalist, News - Weekends
London, United Kingdom
job-boards.greenhouse.io
January 17, 2026 at 4:25 PM
New York Times hiring a London-based video journalist to focus on breaking news, live journalism & news video reporting on the weekend. job-boards.greenhouse.io/thenewyorkti...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
I’ll say it again: social media destroys reading comprehension. It’s depressing how often seemingly intelligent people misread even short posts. And it’s not down to education because schoolkids do get taught how to interpret tone, context, word choice, etc. It’s brainrot
this site seems to genuinely have an issue with viewing explanation as a form of endorsement
Me outlining the conclusions the tribunal reached is not me endorsing them. Especially when I emphasised repeatedly that this is a first instance decision and non-binding. I'm really not sure what more I can do to make my position on this clear - it has quite literally been my entire life since FWS.
January 17, 2026 at 2:36 PM
I’ll say it again: social media destroys reading comprehension. It’s depressing how often seemingly intelligent people misread even short posts. And it’s not down to education because schoolkids do get taught how to interpret tone, context, word choice, etc. It’s brainrot
As Justine says, restricting family reunification solves no real problems. It’s performatively cruel & also bizarre given how many separated from their families get jobs minding ours. I’ve written in the past about carers (not just refugees) in similar situations
www.irishtimes.com/health/your-...
www.irishtimes.com/health/your-...
January 17, 2026 at 1:50 PM
As Justine says, restricting family reunification solves no real problems. It’s performatively cruel & also bizarre given how many separated from their families get jobs minding ours. I’ve written in the past about carers (not just refugees) in similar situations
www.irishtimes.com/health/your-...
www.irishtimes.com/health/your-...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
“Family reunification accounts for little more than 1% of migration into Ireland. Telling people granted refugee status to wait three years – until their children no longer recognise them – is not the stance of a country that professes to cherish the family unit.”
www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2026...
www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2026...
Justine McCarthy: Ireland celebrates Hamnet and Jessie Buckley’s success. It should feel shame
Separating refugee parents and their children betrays the family values of the film and of our constitution
www.irishtimes.com
January 17, 2026 at 9:16 AM
“Family reunification accounts for little more than 1% of migration into Ireland. Telling people granted refugee status to wait three years – until their children no longer recognise them – is not the stance of a country that professes to cherish the family unit.”
www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2026...
www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2026...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
It’s crazy how it’s suddenly “wow we live in a police state” when it happens to white people
January 16, 2026 at 6:24 AM
It’s crazy how it’s suddenly “wow we live in a police state” when it happens to white people
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
It is the source of so many of our evils: the astonishing concentration of wealth in the hands of a very few, and the immense political power that gives them. We cannot solve our problems until we tackle it.
This week's column.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
This week's column.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
At the root of all our problems stands one travesty: politicians’ surrender to the super-rich | George Monbiot
There are many excuses for failing to tax the ultra-wealthy. The truth is that governments don’t tackle the problem because they don’t want to, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot
www.theguardian.com
January 16, 2026 at 6:18 PM
It is the source of so many of our evils: the astonishing concentration of wealth in the hands of a very few, and the immense political power that gives them. We cannot solve our problems until we tackle it.
This week's column.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
This week's column.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Thrilled by the response to my first novel being announced. For those wondering, you can PRE-ORDER at the below links!
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/Dogs-Street-...
Amazon US: www.amazon.com/Prestige-Dra...
Bookshop: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/brig...
Waterstones: www.waterstones.com/book/prestig...
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/Dogs-Street-...
Amazon US: www.amazon.com/Prestige-Dra...
Bookshop: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/brig...
Waterstones: www.waterstones.com/book/prestig...
Prestige Drama
Buy Prestige Drama by O'Reilly, Seamas from Amazon's Fiction Books Store. Everyday low prices on a huge range of new releases and classic fiction.
www.amazon.co.uk
January 16, 2026 at 9:25 AM
Thrilled by the response to my first novel being announced. For those wondering, you can PRE-ORDER at the below links!
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/Dogs-Street-...
Amazon US: www.amazon.com/Prestige-Dra...
Bookshop: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/brig...
Waterstones: www.waterstones.com/book/prestig...
Amazon UK: www.amazon.co.uk/Dogs-Street-...
Amazon US: www.amazon.com/Prestige-Dra...
Bookshop: uk.bookshop.org/p/books/brig...
Waterstones: www.waterstones.com/book/prestig...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Here's the thing though: the people who need convincing are only motivated by self-interest. You could set up a gas chamber for immigrants down the street from their house and they would walk their dogs past it with a shrug. It's only when they feel their own rights are at stake that they act.
