Twenty Irish words and phrases that English has no single word for, from aiteall (a bright break between showers) and meitheal to cumha, dúchas and the stray sod, each checked…

Niall of the Nine Hostages is the legendary king of Tara behind the Uí Néill, the O’Neills and the O’Donnells. Here’s how medieval writers explained his nine hostages, the tale…

Ogham is the oldest way of writing Irish: 20 letters of strokes and notches cut along the edge of a standing stone. Here’s how it works, what the 400-plus ogham…

Fairy forts are usually the round banks of early medieval ringforts, about 45,000 of which were built across Ireland. Here’s what they really were, why folklore gave them to the…

The Salmon of Knowledge is the Irish legend of how young Fionn mac Cumhaill burned his thumb cooking a magic salmon from the River Boyne and won all its wisdom….

Tír na nÓg, the Land of Youth, is the Irish Otherworld where nobody grows old. Here’s the legend of Oisín and Niamh of the Golden Head, retold from the 18th-century…

Lille, June 2016: Ireland need a win against Italy. In the 85th minute Robbie Brady heads in Wes Hoolahan’s cross. The highlights and the story of the night.

Brown Eyed Girl, recorded in 1967 by Belfast’s Van Morrison, went top ten in America and never left the dance floor. The story behind the song.

The Boys Are Back in Town took Thin Lizzy and Phil Lynott, raised in Crumlin, Dublin, around the world in 1976. The story of the song, the band and the…

Whiskey in the Jar is a traditional Irish song about a highwayman. How it went from The Dubliners to Thin Lizzy to a Grammy for Metallica.

In April 2021 Rachael Blackmore, from Co. Tipperary, became the first woman to win the Grand National, on Minella Times. Watch the race and read her story.

Paris, February 2018: Ireland trail France 13-12 with time up. 41 phases later, Johnny Sexton lands a 45-metre drop goal and a Grand Slam begins.

Hurling is Ireland’s ancient field game, recognised by UNESCO in 2018. How it works, where it came from, and a decade of the best goals from the GAA.

Kodaline’s All I Want took a band from Swords, Co. Dublin, from a TV talent show to Grey’s Anatomy and the world. The story behind the song.

The Wexford Carol (Carúl Loch Garman) is Ireland’s best-known Christmas carol. Where it came from, how old it really is, and the versions worth hearing.

In 2020 almost 40 Irish female artists recorded The Cranberries’ Dreams from home for Safe Ireland. It topped the Homegrown chart and raised over €250,000.

Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol, fronted by Bangor man Gary Lightbody, is the most-played song on UK radio this century. The Grey’s Anatomy moment and the story behind it.

The Script, three lads from Dublin, made Hall of Fame with will.i.am in 2012. How it hit number one, why it is everywhere, and the band since Mark Sheehan.

Gráinne was promised to the ageing Fionn mac Cumhaill, but at the feast at Tara she drugged the guests and bound the young warrior Diarmuid to run away with her….

In the Children of Lir, a jealous stepmother turns four children into swans for 900 years. Here’s the legend retold from the Irish text, from Lough Derravaragh to the Sea…