Time was when the launch of commemorative stamps by An Post was done with considerable fanfare. But these days it seems that they believe good work is best done by stealth, as the launching last week of stamps to mark the Centenary of the death of Erskine Childers was slipped so far under the radar as to be almost invisible.
But global circumnavigator and former GP14 world standard sailor Pat Murphy (79), who continues to cruise each summer while spending his time ashore between County Roscommon and Dublin, is as sharp as ever. He noted the new issue was coming down the line, and on the very day, November 24th, he took himself to the local post office and posted several featuring Asgard and Childers, including one to himself just to be sure to be sure. It's the first time he has ever done such a thing, he says, but as a lifelong Erskine Childers enthusiast, he reckons it couldn't have been in a more appropriate cause.
Pat Murphy's 40ft world-girdling Aldebaran berthed in Dubin Port. Photo: W M Nixon
