MY CULTURAL LIFE
Louise McSharry is a radio presenter and writer from Dublin, where she lives with her husband and two sons. She writes about beauty in addition to personal essays, and has a passion for trashy television. She played the cello from the age of nine to 16 but has retained absolutely none of the skills. You can hear her on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 9-11am on 2fm.
Movie: Little Women
I don’t often get to watch a film without falling asleep these days thanks to my baby and toddler, but I did manage to grab a couple of hours to see Greta Gerwig’s Little Women.
I already loved the story, and I was delighted to see brilliant performances and absolutely gorgeous costumes. It’s a real treat.
Music: Wild Rover
I’m currently loving Lankum’s recording of Wild Rover, which I like to listen to very loudly while in the car on my own. It builds magnificently and makes me feel alive. The band discovered that the song was originally an English antidrinking temperance song rather than the drinking anthem most of us would have known it as, so their version is a bit of a revelation.
Author: Delia Owens
I recently read her Where the Crawdads Sing.
I love books which introduce me to a world I’m totally unfamiliar with, so I really enjoyed becoming immersed in life on a marsh on the North Carolina coast.
Designer: Natalie Coleman
I love Natalie Coleman’s work. Her pieces are absolutely beautiful and make women look powerful. I really admire the fact that she incorporates Irish textiles and Irish textile makers into her creations, and in her collaboration with the United Nations Population Fund made Carrickmacross Lace a key feature.
Artist: Chloe Early
I love Chloe Early’s work, a few years ago I bought a print of her piece Compass and I absolutely adore it. It was my first reasonably big art purchase, made on an absolute whim, and felt like a turning point in me giving myself permission to spend money on art.
TV: The Virtues
I don’t know if I’ve ever seen anything better on TV than last year’s Channel 4 series The Virtues.
It is about a desperate man returning to Ireland to try to get to the bottom of a past which haunts him. It is intense viewing, and the subject matter is heavy, but the performances are absolutely superb. The bulk of the series is set in Ireland, we really do produce incredible talent on this island.