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Steohen Donnelly

PROFILE: STEPHEN DONNELLY

Date: October 22, 2020 - Pillars of Society

STEPHEN DONNELLY is a unifying force in Irish politics in that he manages to unite government and opposition politicians as well as many political journalists in almost universal dislike of him. Normally this would be a bad place for any minister to be. That it has happened just three months into his role as health… Read more »

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Tara Gilsenan

YOUNG BLOOD: TARA GILSENAN

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Young Bloods

POLITICAL LEADERSHIP is tough but it’s especially tough at the head of a responsible moderate political party trying to keep his youth wing in check. As Éamon Ryan fights to stamp his authority (and control) over a party in which a sizable minority reject his political strategy, the most enthusiastic challengers are coming from the… Read more »

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Paul Gallagher

IAN BAILEY AND THE ATTORNEY GENERAL

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

ATTORNEY GENERAL, Paul Gallagher has crossed Ian Bailey several times since the garda tried to pin the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier on him 24 years ago. He will be more curious than most at the final outcome of the French effort to extradite Bailey. Gallagher was referred to in the media as being… Read more »

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Denis O'Brien

DINNY’S AUSSIE DEAL

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

THE ONGOING High Court jousting concerning former Independent News and Media (INM) chairman Leslie Buckley has cast a spotlight on that strange deal involving the sale of the media group’s valuable stake in an Australasian media company, APN. (Separately, the inspectors have also written to the former INM board members asking them if material passed… Read more »

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Regina Doherty

REGINA TO OUST FARRELL IN FINGAL

Date: October 22, 2020 - Last Refuge

“I CAN’T wait to get stuck in and do my best to fight for Fingal alongside Alan (Farrell),” said former minister, Regina Doherty, who has moved to Dublin Fingal after losing her seat in Meath East at the general election. Most Fine Gael members believe that soundbyte should read, “get stuck in and fight Alan… Read more »

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The Old Vicarage

PETER STAPLETON’S PRICE CUT

Date: October 22, 2020 - High Society

TOP REAL estate player Peter Stapleton has knocked a few bob off the asking price for his granite-clad ‘Old Vicarage’ Blackrock, Co Dublin. Happily the property (which featured prominently in the Irish Times back in February) got its second nationwide gushing write-up (this time in the Sunday Times). This level of promotion is, of course,… Read more »

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Brendan Duke Adrian Murray Mick Bailey

AIDAN O’BRIEN’S MIX UP

Date: October 22, 2020 - Sport of Kings

THERE WERE red faces in the Ballydoyle camp after it emerged that Aidan O’Brien’s two runners in the prestigious Group 1 Fillies Mile at Newmarket were saddled up incorrectly by Ballydoyle staff. Mother Earth listed in the race card as number five, was saddled with the number nine saddlecloth of her stable-mate Snowfall. This led… Read more »

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Vol 38 No 21

Date: October 22, 2020 -

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article-default

FERGAL KEANE’S PPE CONTACTS

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

WITH NO sign of Covid-19 going away any time soon it, the state will be spending big on personal protection equipment (PPE) for some time to come. It doesn’t look like we will be getting too many bargains though. The HSE has just published a document – Winter Planning within the Covid-19 Pandemic – which… Read more »

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Michael McNamara

McNAMARA’S NEW BAND WAGGON

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

IT MIGHT be temporary, but the public mood is in favour of stern government measures against Covid, although that does not seem to deter Nphet sceptic, Michael McNamara TD. Former Labour, now Independent TD, McNamara chaired the Special Committee on Covid-19 Response for several months and he did so efficiently and with élan. But he… Read more »

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Judge Robert Haughton

WEE CARE’S BIG BUCKS

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

NO DOUBT the suits at RTÉ paid particular interest to a Court of Appeal ruling rejecting the unusual request by a most profitable crèche operation to have its accounts ‘censored’ by the Companies Office. The Northern Ireland-based pair behind Wee Care nurseries – Ian and Mary Elizabeth Buchanan – have been raking in the green… Read more »

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Stephen Rae

FLANAGAN’S CRYING GAME

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

NEWSTALK SHOWED great alacrity in interviewing former justice minister, Charlie ‘BlackandTanagain’ Flanagan about his attack on Unquiet Graves, the documentary about collusion (was Newstalk’s enthusiasm simply down to it being broadcast by rival station RTE?). But such enthusiasm was not reciprocated by the station which failed to even respond to those associated with the documentary…. Read more »

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Boris Johnson

MORE LICENSE TO KILL

Date: October 22, 2020 - Hush Hush

THE NEW and even more aggressive agent-handling legislation about to be passed in Great Britain has major implications for Ireland MI5 agents and UK Special Branch spies are active in all parts of Ireland due to the UK spook view of Ireland as a ‘domestic’ region. At the same time, Garda Special Branch has always… Read more »

