Sandyford InformerFebruary 2010 • Unit 38, Northwood Court, Santry, Dublin 9 • Tel: 01 813 8786 • Email: info@informer.ie • Web: www.informer.ie

Rathmines • Ranelagh • RathgaR • teRenuRe

20,000 copies deliveRed monthly

system, which has been widely praised. It is based on a smartcard which holds credit, rather like a mobile phone. Each time the com-muter uses the system money is deducted from their account. Passengers register the card when they enter the system and register when they leave it. So a journey could begin on bus, transfer to tram and end on rail, and the pas-senger will only pay one fare, similar to the Luas smartcard.

So far only tickets which are prepaid, such as monthly tickets work on Dublin's system. This year much of the work on the back office systems will be car-ried out, which will allow jour-neys to be calculated and the rev-enues to be paid to the various operators, one of the key sticking points delaying the whole project.

Dublin Bus and Luas smart-cards are due to be merged towards the end of this year.

The year of theintegrated ticket?

By Niall Gormley

ThE promise of the Integrated Ticket is Dublin's equivalent of the draining of the Shannon - a mythical scheme to solve many problems but always just out of reach.

A genuine integrated ticket would indeed transform Dublin's transport system by putting together our disparate systems of heavy rail, light rail, city buses, commuter buses and private oper-ators. The promise is that with an integrated ticket in their hand, all the systems will be merged into one.

2010 looks like being the year when the plans for the Integrated Ticket System (ITS) finally start coming together. In the past cou-ple of months Irish Rail has launched their smartcard, so that the three main providers of public transport in the city, including Dublin Bus and Luas, are now operating the cards. The systems at the moment are largely stand-alone but they have been designed to be merged later on.

The ITS has been amongst the slowest and most heavily criti-cised transport projects in Dublin. A firm commitment to provide integrated ticketing was taken in 2001 and the Rail Procurement Agency (RPA) were put in overall charge of the project. The 'Platform for Change' document envisaged completion in 2006.

While we have been waiting for a ticket that could be used for bus, tram and rail, there has been motorways pretty much finished to Dundalk, Galway, Limerick and Cork, and the Luas system was built.

however, the various strands of the ITS project do finally appear to be coming together. The con-cept is based on the Singapore

should stag hunting be banned?the hunters vs the greens Page 3

Keith Duffy added a weighty cheque for e160,000, in support of Irish Autism Action (IAA), to his trolley at Dublin Airport earlier this month. Duffy, the IAA’s patron, touched down at the Airport to accept the donation from the DAA Employee Charity of the Year. The sum collected is a combination of funds raised by DAA staff events, a contribution from the Airport Authority itself and donations made by passengers over the past year. Pushing are Siobhan Moore and Deirdre Morris.

Some excess baggage!

Keith Duffy Interview Pages 10-11

Still one

of the boyz

2 The Informer

The DriftThe month in Quotes

Our relationship, on a professional and on a personal level, was very, very close. We were really good friends. She was a tower of strength to me, reallyEamonn Lillis on his relationship with his wife Celine Cawley. He has been convicted of her manslaughter.

I put his fingers on my pulse and my pulse was racing and I said: 'That's what I'm thinking' and I walked out of the room.Jean Treacy recounts how her affair with Eamonn Lillis began.

The relationship later developed into a brief affair. It had no emotional or lasting meaning but my actions have devastated my life and the lives of those around me.DUP MP Iris Robinson explains her involvement with Kirk McCambley, who was 19 years old at the time of the affair

The first ten days of January continued a spell of exceptionally cold weather that began in mid-December, representing the most extreme cold spell over Ireland since early 1963.Met Eireann tells it like it was

I'd rather be a really good one-term President than a mediocre two-term President.Barack Obama sets out his ambition.

I just think to myself 'wow, I'm out there on tour with this guy for 10 years and, often times, Tiger himself described me as a friend, and I'd no idea this was going on in his life.Padraig Harrington on his mate Tiger

Children’s Sunshine Home and LauraLynn House

Dublin InformerEditor: Niall Gormley

Unit 38, Northwood Court, Santry, Dublin 9 • Sales: 01 813 8786 Email: info@informer.ie • sales@informer.ie

Web: www.informer.ie

Dublin by

Numbers 4thThis is where Dublin scores in terms of the richest cities in the world in 2009. Dublin actually moved up a place - in 2008 we were only the fifth richest city.

The survey was carried out by the UBs banking group and is based on the average

purchasing power of each citizen. What did change in the past year is that we slipped from being the third most expensive city to the 10th spot. We're paid well so that we come fifth in terms of the work hours needed to buy an ipod Nano.

Work finally began on LauraLynn House, Ireland’s first children’s hospice in September 2009. on the grounds of the Children’s Sunshine Home in Leopardstown, LauraLynn House will be the only health-care unit in the country to offer unique community-based paediatric palliative and respite care in a unit designed and built specifically for this purpose.

When it becomes clear that the life of a sick child will be a short one, two things become very important to the family; the quality of, and enjoyment of their shortened time. However, caring for a seriously ill child can cause immense physical and emo-tional strain for the whole family. This can result in little time for ‘fun’ whilst receiving vital medical treatment for the sick child, parents and siblings. A children's hospice is a family’s last option but a real option for some – nearly 400 children die each year in Ireland due to terminal illnesses.

once complete in early 2011 LauraLynn House will provide a 'home from home' where families can recharge and spend time with their children in a specialist but home-

ly environment. LauraLynn House will pro-vide support for more than 300 families per year “putting life in to a child’s day, not days in to a child’s life”.

The project is the shared vision of the LauraLynn Children’s Hospice Foundation and The Children’s Sunshine Home, who joined forces in 2006. The Foundation was created in 2001 by parents Jane and Brendan Mckenna in memory of their two daughters Laura and Lynn, who sadly died within two years of each other aged just four and fif-teen.

The Children’s Sunshine Home has cared for children with life limiting conditions and their families since 1925, providing respite, transitional, home support, crisis care and, where required, end of life care.

The children’s hospice project has received fantastic public and corporate sup-port but ongoing fundraising and donations are needed to ensure the viability of the unit.

Anyone wishing to make a donation or for further information may visit www.sun-shinehome.ie or call 1800 315 315.

Campaign Dublin The Children's HospiceThe InformerBarometerWHo's UnDer PressUre?

H

H

H

L

L

PETEr robINSoN: one day everything's fine and the next thing... The Northern Ireland First Minister just got hit with a personal and political runaway train. Unedifying.

brIaN LENIHaN: The intense political pressure on the Minister for Finance waned somewhat with the news of his personal health problems. Possibly the pressure just tranferred.

THE baNkS: Still cossetted in the bank guarantee and promised to have their worse loans transferred to Nama. all they have to do now is face a Dail committee. Cushty.

GErry aDaMS: Sympathy for his family's plight ebbed as the complexities of the child abuse phenomenon came to his door. Very few people emerge unscathed.

TIGEr WooDS: a fallen saint and still one of the most gifted golfers ever, the man will have to endure a hell of a gauntlet in the next tournament he shows up for.

Q

3The Informer

Dialogue & Debate

If TDs and Senators support John Gormley’s proposal to ban stag hunting by the Ward Union Hunt they will be voting to end not only a unique part of our tradition and heritage, but an important contributor to the economic prosperity of our people.

If the ban goes ahead, the extreme opponents of hunting who are now a powerful influence on the Green Party in government will be emboldened to move against fox hunting, hare hunting, bea-gling, shooting and even fishing. Soon, the only legal recreation left to people in the countryside will be to go for a walk. And they won’t even be allowed bring their doggie, because that would infringe the animal’s ‘rights’.

