IRISH exiles in the US knew about the Easter Rising before the news reached most of their relatives back home, writes Ray Ryan.

The Ryan family get their health assessed in Doctor in the House on TV3 on Wednesday at 9pm.

Brendan O’Carroll is set to tell the story of the 1916 Rising as experienced by members of his family for a one-off BBC television programme which will air on RTÉ this weekend, and on BBC2 next week.

The Tricolour said to have flown over Dublin during the 1916 Rising failed to sell at auction despite bids reaching €24,000.

Iron Age stone heads and gold Torc feature at sale.

A computer has helped a pensioner discover his father’s amazing role in the 1916 Rising, and now he wants families nationwide to find out more of their own family histories ahead of the centenary in 2016.

Rare letters linked to Ireland’s struggle for independence, including a handwritten note by the British prime minister, which were found in a collection not seen in public for almost a century, will go on display in Cork today before the collection goes under the hammer.

Enda Kenny’s claim at the recent Michael Collins commemoration that Lenin visited Ireland at Collins’ behest has been proven to be false. However, there is an extremely slim possibility that Collins may have encountered Lenin in London.

Kenny, in effect, was trying to hurt Fianna Fáil by helping Mary Lou McDonald when he criticised Garret FitzGerald for suggesting Fine Gael should transfer votes to Eoin Ryan. At the same time he was trying to have us believe that he would not deal with Sinn Féin. He can’t have it both ways

PIERCE Martin (Irish Examiner, Letters, 14 April) is wrong when he states that the 1916 Proclamation was rammed down the throats of the Irish people.

Tuesday marks the 90th anniversary of WW1 and here historian and journalist, Ryle Dwyer, argues why it should mark the beginning of a new understanding and respect for the 200,000 Irishmen who fought and the 38,000 who died in one of the world’s most horrendous conflicts.

A 90-year-old letter written by Michael Collins to Thomas Ashe is expected to fetch around €50,000 at an auction tonight.

A major hoard of War of Independence memorabilia has been snapped up by the Government.