24th June 2007

FATHER JOHN LEADS BELFAST RETREAT

John Glynn flies out from London Stansted Airport today, to the Province of Northern Ireland.   The Bishop of Down & Connor invited Father John to lead a retreat for some 27 Catholic Priests and 3 Bishops from Belfast and surrounding areas during the course of this week.   Many of these priests had ministered to their parishes during the bombings and killlings that blighted the province for over thirty years, known as "The Troubles".   Fr John will lead them through four days of prayer and reflection, and no doubt the occasional song.  

Catholics and Protestants had been divided in the area for centuries.   When the Republic of Ireland was granted independence from Britain early in the 20th Century, the six counties of Ulster were kept by the UK at the behest of the majority Protestant population.   Most Protestants were Unionists by politics and most Catholics were Republicans.   A political settlement was reached in 2007 whereby a Protestant Unionist was appointed First Minister of Northern Ireland and a Catholic Republican his Deputy.   There is a great hunger for peace and tranquility in Northern Ireland that led to the British and Irish Prime Ministers working hard to achieve peace in recent years.

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24th June 2007
LIVE CONCERT SUCCESS AT FAREHAM

John Glynn & Aquila performed at the Catholic Church in   Fareham, on 13th May 2007
John Glynn and Aquila appeared in concert at Fareham in the english county of Hampshire.   Mandy Harman, Charlotte Canale, Jim & Fran McEvoy with Christine & Clive Thomas joined Father John and sang SONGS FROM "OPEN THE DOOR" & "MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU".     Nearly 100 parishioners arrived after Sunday evening mass, to enjoy the musicand sing along with the choruses they knew.   Between each song, John Glynn told the story of his songs and the path of his songwriting mission.   An interval collection raised funds for Fareham Parish music events and audience members bought over 50 CDs and song books.

John Glynn & Aquila photographs © Clive Thomas 2006. Top left - Fran and Jim McEvoy; top right -Father John; bottom left -Charlotte Canale; bottom right-Mandy Harman.

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11th May 2007
JOHN GLYNN PERFORMS DUC IN ALTUM AT BRENTWOOD CATHEDRAL EVENT

The closing hymn at the Brentwood Diocesan Pastoral Council Plenary meeting on Saturday 12th May, will be Duc In Altum.   It will be performed by its composer, John Glynn, in duet with Brentwood Ursuline scool student, Sian Thomas, accompanied by Aquila's Christine Thomas.   John Glynn and Aquila travel to Fareham the following day for a concert of songs from Open The Door and May The Lord Bless You.

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14th January 2007
JOHN GLYNN ON BBC ESSEX
Father John reviewed the Sunday newspapers on this morning's edition of Sunday Breakfast on BBC Essex.  The programme also featured an interview about his new album, OPEN THE DOOR, and the BBC station for the county of Essex played SOFTLY SLEEPING, a track from the album sung by Fran McEvoy.

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2nd January 2007
JOHN GLYNN'S YOUNGEST FAN
Three-year-old Dominic Kwan (of Father John's Parish) was travelling in the car with his parents and older twin sisters when he suddenly yelled at his mother (who was driving): "Open the door!"  Startled, and afraid he was going to jump out, his mother stopped the car to find him pointing, not at the door, but at the CD player.  "Open the door! Open the door!"  Only when the CD Open the door was playing did he settle down.  Such fine musical taste at such young age!

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9th December 2006

John Glynn & Aquila Concert Collection reaches £210 for Catholic Children's Society (Brentwood)
John Glynn and Aquila sang SONGS FROM "OPEN THE DOOR" & "MAY THE LORD BLESS YOU" on Saturday 9^th December 2006 7.30 pm at Our Lady of Good Counsel, London Road, Wickford, in Essex, Father John's Parish Church.  ADMISSION WAS FREE, THERE WERE  FREE REFRESHMENTS AND A COLLECTION FOR BRENTWOOD CATHOLIC CHIDREN'S SOCIETY, WHICH RAISED £210.  MANY IN THE AUDIENCE BOUGHT CD'S AFTER THE CONCERT.