There is no need for the proposed change in the law. The Ward Union Hunt has been extremely well run since its foundation a hundred and fifty five years ago. Currently, it operates under the terms of a very strict licensing, inspection and monitoring system imposed by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government in 2000.

What happens during a typical hunt? A mature, healthy deer is segregated from the herd and transported in a purpose built trans-porter to a selected location. The deer is released and after a pre-scribed period of time the huntsman introduces a restricted number of hounds and they, and the mounted hunters, set off to follow the deer’s scent.

Deer are extremely strong, fleet-footed animals and are well able to evade hounds. The purpose of the pursuit is not, nor has it ever been, to kill the deer but to pit the skills of the huntsman, the hounds and the riders against the deer’s prowess as an animal of natural flight. At the end of the chase, the deer either evades cap-ture or is brought to bay (rather like sheep by a sheep dog) and it is recaptured manually by designated, trained followers.

for the past three seasons, Wildlife Officers from the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government have been observing hunts and monitoring the health of the deer. The deer’s health is checked before and after each hunt. The deer is physio-logically stressed, like any athlete, while in flight but – also like an athlete – recovers quickly with no undue effects. To date, through exhaustive and extensive monitoring, no excess stress levels have been recorded. This is not surprising, since it is natural for a flight animal, like a deer, to be hunted.

The Guthrie and Kane Report on the welfare of deer hunted by the Ward Union Hunt Club in the 1997/98 season was prepared by veterinarians from the Department of Agriculture and food. The welfare of the deer was assessed (i) during the hunt (ii) immedi-ately afterwards and (iii) subsequently. Welfare was assessed by a number of parameters in combination: health, behaviour and blood chemistry. In summary, the report found that the behaviour of hunted and carted deer was similar to other non-hunted deer, at the deer park, when re-examined subsequently. The most important finding was that the health of the deer did appear to be affected in either the short or the long term after hunting.

A ban on the Ward Union will withdraw around €1.4 million in annual spending in North County Dublin and Meath. Nationally, it will remove a cornerstone from the Irish thoroughbred and sport horse industry – and from tourism – that sustains 22,000 jobs and contributes well over €1 billion to the economy.

Liam Cahill is spokesperson for the Ward Union Hunt

THE Green Party is strong on animal welfare policy. Some of our voters are animal-lovers who vote for us specifically on our policy of banning blood sports, banning fur-farming and ensuring animals are treated in a humane manner whether in farming or in institu-tions like zoos.

The issue of stag hunting however steps outside the simple issue of animal cruelty. It bypasses the bound-aries of a particular political party’s policy. It affects all people living, working and driving around an area where stag hunting regularly takes place. And it must not be rolled into a debate on fishing, shooting and foxhunting. It is one of safety.

In January 2007, a stag chased during a hunt, leaped into a school yard of a Kildalkey school, terrorising the parents who were waiting there to pick up their children. In December 2009, a 300kg, five-year-old-stag collided with a car after it was chased onto a public road. Although no-one was hurt, the stag had to be destroyed.

In an increasingly urbanised countryside, particu-

larly like the lands in Meath and North Dublin where the Ward Union hunt, it is not acceptable for a large, frightened animal to be chased through lands and roads.

Supporters of stag hunting will claim that the ani-mal is never killed and as a wild animal, bears no ill-effect having been chased through miles and miles of countryside. But, I beg to differ. Hunted stags in Ireland are not wild.

They are farmed animals, de-horned and carted from the safety of their fenced fields to be set free in unfamiliar countryside. The physical strain on the animal is obvious. Stating that an animal, which is chased over stone walls, over barbed wire fences, over high ditches and through acres of forests and fields, and comes away from the experience perfectly unharmed, whether physically or mentally, does not make sense.

Hunt supporters cite job losses in the industry, as a reason not to implement the ban. However, I believe opponents of the ban have been grossly exaggerating

the effect the ban will have on the equine industry in Ireland.

The Green Party does not shy away from the reali-ties of rural living. Deer do need to be culled, when numbers are out of control and when damage is being done to trees or farmers’ crops. for that, we rely on the expert advice from the Parks and Wildlife Service and it is carried out in a humane way.

As a rural TD I am well aware of the importance of rural pursuits enjoyed by hundreds of Irish people and the value placed on much-loved traditions stretching back centuries. But, this is 2010.

And I find it difficult to find a place for a hunt, such as the Ward Union, taking place in the urbanised com-muter counties of Dublin and Meath, putting people’s lives at risk, and terrorising the majestic animal that once graced our £1 piece.

Mary White TD is the Green Party spokesperson on Community & Rural Affairs. In 2007, she became the first Green TD to be elected in a rural constituency.

Should Stag

hunting Be

Banned?YeS

no

4 The Informer

Health Feature

Lose body fat and gain self confidenceThis year, you will be able to keep your resolution to shape upand lose weight – thanks to a new, fat-burning supplement

Award-winningslimming concept

Help for your New Year’s resolution

How to losebelly fatFat can be really stubborn, especially fat in places like around the stomach (belly fat), the thighs, and the bottom. Some people find that no matter how hard they try, they never succeed in getting rid of the fat in those places. Now, they can. With a sup-plement that features two active ingredients in one capsule, burning fat has never been easier.

CLa (conjugated linoleic acid) is a natural com-ponent of meat and dairy products that can also be taken as a supplement. In studies, it has been shown

to be particularly effective for reducing fat around the stomach. It works by blocking an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase, which is responsible for storing fat in fat cells. at the same time, CLa stimulates another enzyme called palmitoyl transferase that is involved in the burning of fat in muscle cells.

Green tea extract (GtE) contains a compound called epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). according to research, EGCG can increase fat oxidation (the burning of fat) by up to 17%.

Key factors for shaping upMake a note of the following when you try to shape up. It will increase your chances of obtaining the results you hope for:➫ Make realistic goals. Don’t expose yourself

to drastic changes that are only temporary. Instead, introduce changes you can maintain permanently. Remember – what really makes a difference is how you live between New Year and Christmas, not the short period between Christmas and New Year.

➫ Don’t focus so much on weight. What counts is how the weight is distributed and how it looks on you. after all, muscle weighs more than fat but looks a whole lot better.

➫ Make sure to exercise regularly. By stimulating your muscle cells, you increase their turnover of fat. the more muscle mass you have, the easier it is for you to stay slim.

➫ Use the stairs, not the elevator. Walk or bicycle whenever you really don’t need your car. take any chance to get that little bit of exercise. Every bit counts.

➫ Cut out the unnecessary fat. You don’t need it, it is just a bad habit. the same goes for sugar.

➫ Don’t eat out of boredom. Before you make a snack, make sure you really need it because you are hungry. Habitual eating is dangerous.

The combination of CLA and green tea has won several awards for its reliable effect and popularity. Both consumers and retailers seem to have taken to this new concept because of the underlying documentation, the solid effect, and the excellent safety.

OK, it is 2010 and you have promised yourself to lose those visible signs of excess weight. this year, however, you have been given some help from the sideline: CLa (conjugated linoleic acid) and green tea extract, two natural substances that helps you burn extra fat.

Don’t think that this means that you can skip the exercise and continue eating unhealthy foods. But these active substances will support the body’s burn-ing of fat in a natural way. a supplement that com-bines two active ingredients (see box) is already one of the most popular slimming products among European consumers, and when you see how it works it is not difficult to understand why.

