Canoodling crisis in rural Ireland

"I have my passport. I have my rosary beads. I have 16 pairs of underpants and the bachelor's letter, of course, to explain my reasons for going."

Rural Ireland is in a shambolic state due to a lack of numbers and a general decline in canoodling, writes Denis.

I received a letter just the other day that brought a tear to my eye. And no, before some smart arse says it, it wasn't a bank statement.

It was a letter from a lonesome West Cork bachelor farmer... a man in the mid-sixties... a man in his prime... one of life's good guys.