Author Paul McVeigh: ‘In Belfast, you go on a bad date and after that you bump into them every time you go out’
The writer on his new story collection, I Hear You; how Belfast informs his writing; and the importance of humour in his work
BBC
The Samantha Cookes story: Inside the mind of a pathological liar
Living in Ireland for a decade, the compulsive liar - now in prison for social welfare fraud - deceived almost everyone she met
Blank-tape bliss can never be repeated
In the media industry, as on video cassettes, there is vivid colour, but no lifetime guarantee
Katherine Ryan: ‘It’s always disarming for people that I just say what I think’
The Irish-Canadian comedian on openness and emigration, expanding her family and why being the only one with a microphone is ‘a very alpha role’
Moving to New Zealand may not be enough to avoid Donald Trump
Watching the US president is like ‘watching a car crash over and over and over’, says director James Cameron. And yet much of the current security crisis had, until Friday, been weirdly ignorable for other reasons
Daily Mail owner Lord Rothermere in a spot of bother with his Dublin tenants
Plus: Marc MacSharry will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree; Sammy Wilson’s silence; and Henry Kelly’s political allegiance
TV guide: the best new shows to watch, starting tonight
March 2nd-7th, including Towards Zero, The Academy Awards, The Skinny Jab Revolution and Réaltaí na Gaeltachta
Chocolate brownies: I’ve consulted Nigella Lawson, Nigel Slater and others – this is the best recipe
Chef Beth O’Brien draws from the best of recipes to create this take on a kitchen favourite
Jamie Dornan: ‘I lost my mom, and I lost four of my best friends in an accident. I had a difficult few years’
One of Ireland’s best known actors, Jamie Dornan is hatching plans for a more varied future in the film world
US objects to calling out ‘Russian aggression’ in G7 statement on Ukraine
Trump administration splits with allies on holding Moscow responsible for war
BBC presenter steps down after early-onset Alzheimer’s diagnosis
Forsyth's career of more than 30 years has included presenting shows on BBC Radio Scotland, Radio Three and Radio Four
EastEnders at 40: How the BBC wants to keep its infamous ‘Oirish’ episodes hidden
Who can forget the depiction of a grim, resentful, booze-fuelled hellscape peppered with donkeys
Composer Ailís Ní Ríain: ‘Because I’m not bringing full hearing to any situation, I rely on other tools’
The musician, who is deaf/hard of hearing, talks about her latest work, The Land Grows Weary of its Own, which has its Irish premiere this month
More sex, please: Bridget Jones, Colin Firth and the astonishing rebranding of Jane Austen
Thirty years ago, one event made Austen more popular than almost any other contemporary or close successor
Seán Moncrieff’s on-air persona cracks, and a dishwasher meltdown follows
Radio: Newstalk host Seán Moncrieff is at his best when discussing niche subjects that allow stimulating digressions
Amandaland review: Sharon Horgan comedy spin-off stands firmly on its own two feet
Television: Series sees Motherland’s obviously posh mum Amanda return as she juggles parenting with a career as an influencer
Fungus-infected ‘zombie spiders’ found in caves are unique to Ireland
The Last of Us television series is driving amazing interest in the story, says cave explorer
BBC World Service: China and Russia target Britain’s ‘soft power’ tool
The BBC World Service is viewed as a critical British asset in the global information war
The Apprentice: Irish contestants feature in new season but how long can the show keep going?
Television: Aoibheann Walsh, who is from Donegal, and Jordan Dargan, a Dubliner, are among the 18 candidates on Alan Sugar’s The Apprentice
Russell Brand: BBC apologises after staff felt ‘unable to raise’ complaints about presenter
Four women accused actor and comedian of sexual assaults between 2006 and 2013, which he denies
‘I’m appalled we’re going through senseless anti-Semitism again,’ says survivor of Auschwitz women’s orchestra
Television: On Holocaust Remembrance Day, powerful BBC documentary The Last Musician of Auschwitz tells the remarkable story of 99-year-old cellist Anita Lasker-Wallfisch
Amandaland, Sharon Horgan’s new TV show, to air on BBC
Fans of Horgan’s Motherland can look forward to the spin-off which follows Lucy Punch’s character
On Beast Games, MrBeast gives away islands. This will be familiar to the Irish as ‘colonialism’
There is no rhyme or reason to success or failure on Prime Video’s gameshow. MrBeast’s message for our children seems to be that life is arbitrary chaos
‘You sound sexy’ – Caitríona Perry brushes off Kid Rock’s flirtation on live TV
Former RTÉ anchor was interviewing musician on BBC as part of Donald Trump inauguration coverage
Video Nasty review: cheeky all-too-rare drama that shows 1980s Ireland like it really was
Television: Series follows Dublin teenagers seeking to complete their collection of banned VHS movies
Chris Packham: ‘I was a very angry young man, confused because of my undiagnosed autism. It had an enormous impact on my life’
British environmentalist and BBC presenter Chris Packham on battling to save the planet, standing up to his enemies, and how his autism made him hate himself
The Traitors makes no sense. Its logic is flimsy, its flaws obvious. So why do I happily yell through three episodes a week?
Claudia Winkleman’s smash reality show is an effective analogy for the Sisyphean pointlessness of existence. But the contestants can’t say that, obviously
Gabby Logan, Kelly Cates and Mark Chapman to host Match of the Day
Trio to share presenting duties on football highlights show, which celebrated its 60th anniversary last year
Silent Witness review: Cosy crime drama delivers plenty of killer blows
Television: Back for a murderously enthusiastic 28th season, Silent Witness brings a jot of bloody consistency to an unpredictable world
Mike Leigh: ‘I did a film in Northern Ireland about Catholics and Protestants. I did a play about Jews. To me it’s about people’
Hard Truths is as moving and acute a film as the 82-year-old has ever made. The director talks about rejection, vindication and never changing his approach to movie-making
Sanewashing by the media helps absurdity and extremism flourish
News outlets may have a structural bias towards the rational over the mind-bendingly nonsensical. In 2025, that’s not ideal
TV guide: the best new shows to watch, starting tonight
January 5th-10th – including Dancing with the Stars, Michael Lynn: The Fugitive and Neven’s Portuguese Food Trails
Glastonbury 2025: Neil Young confirms he will play festival after ‘error in information’ led him to pull out
Earlier this week Young backed out of the festival claiming it was ‘under corporate control’ of the BBC
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