Firm and lean

Unlike most diet supplements and other prepara-tions that merely work as fillers to help you eat less, this supplement actively enhances the body’s con-

version of fat into energy. CLa has been shown to reduce body fat by 8-9% on that account, while green tea extract can speed up the conversion of fat by up to 17%. these are impressive figures, but you still need to contribute with healthy eating and exer-cise, so don’t think that things will happen auto-matically.

What these capsules do is to help you lose body fat without losing muscle mass. the result is a firmer and leaner body that looks much better than what you see in the mirror now. In a matter of months, you will find that:

l You look slimmerl You feel firmer (stomach, thighs, abdomen)l You can wear your favorite clothes againl Your self-confidence will increase massivelyl You will feel like keeping up the good work in

the future

What better way to start off a new year?

6 The Informer

Green Scene Edited by Kathy Marsh, Sonairte

How green are the Greens in government? Have they really made a difference? The Green Page has been keeping a close eye to see how many of those pledges made in the halcyon days of a booming economy are still on track – and whether they will help us all out of the recession.

So just a couple of points from the last couple of months. Europe is looking over Ireland’s shoulder on a whole host of environmental issues – there are a whole host of cases against us actually going through the European courts or pending, and if we lose the Irish tax payer will be hit with yet another bill.

The carbon levy announced in December’s budget will help to keep some of those at bay, as will the Foreshore Bill also announced in December and the 21% growth in renewable energy use. And increased funding to organic farmers may not sound as though it

will matter to you and me, but organic farms hold more carbon in the soil and help Ireland meet its interna-tional targets and yes, you’ve guessed it, help to stop us having to pay more fines.

The great freeze certainly focused attention on the lack of investment in Ireland’s water infrastructure over the last half century or so. The recent implementa-tion of the long standing Green commitment to the installation of water meters, and the spending of money raised by meters on replacing ancient leaking pipes so that the water in the reservoirs actually reaches the tap could hardly be more timely.

And in these times of unemployment is worth notic-ing that the Green economy sector has generated over 15,000 jobs since the last election.

Now perhaps the Greens can find more investment in education and research for that Green economy?

On being overtaken by bikesBy Kathy Marsh, Sonairte

Greening the GovernmentANyoNE who finds themselves having to drive in Dublin city is used to seeing cyclists passing them out on the inside in the city’s bus and bike lanes when the roads are busy, but now drivers will have to get used to the bikes flying past them at all times of day.

It was quiet enough through the 50 kph sections of my route but easy to see where the 30 kph sections began as traffic piled up on the periphery. once into the 30 kph sec-tion it flowed well enough – in fact it seemed to me to be moving as fast as usual.

But what showed the difference was the high speed bikers zooming past – at least that’s how it felt. Must have been a good ratio of fit young people cycling that morn-ing because they certainly left the cars standing.

Even more encouraging was seeing how many cyclists were willing to risk their lives late in the evening along the quays – haven’t seen so many for more years than I care to remember. And that was on a rainy night. with car speeds reduced the bikers obvi-ously felt it was safe to be out – and of course there aren’t any speed limits for bikes.

Saw one garda speed check but it didn’t seem to be catching many law breakers – everyone is obviously being careful of the new regime – or maybe even the moaners

recognize that keeping cyclist and pedestri-ans alive and uninjured is a good thing.

Now if we can just get all the cyclists using good lights and the pedestrians to stop jay walking maybe the city centre will start being really user friendly. which will stop the business and car lobbies from opposing people friendly rules.

Remember how they screamed when Grafton Street was pedestrianised? How many of them would want to go back to those days?

Meanwhile the cycling lobby is opposing the new Portobello to Fairview cycle route, which seems a little illogical until you look at the detail. It turns out that it's something of a stop-go cycle route – wherever there is a junction with roads cyclists will have to get off their bikes and push them across the pedestrian crossings.

And where the route goes along the road it will be back to those narrow lanes that assume all cyclists are young and fit and aren’t carrying any luggage on their bikes or towing a baby carrier. As an ageing fat cyclist many of the city’s cycle lanes scare me silly – I simply daren’t use them. And if I was a young parent I certainly wouldn’t put my child at risk. So please can the planners revisit this one – it’s a great start but they need to talk to some real cyclists.

This year sonairte, only 40 min-utes on the bus from Parnell street, has over 7O courses in its bro-chure.

set in the centre’s organic walled garden, they cover a whole range of topics from vegetable growing, through green building and energy, to a variety of self improvement topics from medita-tion to spinning and wildlife paint-

Young Environmentalists 2010It's that time of year again. Deadline for registering projects for this year is Friday February 26th. Anyone aged from 12 to 18 years old can take part by carrying out an environmental action project with their school or youth group.

Contact www.ecounesco.ie for further details or call in to the new EcoUnesco offices in the Greenhouse. this is the new home of both EcoUnesco and Culitivate in the former Enfo building at 17 st Andrews street. the Cultivate shop is well worth a look while you are there.

ing. The brochure can be collected from libraries, health food shops or garden centres, ordered from 041-9827572 or downloaded from the centre’s new website at www.sonairte.ie

The centre has also increased its range of school tours in 2010 to meet the needs of both primary and secondary schools. Many school groups visiting the centre these days are brought by teachers who first discovered their love of the environment when they visited sonairte in their own school days.

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8 The Informer

Garden Growing

Boy oh boy, what a winter! It’s been a long time since we’ve had such a pro-longed period of frost and snow. We have to go back to 1963 for the last severe winter, particularly on the east coast.

No matter how careful we all were preparing for the cold, I’m sure there isn’t a garden in the whole country that hasn’t lost some treasured plant or shrub. Even the traditional Horticultural Fleece was useless in the face of our arctic tem-peratures. A consequence of this is very cold soil indeed and with no sign of temperatures increasing, the ground will need some time to warm up before any planting can take place in the vegetable plot. If you have started to work on your plot, make sure to cover it at night while this cold snap continues as this will really help to warm up the soil.

Getting started

Even though it’s cold outside, February is the time when we can start to germi-nate the seeds for this year’s crop. you may be lucky enough to have a green-house or maybe a small poly-tunnel, but if you don’t it is very easy to germinate seeds indoors. The best way to do this is by using a propagator.

There are two types of propagator, standard (i.e. not heated) and electrically heated. The latter, are more expensive but will germinate seeds in less time. They cost about e50.00 depending on the size. The standard propagators cost about e20.00 and are very good value. you can also germinate seeds in pots and trays on a window ledge or in a south facing room. Follow the instructions on the seed packets and off you go. Do remember something I mentioned before, only grow the vegetables that you and your family like and will therefore eat.

Spuds away!

February is also the time to think about potatoes. There are a huge variety of seed potatoes to choose from. If you haven’t grown spuds before, may I sug-gest you start with a crop of First Earlies.

As the name suggests, these will be the first potatoes of the season and taste like potatoes did when we were youngsters. you can harvest these in June and July. My favourite by far is 'orla' followed by 'Duke of york'.

Mr. Middleton in Mary Street is a wonderful shop for seed potatoes amongst other things. The staff there

will help you with any questions. A very good tip to encourage potatoes to grow faster is to ‘Chit’ the seed potatoes. What you do is lay the seed potatoes out in cardboard egg boxes with the ‘eyes’ pointing upwards. Keep the potatoes in a cool, light room. After about 4-5 weeks, you will see the ‘eyes’ sprout. These sprouts or shoots will be about one inch long. Chitting is vital for First Earlies, but not so important for second or main crops. I will explain how to plant and look after the potatoes in a later article.

Spring chores

Even though the soil is very cold and planting isn’t possible for the moment, there are a lot of things gardeners can do in February. Cut back hedges and large shrubs now before the birds start to nest. This really needs to be done straight away as, believe it or not, some birds have already begun to nest.

