Kilkenny College is Ireland’s largest boarding school. The boarding fees at Kilkenny College were €13,150 for the 2025-2026 academic year, compared with €11,000 for the 2021/2022 year. About a third of boarding students avail of means-tested grants for Protestant families who want to attend a school of their own religious ethos. Larkin says Covid was an extremely traumatic period for the boarding school sector. There are table tennis and table football games alongside large couches in the boys’ boarding houses.

Rising costs and uncertainty in the planning system is impeding the delivery of new hotel beds, the lobby group said. Photograph: iStockHigh building costs and planning delays represent a “serious threat” to the Irish tourism sector, the Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) has warned. IHF chief executive Paul Gallagher said the “long-term success of Irish tourism depends on our ability to offer high-quality, approved accommodation across every county”, while speaking at the federation’s conference. He warned that Irish hotel operators, despite having growth ambitions, are facing “significant hurdles that make it difficult to bring new projects to fruition”. These respondents cited the gap between per-room build costs and return on investment as a major or significant barrier.

Photograph: GettyThe supply of homes to rent across the State has reached by far its lowest level in 20 years for the month of February, while national rents increased by 4.4 per cent last year, a report from Daft.ie shows. “A wave of new rental supply, in large apartment schemes, eased pressure in the capital, delivering unusually low rent inflation by recent standards. “With inflation in Dublin drifting back up towards rates seen elsewhere, Ireland’s rental market is re-synchronising – but not because conditions are improving. In the third quarter, the average monthly rent for a two-bedroom apartment in those four cities was €1,951. Market rents there are now on average 57 per cent above their pre-Covid levels and twice their Celtic Tiger peak.

Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao have been confirmed to fight in Las Vegas on September 19 at 'The Sphere' off the strip in Sin City. Mayweather, 49, is set to fight against Mike Tyson, 59, in an exhibition bout this spring. The re-match between Mayweather and Pacquiao comes over a decade after they last faced off in 2015. Mayweather beat Pacquiao by unanimous decision in that fight, which failed to live up to the hype it had received. This will be Mayweather's first professional fight since 2017, when he defeated Conor McGregor by knockout.

Soon Farrah also left before Destiny's Child would go to to become a huge success as a trio with Beyoncé, Michelle and Kelly Rowland. I had gone on tour dancing for Destiny’s Child about a year and a half prior, and that wasn’t part of the plan. Meanwhile Destiny's Child announced their disbandment in 2005 during the middle of their world tour, with lead singer Beyoncé going solo. Destiny’s Child reunite! The Destiny's Child star shared her playful reaction to Beyonce's use of the word 'algebra' in her song 1+1, during an interview with Scott Evans for his House Guest series.

Tourette’s campaigner John Davidson has said he is “deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning” after he shouted a racial slur at the Bafta Film Awards on Sunday night. In a statement to the Press Association, Davidson said he chose to leave the auditorium early as he was “aware of the distress my tics were causing”. “I appreciated the announcement to the auditorium in advance of the recording, warning everyone that my tics are involuntary and are not a reflection of my personal beliefs. Referencing this, Davidson said: “In addition to the announcement by Alan Cumming, the BBC and Bafta, I can only add that I am, and always have been deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning. It says there is no cure but treatment can help to manage the tics.

The decision to deny prostate cancer screening to the vast majority of men was based on flawed modelling and should be overruled, charities say. The UK National Screening Committee issued draft guidance in November saying the routine checks should only be offered in very limited circumstances. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, with 63,000 cases and 12,000 deaths each year - but unlike breast, bowel and lung cancer, there is currently no national screening programme. The Daily Mail is campaigning to end needless prostate cancer deaths and for a national prostate cancer screening programme, initially targeted at high risk men, such as those who are black, have a family history of the disease or particular genetic mutations. Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, comedian Stephen Fry and football world cup winner Geoff Hurst have all called for a national prostate cancer screening programme.

