After the stadium tour of last year, Ed Sheeran made the 3Arena performance almost feel like an intimate gig 

Jenny Jackson, Michelle McDonagh, and Elaine Feeney are among the other authors publishing new work in the next few weeks 

From old stagers to emerging acts, there are plenty gigs to tempt you out over the next few weeks 

The Canadian-Irish comedy joins a genre that's been pioneered by the likes of Sharon Horgan and Phoebe Waller-Bridge, writes Esther McCarthy 

There was a lot to unpack in this First Dates throwback episode 

RTÉ also has a new quiz show, and Sharon Horgan unleashes her latest series 

Some people have an aversion to the trad in all its eras, but the recent crop of artists are showing what a powerful force it can still be 

Ostensibly a supergroup of three independent artists, Boygenius act as a riposte to previous such models

Gala events, choral competitions, free public performances  and a Big Sing event are just some of the events taking place at the festival

From live concerts to cinema broadcasts, there are plenty events in the coming weeks 

Oisín Lunny and co supported U2 on the Dublin leg of the ZooTV tour, and also offered up one of the early examples of quality Irish hip hop 

Joanna Lumley is currently filming the latest Coben adaptation for the streaming service, and his I Will Find You novel looks like being yet another best-seller 

As the Proms at Cork Opera House returns in April with nights themed around Beethoven, The Beatles and Broadway, the organisers explain the idea of producing such a celebration of music in Cork 

The Newmarket actor tells Esther McCarthy about his Hollywood trip with the Oscar-nominated film, and his stage show on the War of Independence hero 

Roman, superbly played by Kieran Culkin is the most human of all the Roys — it’s all in his face and his body language

The three-part podcast looks at the fascinating life of Jasper Kraus, as well as the often-inappropriate coverage of his death 

The British popstar has a new album, and is on her way to play in Cork 

Desmond Morris, 95, is best known for The Naked Ape 

From Middle Eastern studies to one Cork guest who the host clearly felt frustrated by, there were plenty of memorable moments from the latest season of the Tommy Tiernan Show, which ended on Saturday night

Sun & Sea will be performed over three days as part of Cork Midsummer Festival 

Her first show may have had a mixed reaction, but now in her 80th year the artist has a major exhibition at IMMA 

Baz Ashmawy and his team revamped the house on Cork's northside to make it suitable for the 23-year-old who'd suffered a terrible accident 

Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Sharon Horgan and Michaela Cole have paved the way to tell women’s truth on screen. Irish and Canadian friends Susan Stanley and Sarah Goldberg have taken up the mantle with new series, SisterS. By Esther McCarthy

DIY SOS: The Big Build Ireland returns to our screens with the tale of how Baz Ashmawy and co got together with a bunch of Cork people to transform the home of wheelchair-user Adam 

Episode three of Wild Isles has an impressive sequence from the red deer rut in Co Kerry. We spoke to the cameraman and director who captured the footage 

"Film historian Basinger and ‘chronicler of Hollywood lore’ Wasson’s book comes in at over 700 pages, the oral history featuring hundreds of well-known names..."

"The novel poses the question, when the entire world is in convulsion, how or why do you keep living?"

Dolores Keane spoke about her career, her struggle with alcoholism and detailed why she finds living alone lonely.

"You need stillness in your life to kind of get to the truth of who you are. So much of life is just noise, you know"

"...the writing is always competent and often effective. The novel is pacey, propulsive, tense, and menacing..."

The Everyman Theatre is selling some of its most iconic costumes this weekend. Ellie O’Byrne has a sneak preview

Plus: scéalta as Gaeilge ar RTÉ Jr, R na G looks at Good Friday 25 years on, Dan Hegarty puts the spotlight on Lyndsey Lawlor

"...when a woman is found brutally raped and murdered in her Cork city home, Collins is assigned to the case along with his new partner - they soon discover that a twisted, misogynistic killer is on the loose in the city..."

“It was a dream to write,” she says. “It’s a happy, sunshiny book, and it came out the way I imagined originally. That is what you want, and it never usually happens.”

"...a charming tale that has very little to do with American Football - even if Tom Brady makes some neat cameos..."

TV for all the family, especially the dads, who got to watch Anneka sprinting out of a chopper in a tight yellow jumpsuit

"...investigates how far a person will go — how badly they will transgress — once they know that the consequences will rebound on some other poor unfortunate..."

"...suggests that Irish mothers are far more complicated than the clichés allow..."

Lana Del Rey's latest offering offers slow-burning beauty 

Some stars do Twitter really well; others just blow away the mystique with their inanity 

Over dinner, Aamiya and Dave discuss coding, side hustles and the book Dave wrote during the pandemic, which was on a laptop that was stolen three weeks prior to the date. He's rewriting it from scratch  

Lankum's ambitious fourth album is their best yet 

Paul Mescal is just back from the Oscars, stars alongside Emily Watson in God's Creatures, and yet feels like he's only getting started, writes Esther McCarthy

Cork International Film Festival has a programme of features and shorts at the Gate Cinema as part of the Lux Audience Award 

Seven Steeples, published by Tramp Press, follows a young couple’s attempts to disappear from society after they relocate to the Irish countryside

The Irish premiere of McDonagh's 2015 play provides fine entertainment