If the ground isn’t frozen, now is a great time to plant trees, shrubs and fruit trees as they will establish before the growing season starts in earnest.

Now is the time to dig in leaf mould which hopefully we’ve all been storing for over a year. Leaves should be gath-ered a year in advance and left to break

down properly before distribution. Dig some into the vegetable plot and use the rest as a top dressing.

Wisteria, winter flowering Jasmines and late flowering Clematis should also be pruned. Take a close look at your herbaceous perennials (lavender, lupin, carnations, etc) as they will be starting to shoot despite the frosty weather. They should be fed in a month or so with a good organic fertiliser like calcified sea-weed or liquid seaweed or indeed, old horse manure.

Don't forget the birds

Finally, please remember to feed all your garden birds. They really rely on us in this cold weather to survive and unfortunately many of them will die so please do your part. Try to have your bird table near the house. Close to the kitchen window is a great place as you and your family will have great fun watching them feed.

We have a huge variety of birds at the moment including Europe’s smallest bird The Gold Crest which is even smaller than the humble wren, known to all of us. We also have a male 'Black Cap'. Get yourself a book on birds as this will help you to identify them.

Finally folks, if you need any informa-tion on gardening or if you have any tips or suggestions which I can pass on, please send them to me at Livinglandescapes@eircom.net.

I would be delighted to quote for any/all of your garden requirements from set-up organic vegetable plots to restora-tion of neglected gardens, design, plant-ing and maintenance. No charge for ini-tial visit and I will travel within reason.

With Gerry Norton

Gerry Norton, Living Landescapes, 97 Church Avenue,

Drumcondra, Dublin 9Tel: 087-2462724

or emaillivinglandescapes@eircom.net

After the long, cold, lonely winter

10 The Informer

The Informer Interview

How long did you get involved raising money for autism?I have been involved for nearly eight years now ever since we found out my daughter Mia suffers from this condition. Trying to get Mia diagnosed back then at 18 months was hard as there were little or no facilities available in Ireland and it was only through me meeting a person recommended to me by a friend that I managed to get Mia diagnosed. I just thought this was shocking given the times we are living in and so I decided to get behind fundraising for autism.

How is your daughter Mia coping with autism now that she has been diagnosed and is receiving help?Mia is getting on great. She was fortunate to attend a school called Abacus in Kilbarrack, a school that specifically caters for children with autism. After three years they gradually started integrating her into main stream school for half an hour a day to an hour a day and after five years she started on a full time basis.

Mia has been there for over three years now. Her teachers have told us that academically and socially she is coming on really well which we (Lisa my wife, Jordan my son and

myself) are delighted with her progress. She is our little miracle.

Do you think the government are doing enough to fund and help children with autism?Definitely NOT and until they actually understand the con-dition and then understand how to deal with the issues then NO. Early intervention is key with children suffering from autism and until the government are prepared to invest money and decide they want to realise a child’s full poten-tial and help to bring down waiting lists of schools that we help, then they themselves cannot claim they are doing nearly enough.

What advice would you give to parents who think their child has autism?I would advise that if they think that their child has autism then get them checked out straight away as early interven-tion is essential. Most children with autism go on to lead happy normal lives so there is no need to panic or get frus-trated as help is at hand. Make sure to keep your child happy and in a good environment.

How did the 'Night of Love Ball' come about?The world famous actor Samuel Jackson has his own foun-dation that goes around the world raising money for chari-ties in different countries. He recently found out that a friend’s child was diagnosed with autism which prompted him to make sure his next fund raiser would be for a char-ity that supported autism.

We were asked to go to London to meet his representa-tives and because of his huge fan base in Ireland we were blessed that he decided to come to Ireland and raise money for Irish Autism Action.

Will any well-known celebrities be attending the ball that you know about?Well, Samuel Jackson will be there and he will be also host-ing an auction on the night. The legendary award winning Dionne Warwick will be performing, as well as Escala.

It’s always nice to have celebrities at these events but it’s about raising money at the end of the day and we need people to buy tickets that will raise much needed funds for the charity. I would also like to thank everybody including our sponsors who have helped in putting this venture together and also who continue to support the Irish Autism Action.

Will Boyzone be performing on the night?Unfortunately not.

If you were not a singer/actor what would you be?That’s a hard question but I think I have always wanted to work in the entertainment business since I was young so if things hadn’t had worked out for me in Boyzone or my act-ing career, then I am sure I would have been involved in some other way.

What’s your fondest memory of Stephen Gatley?Me and the other lads from Boyzone; Ronan, Mikey and Shane all have special memories of Stephen as we were like brothers. To be honest there are too many memories to mention and we all just miss him so much.

Out of all the Coronation Street stars who do you get on best with? All the cast and staff are great and a good laugh but I do enjoy working with Chris Gascoyne who plays Peter Barlow. Like all the other cast members he is a great guy and taught me a lot of the tricks of the trade that have got me through many a show.

What do you think of Jedward? I think the lads are great and fair play to them. I think peo-ple should give them a chance as they are Irish after all.

If Boyzone were to duet with anyone who would you like it to be?It would have to be U2 as I am a massive fan of the guys. The lads from Boyzone went over to their L.A. gig after Stephen’s funeral and they were so good to us. I don’t think any of us will ever forget them for that.

It’s rumoured that Ronan is going to the States to become an actor, could you see yourself following in his steps and giving Hollywood a bash?No, Ronan is sound and I sincerely hope it goes well for him if he decides to give it a go. As I said earlier we are all like brothers so I want the best for us all!!

Keith Duffy is known for his career in Boyzone, his role in Coronation Street and now his campaigning on autism. He talked to Kevin O'Brien

"It’s a great compliment when Mario thinks your worth impersonating "

Still one of the Boyz

"We all have special memories of Stephen as we were like brothers "

"Until the government are prepared to invest money and help to bring down waiting lists of schools that we help, then they cannot claim they are doing nearly enough"

The Informer Interview11The Informer

I don’t think I would make the move myself as I would be uprooting my family and then going to another country. But that’s just me!

Do you think Louis would be a hit in the USA if he were to be given an X-Factor judge roll?I would like to think so but my feeling is 'No' as he could never crack the US with any of his acts. He has built his success on the back of Boyzone, then Westlife and Girls Aloud, etc, in Europe and Asia, so I don’t think so.

The Irish and British public love him and he has to be one of the hardest working mangers in the industry, but I don’t know how the Americans would take to him. But it will be interesting to see and I wish him well.

What do you think of Mario Rosenstock imper-sonating you on the radio? Is he accurate? He is great and I laugh every time I hear him imitating me on the radio and other characters too! I don’t take offence at all as it’s all done in good spirit and I think he is the best in the business at what he does. It’s a great compliment when Mario thinks you're worth impersonat-ing.

Who do you think should win Meteor Irish National DJ of the Year? 1. Ian Dempsey, Today FM 2. Damien Farrelly 2fm3. Tony Fenton, Today FM 4. Ray Foley, Today FM5. Larry Gogan, 2fm 6. Dan Hegarty, 2fm

A toss-up between Ian Dempsey or Tony Fenton.

To contact Irish Autism Action go to their website at : www.autismireland.ie or telephone 044-9342576

TEXT COMPETITION TO MEET

SAMUEL JACKSON The prize will contain two tickets for Night For Love, A Valentine’s Ball Benefit, taking place on Saturday 13th February at the O’Reilly Hall, UCD Dublin on Saturday. Samuel L Jackson will call the winner during the Late Late Show on Friday 12th February 2010.

