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TDs: Has Shatter got access to secret files?Coalition TDs have demanded to know if Alan Shatter has access to secret files on prominent politicians, journalists and public figures, as the controversy surrounding the justice minister continued to escalate.
Yacht can be yours... for €700k per weekThe sleek white Lauren L yacht has become Cork's latest tourist attraction, and you have to admit, it definitely adds a touch of glamour to the place.
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Yahoo’s $1.1bn gamble on Tumblr Yahoo said it is acquiring blogging service Tumblr for $1.1bn (€850m) cash, a bold bet by chief executive Marissa Mayer to revitalise the struggling internet pioneer by co-opting a web property with strong visitor traffic but little revenue.
Hungary meets German pressure with Nazi tauntsTensions between Germany and Hungary have flared over remarks by the countries' leaders, including references to Hitler's occupation of the eastern European country in 1944 and an irritated German government response condemning Hungary's allusion to the Nazi era as "deplorable derailment".
- BUSINESS
Ryanair results help stock soar by €600m The value of Ryanair increased by more than €600m in one day's trading yesterday after the company reported stronger than expected results.
PTSB claims 60% increase in current accounts following fee-free offerPermanent TSB has reported a huge increase in new account openings since it launched its no-fee current account.
- SPORT
Limerick lose out again Limerick's Division 1B defeat by Dublin won't be revisited despite the question of Paul Ryan's eligibility in the game.
Paulie backs O’Gara coaching callPaul O'Connell has backed former Munster team-mate Ronan O'Gara to be a "great" coach after the fly-half announced he was retiring and taking a job on Racing Metro's backroom staff.
- LIFESTYLE
Time on Stewart’s side as album tops UK chartsRod Stewart said he was "over the moon" as he celebrated his 15th No 1 with a champagne toast.
Reunion sparks renewed synths of purposeANDY McCluskey has mellowed.
Breaking stories
Good life beckons on Heir Island
Modern build and boat access makes this a prefect retreat, Tommy Barker reports
By Tommy Barker
Island living doesn’t come any nicer, says the selling agent of this Heir Island home with a regular ferry service, and its own shingle beach and waterfrontage. One of Carbery’s Hundred Islands, Heir’s about two miles long and a mile wide at max, with a permanent population of about two dozen inhabitants, and now manages not one, but two seasonal food businesses/cookery schools, the Island Cottage and The Firehouse Bakery in operation.
Newly up for sale, and having missed whatever slight summer running tide of sales there was in West Cork, North Pier House is a modern, 10-year old build on 2.5 acres, and carries a €375,000 price tag with agent Henry O’Leary.
It has been a full-time home to a photographer with a school-going child, which shows the relative accessibility of the island, and the north pier has regular links to Cunnamore pier — ferries run about every two hours in summer. Many residents own their own boats, and the Heir Island Sloop used for lobster fishing is enjoying a strong local revival with over a dozen new boats built and racing in recent years.
It would be easy to keep a boat here, and there’s a useful garage/workshop as part of the North Pier House package.
The house is three/four-bedroomed, with three en suite bathrooms, and an optional study bedroom four. According to Henry O’Leary it’s all “utterly captivating, and perfectly peaceful.”
Largest room is the 16’ by 16’ living room, with beamed ceiling and hardwood floor, with a triple aspect, and access to a slate-roofed lean-to conservatory, and to the kitchen. There’s a nice crisp look, slightly marine meets modern, tempered with a bit of old pine, all very easy on the eye. Also with access to the conservatory, the kitchen has painted units, hardwood worktops and colour-washed exposed ceiling beams. At ground level too is the en suite master bedroom, and utility, the stairs is mid-ships, and there’s a guest WC. Overhead are two dormer en suite bedrooms, book-ending the house’s gables with gable window and Veluxes for views and the study/bed four is in between them.
VERDICT: The modern build makes light of an exposed island setting and the mainland is only minutes away by boat.