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OPINION polls suggest the SDLP is in for a tough election on May 5 but then little is certain any more for what might be termed Stormont’s old guard. ....
Colum Eastwood, of the SDLP, chipped in early with a quote on Twitter from Heaney’s line about his passport being green, no toast in his family ever having been raised to the Queen. Heaney wrote those lines in mockery of his inclusion in the 1982 Penguin Book of British Poetry. Britain too often claims the Irish as their own when they are doing well. And in line with that disinclination to take royal honours though the offer must have been considered he did not get a CBE, like his friend Michael Longley. His friends now call him “Commander Longley”. There was immediate umbrage on Twitter after Eastwood’s comment. It was seen as ungracious and raking up the past. ....
Heaney wasn't an ideologue for any cause, so co-opting him into NI centenary celebrations was always going to be a problem belfasttelegraph.co.uk - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from belfasttelegraph.co.uk Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.