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Enda Kenny had the pallor of one about to take a bungy jump under duress. He knew no more than the rest of us whether white smoke would spiral from the conclave, says Michael Clifford

“I feel the need,” said Tom Cruise in the film Top Gun, and he flying aeroplanes like the devil, not to mention getting up to all kinds of mischief with Kelly McGillis.

IF THE August 1915 funeral of Jeremiah O’Donovan Rossa was a portent of the Irish Volunteers’ military strength, British authorities were given an even clearer picture just five weeks before the Easter Rising began.

How this week 100 years ago was spent by the men and women behind the Rising

Details of what was being done this week 100 years ago by those planning the Rising, and how it was observed by British authorities in Ireland.

An ongoing and chronological look back at 1916 and some of the behind the scenes planning of the Rising which was certainly "NOT in the news" of the time.

On the eve of the 70th anniversary of his first stay in Ireland, Ryle Dwyer examines the early visits of the iconic John F Kennedy, and his thoughts on the likes of Eamon de Valera

Alex Tsipras has been the Greek Prime Minister since January 2014.

Ukraine’s citizens are fighting bravely against a ruthless aggressor and have been betrayed by the West who has abandoned them to their fate, write Petr Kolar and Juraj Mesík.

Hollywood loves its overseas villains. Evil forces from Russia, China and North Korea have tirelessly menaced our big-screen heroes in recent years. But, in the wake of the startling cancellation of The Interview, an entire species of movie baddies might be in danger of extinction.

Hollywood stars and political leaders have angrily described the decision to pull a film about the assassination of the North Korean leader as a defeat for free speech.

Today marks the 75th anniversary of one the most memorable All-Ireland hurling finals in history.

On the 75th anniversary of the IRA’s infamous bombing of Coventry, Ryle Dwyer examines the context and implications of the outrage.

Despite the passage of time, there are many parallels between the German Sudetenland and Crimean crises,writes Bobo Lo

Schoolchildren yesterday heard of their island home’s “unusual history” during a local commemoration of the 75th anniversary handover of a former British-built fort to Ireland.

Michael Clifford deplores Enda Kenny’s supposed lack of vision.

It was billed as High Noon in the upper house.

SO, Irish body politics has been diagnosed with severe asthma.

TODAY marks the anniversary of the Anglo-Irish agreements of Apr 25, 1938.

It’s a month since the UN passed a resolution imposing sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear testing. Since then a geopolitical game of cat and mouse has taken place between Pyongyang, Seoul, and Washington. David Keelaghan in Seoul looks at the potential consequences.

Walk along any of London’s famous old shopping thoroughfares — your Oxford Streets, Covent Gardens and Sohos — and the same tacky souvenirs will festoon the windows and spill out onto the pavements.

Richard Fitzpatrick ponders the link between abnormal psychology and political power — and finds that many of those who have achieved high office were not, in fact, as stable as we think.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny described the current economic conditions of the country as “what is in reality a temporary, hand-me-down, financial straitjacket”.

IT was nice to see a degree of personal warmth in the Dáil between Micheál Martin and Enda Kenny. We have been witnessing probably the greatest changes in the Dáil since 1932.

JOBS! Jobs! Jobs!

THE order in which siblings are born could play a significant role in determining whether they become the next Judi Dench or Tony Blair, a survey has found.

The newly formed Cameron-Clegg coalition Government in the UK is facing its first threatened backbench rebellion, over a controversial plan to reduce the risk of it being voted out of office before the end of its planned five-year term.

HAVE the Brits finally become European, a discussion paper by the European Council on Foreign Relations think-tank asked last week?

WHY would the future Cardinal Seán Brady ask an eight-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy to swear on oath that they would not divulge that Fr Brendan Smyth had sexually abused them? The main aim was certainly not to protect other boys from that predator. Fr Brady was apparently more interested in protecting the Catholic Church as an institution from criticism.

THE widespread use of the phrase “blame game” sidesteps the central, practical issue and neatly kicks it to touch.

Perhaps inevitably, Andrew’s account of MI5’s activities in relation to the Provisionals is not a full one, although interesting new details emerge.

THE secrets of 100 years of spying and counter-intelligence work were laid bare yesterday with the publication of the first official history of the Security Service, M15.

THIS week we mark the 70th anniversary of the beginning of the most momentous and appalling conflict in human history.

IN May 1940, when Britain had its back to the wall in World War II, Neville Chamberlain resigned as prime minister immediately after winning a vote of confidence in the House of Commons because he realised that the British people had lost their confidence in him and his policies.

IN a review of Brian Cowen’s first year as Taoiseach, RTÉ News mentioned he had to face an unprecedented series of crises and that none of his predecessors “ever had to deal with problems of such severity”.

FOR years the maxim of American business was: “As General Motors goes, so goes the nation.” Today there are fears General Motors is going bankrupt and this could have further enormous implications for the global economy. The whole thing emphasises the need for new political thinking in relation to the economy.

Charlie McCreevy had the courage to move a ‘no confidence’ motion in Charlie Haughey’s leadership in October 1982, but the great majority in the parliamentary party did not have the vision, the guts or the integrity to support his motion, so Haughey survived.

THE Government was forced into a U-turn over the pay raises this week. Bertie Ahern was right to say they would get no credit for the gesture. They deserved none.

FRANK GALLAGHER, author of the book The Indivisible Island (1957), quotes a significant comment made by Lord Craigavon, Northern Ireland’s first prime minister, who was on his way to visit Neville Chamberlain, then the British prime minister.