'I am waiting for the call that will change my life'

Mark Ryan from Cobh has been 'hiding from society' for more than a year on his GP's advice.

It's been a year since then-taoiseach Leo Varadkar announced the first national lockdown. Since then, the country has gone through periods of easing and tightening  restrictions, with pockets of reprieve where families and friends could reunite outdoors or go for a family meal in a local restaurant.

But for many of our most vulnerable, it's been over a year since they began isolating from the outside world, and there has been little in way of reprieve in that period.