Model and socialite Katy French remained in a seriously ill condition in hospital last night, following her collapse at a house party in Co Meath in the early hours of Sunday morning.
French, who recently celebrated her 24th birthday, has been in a serious condition at Our Lady's Hospital, Navan, since she was taken there by ambulance.
It is understood she has not regained consciousness since she collapsed at the party in Ashbourne, Co Meath.
There were reports French had been placed in an intensive care unit, although a hospital spokeswoman could not confirm this yesterday. She was also unable to say what had caused the illness, while friends of Ms French declined to speculate as to what had happened.
In a statement released last night, the Health Service Executive simply confirmed that Ms French "remains seriously ill at Our Lady's Hospital, Navan".
French is well known for her outspoken views on issues such as abortion and cocaine use, having admitted in a recent interview to having taken cocaine. She also came to prominence after taking part in RTÉ's recent Celebrities Go Wild programme.
Friends of the model, including former Miss Ireland Andrea Roche, and French's former fiance, restaurateur Marcus Sweeney, have visited the hospital in recent days to offer support to her family. Her parents, John and Janet, and her sister, Jill, were also understood to have been keeping a vigil at her bedside throughout yesterday. About a dozen TV and print journalists and photographers waited outside the hospital for news of the model's condition last night.
Kerry county councillor Michael Healy-Rae (Independent), who appeared with French on Celebrities Go Wild, described how she was "full of life" at her 24th birthday party last week.
"She was in great form at the party and full of life and her mother was in great form and everybody just had a great time," he said. "Now we're all rooting for her."