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CHRIS BARD'S RADIO DOCUMENTARY ON FATHER JOHN’S MOST FAMOUS SONG, "I WATCH THE SUNRISE" was on BBC Essex on Good Friday at 6pm and featured Father John, Daniel O'Donnell, Eileen Greaves of the Sacred Heart Choir [Southend] from the 1960s, Joan McCrimmon, Kevin Mayhew, and the Brentwood Diocese's Director of Music, Andrew Wright.     BBC Essex will put the programme on www.bbc.co.uk/essex in due course. A full description of the story behind the song will appear on a new web page here at johnglynn.org in the near future.

FOLLOWING HIS CONTROVERSIAL STATEMENT, AT A PROTEST MEETING,   ON SATURDAY THAT "IF THERE IS AN EVICTION [OF THE TRAVELLERS] AT DALE FARM YOU CAN BE ASSURED I WILL BE THERE WAVING MY 'THIS IS ETHNIC CLEANSING' BANNER' ", FATHER JOHN GLYNN APPEARED LIVE ON BBC TV LONDON NEWS LAST NIGHT.   HIS STATEMENT WAS CONDEMNED BY WICKFORD COUNCILLOR AND BASILDON COUNCIL LEADER, MALCOLM BUCKLEY.   EARLIER IN THE DAY, TRAVELLERS FROM THE HOVEFIELDS SITE IN WICKFORD WON THE BACKING OF A COURT DECISION THAT THEY COULD NOT BE EVICTED UNTIL THEY HAD EXHAUSTED ALL THE APPEALS THEY WERE ENTITLED TO MAKE LEGALLY. CLICK ON THE PRESS PAGE OF THIS WEBSITE TO SEE THE ECHO NEWSPAPER COVERAGE OF THE PROTEST.

12^TH   JANUARY   2006
PAYPAL ONLINE PAYMENTS FOR CD's & SONGBOOKS PROVING POPULAR

ORDERS CONTINUE TO FLOW INTO johnglynn.org ON A DAILY BASIS   FOLLOWING THE INTRODUCTION OF   PAYMENT VIA PAYPAL.   CUSTOMERS AS FAR APART AS NORFOLK, CARDIFF AND THE ISLE OF WIGHT   HAVE PLACED   ORDERS ONLINE AND SUBMITED THEIR E-MAIL ADDRESSES TO ARRANGE PAYMENT.   AN ELECTRONIC INVOICE WAS THEN SENT BACK TO EACH CUSTOMER WITH THE FACILITY TO PAY BY CREDIT OR DEBIT CARD.   NEW CUSTOMERS CAN JUST   CLICK ON CD ORDER FORM ON THE WELCOME PAGE MENU AND FILL IN THE DETAILS OF THEIR ORDER!

14^TH   DECEMBER 2005
CD   RELEASE HITS THE HEADLINES

A FULL PAGE ARTICLE ON FATHER JOHN GLYNN'S CD RELEASE APPEARED ON PAGE 3 OF YESTERDAY'S ISSUE OF THE BASILDON EVENING ECHO. UNDER THE HEADLINE "MOVE OVER MR O'DONNELL HERE COMES FATHER JOHN", KATE MCGRATH WROTE :  "IT ISN'T UNUSUAL TO MEET A SINGING PRIEST.   BUT WHEN YOU DISCOVER YOUR FRIENDLY FATHER HAS SOLD MORE THAN 4,500 ALBUMS THE TALE BECOMES A LITTLE MORE UNUSUAL...HE STARTED WRITING SONGS IN COLLEGE 35 YEARS AGO...'TO MY SURPRISE THE SONG [I WATCH THE SUNRISE]CAUGHT ON'...   DANIEL O'DONNEL HAS USED IT ON AN ALBUM."  IN FACT, WHEN DANIEL PERFORMED THE SONG AT THE BRENTWOOD CENTRE AS PART OF A NATIONWIDE TOUR, HE INTRODUCED FATHER JOHN TO THE AUDIENCE TO RECEIVE A DESERVED OVATION.   THE NEW CD HAS ALSO BEEN MENTIONED ON BBC ESSEX AND FEATURED IN   A RECENT ISSUE OF THE UNIVERSE.