Working for the paper satisfied my curiosity for the Northside

I WAS destined to write for the Northside People long before it made its debut in homes across Dublin.

It was through Southside, which was later to become its sister paper, that I learned of the existence of a North-South divide in Dublin – and that I lived in the

‘posh’ part. It made me very curious about the other side of the city, and, years later, I jumped at the chance to indulge my nosiness as a reporter for the Northside People.

I had begun working for the Dublin People Group of Newspapers while I was still at school and have had an on/off career with them ever since. There has never been a dull moment.

Former Southside People editor Ken Finlay was one of the first to give me a break. He taught me to check facts rigorously; to keep my notebooks for at least six years in case I needed them in court; to type straight from my notes instead of laboriously transcribing them first; and, above all, to be fair and thorough in my reporting.

His successor Neil Fetherston has kept the tradition of excellent journalism alive and is now a best-selling author. I work for the Sunday World now, but I’ve never forgotten my time with Northside People.

?¢ Geraldine Comiskey is a Sunday World journalist