AN 84-year-old guesthouse owner has begun a High Court libel action for damages against RTÉ over a Gerry Ryan “Nob Nation” sketch which said his former hotel the Maryland was a “byword in Waterford for prostitution”.

An 84-year-old hotelier from Waterford is suing RTÉ, claiming that a Nob Nation skit defames him by implying his guesthouse is a brothel.