SO BE AVAILABLE as you will be meeting him at the ball. The winner will be picked up from their home and taken to The Westbury Hotel in Dublin. If you don’t have anything to wear, don’t worry as you will have a Personal Shopping Experience to the value of e1,000 to spend. Your hair will be styled by Wella Professionals and you will enjoy Lunch at Bentley’s Restaurant rounding off the weekend with a number of Spa Treatments to soothe the aches from the night before!!

Terms and Conditions: The competition will start on the 1st of February and end on Friday 12th of February at 3pm. To claim your prize you must be available on Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th February 2010. The promoter reserves the right to amend these terms and conditions, as necessary to unforeseen circumstances and/or offer a prize of equal or

greater value. The promoter’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. Entry into this promotion shall be deemed to be full & unconditional acceptance of T&C’s. SP. Púca (01) 499 5939 PO Box 10975, Dublin 6.

Closing date for entries is Friday 12th February 2010.

For a chance to win text LOVE followed by your answer to 57500 (texts cost e2.50) to the question below:

Question: Who is the Patron Saint of February 14th?

Answer: (A) St. Patrick (B) St. Brigid (C) St. Valentine

e.g. text LOVE A to 57500

12 The Informer

Personal FinanceSix simple money saving tips for 2010

It is fair to say that 2009 was a difficult financial year for most of us. the New Year is a great time to start afresh, and as the impact of December’s budget begins to hit our pockets now is a great time to think about making changes to improve your personal finances.

the best way to start is by looking at the smaller things that we can do which will make a difference to your pocket immediately. So here are six handy tips to start you off in the right direction in 2010.

1. Don’t pay unnecessary

charges for your mobile and landline calls

People who have inclusive bundles of minutes with their landline and mobile phone packages are still charged extra to call 1890, 1850 and 0818 numbers.

SayNoto1890.com will provide you with the geographical phone numbers for companies that still use these phone numbers. Calls to the geographic number are normally subtracted from your monthly minutes bundle and won’t cost you extra. So for example a Vodafone PrePay user who is normally charged 49c per minute for 1890 call at

peak times would pay nothing extra by calling the geographic number instead. Visit www.saynoto1890.com for further details.

2. Switch your electricity supplier

this is a simple way to save money on your electricity bills. You can save between 10% and 14% in the first year by switching your supply to Bord Gáis or Airtricity.

An average household will save between e90 and e125 during the first year. there are no minimum contracts and there is no penalty for leaving ES B. You receive the same electricity through the same meter so switching is straight-forward. to make the switch visit www.thebigswitch.ie or www.airtricity.com.

3. Earn the highest interest rates on your savings

People often leave their money lying idle in low interest rate savings or zero interest current accounts, often having been attracted by an introductory offer which drops to a lower rate at a later date.

Switching to a higher paying account gets your money working as hard as possible for you. Currently the best instant access savings account is Irish Nationwide which pays 3.75% per annum. e5,000 switched from a zero-interest paying current account into the Irish Nationwide account for 12 months would leave you e150 better off after DIRt tax.

Each week the Sunday times, and the Sunday Independent list the best accounts in their Personal Finance sec-tions. A quick glance at these tables can save you hours searching the web for information.

4. Claim all your tax credits and health expenses

If you are a PAYE employee the amount of tax you pay is determined by your tax Credit Certificate which you receive through the post every January. It should be carefully checked to ensure that you are claiming all the entitlements you are eligible for such as union subscriptions, third level tuition fees, bin charges, health and dental expenses, rent and so on.

For example, if your rent from a pri-

vate landlord you are eligible for a tax credit of up to e400. For a full list of credits visit www.revenue.ie/en/tax/it/leaflets/it1.html.

5. Review your insurance policies

Life, health, motor and home, insurance policies account for one some of our biggest monthly expenditures. Before renewing a policy first shop around and don’t assume that you have the best rate.

Life cover for example varies signifi-cantly among providers yet we very rarely review our cover and most of us wouldn’t even be able to locate our policy. Yet if you can save even e10 a month on a 30 year policy you would be e120 per year better off or e3,600 over the term of the policy.

to review your life cover, contact a Qualified Financial Adviser such as Squaremile Financial Consultants Ltd at www.squaremile.ie or 087 287 5256.

6. Create a Budget PlannerA major problem that most people expe-rience when it comes to managing their money is that they are not entirely sure

how much they spend each month.Creating a budget planner is not about

going on ‘financial diet’. the purpose of preparing a budget plan is to give you greater control of your finances. By knowing your finances inside out you can determine how much you can spend and save each month without slipping into debt. Crucially if you discover that you are spending more than you earn then it essential that you make the appropriate changes to your finances to start paying down your debt. Download or print a free budget planner from the resources centre at www.squaremile.ie.

Andrew Russell is a Qualified Financial Adviser and Managing Director of Squaremile Financial Consultants Ltd. In addition to providing advice to private sector employees and the self employed, the company is unique in that it also specialises in public sector employees’ pension and benefits.

Contact: Andrew Russell, Managing Director, Squaremile Financial ConsultantsT: 087 287 5256E: andrew@squaremile.ieW: www.squaremile.ie

By Andrew Russell

Lesser known Dubliners Robert Molesworth

All About DublinA place in the city Castleknock Castle

Edited by Zoz

14 The Informer

Old Dublin... Lucan in 1820

The site of Castleknock Castle was well chosen by the Norman, hugh Tyrrell. Built on two mounds near the end of the esker which stretches from Galway to Dublin it commanded the route into Dublin from the west.

The polygonal keep was the notable feature of the castle. Attached to it was a large squat building. A curtain wall, inter-spersed with towers, surrounded the castle.

Castleknock Castle was the scene of many bloody encoun-ters. One of these is recorded in a letter from an Irish officer to a friend in France, and refers to the year 1642:

"The earl of Ormond a Protestant, went forth from the City of Dublin ... At the head of 4,000 foot and 500 horse towards the County Meath. The next day he besieged with his army Castleknock, belonging to the Lady de Lacy, aunt of the earl of Fingal. The husband of this lady was engaged in the army of the Catholics of Ireland.

"he left his wife in the Castle to keep it with 50 men only,

being well assured that her cour-age was well above her sex, in which he was not deceived, for this lady, by the orders she gave, caused 400 soldiers of the besieg-ers to be slain during the four days the siege lasted, and the number of dead would have been greater still, had not the ammuni-tion failed ..."

The soldiers of the garrison set fire to the castle, and, 'all went

down, sword in hand ... with the exception of the lady, who was made prisoner by the earl of Ormond".

This is an excerpt from "Blanchardstown, Castleknock and the Park", with text by Peter Sobolewski, and paintings by Dónal Mac Poilin. Published by Cottage Publications, Price e24.95.

VIsCOuNT Molesworth was born in Dublin in December 1656 - his father, a wealthy merchant, dying shortly before his birth. he sided with King James in the war against King William, and had his property seized (1689).

When William won he was appointed envoy extraordinary to the court of Denmark (1692). After three years he was thrown out by the Danes for insulting the kings' position - and promptly wrote a book describing Danish government as arbitrary and tyrannical. It annoyed the Danes a lot but was well received and reprinted twice.

Molesworth later entered the house of Commons representing Ireland and england,

being chosen for the borough of swordes, in Ireland.

he was a member of the privy council to Queen Anne, till the latter end of her reign; when he was removed from the council in January 1713 -appar-ently for shooting from the lip.

he died, May 22,1735, at his seat at Brecdenstown [sic], in the county of Dublin. In his will he left £50 towards building a church at Philipstown. he had seven sons and four daugh-ters.

