A woman has given her partner a Leap Year surprise by proposing on live TV.

In day two of our look at some of the artists of the Blackwater Valley Makers, Susan O’Shea chats with photographers and ceramicists, graphic designers and woodturners, and finds a scene and a place revitalised over the past year.

The Taoiseach and Finance Minister have both insisted that Maria Bailey was removed from the Fine Gael election ticket in a correct and democratic manner.

It comes after Fine Gael members in her Dún Laoghaire constituency backed a motion calling on the Fine Gael Executive Council to "urgently review" the ticket for the next election

A Fine Gael move to review how many people run for the party in the next general election in Dun Laoghaire, south Dublin, is expected to see embattled TD Maria Bailey face open criticism tomorrow night after her controversial injury claim against a hotel for falling off a swing.

Tánaiste Simon Coveney has appealed for fairness after a failed local Fine Gael revolt to remove embattled south Dublin Fine Gael TD Maria Bailey as a party general election candidate.

Participants and organisers at dance classes in Cork Migrant Centre tell Ellie O’Byrne how it’s a win-win set-up for all concerned

Few things in life take more of a toll on a family than having a child critically ill in hospital — but, in the absence of State aid, there are some charities that can give them a second home, says Joyce Fegan.

Inspired by the ‘gig economy’, The Warehouse is set in a near future world that is horribly believable – zero rights, low pay, devices tracking your every move. Author Rob Hart hopes it will be a wake up call for us all, writes Suzanne Harrington

Maria Sirotkina has been named as the store manager of the newly-opened Portlaoise store of Danish homewares retailer JYSK.

Javier Marías, Spain’s most celebrated living writer, has chronicled its long-deferred reckoning with its violent, fascist past, but is curiously indifferent to plans to rebury dictator Franco, writes Giles Harvey.

Fine Gael is deeply divided over calls for Fine Gael TD Maria Bailey to stand down from the party over the ‘swing-gate’ controversy.

An expert on insects has warned of the dangers of noble false black widow spiders as two Co Waterford women have been treated for severe bites with one spending six days in hospital.

Fine Gael TD Maria Bailey could have her role as chair of the Housing Committee removed this week over her swing-case controversy.

Wherefore Josepha in the tale of Maria? If you want an indicator of why Leo Varadkar’s Government has lost the run of itself, look no further than the Bailey affair.

A drug shown to significantly improve quality of life and mental function for people with a rare genetic disorder will finally be available in Ireland from next Monday, a decade after the State first refused to reimburse it.

Sacked dual-code international Israel Folau has launched a bid to raise €1.84m from the public to fight his legal case against Rugby Australia.

Fitzgerald Park will transform into Cork’s first Carnival of Science this weekend. Aoife and Maria aka Strong Women Science, tell us the magic they have in store, writes Helen O’Callaghan

The King of the Netherlands left Cork with an open invitation to return to the Carrigaline Men's Shed to join the group's choir.

It has never been easier to plan a walk of The Camino where you can travel through breathtaking sites and sleep in luxury, writes Ciara McDonnell

Independent MEP Luke Ming Flanagan, Sinn Féin’s Matt Carthy and former Rose of Tralee Maria Walsh have taken the final three MEP seats in Midlands-North-West — while runner-up Peter Casey has vowed to run for the Dáil.

"My view on this is very simple - people need to have some common sense and they need to be responsible for their own personal safety."

Penalising Maria Bailey over the “swing-gate” scandal will be near impossible, despite widespread calls within Fine Gael for her to be sanctioned.

Maria Bailey (43) is a first-time TD, who was elected on the seventh count in 2016 as one of three Fine Gael TDs in the Dun Laoghaire constituency.

Health Minister Simon Harris has said fellow Fine Gael TD Maria Bailey could have withdrawn her injury claim over falling off a swing before the local and European elections.

Based on the surprisingly moving comedy starring Abigail Breslin, Steve Carell and Toni Collette, this promises to be the feel-good show of the summer.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has slapped down calls by Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin to use the ESB to roll out high-speed broadband, saying this could be “illegal” and would cause delays for rural Ireland.

Salvage is no longer the preserve of rough and ready rag and bone yards, but a thriving aspect of modern interior design with built-in conservation and eco credentials, writes Carol O’Callaghan.

Maria Pearson, a native Irish speaker from Gaoth Dobhair in Donegal, has won a seat for the Tory Party in the local elections for Brentwood Borough Council in England. This is the first time a native Irish speaker has been elected.

Some of those who've grown up after the 1998 Good Friday Agreement are drawn into paramilitary groups due to a lack of power, protection and belonging.

Katie Kim, aka Katie Sullivan, is originally from Waterford but is currently living in Dublin. She is one of the acts playing the It Takes A Village festival in Trabolgan, Co Cork (May 10-12), an event that also features Gilles Peterson, The Herbaliser, Don Letts, etc.

Concern Worldwide worker Kieran McConville has just returned from Mozambique and reflects on the desperate conditions the thousands of cyclone victims must endure.

Move over 'Millennial Pink', because 'Gen Z Yellow' is here to stay! Packing a visual punch, this cheery hue has the celebrity seal of approval, with everyone from Amal Clooney to Beyoncé embracing its impactful appeal.

While most Gooners would’ve bitten your hand off for a draw in advance of last week’s encounter, there was no escaping the huge sense of disappointment, coming away from Wembley, having failed to capitalise on such a prime opportunity to silence our increasingly noisy neighbours.

Former England U19 midfielder Daniel Crowley has confirmed he’s requested the FAI to process his international transfer.

Dr Dermot Nolan, GP and asthma specialist, and spokesperson for Live Every Breath Campaign

‘Colour of Forgiveness’, sees Neville’s leading role character, ‘Tom’, spiral into a world of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll, after his fiancé ditches him at the altar.

Gardaí are looking for Maria Jurickova, 26, who is missing from Dublin.

Breast cancer survivors are preparing to launch a fundraising calendar, similar to the famous ‘Calendar Girls,’ and one of the participants is a man.

It’s a long road to recovery.

A Dublin couple who gave up their baby boy for adoption when they were teenagers have found him again, 36 years later.

Two siblings committed a civil fraud in selling their late father’s Dublin home, on foot of a death certificate for a woman with the same name as their stepmother, the Court of Appeal has ruled. The stepmother was alive at the time.

Barry Kelly hasn’t retired. Not officially, anyway. The 2017 season was his last as an inter-county referee but not as a match official.

Update: Maria Maksimik has been found safe and well.