TV and sports stars bank healthy cash piles

Ireland's TV and sporting heroes are sitting on tidy cash piles despite the recession.

The Irish Independent reports this morning that the accounts of Brian O'Driscoll's company, ODM and Promotions Ltd, show nearly €1.5m on their books while its accumulated profits stand at €2.9m.

Former Munster captain, Paul O'Connell, who owns Nellcon Limited, has €850,000 banked, as his career draws to a close.

However, Ronan O'Gara's business, Stand Off Promotions Ltd, lost more than €1.1m last year.

It is also reported that Joe Duffy, Pat Kenny and Marian Finucane's companies have more than €200,000 each.