A Symposium in Honour of Dr Deirdre McMahon

About

This symposium, co-organised by the Department of History at MIC and Professor Eunan O'Halpin (Emeritus Professor of Contemporary Irish History, Trinity College Dublin) is held in honour of our late colleague, Dr Deirdre McMahon.

Deirdre taught History at MIC for more than three decades, retiring in 2017. She passed away in February 2026. This event brings together Deirdre’s friends and colleagues to deliver papers on recent research on themes and topics that related to her own scholarship - including Irish foreign affairs, Anglo-Irish relations, empire, Commonwealth, and archives. It also provides an opportunity to remember and reflect on Deirdre's seminal contributions as a historian, researcher, and teacher.

When: Saturday 31 October 2026
Where: The Long Room Hub, Trinity College Dublin

A light lunch will be provided.

Please register as the link below. There is no registration fee to attend.

Contact

Dr Brian Hughes

Brian.Hughes@mic.ul.ie

Programme

Event Programme
10am - 10.30am: Registration, Tea/Coffee
10.30am - 10.45am: Welcome Address, Dr Brian Hughes (MIC)
10.45am - 12pm: Panel 1 - Irish Foreign Policy and Anglo-Irish Relations (Chair: Prof Eunan O’Halpin) Prof. Margaret O’Callaghan (QUB) - Title TBC Prof. Bernadette Whelan (UL) - The American Propaganda Front in the Anglo-Irish Economic War, 1932-8 Dr Michael Kennedy (RIA) - The Pye No. 1 Mk1 Set": a tale of second world war British-Irish reverse-engineering
12pm - 1pm: Lunch
1pm - 2.15pm: Panel 2 - Ireland, Empire, and Commonwealth (Chair: Prof Anne Dolan) Prof. Eunan O’Halpin (TCD) - I feel I am Better Known in India & the East: Dan Breen on Cold War geopolitics Prof. Diarmaid Ferriter (UCD) - Title TBC Dr Seán Gannon (MIC) - The Irish Soldier in the Empire, 1922-1960
2.15pm - 3pm: Panel 3: Archives Roundtable (Chair: TBC) Kate Manning and Kerry Holland (UCD Archives) and Ellen O’Flaherty (TCD Manuscripts and Archives)
3pm - 3.45pm: Panel 4 - Deirdre McMahon as a Colleague and Mentor (Chair: Dr Brian Hughes) Liam Irwin (MIC) - He would have her shot by 1925: Memories, Anecdotes and Appreciation of Deirdre Dr Úna Ní Bhroiméil (MIC) - Black Swan - Deirdre McMahon: Our Esteemed Colleague Dr Ian d’Alton (TCD) - Deirdre McMahon - an Inspiring Encourager and Mentor
3.45pm - 4pm: Break
4pm - 5pm: Keynote, Dr Maura Cronin (MIC), ‘Deirdre McMahon: Historian, Teacher, Friend.’ (Chair: Dr Liam Chambers)