Feast for the homeless held at the RDS today

Three thousand poor and homeless people will be fed from the RDS today, more than double the demand just four years ago.

The Order of the Knights of St Columbanus offers a three course Christmas meal, with free buses running from the Mansion House, Clery's and the Four Courts.

It has been a festive tradition for nearly one hundred years.

There are 500 sit down dinners this year, and 2,500 take away meals – that is two and a half times the demand just four years ago.

One of the volunteers, Katie Hogan, has said it is a really special day at the RDS: “It is, it is quite bittersweet, I remember the first time I did it, I went home and I think my family had one of those what are we going to watch and Christmas dinner squabbles and I got quite upset with them.”