Author: News Desk

THE prospect of Lewis Crocker versus Paddy Donovan on March 1 will shorten the winter for Irish boxing fans and, the Irish News understands, the venue will be Belfast’s SSE Arena. The all-Ireland clash of the unbeaten welterweights had been mooted since earlier this year when they appeared on the same bill at the Ulster Hall. Since then there has been no shortage of rumour or intrigue but it seems the negotiations have been completed and Limerick’s Donovan and Belfast’s Crocker have begun their preparations in earnest. “Hopefully it all goes ahead – I’ve agreed to everything,” said Crocker. “I’ve…

In this episode Emily Crowley — writer, columnist and long-time renter — sets out what she feels needs to be done by the next government, whoever they may be, to address the housing and rental market crisis. We also took to the streets to gauge the opinions of people on this issue. ‘My message to the next Dáil’ is an Irish Examiner General Election 2024 podcast series in which activists and commentators from various fields set out a ‘solutions’ focussed Message to the next Dail on an issue close to their heart.Listen here and wherever you get your podcasts for new…

Thousands marched to Islamabad Tuesday, demanding ex-PM Imran Khan’s release, defying tear gas and roadblocks. Clashes left one officer dead and nine critically injured. Khan, barred from February elections amid rigging allegations, faces multiple legal cases he claims are politically motivated to block his return to power. The government said one police officer had been killed and nine were critically wounded in two days of clashes with demonstrators as they closed in on Islamabad.

A third of women in the EU have experienced violence at home, at work or in public. Young women report having experienced higher levels of sexual harassment at work and other forms of violence than older women. Yet violence against women often remains invisible as only every fourth woman reports incidents to the authorities (the police, or social, health or support services).  These are some of the findings of the EU survey on gender-based violence conducted from 2020 to 2024 by Eurostat (the statistical office of the EU), the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) and the European Institute for…

Alec Baldwin said “I want all things Rust to just leave my windshield” as he described his criminal case over the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins as “the most difficult thing I’ve ever dealt with in my life”. Rust debuted at the Camerimage Festival in Poland last week, three years after the prop gun US actor Baldwin was holding went off and fatally injured Ms Hutchins on the set of the Western in New Mexico. Earlier this year, a judge threw out the involuntary manslaughter case against Baldwin. Baldwin, 66, was honoured with a lifetime award at the 42nd Torino…

I am a seasoned renter. I have been a rental tenant since I finished college about seven years ago — which, to some, might sound like a badge of honour, but in reality, it’s more of a battle wound. My most recent experience of renting in Ireland was with a friend in an apartment in Cork City, but we were inevitably served our notice to quit in August 2023, meaning we had to vacate by last March. There was no bad blood between the owner and us — he wasn’t one of these big-time landlords we often think of in…

The death of Queen Elizabeth II was devastating for so many people up and down the country, but there were also some unexpected consequences. The monarch died in September 2023, just days before the Robbie Williams biopic – which depicts the Angels singer as a CGI monkey – was due to start filming. Director Michael Gracey, best known for his work on The Greatest Showman, had arranged to have London’s Regent Street closed down for four nights so he could film an elaborate musical number for Better Man. However, his permits were pulled during an official period of mourning, and…

It was Half-Life 2’s 20th anniversary recently and Valve didn’t so much as tease a sequel (Valve) Yet another Half-Life 3 rumour is making waves amongst fans, but there remains no sign of any actual announcement. You can typically expect rumours of Half-Life 3’s existence to crop up at least once a year, especially after the release of Half-Life: Alyx proved Valve hadn’t completely forgotten or abandoned the series. However, things really ratcheted up this past August, thanks to a voice actor’s CV referencing a Project White Sands and datamined information from other Valve games that pointed towards real…

Skins star Kaya Scodelario has spoken about gaining the courage to reject sex scenes in the hit 00s show. The Gentlemen star, 32, played Effy Stonem, the sister of Nicholas Hoult’s Tony Stonem, in the Channel 4 teen drama. Kaya was 14 when she was first cast in Skins and remained on the show for three years before being given her own spin-off series Skins: Fire. The show follows Effy as she starts working for a City hedge fund and Kaya said because both she and the character were older, the original script was heavy on sex scenes. However, she…

Grab your popcorn and settle in because BBC’s latest series is a must-watch for any period drama fan, at least according to the ratings. Released on November 10, the show, titled Wolf Hall features performances by Britain’s most loved stars, including Claire Foy and Mark Rylance and has gained so many fans that it’s even surpassed EastEnders and Emmerdale in terms of popularity. Following Thomas Cromwell’s rise to power when King Henry VIII was seeking an annulment from his second wife, Anne Boleyn, to wed Jane Seymour, the six-part series is based on the novels of the same name, written…