It had certainly been a long time coming.

SPANKING or banking? That was the question one wag on the phones at the British Treasury was asking journalists this week, so as to ascertain which subject they were enquiring about.

US President Barack Obama, author Oscar Wilde and British Chancellor George Osborne, are among a host of public figures whose Irish ancestry is revealed by an online database.

ROLL up! Roll up! Reduced ramshackle Republic for sale! No offer too small, or too humiliating for consideration.

THE British chancellor George Osborne said he has offered to help out Ireland with a bi-lateral loan to the country as it would be in Britain’s national interest.