Molesworth street is not named after him - that honour fell to the 3rd Viscount Molesworth (Richard Molesworth, 1680-1735)

"LuCAN is greatly frequented by the inhabitants of Dublin during the summer season, on account of its medicinal springs. having been now for several years the resort of the gay and fashionable, a spacious hotel and range of lodging-houses have been erected here for their accommodation.

"The well, which is very superficial, being not more than 15 inches deep, contains about 80 gal-lons of water, and, when emptied, fills again in an hour. The water, though very clear, emits a pecu-liarly offensive odour, and the taste is equally disagreeable.

"This sulphureous spring was discovered in the year 1758; but its situation being low, and imme-diately contiguous to the Liffey, it was constantly

overflowed by that river, until Agmondisham Vesey, esq. on whose estate it was found, pro-tected it by a wall.

"George Vesey, esq. the present proprietor, has a handsome seat here; and his demesne, extending along the Liffey to Leixlip, (in the adjoining county of Kildare) affords a charming perambula-tion to the stranger who may be courteously admitted.

"Besides the hotel, there is a good inn estab-lished at Lucan. The Iron Works of this place, and its Mills for printing calicoes, deserve notice. here is also a noble Bridge over the Liffey."

(An extract from 'Excursions through Ireland', by Thomas Cromwell, 1820).

15The Informer

All About Dublin Edited by Zoz

Duelling, the rather strange practice by which an insult could only be avenged if blood were spilled (preferably by someone other than yourself!) is no longer in vogue - largely because taking part is considered a criminal act and, should you succeed in killing your opponent, even with his consent, you will find yourself up on a murder charge. The death rate for duels fought in ireland was esti-mated to be 1 in 4.

in olden times however, duelling was not uncommon. it even had its own rules - in 1777, at the summer assizes in the town of Clonmel, County Tipperary, a code of practice was drawn up for the regulation of duels. 'The 36 Commandments' was to be kept in a gentleman's pistol case for reference should a dispute arise regard-ing procedure.

Rule 1. - The first offence requires the apology, although the retort may have been more offensive than the insult. - example: A. tells B. he is impertinent, etc.; B. retorts, that he lies; yet A. must make the first apology, because he gave the first offence, and then, (after one fire) B. may explain away the retort by subsequent apol-ogy.

The following accounts are taken from "A Chronological Register of the Principal Duels," by James P. gilchrist, 1821.

(Dublin, January 31, 1788.) This day Robert Keon, esq. was brought up to the Court of King's Bench, to receive sentence for the murder of george nugent Reynolds, esq. The circumstances of this murder were the following:

These two gentlemen went out to fight a duel, and when Mr. Reynolds, previous to coming to action, was in the act of saluting Mr. Keon with his hat in his hand, wishing him a good morning, the latter fired his pistol, and shot him through the head. upon this, Mr. Plunket, Mr. Reynolds's second, called out: "A horrid murder!" On which Mr. Keon's brother replied: "if you don't like it, take that!" and snapped his pistol at Mr. Plunket, which luckily did not go off.

The jury found Mr. Keon guilty in november last. The court, after the most solemn arguments, over-ruled all the objections, and passed sentence of death upon him, according to the verdict, and he was executed on the sixteenth of the following month.

(March 13, 1800) This morning two students of our university, Messrs. Coolan and Morgan, in consequence of an unhappy dispute the preceding evening, met in the fields near Harcourt-street.

They fired at the same moment, when Mr. Coolan's shot unfortu-nately took place in the temple of his antagonist, and killed him on the spot. The surviving combatant has been expelled the college, and the two seconds have been rusticated (i.e. sent away to the country for a time to lead a quiet life).

(May 3, 1806) This day a duel was fought in Foster Avenue, between two young gentlemen, of the Barrack-office, in this city, and intimate friends, upon occasion of a tavern quarrel, the preced-ing evening.

On the first fire, at the distance of eleven paces, both parties fell; the one, Mr. Rogers, received a ball through his heart, and of course died instantly. The other, Mr. long, was shot through both his thighs, and is also since dead.

(July 19, 1818) On Sunday week Mr. Wallace and Mr. Vanhomright met in the neighbourhood of the Man of War, near Dublin, in con-sequence of a transaction of the preceding day, when, after dis-charging each a case of pistols, they quitted the ground, attended by their seconds. Mr. grattan, Jun. accompanied Mr. Wallace, and Major Cheshire, Mr. Vanhomright. neither parties received the slightest injury.

(June 11, 1820) Mr. grattan, son of the deceased patriot, having, at a public meeting in Dublin, made use of expressions which lord Clare conceived to reflect upon the late lord Clare, his father; and having declined either to explain or to justify them, the parties met

First hand history

Take that! - Duelling in Dublinon Tuesday morning in Hyde-Park, when Mr. grattan having received lord Clare's fire, instantly fired in the air.

The friends present having given their opinion that the affair could proceed no further, Mr grattan came forward in the handsomest man-ner, and stated, that having now met lord Clare in the field, and hav-ing given the satisfaction required, he was then willing to admit, he was in the wrong in having made use of such expressions; on which the parties immediately shook hands, and the affair terminated.

The O'Connell DuelDAniel O'Connell killed John D'esterre in a duel in Co Kildare in 1815.

The dispute arose over O'Connell's description of Dublin Corporation as a "beggarly corporation" and D'esterre, who had fought a number of duels, challenged him. O'Connell wounded his foe in the hip and D'esterre later died.

O'Connell regreted the killing and is reputed to have covered his right hand in church thereafter, so that god would not be offended.

16 The Informer

Fashion & BeautyCountdown to

wedding day beautyAre you five or six months away from your wedding? While you're addressing invitations and picking out bridesmaids dresses, take some time to work on your beauty regimen. Making an investment now will pay off big on your wedding day. l Skin Care

Now is the time to start work-ing on your skin. On your wed-ding day, you'll be having your picture taken close-up and many people getting close to your skin as they hug and kiss you. even a relatively nice complexion can get extra bene-

fit from six months of stress-relief, proper nutrition, and added water-drinking.

First, start a good cleansing program. You should be using a multi-step system including:

• A good cleanser (Sothys Morning Cleanser for all skin types) in the morning

• Eye make-up remover and cleanser and toner at night

• Daily moisturiser (Dermalogica Skin Smoothing Cream)

• An exfoliant and mask once a week. (Sothys Desquacrem & Oxyliance Mask)

If you can afford it, this is a great time to consult a profes-sional beauty therapist. Tell them your wedding date, and your skin-care goals. They may recommend treatments such as microdermabrasion or regular facials that will help you have picture-perfect skin.

examine how much water you drink daily. Drinking up to eight glasses daily will help clear up blemishes and make your skin more luminous. I suggest filling a water bottle and keeping it on your desk at work. Have another water bot-tle in the TV room (or wherever you tend to relax at night). While drinking this much water may be a challenge at first, keep at it, and it will get easier and easier.

While you're increasing your water consumption, it's a great time to be decreasing your caf-feine consumption. Not only will less caffeine help your skin, it will also help you to be less stressed out! You know if you're better off going cold turkey or decreasing gradually.

l Body Treatments

regular body massages will help to relax you during this stressful time! Most beauty salons offer this treatment. You could also enquire about some yummy body treatments

l Make-up

At least a month before the first wedding-related event, visit a beauty salon and ask about a trail make-up. You need to know exactly what your make up will look like on your big day. Maybe use this make up session for your hens night! If you are thinking of a spray tan for you wedding day a trail tan could be done now as well.

remember it's your wedding day, one of the best days of your life so once all the prepa-rations are done sit back and enjoy!!

