As Il Divo prepare for their Cork gig, Sébastien Izambard tells Jo Kerrigan his rags to riches tale.

The Munster team may eventually be based solely in Limerick but provincial branch chiefs have underlined their commitment to Cork and the rest of the province as it prepares for construction to be begin on its single training base.

The Irish Open has joined forces with operatic pop vocal group Il Divo for a ticket promotion for fans of sport and music. For the May Bank Holiday weekend only, packages to both events are available at a discount of over 20%, offering €25 off the combined ticket price.

STAR classical vocal group Il Divo will make City of Cork Symphony Orchestra’s midsummer night’s dream come true when they perform together at a fully seated, five-hour event in Musgrave Park, on Saturday, June 21.

Opera-loving rugby fans who enjoy a game of golf will find all their birthdays coming together in June when Il Divo play Musgrave Park in Cork, on the same weekend Fota Island golf resort hosts the 2014 Irish Open.

THE news that the City of Cork Symphony Orchestra has secured superstar Katherine Jenkins for two concerts next December has created quite a stir among classical music fans.

The Voice of Ireland semi-final and an eventful week on Fair City feature in our highlights for April 20-26

Elton John and ZZ Top have both been announce to play Cork's Live at the Marquee next summer, with Christy Moore and Elvis Costello also on the bill.

Operatic chart stars Il Divo are to be honoured at the Classic Brit Awards next month with an honorary award recognising them as the “artists of the decade”.

'X-Factor' hopeful Diana Vickers became the ninth contestant to be booted off the show last night.

Beyoncé Knowles has stormed to the top of the US album chart with her new double album 'I am… Sasha Fierce'.

Girls Aloud, Take That and a special edition of Strictly Come Dancing feature on Children In Need tonight.

THREE priests from the north yesterday prepared for global superstardom by signing a £1 million (€1.2m) contract with music giant Sony BMG.

Celine Dion will play a date in Dublin next summer.

The new Band Aid single is in pole position to be this year’s Christmas number one, experts said today.

The BBC Children In Need single sung by pop group Girls Aloud has gone straight to the top of the UK charts.