If the the far-right Marine Le Pen and the independent centrist Emmanuel Macron square off in the second round of the presidential election, it will be a first in 60 years, says Zaki Laïdi.         

At Cork World Book Fest, Anne Sebba will read from her account of the difficult line females had to tread in Paris in WWII, writes Colette Sheridan.

Far-right French presidential contender Marine Le Pen made "a serious mistake" by denying that France was responsible for the round-up of Jews during the Second World War, her main rival said.

There has been little else but talk about North Korea’s weapons programme for almost quarter of a century. That may not be true for much longer, says Michael Mandelbaum

Last week, as it was reported the Policing Authority is to fill its first senior position since it was handed that power, the Garda Review warned in an editorial that ‘nepotism and pull are alive and well’ in the selection process. Today ex-garda Patrick Horan, now a lawyer, argues that methods of promotion have sullied the honour of the force.

IN June 1944, the French village of Oradour-sur-Glane was razed and 642 of its residents, women and children included, were massacred by a Nazi Waffen-SS company. 

Go bold this autumn with a Star Trek-style statement lip or a purple smokey eye.

The people in Britain who voted to leave the EU have acted against their own interests, writes Dominique Moisi. Unfortunately, there may also be knock-on effects for the rest of us.

This wasn’t just about the Republic of Ireland qualifying for the knockout stages of Euro 2016. This was about crossing a Rubicon.

As Barack Obama prepares to become the first American president to visit Hiroshima, Yuriko Koike heralds statesmen who have promoted peace and put their countries’ needs first 

Emigration is a story that has defined countless generations of Irish, so it’s incredible that a museum has never been established to tell the story of the diaspora for Irish tourists. Until now, that is.

Ellie Goulding has confirmed her split from McFly musician Dougie Poynter.

Former politician and diplomat Carl Bildt charts Britain’s relationship with the EU, from exclusion to integral to integration, and the ramifications of Brexit    

Electioneering is all about snappy promises and clever sound bites. There is little space for setting out a long-term vision. There are few votes in talking about sewers, drains or reservoirs, yet our capital investment spending is likely to determine the country’s prosperity 10 or 20 years down the line.

WHERE do you get your ideas? — is a question most writers come to dread, and may well be one of the reasons why Frederick Forsyth has finally published his autobiography. 

Here's the good stuff on TV tonight.

Maybe there will have to be a law against Toulon, one denouncing them as bad for business because they are too good for everyone else.

In a week that sees Barcelona in Manchester, Juventus taking on Dortmund and Liverpool’s return to Istanbul, tomorrow night’s match between Monaco and Arsenal might seem like a sideshow, writes David Shonfield.

Breda Joy has written a celebration of Kerry. Donal Hickey on a fine contribution to the county’s rich heritage.

It is surely no coincidence that Kerry, with the highest percentage of senators (five) per head of population in the country, had the highest yes vote for abolition of the Seanad in Munster.

40 years ago today, Ireland joined the EEC. Richard Fitzpatrick revisits the referendum campaigns — and de Valera’s rueful regrets

We were originally minded to write about Henry Shefflin’s contribution here.

The desecration of dozens of graves of Germans killed in the First World War and buried in a French cemetery clouded a historic meeting by the leaders of the two nations, who urged Europeans to set aside economic worries and deepen their union.

By now, you’ve probably all seen the video of the Irish fans greeting the English team’s coach in Krakow. It was hard to miss. And even harder not to laugh at, even if there’s something a little sad about how the English – by contrast – are so supportive of Ireland.

CARLINGFORD, Co Louth, is a small and particularly beautiful village situated in the extreme north-east corner of our little Republic — the very place, in fact, where you can see the Mountains of Mourne sweep down to the sea.

France’s Socialists and sympathisers are choosing their nominee for next year’s presidential election – an expected showdown with embattled conservative president Nicolas Sarkozy.

PÁDRAIG KENNELLY, the photographer, television cameraman and founder of the Kerry’s Eye newspaper, has died at his home in Tralee at the age of 82.

IRELAND, 2011, is a broken society.

Freezing weather brought misery to parts of the continent today with snow closing Paris’ main airport, while in Spain a boy drowned in a flash food.

FRENCH President Nicolas Sarkozy marked the 70th anniversary of Charles de Gaulle’s defiant World War II broadcast from London yesterday, visiting resistance sites and pledging to use historic ties with Britain to tackle modern challenges.

WHILE reading your article on China (December 30) I was reminded of Charles de Gaulle’s prediction many years ago: “It will not be any European statesman who will unite Europe: Europe will be united by the Chinese.”

THE Government privately opposed European enlargement four years after the state ended a 12-year battle to become a member.

During the Celtic Tiger period, this country was seen as one of the great success stories on the international stage, but we have allowed our influence to wane.

He’s an accountant. He’s a Corkman. He’s opinionated. He’s an old friend. So when he heard me, on RTÉ’s Drivetime, suggesting that Brian Lenihan should levy enormous taxes on the very rich, it bothered him.

France is to rejoin Nato’s military command more than 40 years after dropping out of the alliance, President Nicolas Sarkozy announced today.

Top French officials are holding a high-level conference with European and US officials over president Nicolas Sarkozy’s proposal for France to rejoin Nato’s integrated military command after a 43-year absence.

FRENCH lawmakers narrowly voted through Nicolas Sarkozy’s plans to rewrite the constitution last night which the president says will make France more democratic but which the opposition fears will turn it into a “monocracy”.

NOT since Margaret Thatcher’s intransigence and contempt for the republican cause, peaceful or violent, made her the Provos’ best recruiting sergeant in the 1980s has the intervention of a foreign political leader in Irish affairs had such potential for disaster as yesterday’s visit by the French President Nicholas Sarkozy.

ONE of Ireland’s best known hotels, which has counted Princess Grace, Charles de Gaulle and George Bernard Shaw as guests, reopened yesterday following a multi-mullion euro refurbishment.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern will join an elite band of international statesmen today with a historical address to a Joint Session of the US Congress.