01-497 6434

17The Informer

Skincare is totally seasonal, just like your wardrobe. in sum-mer, you're busy with sun pro-tection (aren't you?), while in winter you may seem addicted to moisturizers because your skin gets so dried out and flaky (this is called "winter itch"). So why the dry skin in winter? Low temperatures, low humidi-ty and strong, harsh winds deplete skin of its natural lipid layer which keeps the skin from drying out.

To keep your skin feeling dewy and moist even in the harsh winter weather, follow these dry skin fix-it tips (More next month!)

1 - Keep Water Lukewarm, Not Hot Hot water robs skin of moisture causing dry skin, so it's best to shower in lukewarm water. if you can't bear this rule - i can't - try to keep your warm showers short and try showering only once per day. The same rule applies to hand-washing: wash hands in lukewarm, never hot water. if your skin turns red, the

Beauty Ideas With Linda Mullenof Oceana Health & Beauty

Phone: 01-8283901

For any beauty and product info email linda@oceana-spa.com and I will get back to you with what to do and where to buy!!!

No problem too big or too small!!

Some dry skin fixeswater is simply too hot and strips the skin. also note if you have a high lime content in your water – does your kettle scale quite often? Then it's important to have lukewarm showers – as it will help with dermatitis and eczema. Try seaweed baths or seaweed products if this is the case too. it’s a great natural product.

2 - Moisturize after showers or handwashing For best effect, pat skin dry instead of rubbing with your towel before application. antibacterial soap in public plac-es can be harsh on hands. To keep cuticles soft, massage in olive oil. My favourite winter moisturizer – Dermologica’s Skin Smoothing cream – or the age Smart Dynamic Skin recovery.

3-Exfoliate on a Weekly or Semi-weekly BasisMoisturizer is much more effec-tive on properly exfoliated skin.

Use a scrub in the shower and exfoliate facial skin with a mild scrub made for the face.

it's best to scrub skin when it's dry. apply scrub to dry skin before you turn on the water (mix with lotion if it's not moist enough). Massage the scrub in for a good five minutes for best results. My favourite scrub – namara aHa Body Scrub – great for getting off tan and even gets those 'lil red bumps at the back of the arm.

Dry brush skin before a show-er with a body brush to remove flaky skin (it's more effective than brushing in the shower).

18 Dublin Informer

Dublin GAA

Looking forward to the leagues

WeLL the Christmas cobwebs have been completely blown away at this stage as counties prepare themselves for the Alliance National football and hurling leagues. Both Dublin squads have been put through their paces by managers Pat Gilroy and Anthony Daly respectively.

Dublin's got talent?

The football management ran their regional tournament before Christmas to look at as much new talent in the county as possible. Following the defeat to Kerry in last year’s championship, Pat Gilroy has made no secret in his desire to transform the squad somewhat this year. Although the regional tournament was inter-rupted by bad weather, it was finalised in January. Along with the Dubs' stars tournament and the O’Byrne Cup competition, the football management have given many players the opportunity to impress.

With the league approaching, the management team will be culling their panel although at present they have a number of play-ers injured so the possibilities will be that a panel of around forty will be in place. Noticeable absentees for the earlier part of the league through injury are Alan Brogan, Barry Cahill, Pat Burke, Darren McGee, Denis Bastic and Tomas Quinn.

With Ciaran Whelan having retired and Shane Ryan going to the hurlers, Pat Gilroy must find a new midfield partnership. eamonn Fennell is an ideal candidate and he has been playing well in the O’Byrne Cup. The unfortunate part is that due to his on going transfer saga, his participation in the league could be in jeopardy.

Over the last number of years Dublin’s form in the football league has been patchy. The league is normally used to blood players and look to get a settled side coming into championship while at the same time trying your best to get to the closing stages of it. expectations of the Dublin footballers are always big each year and looking at their fixture list, they are all tough games from Kerry away in the opening game to Tyrone away in their final round game on the 11th April.

Kilkenny, Tipp and Cork at Parnell Park

The Dublin hurlers’ run of fixtures is no less daunting. After the exploits of 2009, many counties will be wary of the Dubs this year but the shock factor will not be in place. Anthony Daly’s quest to strengthen his squad has had mixed results. Shane Ryan has come on board from the footballers while Ross O’Carroll has gone in the opposite direction. In addition his hopes of enticing Conal Keaney and Rory O’Carroll into the hurling fold has not fos-tered.

Last year was a good year for the hurlers and the management team will be looking to push on even further in 2010. Similarly to the footballers, there are no easy matches. Two of Dublin’s best displays in the league last year were against Kilkenny and Tipperary, both away from home, even though they ended in defeat.

This year they entertain both counties in Parnell Park and hope-fully they can pick up some points here but it will be a difficult task. Last year Dublin’s opener was against a weakened Cork side who were going through the process of strike action. This year Cork will no doubt be looking for revenge when they visit Parnell Park. The same could be said of Galway, Dublin beating them well last year but this year’s fixture is in Pearse Stadium.

For the footballers all their home fixtures will be played under lights on Saturday nights while all the hurlers games are on Sundays.

By Mick Hanley

Outside of the boot

with Mick Hanley

For the best in music & talk shows including LiveDrive, the only on the spot traffic service in the country.

Check out our website

www.dublincityfm.ie

ST. PATRICK’S GAA club, Palmerstown will be looking forward to the senior foot-ball championship in 2010. They defeated Naomh Barrog in last year’s Intermediate Championship final 1-8 to 1-3. There were scenes of jubilation after their historic win.

This was the first adult football champi-onship winning team in the club's history. It follows up on the their promotion from intermediate to senior football last year.

And the success has not been confined to the footballers as the St Pats' hurling team are also playing senior hurling for the first time in their history.

For a small club that has two adult teams almost completely made up of players who were born in the area this is a massive achievement. The teams also have 9-10 dual players.

Back row: Noel Faughnan (mentor),

Simon Faughnan, Cathal Burns, Ciaran Whelan, Robert Abbey, Brian Gilbert, Cillian McHugh, Barry O'Hanlon, Jonathan McDermott, Philip Murphy, Damien Gallagher, Brian Carson, Leigh Dunne, Diarmuid Nolan, Ken Keagan (coach).

Front: Pat McDermott, Ciaran Finnegan, Jim Kelly, Graham Kelly, Graham Dunne, Damien Farren, Paul Heffernan, Liam Rushe.

St Pat's - blessed with success

Dublin National Football League Fixtures Sun 7th February versus Kerry Killarney 2.30pm Sat 13th February versus Derry Parnell Park 7.30pmSun 7th March versus Mayo Castlebar, 2.30pm Sat 13th March versus Monaghan Parnell Park, 7.30pm Sat 20th March versus Cork Parnell Park, 7.30pm Sat 27th March versus Galway Parnell Park, 2.30pm Sun 11th April versus Tyrone Omagh

Dublin National Hurling League Fixtures Sun 21st February versus Waterford Walsh Park, 2.30pm Sun 28th February versus Tipperary Parnell Park, 2.30pmSun 14th March versus Offaly Tullamore, 2.30pm Sun 21st March versus Kilkenny Parnell Park, 2.30pm Sun 28th March versus Cork Parnell Park, 2.30pm Sun 4th April versus Galway Pearse Stadium, 2.30pm Sun 18th April versus Limerick Parnell Park, 2.30pm

19The Informer

DistractionsCrosswordThe solution to this crossword will appear in the next issue.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

8

9 10

11

12

13 14 15

16

17 18

19

20 21

22 23

Across1 - Frame of a ship (4)

3 - Atmosphere above a nation (8)

9 - Pieces of advice (7)

10 - Constructed (5)

11 - Process of removing restrictions (12)

13 - Showed tiredness (6)

15 - Reach (6)

17 - Conjectural (12)

20 - Make a loud noise (5)

21 - Bumped into (7)

22 - Relating to the Middle Ages (8)

23 - Pass (anag) (4)

Down1 - Vacations (8)

2 - Focused light beam (5)

4 - Affront (6)

5 - Exchange (12)

6 - State of the USA (7)

7 - Consumes (4)

8 - Instrumental version of the blues (6-6)

12 - Incorporates (8)

14 - Disobedient (7)

16 - Playing period in polo (6)

18 - Baked sweet desserts (5)

19 - Con (4)

At a loss!