I DO NOT CARE IF THE PERSON ICE IS BRUTALIZING IS A U.S. CITIZEN OR NOT AND EVERY TIME YOU MAKE THE DISTINCTION IT'S LIKE YOU'RE SAYING YOU'RE FINE WITH THEM BRUTALIZING IMMIGRANTS
January 16, 2026 at 6:12 PM
Here's the thing though: the people who need convincing are only motivated by self-interest. You could set up a gas chamber for immigrants down the street from their house and they would walk their dogs past it with a shrug. It's only when they feel their own rights are at stake that they act.
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
incredibly fucking lovely news. Heated Rivalry is inspiring gay hockey players to come out in real life: www.out.com/gay-athletes...
I very much perceive Heated Rivalry as the apotheosis of slash fiction, that I was into in my teens and 20s. I think this is what we wanted it to do.
I very much perceive Heated Rivalry as the apotheosis of slash fiction, that I was into in my teens and 20s. I think this is what we wanted it to do.
Heated Rivalry inspires real-life hockey player to come out as gay
"On the outside, I was still a top-tier player. On the inside, I was still that kid in Minnesota hiding," the player wrote in his coming-out statement.
www.out.com
January 16, 2026 at 6:17 PM
incredibly fucking lovely news. Heated Rivalry is inspiring gay hockey players to come out in real life: www.out.com/gay-athletes...
I very much perceive Heated Rivalry as the apotheosis of slash fiction, that I was into in my teens and 20s. I think this is what we wanted it to do.
I very much perceive Heated Rivalry as the apotheosis of slash fiction, that I was into in my teens and 20s. I think this is what we wanted it to do.
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
Incredible piece of Search Engine Optimisation
January 16, 2026 at 2:05 PM
Incredible piece of Search Engine Optimisation
It's beginning to look a lot like fascism
Stunning photos from Minneapolis, including this one by John Locher for the Associated Press. www.theatlantic.com/photography/...
January 16, 2026 at 12:47 PM
It's beginning to look a lot like fascism
I love this anecdote from Alex Abramovich's profile of Willie Nelson in the New Yorker
January 16, 2026 at 12:44 PM
I love this anecdote from Alex Abramovich's profile of Willie Nelson in the New Yorker
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
I wrote about Heated Rivalry a documentary about Ice Hockey which I loved www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-r...
Patrick Freyne: ‘It’s important for ice hockey players to be clean!’ I jot down during Heated Rivalry’s shower scene
There’s also a focus on special ice-hockey exercises. Our heroes engage in these nudely, like Spartans. I try to draw diagrams
www.irishtimes.com
January 15, 2026 at 9:39 AM
I wrote about Heated Rivalry a documentary about Ice Hockey which I loved www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-r...
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
i don’t know if i know anyone in the HWA but my horrible plant book came out last year and is eligible here. i am sticking my neck out just in case i have anyone in the community who liked eat the ones you love 🥰🌱👁️🖤
A friendly reminder for HWA members: the deadline to recommend/nominate works for the Stoker Awards is January 15! Get your recs in now!
bramstokerawards.horror.org
bramstokerawards.horror.org
The Bram Stoker Awards – Horror’s premier literary award
bramstokerawards.horror.org
January 15, 2026 at 6:53 PM
i don’t know if i know anyone in the HWA but my horrible plant book came out last year and is eligible here. i am sticking my neck out just in case i have anyone in the community who liked eat the ones you love 🥰🌱👁️🖤
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
"The idea for this cover was an ode to the post workers, couriers and delivery drivers who just (literally) carried the Christmas season on their backs," writes @selkies.bsky.social, about the image she made for the cover of our most recent print edition. www.dublininquirer.com/cover-image-...
January 14, 2026 at 10:48 AM
"The idea for this cover was an ode to the post workers, couriers and delivery drivers who just (literally) carried the Christmas season on their backs," writes @selkies.bsky.social, about the image she made for the cover of our most recent print edition. www.dublininquirer.com/cover-image-...
I'm not sure that "ethics can't apply to powerful companies and very rich people" is a sustainable moral framework.
January 15, 2026 at 2:38 PM
I'm not sure that "ethics can't apply to powerful companies and very rich people" is a sustainable moral framework.
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
NASA say that the crew member who was ill and returned to earth is doing well and now having a meal with colleagues.
January 15, 2026 at 1:31 PM
NASA say that the crew member who was ill and returned to earth is doing well and now having a meal with colleagues.
Reposted by Patrick Freyne
People in positions of power and influence should mind what they say. Words carry meaning and affect how people behave. In a country where 14 cyclists were killed on the roads last year, it's not right for a judge to call cyclists a "nightmare". He should withdraw the remark.
January 15, 2026 at 11:58 AM
People in positions of power and influence should mind what they say. Words carry meaning and affect how people behave. In a country where 14 cyclists were killed on the roads last year, it's not right for a judge to call cyclists a "nightmare". He should withdraw the remark.