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HushHush-def

GONZAGA BLACKOUT

Date: October 22, 2020 - Hush Hush

ONLY THAT uncouth, insensitive tabloid, the The Sun, reported that the former principal of Gonzaga College, Patrick Potts — the first non-Jesuit to occupy the Post — who died recently was about to appear in court on several charges of indecent assault against schoolboys. The Sun reported that the charges relate to a period before… Read more »

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Laura Whitmore

THE HOT AIR BRIGADE

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Hot Air Brigade

I can have a laugh. And then I can talk about feminism. But I can also get covered in shit by Keith Lemon if I want to, because I’m multifaceted and I’ve got many different parts to me. Laura Whitmore, VIP Magazine, submitted by reader But the backdrop for the 2020 All-Ireland championship is like… Read more »

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Lorna Bogue

WEAK CLIMATE BILL

Date: October 22, 2020 - Fowl Emissions

Earlier this year, the Green Party fought a running battle with its internal dissenters when pushing through its endorsement of the Programme for Government. After all, this is a climate emergency, so the party decided it was worth the risk to be at the Cabinet table in order to shepherd home the strongest possible climate… Read more »

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Climate Disinformation Coillte Climate Action EU Livestock NDC Claude Etchelamendy Ed Brophy Richard Boyd-Barrett Kish Dale Crammond Frank Mitloehner Shell Greenwashing Meta Data Centres Ireland

RTÉ’S NEW SPONSOR

Date: October 22, 2020 - Fowl Emissions

These are tough times for broadcasters, with advertising revenue hard to come by. However, there was still a sharp intake of breath at the news that RTÉ had agreed a 12-month sponsorship deal for its flagship radio show ‘Countrywide’ with the Irish Farmers Journal. This may well be a first for RTÉ in accepting sponsorship… Read more »

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Hazel Chu

GREEN STRIFE CONTINUES

Date: October 22, 2020 - Last Refuge

GREEN PARTY chairperson and Dublin Lord Mayor, Hazel Chu’s casual remark, “You can never rule these things out,” when asked if she might join the Social Democrats underlines the ongoing stand-off inside the party. A little-noticed reference to bullying inside the Greens surfaced at their recent convention and it was also raised during the leadership… Read more »

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Bog-Cuttings-Defaul

BOG CUTTINGS

Date: October 22, 2020 - Bog Cuttings

“Little Nobody” A garda sergeant was verbally abused by a motorist in Cork city when he told him not to park on double yellow lines. Sergeant Mark Keating told Cork District Court that he noticed a Renault Kangoo van parked illegally, and when he approached the driver he was told to “fuck off”. Keating added… Read more »

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Ian Bailey

IAN BAILEY AND THE MEDIA

Date: October 22, 2020 - Fit to Print?

MEDIA COVERAGE of the garda’s strenuous efforts to put Ian Bailey in the frame for Sophie Toscan du Plantier’s murder in 1996 initially relied on garda briefings which were faithfully regurgitated by crime hacks. This modified as time passed and more facts emerged but recent coverage of the French extradition warrant for Bailey (rejected by… Read more »

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Diageo Dana An Garda Síochána IT Trust No Stone Unturned Irish Times Black Friday Vicky Conway

IRISH TIMES ETHICS

Date: October 22, 2020 - Fit to Print?

A CLASSIC Irish Times device was deployed last week when the paper of record published a full page advertisement promoting herd immunity and the simultaneous protection of the vulnerable. The advert (at a cost of nearly €20,000) was paid for by Dubliner, John Moore, a tech multi-millionaire who earned €24m when he sold his company,… Read more »

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Mike Cubbard

PROTESTER UNMASKED

Date: October 22, 2020 - Fit to Print?

GALWAY BAY FM received a flood of complaints following a 19-minute interview-cum-debate with Darragh O’Flaherty, a far-right warrior with anti-immigrant views. The interview followed a recent “anti-mask” protest in the city. Electoral success has so far evaded O’Flaherty, who came 15th out of 15 candidates in Galway West at last February’s general election, similar to… Read more »

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Catherine Martin

JOHN GORMLEY’S NEXT ROLE?

Date: October 22, 2020 - Behind the Scenes

AT LONG last, culture minister Catherine Martin has advertised the board vacancies left unfilled since March at Desiree Finnegan’s Screen Ireland (SI). Indeed, Martin has gone one further, advertising four seats, including that of the chair, which is filled until next year by Annie Doona. It will be interesting to see the gender breakdown of the… Read more »

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Susan Bergin Marlowe Mullingar Film Studio RTÉ Self-Employment

RAAP RAPPED

Date: October 22, 2020 - Behind the Scenes

THERE WAS an interesting little ruling published last week linked to the bitter dispute between Recorded Artists Actors Performers (RAAP) and Phonographic Performance (Ireland), who represent performing artists and the record companies respectively. They have been at odds over the slice of royalty income swallowed by the record companies, with the spat going all the… Read more »

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Lucy Kennedy

LODGING WITH LUCY – VIRGIN ONE

Date: October 22, 2020 - ReviewsTV

THE CATEGORY that Lodging With Lucy belongs in is truly the preserve of the damned: a reality series deemed surplus to requirements by RTE. Though by 2016 the programme had been on ice for years, its tabloid sensibilities were too much to resist for TV3, which reactivated the show that autumn. Virgin Media has remained… Read more »

