The partner of murdered journalist Lyra McKee has said there has been a “backslide” into violence in the North.

It is nearly always the case that when a society, or even a section of society, take to the streets to oppose autocracy, the usual cheering from a distant, safe sideline is quickly tempered by prudent apprehension. There are too many examples of human aspiration crushed by brook-no-argument force.

Pride shone through the clouds and the rain for Cork’s LGBT community as they remembered a recently departed activist and advocate.