I remember as a kid in the 1970s going to Ballyheigue and Ballybunion, and being amazed at meeting my cousins there.

As the future relationship of Ireland and Britain is battled over in the fraught anterooms of Westminster and Brussels, this week also saw an escalation in the real Anglo-Irish conflict of our time.

This Time with Alan Partridge’s featured Alan's Irish doppelganger, Martin Brennan - played by Steve Coogan.

Here are 5 things to do this week...

Des O'Driscoll shares the latest from the entertainment world.

Oonagh Kearney is a film-maker from Ballintemple in Cork. A former pupil of the Ursuline Convent in Blackrock, she also studied at the National Film and Television School in London. Her latest short film, the 24-minute Five Letters to the Stranger who will Dissect my Brain, shows as part of the ‘Best of Cork’ presentation at Cork Film Festival on Sunday, Nov 18, at the Everyman.

The actor and comedian was at London's High Court on Tuesday for the settlement of his action for misuse of private information.

Success has been a long time coming for JP Cooper and he’s grateful for the push he got along the way from Ed Sheeran, writes Ed Power.

As he gets ready for the Fastnet Film Festival, director Stephen Frears tells Esther McCarthy about his work on such movies such as Philomena and The Snapper, as well as his new-found love for West Cork

Here are the top three films you don’t want to miss this week, writes Declan Burke.

Declan Burke takes a look at the latest films to hit the big screen

A former producer of The Mrs Merton Show has said he thinks Caroline Aherne was “happier before she was successful” and that she found it “very difficult” dealing with her celebrity status.

It might be summer, depending on the day in Ireland, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t make some time to check out a few flicks while hoping that the rain holds off for the weekend.

The best of this week’s TV in one place. 

Hollywood actors Benedict Cumberbatch, Patrick Stewart, Bill Nighy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Keira Knightley and Kristin Scott Thomas are among leading figures from the arts world backing a vote to remain in the EU.

Offaly native Edwin Sammon will be manning the news desk on the new series of Republic of Telly on RTÉ2 from Monday. He also plays Fr Gabriel in Bridget and Eamon.

CIAN KINSELLA forms one half of comedy performance duo, Lords of Strut, alongside Cormac Mohally. Their new show, Contain-A-Rave, will premiere in a shipping container at Dublin’s Fringe, September 11-13.

 

Lots of excellent telly on the box tonight, from talented folks to aquatic fantasy.

ED SHEERAN could be the latest star to join the terrifying world of Game Of Thrones.

CATHY Belton is having a ball playing Patricia Hennessy in new TV3 soap Red Rock.

The magic that brings to life the exhibits at New York’s Museum of Natural History is running out as Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb (PG) opens, forcing Larry (Ben Stiller) to travel to London in order to rejuvenate the ancient Egyptian enchantment.

Fawlty Towers actor John Cleese has been named the most influential British comedy star of all time.

Everyone's favourite little one-eyed yellow creatures are getting their own film.

Enigmatic star Kate Bush has remained tight-lipped about her reasons for her stage return 35 years after her only tour, but a new documentary reveals an unlikely possible inspiration – Steve Coogan’s comic creation Alan Partridge.

More than 200 celebrities and public figures have urged Scotland to vote No in the referendum on whether the country should leave the UK.

Tune in to Ch4 at 10pm for a documentary shedding light on the world of child shooters in America, illuminating the beliefs, ambitions and paranoia that underpin it.

Nearly a quarter of the babies born to Irish mothers and exported to the US for adoption were born at the Sean Ross Abbey, Co Tipperary, the convent at the centre of the film Philomena.

The remaining members of Monty Python will reunite on stage tonight for the last of their farewell shows which will be screened in cinemas around the world.

George Wendt returns to the Kilkenny’s Cat Laughs event 19 years after his first appearance, writes Richard Fitzpatrick.

Your spoiler-free guide to what to look out for on the box tonight.

While the French Riviera gets on with its enormous film festival, a smaller event is taking place on a palm-tree-fringed West Cork coastal village.

Director Stephen Frears will talk film in Schull next week, says Conor Power.

Steve Coogan, the star of Oscar-nominated movie Philomena, will be in Schull next month for the Corona Fastnet Short Film Festival.

A terminally-ill teenager who has raised more than £1.6m (€1.94m) for charity has said he is “still fighting” as donations from the public continue to roll in thanks to his fundraising efforts.

The Irish Film and Television Awards (IFTAs) are almost upon us, and this year sees a stellar line-up gracing the red carpet.

Tune into BBC1 at 10.35pm tonight as Graham Norton is joined by Hollywood superstar Russell Crowe, screen siren Cameron Diaz, and comic actor and director Richard Ayoade. Plus music from the queen of pop, Kylie Minogue.

Mission: Impossible star Tom Cruise joked Lady Luck has been on his side as he accepted a lifetime achievement award.

Tune into TV3 at 10pm tonight to watch The Pipe. The story of a rural community in Co Mayo in Ireland that has been battling the oil giant Shell over their plans to put a raw gas pipeline through the community.