RTÉ broadcaster David McCullagh will deliver the oration at this year’s Michael Collins commemoration at Béal na Bláth on Sunday August 23rd, writes Kieran O’Mahony.

This year’s ceremony marks the 104th anniversary of the death of Michael Collins, who was shot dead during an ambush on August 22nd 1922

The presenter of ‘Today with David McCullagh’ on RTÉ Radio1 has a PhD in politics and is an author of six books.

He said: ‘There are many different aspects to the life and career of Michael Collins: military organiser, intelligence chief, financial mastermind. But circumstances also turned him into a diplomat, a negotiator and a constitutional craftsman who played a key role, not just in the establishment of an independent Irish state, but in the evolution of Britain’s Empire into a Commonwealth,’ he said.

‘As Ireland faces an increasingly turbulent international environment, it is timely to reflect on that legacy and I am looking forward to speaking at this year’s commemoration.’