A mAn in a bar sees a friend at a table, drinking by himself. Approaching the friend he comments, "You look terrible. What's the problem?"

"my mother died in August," he said, "and left me $25,000."

"Gee, that's tough," he replied."Then in September, my father died,

leaving me $90,000.""Wow. Two parents gone in two months.

no wonder you're depressed.""And last month my aunt died, and left

me $15,000.""Three close family members lost in

three months? How sad.""Then this month," continued, the friend,

"absolutely nothing!"

Deadly disease

THree men were sitting on a bench in heaven discussing how they died. The first man said "I died of cancer." The second man said, "I died of tuberculosis". The third man said "I died of seenus". The first two men said, "no, you mean sinus." The third man said "no, I mean seenus. I was out with my best friend's wife and he seen us!"

Re-tail shopping

A blInd man with a guide dog at his side walks into a grocery shop. He walks to the middle of the store, picks up the dog by the tail, and starts him in

circles over his head. The store manager, who has seen all this, thinks this is quite strange.

The store manager approaches the blind man swinging the dog and says, "Pardon me, sir. may I help you with something."

The blind man says, "no thanks. I'm just looking around."

Naughty Priest

A PrIeST is buying a parrot. "Are you sure it doesn't scream, yell, or swear?" asked the priest.

"Oh absolutely. It's a religious parrot," the storekeeper assures him. "do you see those strings on his legs? When you pull the right one, he recites the lord's prayer, and when you pull on the left he recites the 23rd Psalm."

"Wonderful!" says the priest, "but what happens if you pull both strings?"

"I fall off my perch, ye gob*****!" screeched the parrot.

Logic of drink

A GuY walks into a bar in dublin, orders three pints of Guinness and sits drinking a sip out of each one in turn. The bartender asks why.

"Well, you see, I have two brothers. One is in America, the other in Australia, and I'm here in dublin. When we all left home, we promised that we'd drink this way to remember the days when we drank togeth-er." The bartender admits that this is a nice

custom, and leaves it there.He becomes a regular. One day, he comes

in and orders two pints. All the other regu-lars notice and fall silent. The bartender says, "I don't want to intrude, but I offer my condolences."

The guy looks confused for a moment, then a light dawns in his eye and he laughs. "Oh, no," he says, "everyone's fine. I've just quit drinking."

Case for the defence

A lAWYer defending a man accused of burglary tried a creative defense to get his client off the hook. "my client merely inserted his arm into the window and removed a few paltry items. His arm is not himself, so I fail to see how you can punish the whole individual for an offense com-mitted soley by his arm."

"Well put," the judge replied with a grin. "using that same logic, I sentence the defendant's arm to one year's imprison-ment. Your client can accompany the arm or not, as he chooses."

The defendant smiled. With his lawyer's help, he detatched his artificial limb, laid it on the bench and walked out.

The treatment

A PATenT runs into the doctors. 'doctor doctor i've got a problem'. The doctor looks at him: 'what's wrong?'

'I've got a starwberry stuck up my bum'The doctor says. 'I've got some cream for

that .'

Are Ya Havin' A Laff?

T O Y S D I S C L A I MR U M N O N AA C C R U E S S T I N GN C L I M M NS C A N T D I O R A M AP I E P L NO C C U P Y B O N S A IS A U C L MI M P E R I L I N T R OT T P I T I UI M A G O N U A N C E SO I S G N K LN O N S E N S E E S P Y

5 7 4 2 1 6 8 9 32 9 8 5 7 3 1 4 66 3 1 8 4 9 5 7 23 1 2 9 6 5 4 8 74 6 7 1 2 8 9 3 59 8 5 7 3 4 2 6 18 2 6 3 9 1 7 5 47 5 3 4 8 2 6 1 91 4 9 6 5 7 3 2 8

Solutions For last Issue

Across1 - Frame of a ship (4)3 - Atmosphere above a

nation (8)9 - Pieces of advice (7)10 - constructed (5)11 - Process of removing

restrictions (12)13 - showed tiredness (6)15 - reach (6)17 - conjectural (12)

20 - Make a loud noise (5)21 - Bumped into (7)22 - relating to the

Middle Ages (8)23 - Pass (anag) (4)

Down1 - Vacations (8)2 - Focused light beam (5)4 - Affront (6)5 - Exchange (12)

6 - state of the UsA (7)7 - consumes (4)8 - Instrumental version of

the blues (6-6)12 - Incorporates (8)14 - Disobedient (7)16 - Playing period in polo

(6)18 - Baked sweet desserts

(5)19 - con (4)

Sudoku Solution next issue.

2 8 5 79 3 8

3 9 1 74 5

6 53 7

5 2 6 92 3 9

5 6 8 7

Scribble Box

He should havekept a lid on his

private life

He let down his own

teammates

Could he really lead the

team now?

Well, the old man doesn't like that sort of thing

Still, he's well able to score against the opposition

And they've got no one to replace him

If it's ok with the wife I think he'll keep his

position

Yea, the DUP will suit themselves

anyway

B enchmarkedby neg

20 The Informer

The End

This poll was conducted on Tuesday 2nd & Wednesday 3rd February 2010. in total 400 householders were interviewed across 10 of informer newspaper titles circulation areas and conducted on a face to face basis.

Yes noWere the City

Council right

to reduce the

speed limit to

3kph?

should the minimum wage be

reduced if the VAT rates were reduced

also?Dublin Total

15% 85%

santry

5% 95%

Lucan

18% 82%

Blanchardstown

13% 87%

Raheny

23% 77%

swords

5% 95%

Rathmines

15% 85%

Rathfarnham

20% 80%

Dún Laoghaire

3% 97%

Dundrum

35% 65%

sandyford

10% 90%

Dublin Total

83% 17%

santry

87% 13%

Lucan

72% 28%

Blanchardstown

80% 20%

Raheny

85% 15%

swords

92% 8%

Rathmines

77% 23%

Rathfarnham

82% 18%

Dún Laoghaire

80% 20%

Dundrum

75% 25%

sandyford

82% 8%

The Informer PollThe Dun Laoghaire Musical & Dramatic Society (DMDS) was established in 1959 as a group within the local Methodist church and performed in the local church hall.

Over the years the membership grew, and also became more ecumenical, attracting members from all parts of the area.

In 2003 the Society moved its productions to the new Pavilion Theatre and also relaunched itself as a community group. DMDS (www.dmds.ie) now has 70 members and has won many awards for its shows.

It has also won the 'Best Choral Group' competition, run by the Association of Irish Musical Societies, for the past five years.

In this Anniversary year DMDS will perform the ‘Pirates of Penzance’ at the Pavilion Theatre from 8th to 13th March (see www.paviliontheatre.ie).

50 on a high note