“Brendan is a genius. He’s brilliant,”

Excitement is building in the Mayo village of Cong as it braces for the wedding of the year when Rory McIlroy and Erica Stoll tie the knot at Ashford Castle next weekend.

Here’s a briefing on some of the stories and issues highlighted on irishexaminer.com today.

This constituency could be best described as hodgepodge, taking in four counties and two provinces.

This is the second time this has happened as the funds from their 2012 single ‘Tiny Dancer’ were tied up in the receivership of HMV 2013.

This year the creative team behind the successful single have done it again - this time recording Tim Minchin’s When I Grow Up from the award-winning musical, Matilda.

The stars were out in force in Limerick at the weekend, attending a lavish retirement party for legendary jockey AP McCoy.

Just a week after Westlife played to 170,000 people at Croke Park, Shane Filan had “literally a few hundred quid” in his bank account, he has admitted.

The group that operates the INEC events centre in Killarney plunged into the red last year recording pre-tax losses of €606,228.

Your spoiler free guide to tonight's TV.

Westlife's Shane Filan has admitted he would love to move his family back to Ireland.

Shane Filan’s home in Sligo, built for €3m and reported to have been once valued at €10m, has sold for over €800,000.

Welcome to your Wednesday morning briefing. Let us ensure you’re up to speed on what’s happening and are prepared for the day ahead.

Solo artist Shane Filan was in fine voice last night, delighting a near capacity Marquee crowd with a first airing of what could well be the start of a meaningful post-Westlife career.

For just a couple of hours last night, it looked like 400,000 people were all going to get their wish and go to one of five Garth Brooks concerts. Dublin City Council said it would allow all five performances to go ahead — as long as two were matinees.

As Garth Brooks’ record run at Croke Park went from five nights, to three, to none, to fiasco, the hospitality industry has been left reeling with losses estimated at €50m and Ireland’s reputation in ruins.

Former Westlife frontman Shane Filan has said he has been left ‘devastated’ by the news that the five planned Garth Brooks concerts have been cancelled.

An opportunistic Gaelic football club yesterday launched a bold bid to capitalise on the despair of Garth Brooks fans following the announcement that the singer had not been granted a license for two of his Croke Park gigs.

Westport, Co Mayo

Your daily spoiler-free guide to what to look out for on the box.

Did you see Louis Walsh’s latest boyband offering on the Late Late Show last night?

Organisers of the Live at the Marquee gigs in Cork city have announced that the Coronas, Pixies and Lana del Rey are among some of the acts who have sold out.

Former Westlife singer Shane Filan didn’t let bankruptcy get him down, says Ed Power.

Kian Egan says Westlife would've been disappointed with One Direction's album sales.

Kian Egan thinks One Direction could split up because they don't appear to have a close bond anymore.

Kian Egan is releasing a solo album.

Former Westlife singers Kian Egan and Nicky Byrne have developed a bitter rivalry because Kian, 33, was paid £40,000 (€47,956) more to take part in ITV's 'I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!' earlier this month than Nicky, 35, earned for appearing on the BBC series 'Strictly Come Dancing' last year.

Luke Friend has been knocked out of 'The X Factor'.

Sam Bailey is to perform a raunchy routine on this week's 'X Factor'.

The final hopefuls who have made it to the judges houses stage of The X Factor were revealed tonight.

Brian McFadden wants to reunite with Westlife.

Louis Walsh had to delay filming his 'X Factor' Judges Houses round due to noise coming from Nicolas Sarkozy's villa.

Shane Filan will follow in the footsteps of Robbie Williams today when he announces his first Irish solo gig.

Former Westlife star Shane Filan has revealed his fear of following dozens of boy band members into solo artist obscurity after two years of bankruptcy hell.

X Factor judge Louis Walsh’s entertainment firm slipped into the red last year to record a loss of €53,234.

Former Westlife member and bankrupt Shane Filan is to end up empty-handed from a €2.382m windfall that is to be shared among the former band members.

X Factor judge Louis Walsh has announced plans to form a new boy band to rival One Direction.

Former Westlife star Shane Filan has signed a solo record deal, just months after being declared bankrupt.

Bankrupt singer Shane Filan’s Sligo mansion is now officially for sale at €990,000 — well below the €3m friends said it cost him to build.

Pressure to crackdown on “bankruptcy tourism” is being applied to the British government by Justice Minister Alan Shatter.

One Direction star Niall Horan has entered into an elite superstar club after hitting 9m followers on Twitter.

ANOTHER year, another notch tightened on the belt. So what did we learn in 2012?