The lyrics of Come out you black and tans - now they are satirical - that sort of pissed up republican bellicosity that Joyce was talking about in the cyclops bit of Ulysses.

I don't think anybody seriously doubts the bravery of men - many of them Irish (like my Grandad) who fought in Africa or Flanders.

I notice that Kenneth Branagh (another Irishman) used Ronnie Drews exquisite reading of the song when he did the O'Casey play Shadow of a Gunman for the telly a while back. Bronagh Gallagher from The Commitments was in te programme too.