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Consuelo O’Connor

MARTIN NAUGHTON’S MOOLAH

Date: October 22, 2020 - High Society

WHAT A coincidence that a full page advert should appear in the Sunday Times last weekend on the same days as the paper published its annual guesstimate of the net worth of the Irish moneybags. Given that Murdoch’s financial sleuths had decided to write down the worth of Martin Naughton and his family by a… Read more »

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Katherine FitzGerald

CATHERINE FITZGERALD’S GARDEN GIG

Date: October 22, 2020 - High Society

THERE WAS plenty of excited media coverage last weekend of the relationship between Dominic West and his missus, Catherine FitzGerald, following the former’s thoroughly photographed Roman Holiday with actress Lily James. Less attention was, naturally, paid to the latest annual report of the Irish Georgian Society, with which Catherine (daughter of the society’s co-founder, the… Read more »

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Brendan Duke Adrian Murray Mick Bailey

COLIN KEANE’S NEXT RIDE?

Date: October 22, 2020 - Sport of Kings

FORMER CHAMPION jockey Colin Keane’s bid to regain his title this year is providing an exciting narrative to this flat season, as he has come from a 10-winner deficit to pass main rival Shane Foley. Keane’s boss, Ger Lyons, has provided the majority of Keane’s winners but a recent development has seen the jockey brought… Read more »

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John Hanlon

SHARK ATTACKS JOCKEY

Date: October 22, 2020 - Sport of Kings

JOHN HANLON’S good season hit a hurdle last month at Listowel when one of his horses, Comporta, was deemed by the race day stewards not to have run his merits. The enquiry led Hanlon receiving a €2,000 fine, with jockey Gearoid Brouder copping a 10-day ban. The trainer has now successfully appealed the ban by… Read more »

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Charlie Gallagher

OUTSIDE ABBEY SHAREHOLDERS CONTINUE TO SUFFER

Date: October 22, 2020 - Moneybags

CHARLIE GALLAGHER continues to retain €100m cash inside Abbey plc rather than buying assets or paying it out to the shareholders by way of dividends and capital distributions. (The latter would enable the market to better rate the shares by way of dividend yield.) The Abbey strategy, and its probable impact on the share price,… Read more »

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Jim Ferry

CAULDERBANKS’ TIME EXTENSION

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Hot Water Brigade

ONE OF Donegal’s biggest waste collectors, DM Waste (DMW), has benefited from a planning decision by Donegal County Council. The decision saved some blushes at the council given that DMW had not fulfilled one of the main conditions of holding a waste collection licence and a waste facility permit – that is having valid planning… Read more »

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Deirdre Somers

DEIRDRE SOMERS’ NEW HAT

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Hot Water Brigade

GOOD TO see Deirdre Somers keeping busy since she stepped down from the top job in the Irish Stock Exchange, but her appointment to a British company called Aquis Exchange caught Goldhawk’s eyebrow. Somers has taken her time to leap back into the corporate world, following since her departure from Anglesea Street in late 2018…. Read more »

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Butlers townhouse

BYE BYE BUTLER’S

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Hot Water Brigade

THE BUSINESS casualties of Covid-19 continue to pile up and it turns out even the backing of assorted Chinese millionaires won’t save the day. Butlers Townhouse on Lansdowne Road, D4 had been in operation for nearly 25 years when the pandemic struck. It has been owned since 2014 by a company called Butlers Hospitality Ltd,… Read more »

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Dermot Smurfit

DERMOT SMURFIT’S ‘NEXT STAGE’

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Hot Water Brigade

IT’S BEEN a tough few months for the shareholders of GAN, Dermot Smurfit’s internet gambling company, and the Smurfits are busy putting on the gloss. Fans of Goldhawk will recall that in March 2019 GAN’s mounting losses had triggered an internal review about a potential sale of the business. Instead, they went for a listing on… Read more »

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Castleknock Hospitality BAL Susan Bergin Tixserve EOG Fergal Naughton hot-water-brigade def

PALMARIANS’ PLANNING PROBLEM

Date: October 22, 2020 - The Hot Water Brigade

There was mixed news in Lusk, Co Dublin, for His Holiness Pope Peter III – to the initiated, Markus Josef Odermatt – in his battle to build a church for the roughly 140 members of the publicity-shy Palmarian church here in Ireland. Odermatt claims to be a descendant of the austere hermit Saint Nicholas of Flüe,… Read more »

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article-default

GOODBYE GIRLCREW

Date: October 22, 2020 - Affairs of the Nation

SO FAREWELL then GirlCrew, whose female-focused networking app never gained the traction required to become a big player in the social media maelstrom. The trio behind GirlCrew are Pamela Newenham, Elva Carri and Áine Mulloy. Essentially, their app put women who wanted to go to a gig or bar (or, er, to train for a… Read more »

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