A West Cork town is under a virtual siege from the invasive Japanese knotweed, a plant which can destroy buildings.

Two men videoed themselves breaking a guitar over a man’s head in the course of an assault so they could show the video to others with drugs debts what could happen to them if they did not pay.

The rare sight nowadays of an old-style cattle fair on the street distracted attention from the goat at Puck Fair yesterday.

A convicted killer and registered sex offender whose sexual assault of his former partner was likened to a rape with a machete has been jailed for 13 years.