While Bandon Grammar School are hunting a first-ever Munster Schools Senior Cup final appearance this Wednesday, St Munchin’s can channel similar motivation. The Shannonside school are chasing their first appearance in the provincial blue-riband event since 2012. It’s been two decades now since their fifth Senior Cup was ferried back to Corbally.

‘I don’t have a lot to leave behind, but that doesn’t matter’ – writing a will when you’re in your 20sWriting a will at a younger age can provide peace of mind, even for those who don’t have many assetsAssia Buono, philanthropy and legacy officer at Focus Ireland. Photo: Gerry MooneyConor Brummell Today at 06:30Despite being an important aspect of life planning, it’s estimated that only one in three adults in Ireland has a will.

‘A well-rounded doctor is a happy one’ – Meet the physician with a side hustle in Irish supper clubsYohan Irani featured on our Go Ireland List 2026. Here, he explains how he balances medicine and supper clubsYohan IraniPól Ó Conghaile Today at 06:30“I am passionate about people pursuing side hustles, or side quests as I like to call them. Especially doctors,” says Dublin-based Yohan Irani.

An Airtasker ad pledged to pay people $100 a pop to turn up at Flinders St Station and protest against the Israeli president and his country's ongoing war in Gaza. 'Israel's genocidal PM is coming to Melbourne and our government is rolling out the red carpet for him,' the ad stated. The Melbourne protest starts at 5.30pm at Flinders St Station.' Protesters flocked to Flinders St Station to protest against Israeli president Isaac Herzog's visit Down Under. 'Just proves the whole "paid protesters" thing.

No one thought there would be a first anniversary to mark with Ukraine still largely free, let alone a quartet. And that we are on the brink of a greater disaster for which Britain is wholly unprepared. Richard Pendlebury, pictured on the eastern frontline near Pokrovsk in Ukraine, says the country is resilient and admirable but exhausted. In 2025, while conducting a humanitarian evacuation in the embattled city of Pokrovsk, a Russian drone hit his vehicle. Their hope is that the Russian war economy will gradually collapse.

All of that went out the window this week, however, when Daddy returned with a foam pellet handgun for Number One. It starts off with a foam pellet launcher, and before you know it, he’s asking for a samurai sword for Christmas and is suddenly better armed than the guards. After all, toy guns are better than no guns at all. Hand any five-year-old a toy gun, and suddenly they don’t have a gun, they have a backstory. Give a child a dinosaur, and he might roar at a coat rack; give a child a toy gun, and he becomes a villain of Gotham City proportions.

There will be no reductions to SNAs for the 2026/2027 school year, Ministers have confirmed. Photograph: iStockAn extra €19 million will be spent on special needs assistants (SNAs) this year to ensure there are no cuts to existing service provision in schools, it is understood. Meanwhile, Minister for Education Hildegarde Naughton and Minister of State for Special Education Michael Moynihan have confirmed there will be no reductions to SNAs for the 2026/2027 school year. The U-turn came after the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) contacted almost 200 schools indicating their allocations were being reduced. Once these are agreed and published, the NCSE can begin reviews of supports to schools for the 2027/2028 academic year, the department said.

Chido Obi shows Man Utd what they're missing as 18-year-old responds to plan perfectlyFormer Arsenal forward Chido Obi has not been given any minutes for Manchester United in the Premier League this season despite making seven appearances last termView 3 Images Manchester United youngster Chido Obi scored four timesManchester United youngster Chido Obi netted four times for the under-21s against Leicester City on Monday whilst United's first-team were competing at Everton. United accelerated Obi into the senior squad following his transfer from Arsenal last season, with Ruben Amorim's side experiencing difficulties in attack. ‌There have also been fewer first-team matches this season owing to the absence of European football and premature cup eliminations, with Obi profiting from that arrangement. United enjoyed the benefits against the Foxes, with Obi breaking the deadlock in the 37th minute. The key thing there is he's still very young, he's still learning his game.