Paisley visits tomb of the liberator

NOTHING could encapsulate the extent to which the erstwhile arch-villain of Northern Irish republican politics, Reverend Ian Paisley, has changed his tune than his visit to Dublin yesterday.

For a start, it was low-key. There was no protest or controversy. He visited the Dáil, took his seat in the visitors’ gallery and, when the antics of TDs got too much, he strolled across to the Seanad.

There was hearty applause. And a standing ovation from deputies Ruairí Quinn, Sean Power and Thomas Byrne.