Ireland Calling

The Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny has pledged to make Ireland the best small country in the world by 2016.

Mr Kenny was speaking at the Fine Gael Ardfheis (annual party conference) when he addressed Ireland’s recent economic crisis and outlined his plans for the future.

He said: “We will not celebrate until Ireland has reason to celebrate. Tonight, unemployment remains too high. Too many families are struggling to make ends meet. Too many worry about losing their homes. Too many of our children are still moving away.

The J R Tolkien classic The Hobbit is being translated into the Irish language.

Evertype Publishers from Westport in Co Mayo have bought the rights to produce an Irish version of the novel, which introduces the character Frodo, who later goes on to destroy the ring in the climax to the trilogy, The Lord of the Rings.

The Irish version is not expected to be a bestseller, but Evertype owner Michael Everson believes it will be sufficiently popular with international book collectors to make it a financial success.

The Republic of Ireland has been named as the country with the second least attractive men in the world by a leading dating website.

The announcement comes from website beautifulpeople.com, which generated the results by asking the members of the site to rate new applicants based on their looks.

When a new applicant wants to join they must upload a photograph of themselves for other members to view.

The photograph is then shown to members of the opposite sex who have already passed the test to become members of the site.

The former mistress of JFK has released a book about her affair with the US President.

The author, Mimi Alford, reveals details of her time with the Irish- American when she was an intern at the White House in 1962.

Horse trainer Peter Casey admits he is overwhelmed by the reaction to comments he made live on Irish TV over the weekend.

Casey celebrated his horse, Flemenstar, winning at Leopardstown, by telling interviewer Tracey Piggott: “I’ll sleep tonight, I’ll have f**kin’ sex and everything!”

The comments went out live on RTE and instantly became an internet hit.

The traditional Irish pub is to receive a much needed shot in the arm from the Irish government amid fears it may have been heading for extinction.

More than a thousand pubs have closed in Ireland over the last six years. There have been a number of factors that have contributed to this trend.

A group of Irish nurses working in England have decided to keep in touch with their traditional culture by setting up a Gaelic football team.

The economic downturn in Ireland has driven many key workers, including nurses, to emigrate to the UK and other countries including the US, Canada and Australia.

The surge in emigration over the last few years means there are about 150 Irish nurses now working at the Royal Berkshire hospital, Reading.