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IS THERE a more treasured Irish songwriter than Christy Moore? That’s a rhetorical question, of course, because in the past 50 years to so, between the jigs of Planxty, the reels of the Bothy Band, the numerous solo albums and countless gigs, Moore has carved out a place for him and his songs that is forever golden. His new album, A Terrible Beauty, continues mining the seam … [Read more...] about ON THE RECORD: New Irish music releases you need to hear

ONE of the peculiarities of the Irish electoral system is that you can see exactly how many people in your area fully align with your politics. In the proportional representation system we use, each constituency returns a number of TDs and they are elected both by those who have given them their first preference and those who have given them their second, third, fourth and on … [Read more...] about The value of voting in an era of apathy

This Friday in Zurich, Ireland will learn who they will face in their World Cup qualification group. The formats of UEFA and FIFA's tournaments can be confusing, so here's a simple breakdown of how things work. The New World Cup FormatThe old World Cup format pitted 32 teams into eight groups of four and onto the knockout rounds. For the 2026 tournament, it expands to 48 … [Read more...] about A simplified explanation of how Ireland can make the 2026 World Cup

A FORMER Chief Fire Officer for Northern Ireland was jailed today for sexual offences against an underage girl. Gary Thompson, of Rogan Wood in Newtownabbey, Co. Antrim was sentenced today for two counts of indecent assault against a now 33-year-old woman who was only 15 when the abuse occurred between June and November 2006. The court heard that Thompson met his victim through … [Read more...] about Victim waives anonymity as former Northern Ireland fire chief jailed for sexual abuse

GARDAÍ investigating the murder of eight-year-old Kyran Durnin have arrested a man in connection with the case. The man has been arrested “on suspicion of murder” gardaí confirmed in a statement this morning. He is being held at a Garda station in the east of the country, they added. The police force has also begun searches at two houses in Drogheda, Co. Louth. Kyran was … [Read more...] about Man arrested on suspicion of Kyran Durnin’s murder as two homes searched