BBC Sport star left in coma and nearly dies in meningitis battle as symptoms shared
The 41-year-old, who presents the BBC's snooker coverage, was in her teenage years when she was hit by an aggressive case of meningitis B. As a result, the was left in a coma, while her parents were told to expect the worst. Thankfully, Jaswal was able to make a full recovery, and is now urging people to educate themselves on meningitis while pleading with the government to make vaccinations mandatory. All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page"I don't remember any of this part. "If something doesn't feel quite right, even if it's a degree off a normal cold or flu, you've got to run with it and get it checked.
Source:Daily Mirror
March 21, 2026 15:19 UTC
Minor Black Figures: a searingly intelligent critique of contemporary culture
Minor Black Figures Author : Brandon Taylor ISBN-13 : 978-1-787-33642-1 Publisher : Jonathan Cape Guideline Price : £18.99When the young black painter Wyeth meets Keating, a lapsed Jesuit priest, he confronts the roots of his stagnation, in art as in life. At the heart of Minor Black Figures is Brandon Taylor’s searingly intelligent critique of contemporary art and culture. Fear not – with his sensuous, almost tactile prose, Taylor makes the strictly technical exciting. Wyeth’s recovery of the work of an anonymous black artist, and with it, of a sense of history, is the book’s emotional zenith. The leap Taylor makes in Minor Black Figures – from utterly disenchanted to tentatively hopeful – is patiently and elegantly earned, culminating in its passages on what is to be found in being in the world, in having skin in the game: dignity, and grace.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 15:09 UTC
Iran fired missiles at US-UK base in Indian Ocean; Trump considers ‘winding down’ war
Key readsMark Weiss: From ‘winning’ the Iran war to sending more troops, Trump’s mixed messages serve a purposeIran war: What can EU leaders do about rising energy prices? The Iranian president proposed a regional security framework comprising West Asian countries to ensure peace without foreign interference, according to the country’s embassy in India. - GuardianUK ministry of defence condemns ‘reckless attacks’ after joint US-UK base targetedThe UK’s ministry of defence has condemned “Iran’s reckless attacks”, after Tehran fired missiles towards a joint US-UK base in the Indian Ocean. The Israeli military said early on Saturday it was striking Hizbullah targets after issuing an evacuation warning for seven neighbourhoods. In response, the Israeli military launched strikes on “regime targets” in Tehran early on Saturday.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 15:04 UTC
Wall Street obliterated as Iran war fallout escalates, with tech stocks breaking a key level last seen in the 2025 tariff chaos
With the end of the Iran war nowhere in sight and oil prices on fire, US stocks crashed into the close of trading on Friday. The tech-heavy Nasdaq stock market index fell 2.2 percent on the day, taking it into correction territory - that’s down more than 10 percent - for the first time since March 2025. Oil prices were off their worst levels on Friday after a tumultuous week: European oil prices had surged more than 13 percent higher at one point, but exited the week up only 7.2 percent - around $107 - while US oil prices rose 2 percent - to around $97. The Nasdaq Composite is an index of the 100 top stocks on the Nasdaq stock exchange, and includes many leading high-growth tech companies. All three leading stock market averages posted their fourth losing week in a row.
Source:Daily Mail
March 21, 2026 15:03 UTC
Helenio Herrera: Football’s Original Master of the Dark Arts
Helenio Herrera: Football’s Original Master of the Dark Arts Author : Richard Fitzpatrick ISBN-13 : 9781399425100 Publisher : Bloomsbury Sport Guideline Price : £20Helenio Herrera will not be judged a good man when you close the pages of Richard Fitzpatrick’s admirable biography (overdue for English readers) of a remarkable figure in the history of football. It’s a riveting ride both on and off the pitch, beautifully crafted and impressively researched by Fitzpatrick. HH came from abject poverty and reached the pinnacle of his profession, yet he remains a largely unsympathetic figure. In fact, he often smartly benches his subject for chunks of the story. It was a time when footballers and clubs were part of their cities, more embedded in the social fabric, and consequently more likable.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 15:03 UTC
This year’s Six Nations was the best ever
Sir, – Why do so many of us feel that this season’s Six Nations rugby championship was the best ever? I suggest that the final table shows six reasons. And the best team did win the title. And Gerry Thornley picked two Ulstermen in his Team of the Tournament. – Yours, etc,JOHN BOWMANDublin 4
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 15:02 UTC
Postponing parenthood: How Ireland’s housing crisis is forcing people to delay having children
According to the UN, the fertility rate needed for a stable population is 2.1. I would want to make sure that if I’m having a child, I’m bringing them into the right circumstances. There’s also the fact that delaying having a child now could limit her potential to have siblings for any future child. “It’s something I want [having children] and I’m worried the choice will be made for me, rather than me making the choice”, she says. Why?Opens in new window ]Kelly thinks people in their 30s have grown up with an acceptance that having children may be out of reach.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 15:02 UTC
Trump is stuck and looking for options – an Irish former US adviser warns this is risky – The Irish Times
This week in Washington, I asked him about war in Iran, the prospects for Ukraine and the future for Donald Trump. In Iran, Wright says, Trump is in “a real bind”. And when “people warn of disaster, it never really happens ... not for Donald Trump, not for America. But it hasn’t worked here.”“So I think he’s really stuck and I think he’s looking for options to try to break out of the mould a little bit. The Russian advance in eastern Ukraine, Wright says, has been “slow, sort of piecemeal.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 15:01 UTC
Hurling/Camogie preview: Limerick to keep Galway in their place
Verdict: Cork. Limerick v Galway, TUS Gaelic Grounds, 7pm (C. Mooney, Dublin) Live TG4. Verdict: Limerick. Wexford v Kildare, Chadwicks Wexford Park, 5pm (C. McDonald, Antrim). Verdict: Wexford.
