All posts tagged: Ireland

Razorlight announce UK and Ireland tour celebrating 20 years of hit self-titled album

Razorlight announce UK and Ireland tour celebrating 20 years of hit self-titled album

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the inside track from Roisin O’Connor with our free weekly music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This Get our free music newsletter Now Hear This British rock band Razorlight have announced a tour with dates across the UK and Ireland to mark 20 years since the release of their eponymous hit album. The group’s second album, titled Razorlight, topped the UK album chart and secured their first number one single with America when it was released in 2006, prompting the group’s rise to fame. The original line-up of frontman Johnny Borrell, drummer Andy Burrows, guitarist Bjorn Agren and bassist Carl Dalemo will perform the record in full, including defining classics such as “In The Morning”, “Before I Fall To Pieces” and “I Can’t Stop This Feeling I’ve Got”. Borrell said: “The album itself started to sound like a greatest hits. That’s when you know you’re alright. Me and Andy fell into this groove of writing, just this amazing musical connection. When you do that, it’s like falling in …

Belfast’s Minority Groups Living in Fear After ‘Racist Thuggery’

Belfast’s Minority Groups Living in Fear After ‘Racist Thuggery’

Published by Sam Flores

(Refiles to change dateline to BELFAST from LONDON) By Will Russell, Marissa Davison and Amanda ⁠Ferguson BELFAST, ⁠June 11 (Reuters) – After watching images of masked groups rampaging ⁠through the streets of Belfast — some targeting the homes and businesses of those believed to be immigrants — members of ​the city’s ethnic minority communities say they are afraid to leave their homes. “Women and kids are terrified and in shock,” said Twasul Mohammed, who came to Northern Ireland from Sudan ‌as a refugee in 2016. “We are keeping our ‌kids at home, I haven’t sent my kids to school since this has happened.” Violence flared on Tuesday following a knife attack for which a Sudanese man has been ⁠charged with attempted murder. ⁠That evening, masked groups moved through parts of Belfast, setting fire to houses and cars and targeting ​ethnic minorities. Smaller outbreaks of unrest followed on Wednesday, with fears the violence could continue in the coming days. Britain’s minister for Northern Ireland said the anti-migrant attacks were “racist thuggery”. PEOPLE TARGETED WHO HAVE FLED …

Ireland announces 7 new Rinn centres in €460m investment

Ireland announces 7 new Rinn centres in €460m investment

Published by skeptic

Ireland has unveiled seven major new Rinn centres backed by a combined investment of €460m, marking one of the largest research and innovation funding commitments in the nation’s history. The announcement was made by Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, James Lawless TD, as part of a national strategy to strengthen Ireland’s position in advanced scientific research and technology development. The new Rinn centres will operate within a newly launched national research network, Rinn, which brings together leading universities, institutes and research organisations in a coordinated framework. The initiative is designed to increase collaboration, improve governance and attract greater international engagement across key scientific sectors. The programme is expected to create 577 research positions, support the development of more than 800 PhD graduates and leverage a further €500m in funding from industry and other sources. More than 200 industry partners, including multinational corporations and small and medium-sized enterprises, are already involved in the initiative. Commenting on the landmark funding, Minister Lawless said: “The scale and scope of this €460m investment is a powerful …

Success! MLAs vote to repeal blasphemy laws in Northern Ireland – Humanists UK

Success! MLAs vote to repeal blasphemy laws in Northern Ireland – Humanists UK

Published by Sam Flores

Today, Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) voted 57 to 24 in favour of repealing blasphemy laws in Northern Ireland. Alliance MLA Connie Egan tabled the amendment to the Justice Bill, which is now set to repeal the common law offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel in Northern Ireland. Northern Ireland Humanists has long campaigned for the repeal of Northern Ireland’s blasphemy laws and welcomes today’s vote as a significant signal for freedom of expression and the rights of the non-religious and religious minorities. Northern Ireland Humanists Coordinator Boyd Sleator commented: ‘This is an exciting and long-awaited victory for freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief in Northern Ireland. We are incredibly grateful to Connie Egan MLA for bringing this important amendment. ‘We have campaigned for the repeal of these archaic blasphemy laws for years, and today’s vote not only set us en route to be in line with the rest of the UK and Ireland, but sends a powerful signal to the rest of the world that no-one should face criminal sanctions …

West Ireland’s magical landscape: where limestone rivers, Hollywood legend and Irish myth converge | Ireland holidays

West Ireland’s magical landscape: where limestone rivers, Hollywood legend and Irish myth converge | Ireland holidays

