Lilac Cottage is a little beauty

CASTLETOWNSHEND is in the throes of change — the first time in over 100 years.

The quaint and charming West Cork village has remained more or less the same since the writers, Somerville and Ross lived here, but in the last two years a development of holiday homes has added an influx of new, part-time residents to the village.

And it has made property even more desirable here, with a knock-on effect on prices.