Source:Irish Examiner
March 21, 2026 15:01 UTC
Poem of the Week: Hibernia
We landed once, a shingle shore,and marched inland, meeting no resistance except a stringof wild-eyed ponies and a hare, twitching in a field as weclanked past. There for the taking, if we’d wanted.’ Wine-bruisedlips, the wife in Tivoli, he pats the couch and beckons closer. ‘The godsthat brought you here instead were smiling.’ Leg-irons,a pitching sea, the dealers wheedling for the last sesterce. John O’Donnell has published five volumes of poetry, most recently Sunlight: New and Selected Poems (Dedalus Press). His short story collection, Mr Hoo and other stories, was recently published by Doire Press
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 14:52 UTC
Alan Shearer backs Man Utd's VAR complaint as he fumes at 'terrible standard'
Michael Carrick described it as “mental” and “astonishing” that referee Stuart Attwell and the VAR didn't award a penalty for Adrien Truffert's challenge on Amad. Attwell waved away the appeal and Bournemouth went straight up the other end to make it 1-1 through Ryan Christie. Shearer has been one of VAR's harshest critics and he backed up United's anger on Saturday morning. FOLLOW OUR MAN UTD FB PAGE! Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Manchester United content from Mirror Football.
Source:Daily Mirror
March 21, 2026 14:41 UTC
From ‘winning’ the Iran war to sending more troops, Trump’s mixed messages serve a purpose
Smoke rises from an oil storage facility that was targeted in Tehran, Iran during the ongoing US-Israeli war on Iran. Photograph: Arash Khamooshi/The New York TimesAs their war on Iran enters its fourth week, US president Donald Trump and Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu continue to send out mixed messages about when it will end. In recent days, Trump has said the United States had “essentially defeated Iran”, that “the war will end when I feel it in my bones” and the war will “end soon”. They hope this will lead to pressure on Trump to stop the war to prevent a global recession. [ Sally Hayden: In a Beirut hotel, families brace for war with no clear endOpens in new window ]
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 14:38 UTC
Ruins of Meath house should be preserved as a monument to Celtic Tiger hubris – The Irish Times
It’s hard to imagine a better monument to the hubris of the Celtic Tiger era than the sprawling, 588sq m house built by Chris and Rose Murray at Faughan Hill, Bohermeen in Co Meath. In June 2006, the Murrays were refused planning permission to build a 283 sq m dormer bungalow with a garage on the site. That battle has included five failed bids for retention permission and unsuccessful court proceedings, with two challenges still live before the European courts. On the one hand, everyone knows you haven’t up to now been able to build a shelter for your wheelie bins without planning permission. There is no nationally collated data on planning permission retention applications.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 14:36 UTC
St Pat’s dominant, Dundalk’s Kilduff innovative, where to play James McClean?
Set pieces continue to fuel high-flying St Pat’sFive wins in six games have flung St Patrick’s Athletic into the pool of early contenders for this year’s title. Admittedly, Saints’ opponents on Friday night were a sorry-looking Waterford, who remain winless at the bottom of the league. When that doesn’t unlock a defence, however, the set pieces can. James McClean, it turned out, can still be an effective footballer when he isn’t asked to play in central midfield. On the other, McClean looked out of place in the build-up to both, particularly the second goal for which Davis powered past the 36-year-old with brutal ease.
Source:The Irish Times
March 21, 2026 14:34 UTC
BLACKPINK star Rosé says she hasn't fully mastered 'feeling completely comfortable in her own skin yet' as she poses for stunning CR Fashion Book shoot
BLACKPINK star Rosé opened up about how she hasn't fully mastered 'feeling completely comfortable in her own skin' yet, as she posed up a storm in a stunning CR Fashion Book photoshoot on Friday. 'At 29, I haven’t mastered feeling completely comfortable in my own skin, but I’m definitely better at it than I was years ago.' She added: 'I’m proud to say we have ten years of experience. Rosé is a main vocalist of BLACKPINK, known for her distinct voice and successful solo career. Aside from being a successful solo artist, she is also a global fashion figure and released her first studio album, Rosie, in 2024.
Source:Daily Mail
March 21, 2026 14:21 UTC