As the dark evenings draw in, Ciara McDonnell rounds up the cosiest hotel breaks

The €11m Lotto ticket seller Noel McGowan, who is celebrating his third jackpot sales win, has a special celebration of his own this year.

Gloomy gable ends and scruffy shopfronts are among 24 sites in Waterford’s city centre scheduled for a spectacular makeover in the next few days.