Published by Sam Flores

‘If you take all these springs together in terms of flow, it’s by far the largest in Ireland, and one of the biggest systems in the world,” said Dr Benjamin Thébaudeau, geologist for the newly designated Unesco Joyce Country and Western Lakes Geopark in western Ireland. Over a few days, I discovered that this massive system of limestone springs and caves is the engine that drives this landscape, in the same way as an underground train network powers a city. It’s a place where rivers disappear into limestone fissures and subterranean lakes, and where roads twist through drowned valleys beneath mountains shaped by fire and ice. It’s also the dreamy, lush landscape of western Ireland that famously drew Hollywood to the village of Cong for The Quiet Man in 1952. Travelling through the geopark from the heart of County Galway into southern County Mayo, I based myself in Cong, which is effectively an inland island between Lough Mask and Lough Corrib. The village takes its name from the Irish for “narrows”, a reference to its …

Ireland imposes travel ban on Israeli ministers Ben-Gvir and Smotrich | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Ireland imposes travel ban on Israeli ministers Ben-Gvir and Smotrich | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Published by Sam Flores

Irish Taoiseach Martin says the far-right ministers have shown ‘a desire to see the elimination of Palestinians from Palestine’. Published On 5 Jun 20265 Jun 2026 Ireland has barred Israel’s National Security Minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, from visiting the country, citing their conduct towards pro-Palestinian activists and support for policies that would displace Palestinians from their homeland. Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheal Martin – known as the Taoiseach – confirmed the move on Friday, saying the two far-right ministers had advocated positions that amounted to “a desire to see the elimination of Palestinians from Palestine”. Both Ben-Gvir and Smotrich have repeatedly called for Israel to annex Palestinian territories and push Palestinians out of Gaza, provoking condemnation from rights groups and several foreign governments. Martin also referenced the treatment of pro-Palestinian activists who were part of a Gaza-bound aid flotilla last month. Ben-Gvir provoked widespread condemnation when he shared video of himself mocking the detained activists as they knelt on the floor, blindfolded, with their hands bound. In a statement, Ireland’s justice ministry …

Survey shows religious privilege out of step with younger Northern Ireland – Humanists UK

Survey shows religious privilege out of step with younger Northern Ireland – Humanists UK

Published by Sam Flores

New data from the Northern Ireland Life and Times Survey shows that at least one in three young adults in Northern Ireland has no religion. This underlines the growing diversity of belief among younger people. Northern Ireland Humanists said the figures show that public policy and civic life are out of step with an increasingly non-religious society, and must reflect the changing beliefs and values of modern Northern Ireland, especially among younger people. The 2025 survey found that 33% of 18–24-year-olds and 40% of 25–34-year-olds say they belong to no religion. Across the population as a whole, 27% say they have no religion, compared with 34% Catholic and 39% Protestant or other Christian. Commenting on the data, Northern Ireland Humanists Coordinator Boyd Sleator said: ‘The data from the Life and Times survey shows just how much Northern Ireland is changing. Yet despite the fact that Northern Ireland’s young people are increasingly non-religious, too many of our institutions still act as though everyone fits neatly into one of two Christian traditions. That simply does not reflect …

Northern Ireland v Guinea friendly international TV channel, live stream, kick-off time

Northern Ireland v Guinea friendly international TV channel, live stream, kick-off time

Published by Daniella Wilson

Northern Ireland take on Guinea in an international friendly at Estadio Ciudad de La Línea, in Spain, on Thursday. Northern Irish World Cup dreams were crushed in a semi-final defeat to Italy in March and could be in for a tough summer as the tournament plays out in Canada, Mexico, and the United States. Michael O’Neill, who signed a new long-term deal recently, will want his squad to look forward rather than back and the inclusion of 18-year-old attackers Braiden Graham and Ceadach O’Neill is one reason for positivity. Northern Ireland are now preparing for the upcoming Nations League campaign and will back themselves to beat Thursday’s opponents. Guinea, who missed out on World Cup 2026 themselves and did not qualify for this season’s AFCON, are 10 places below O’Neill’s side in the FIFA rankings. Radio Times has rounded up everything you need to know about how to watch Northern Ireland v Guinea on TV and online. Read more football features: Best players in the world | Best players of all time | Live football …

Backrooms smashes record in UK and Ireland and knocks Star Wars film from top of box office

Backrooms smashes record in UK and Ireland and knocks Star Wars film from top of box office

Published by Daniella Wilson

A new record has been broken at the UK & Ireland box office – with A24’s Backrooms enjoying the studio’s highest-grossing opening weekend ever in the territory. The film – adapted by 20-year-old writer/director Kane Parsons from his YouTube series of the same name – grossed £4.2 million after its release on Friday 29 May, surpassing Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu in the box office charts in the process. It has also been hugely successful across the Atlantic, with its overall global total currently standing at $118 million. That’s especially impressive when we take into account that the film was made for just $10 million, which means it has already made it’s budget back more than ten times over. It also means that the film is already number 5 on the list of highest-grossing A24 releases globally, behind only Marty Supreme, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Drama and Civil War. It seems highly likely that the buzz will continue for at least another few weeks – especially when we consider the success of …