A blast from our past

WE’VE come a long way since families of 10 or more were reared in small thatched cottages such as this.

Sprawling mansions are the signature of the new En-suite Ireland, but the old thatched cottage is a reminder of whence we came.

This two-bedroomed house near Castletownbere in North Cork, has been the seat of the Keating family for the last 300 years or so, and is now to pass into other hands.