Stereotypes and other Shenanigans

[shiftcontrol@nml.guardian.co.uk (Shift Control)]

Ireland. The land of the little people; the Emerald Isle of Yeatsian
yearning and pastoral simplicity; a Celtic oasis free from the madness of
modern life. As if.

This week we present the Oirish issue of Shift Control, inspired not so
much by St Patrick's Day as by the clich�s enveloping it.

Our Hibernian hypertour starts with a look at 10 Legends of Blarneyland, an
examination of  fables and stereotypes that takes the 'pub' out of
'Republic' and identifies the myths in the mist. Following this, Connor
O'Conn, one of the great Conns of Irish letters, casts his sceptical eye
over 10 Irish literary masterpieces. And in Shamrock 'n' Roll Nicholas
Allen tunes his ear to Irish contributions to the world of pop music, from
Daniel O'Donnell to Boyzone.

Our quiz this week asks how wild you are about Wilde, and in Around the
Word we bung 'Cork' into the search engines.

Also this week: a man gets high on skis, hygiene-freaks get a mouthful of
foam, Kate Spicer gets drunk, and you get a chance to win books, CDs, fame,
and �200.

And finally Freebee, our animated bee and pop historian, presents a new
chapter of his memoirs and lets you send another animated online postcard.

It's all yours, it's all free, and it's all at
http://www.shiftcontrol.com

Cheers,

The Shift Control Team

Shift Control is produced by the Guardian's New Media Lab with help from
Boddingtons and Stella Artois Dry