For their historic state visit to London, President Michael D Higgins and wife Sabina have both shown considerable sartorial flair.

Sticky problem

RICK GEKOSKI’s book, Lost, Stolen or Shredded, is an expertly told tale of the shadowy world of books, manuscripts and artworks that have disappeared.

Britains' Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Diamond Jubilee today by paying tribute to the British virtues of “resilience, ingenuity and tolerance”, and to the Duke of Edinburgh, her “constant strength and guide” over the decades.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny and Prime Minister David Cameron will today publish plans for the development of British-Irish relations for the next decade.

BARACK Obama has reaffirmed the special relationship between the US and Britain and declared that together the two countries “stand squarely on the side of those who long to be free”.

Barack Obama will insist the US-UK alliance is key to providing global security after a “difficult decade” today as he gets down to the real political business of his state visit to Britain.

A senior Obama administration official today said that US President Barack Obama’s state visit to Ireland will be a chance to celebrate the "enormous affinity" between the two countries.

The successful mission to kill Osama bin Laden will give a much-needed boost to President Barack Obama’s flagging popularity ratings.

British Prime Minister David Cameron met Pope Benedict XVI this morning as the Pontiff began the third day of his UK tour.

POPE BENEDICT last night insisted his tour of Britain would continue as planned despite the discovery of a suspected terror plot to attack him.

HE came, he toured, he failed to conquer.

A Kerry woman is preparing to address the Pope in London later today.

Pope Benedict’s historic arrival in Britain today was overshadowed by comments comparing the nation with a “third world country”.

The Pope’s visit to Britain this week will allow the country to gain “fresh energy and inspiration” from its “rich Christian inheritance”, a leading Catholic said today.

Church leaders said today they wanted TV talent show star Susan Boyle to sing for the Pope during his visit to Britain.

Environmental campaigners climbed onto the roof of the Houses of Parliament today, unfurling banners which read: "Change the politics, save the climate."

FIFA have strenuously denied a claim by a British MP that they are pressurising the British government to remove the World Cup from the list of sports events that must be shown on terrestrial television or risk England missing out on hosting the 2018 tournament.

The British government was urged today to take action to restore confidence in the Northern Ireland peace process after weeks of street violence in Belfast.

The Queen Mother’s four grandsons tonight mounted a candlelit vigil over her coffin in Westminster Hall.

Westminster Hall was today reopening to allow thousands more people to pay their respects at the coffin of the Queen Mother.

British police estimate about 70,000 people are lining the Thames to get into Westminster Hall.

The public will be allowed to view the lying in state of the Queen Mother until morning of her funeral service.

Westminster Hall will be open all night because of the massive number of people wanting to pay their respects to the Queen Mother.

A slow, steady tide of humanity today began filing past the Queen Mother’s coffin as it began its lying in state at Westminster Hall.

Members of the public today queued to pay their respects to the Queen Mother as she lies in state at Westminster Hall.

The Queen arrived at Buckingham Palace today as the British nation prepared to honour her mother with the greatest ceremonial procession for a generation.

The first spectators are already arriving to make sure of their places on the route along which the Queen Mother's coffin will be borne from St James's Palace to Westminster Hall.

The Queen Mother's funeral will take place on Tuesday April 9, Buckingham Palace has announced.

Royal advisers were today meeting to finalise the details of the funeral for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.

A 30-year-old bar-worker forced to leave Northern Ireland by IRA death threats today took his traumatic story to Westminster to be taken up by MPs.