Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig duit!    Happy St Patrick's Day!              Scéal Dún-na-nGall ar an Idirlíon / County Donegal on the Net News    Vol.8 No.3 March, 2007    Holiday In Donegal in 2007!

400th Anniversary of the Flight of the Earls 1607-2007 Stamps commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Flight of the Earls from Ireland in 1607 were launched in An Grianán Theatre, Letterkenny on February 23rd. The stamps were designed by Glenfin artist, Sean O'Brogain, who was commissioned by An Post to create a se-tenant pair of stamps featuring Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone, and Rory O'Donnell, Earl of Tyrconnell as they left from Rathmullan on Lough Swilly, together with a hundred of their near relations. Sean has also designed a full-colour Flight of the Earls 'Minisheet', which features the pair of stamps inserted into the complete original artwork illustrating the boat in which the Earls departed from Lough Swilly. The stamp launch is one of many events taking place in 2007 commemorating the 400th anniversary of the Flight of the Earls. See Commemorative Events. The artist Sean O'Brogain specialises in historical art and has a B.A. Honours in Natural History & Scientific Illustration as well as a Diploma in General Art Design. Sean has now been commissioned again to design a round of An Post Christmas stamps for 2007. Clannad Anniversary Gigs Donegal legends Clannad will celebrate the 35th Anniversary of their formation in a concert at Derry's Millenium Forum Theatre on March 14th and at the Olympia, Dublin on Friday March 16th, 2007. The band have sold over 10 million albums worldwide and its influence has spread across many artists and genres. Over the years Clannad have received many awards, including a Grammy, a Bafta and an Ivor Novello award and were the recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2007 Meteor Ireland Music Awards. "The Brennan Tribute" documentary and the live concert of Clannad at Celtic Connections in Glasgow will be broadcast on St. Patrick's Day, March 17th on TG4. Clannad Benedict Kiely RIP While the late great Benedict Kiely was not a Donegal author it would be remiss not to mention the passing of this acclaimed Irish writer. Ben Kiely was born on August 15, 1919 near Dromore and grew up in Omagh, Co. Tyrone. He was the youngest of six children to Thomas Kiely and Sara Alice Gormley of Dromore. During his early years Ben Kiely attended the Christian Brothers School in Omagh before entering the Jesuit novitiate in 1938 only to leave 18 months later. From the 1940s Kiely was based in Dublin where he wrote for the Irish Independent and later Irish Press. His first work, 'Counties of Contention', about the partition of Northern Ireland, appeared in 1945 and was followed by his first novel, 'Land Without Stars'. A number of his early works – 'In a Harbour Green', 'Honey Seems Bitter' and 'There was an Ancient House' were banned under the notorious Free State Government's censorship laws. Other popular novels by Kiely include 'The Cards of the Gambler' (1953), 'Dogs Enjoy the Morning' (1968), 'Proxopera' (1977) and 'Nothing Happens in Carmincross' (1985). His short story collections included 'A Journey to the Seven Streams' (1963), 'A Ball of Malt and Madame Butterfly' (1973), 'A Cow in the House' (1978) and 'A Letter to Peachtree' (1987). Two memoirs - 'Drink to the Bird: An Omagh Boyhood' (1992), and 'The Waves Behind Us' (1999) – recalled his early life growing up in Tyrone. In 1964, moved to the USA, taking up posts as writer in residence and lecturer in a number of Ivy League colleges. In 1968 he returned to Dublin to concentrate on his writing and broadcasting career, most notably on the RTE Radio 1 programme, Sunday Miscellany. Ben Kiely was elected Saoi of Aosdána, the h