The former Sunday Independent journalist Terry Keane has said she has had an affair over many years with the former Taoiseach, Charles Haughey.
She said she was sorry if his and her own family had been hurt by the fact that she and Mr Haughey had been lovers. "Sex was only a small part of it" she added. She said she and Mr Haughey would continue to love each other.
Ms Keane appeared on The Late Late Show on RTE last night to disclose the affair and publicise a series of articles on her life to be published in the Sunday Times. She plans to publish her autobiography in the autumn.
She acknowledged that the move was to pre-empt another book by two Independent Newspapers journalists, which is expected to disclose details of the affair. She said she had heard the other book would describe "a loveless relationship, punctuated by dinners and trips on yachts", but her book would tell her story. Ms Keane's revelations about her affair with Mr Haughey come as his financial affairs are being investigated by the Moriarty Tribunal.
Ms Keane said she had now left the Sunday Independent, where she was associated with the gossip column "The Keane Edge". She claimed that she had become unhappy with the column. "Although it was under my name, I did not write all of it," she said. Her relationship with Mr Haughey had begun 27 years ago, when they met at "a gathering in a night club". It had been instant attraction on both sides. They had known each other slightly: "I had not particularly liked him beforehand." But he turned out to be "larger than life" as well as attractive, strong, clever and entertaining, she said.
"I love him . I think he loved - loves - me very much," she told Gay Byrne. "But did you ever consider running away?" he asked. "No, we were both married," she replied.
She said they never talked about their respective spouses to each other. "Charlie was an old-fashioned man."
His becoming Taoiseach had added a frisson to the relationship, she added.
Asked if the affair was continuing, She said was now aged nearly 60 and Mr Haughey was 73 and they were still devoted to each other. She had lunch with him last Saturday and told him that she was going on the Late Late Show, she said.
his income tax. Some people had not hesitated to offer him money in the knowledge that this would allow him concentrate on the task of leadership.
She said her husband, Judge Ronan Keane, knew she was writing the book and was "fully supportive" of her efforts
"It's my story. It's what happened to me, not just about Charlie. It's about someone who had a child out of wedlock - and gave her away for adoption."
No spokesperson for the Government was available to comment last night. But Mr Willie O'Dea TD, Minister of State at the Department of Education and Science, said: "This was something that was widely suspected or known in political circles for a long time. The only mildly surprising element of it is that one of the people involved is prepared to speak about it publicly."
Asked if he saw any political implications, he replied: "No, I don't think so. . . Nearly everybody must heard about the rumours. Really, as far as politics is concerned, Haughey is history."