When, late last year, Taoisech Leo Varadkar met British prime minister Boris Johnson in Thornton Manor there was a positive response to the outcome.

Goals from Callum McGregor and Kristoffer Ajer saw leader Celtic battle their way to a 2-1 victory over a resilient Aberdeen side at Pittodrie.

British supermarket giant Tesco will have to wait until October before its new boss — Cork-born businessman Ken Murphy — can start after his former employer Walgreens Boots Alliance insisted he see out a non-compete agreement.

I’LL BE talking about Meghan Markle. But I need to say in advance, don’t worry. You won’t be arguing about this column on Twitter. I feel I need to make this clear because people over a certain age and of the Caucasian persuasion haven’t covered themselves in glory when they offer their two very English pennies worth on the Meghan Markle story.

The tourists fell from 74 for 2 to 138 all out inside 19.1 overs.

Tesco has reported sales of £873m (€1.03bn) for its Irish operations for the 19 weeks up to January 4, which covers the company’s third-quarter and the Christmas trading period.

The hosts take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series courtesy of a comfortable win with more than 16 overs to spare as opener Lewis finished unbeaten on a run-a-ball 99.

Nobody in these parts needs telling just how much potential Adam Idah has. But Saturday’s hat-trick in Norwich City’s 4-2 win at Preston in the FA Cup was the first glimpse for a wider English audience of what an incredible prospect he is.

One in Four has backed calls for sex education for all children after a study showed that unless children disclose they have been abused around the time it happens, there is a risk they will not do so until they are an adult, if at all.

Clerical abuse victims have welcomed the decision by Pope Francis to abolish the Vatican’s strict secrecy rules covering sex abuse proceedings.

"Love Island has been my world for the last five years, it's the best show on telly."

Celtic rounded off a magnificent week with a 4-0 dismantling of Aberdeen in the Ladbrokes Premiership.

Mr Murphy, a former joint chief operating officer at Boots UK and Ireland before becoming chief of global brands for parent group Walgreens Boots Alliance, will take over the day-to-day running of Tesco next summer.

A charity that supports victims of child sex abuse says the visit of Pope Francis and the high-profile Belfast rape trial in 2018 led to a spike in the numbers accessing its services.

It is with a certain amused disdain that I daily digest the dispatches from colleagues out beyond in the Land Of The Rising Scrum, with all that mildly anguished stuff about finding themselves strangers in a strange land.

Here's a preview of our Rugby World Cup daily newsletter, delivered direct to you mailbox every day at 4pm.

Researchers, scientists and writers will all sit down to tease out some of the world's most pressing issues as evolving technology rapidly changes our world.

Survivors of sexual abuse in day schools have been inundated with calls from people coming forward about their own abuse who are seeking advice on redress, prompting calls for a dedicated helpline.

Noel Gallagher and Lewis Capaldi's back and forth 'banter' has been going on for some weeks now.

The sun finally arrived in the Rebel County tonight just in time to shine a light on one of Ireland's finest bands as they put in a rocking performance at Musgrave Park.

Tesco is considering a trial of an upmarket convenience store under its ‘Tesco finest’ banner, but has not disclosed when or where a pilot will be launched.

Tesco grew sales in Ireland by nearly 3% in the last three months, but growth in its core UK market slowed.

Theresa May has announced she will stand down as leader of the Conservative Party on June 7, signalling the start of the race to replace her.

The executive director of the abuse support group One in Four has welcomed the recommendations contained in the Gillen Review which calls for the banning of the public from rape trials in Northern Ireland.

Poor web speed, staff shortages and backlog hinder garda inquiries

Norwich clinched the Sky Bet Championship title after a 2-1 win against play-off bound Aston Villa at Villa Park.

Singer/songwriter Lewis Capaldi has announced an extra date at Dublin's 3Arena next year due to high demand.

The woman credited with being the driving force behind the Irish National Youth Ballet for the last 13 years has died unexpectedly, while on holidays in Lanzarote.

A very special multi-course dinner in aid of two Cork charities will see four Cork Michelin-starred chefs come together, writes Joe McNamee.

A raucous Sportsground welcomed Connacht’s progression into the play-off stages of the PRO14 as their team turned in a bonus point performance in their most important game of the season so far.

The Menu is delighted to bring further detail to an item alluded to in last weekend’s column, news of what promises to be one of the highlights of this year’s culinary calendar, a fundraising dinner (April 29) in aid of two Leeside charities, Cork Penny Dinners, recent recipients of the prestigious Irish Food Writers’ Guild social responsibility award, and Cork Simon.

The twins are seven now and have already developed a keen nose for ‘controvassy’.

Tesco has reported a 5% rise in annual revenues for its Irish operations to just under €2.7bn.

In his epic March 2011 Vanity Fair piece on the Irish financial crash, Michael Lewis made many fascinating observations about our funny little ways.

Keira Knightley tells Gemma Humphreys about her latest role in a little-known tale of post-war civilian life in Germany.

The Aftermath sees Keira Knightley star as Rachael Morgan, the wife of a British colonel living in 1946 post-war Germany.

Ulster moved third in PRO14 Conference B following a 28-15 bonus-point victory over bottom side Dragons in Newport.

Munster head coach Johann van Graan reserved special praise for his young players and the experience of scrum-half Alby Mathewson after his team survived a big scare in Newport.

A military base deep inside Saudi Arabia appears to be testing and possibly manufacturing ballistic missiles, experts and satellite images suggest, evidence of the type of weapons programme it has long criticised its arch-rival Iran for possessing.

The support offered by Scouting Ireland to people alleging they were abused, sexually and physically, within scouting is not enough, a leading abuse survivors charity has claimed.

Michael Lewis's latest book on America again produces a riveting read on what could be such a dry subject, writes Richard Fitzpatrick.