Articles in the Cootehill Category

Michael McDonnell Rumours were rife in Cootehill over the last week as to who it was from the town that allegedly picked up a lifechanging €2.9 million jackpot ticket in Swanlinbar on Tuesday of last week! But, as in most of these situations, it’s been a case of all smoke and no fire, with no prime suspect identified as the possible holder of the passport to €2,895,277 sweet ones — even though one local media outlet has insisted that the lucky lad or lady is indeed lurking in Cootehill’s environs! ...

COOTEHILL LADY NAMED CARER OF THE YEAR 2017 By MICHAEL McDONNELL michael@northern-standard.ie WHILE CARING for her elderly parents is a labour of love for Paula Robinson, she admits it was a great honour when she was named Ireland’s ‘Carer of the Year’ at a special ceremony in Dublin last week. The 48-year-old mother of two was among 30 family carers from across the country who were recognised and commended in this celebration of the massive contribution that those who look after their own vulnerable family members are making to society as a whole. ...

By MICHAEL McDONNELL michael@northern-standard.ie A CONTROVERSY that has been brewing in recent months and weeks over rights of access for angling on Drumlona Lough and an adjacent stretch of the Dromore river system escalated dramatically on last Thursday morning, when a number of heavy boulders were placed at a boat launching point at Drumlona. The issue has arisen because of attempts by the Bellamont Estate in Cootehill to enforce what it claims to be its rights of ownership in relation to the large lake, which is on the Monaghan side ...

Cootehill scoops prestigious BOI Enterprising Towns award By MICHAEL McDONNELL michael@northern-standard.ie COOTEHILL had made it clear from the word go that it wasn’t taking up the challenge just to be another ‘also-ran’ — its motto at the starting gate and all the way through was: “We’re in it to win it!” That get-up-and-go attitude paid off in spades last Wednesday when the town was named overall national winner in the Under-3,000 Population category in the prestigious new Bank of Ireland National Enterprising Town Awards competition. Up on 80 towns had entered ...

– Deputy Smyth says spike in burglaries has followed Garda Station downgrading Eighteen homes and businesses within an eight-mile radius of Cootehill have been the target of burglaries in recent weeks, with an elderly couple in the area suffering three break-ins at their farm property in quick succession, Cavan/Monaghan Fianna Fáil TD Niamh Smyth said this week. Calling on Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan TD to “get serious” about rural crime, Deputy Smyth claimed the downgrading on the Garda Stations in Cootehill and Ballyconnell had led to….

Minister for Disabilities Finian McGrath will visit the Holy Family School in Cootehill on Monday next, October 23 at 11.30 am. Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan/Monaghan Niamh Smyth said the focus of the Minister’s visit to the Holy Family School next week will be to see first-hand the working conditions staff and pupils have had to work in for over the past decade. The Minister’s visit was originally due to take place in early September but was postponed. Deputy Smyth said, “In the most recent response to a Parliamentary Question ...

By MICHAEL McDONNELL michael@northern-standard.ie PEOPLE in Cootehill and across counties Cavan and Monaghan were genuinely shocked towards the end of last week as news filtered through of the tragic death on Wednesday of popular lifelong photographer Brian Mulligan in unexpected circumstances while on a pilgrimage walk in Italy. Mr Mulligan, who had been a photographer for the Anglo-Celt for over four decades and also contributed regularly to this newspaper, apparently died after falling down a 10-metre incline while walking on the ‘Cammino di Assisi’ near Modigliana in…

Rumours galore —but who knows who knows? By MICHAEL McDONNELL michael@northern-standard.ie THE rumour mill was in full swing in Cootehill all week following last Wednesday’s revelation that a bumper €6.4 million lotto jackpot was sold at the local Argue’s Londis filling station! But despite all the innuendo, inside info and nods and winks of the wise, the gossip grapevine has yet to produce any white smoke from amid all the huffing and puffing. The fortuitous ‘Quick Pick’ selection was picked up on the afternoon of Sunday 2nd July, leaving at least ...

COOTEHILL man Ruairí McKiernan is no stranger to new ventures — and it looks like his latest project is off to a flying start! McKiernan recently launched his ‘Love and Courage’ podcast, and within 24 hours it had hit the number one spot on the iTunes podcast charts, beating off stiff opposition from well known US and Irish rivals. Podcasts make up a media format that is growing rapidly in popularity. They are either audio versions of existing radio shows or independent productions available only online or through podcast apps ...

Commitments given by the Dept of Education and Skills on Friday last should mean that there will be no further delays in bringing a major building project planned for Cootehill’s Holy Family School to construction stage, Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan/Monaghan Brendan Smith told The Northern Standard this week. Deputy Smith raised the issue during a debate in Dáil Éireann early last week following concerns expressed to him by the board of management of the school. The FF TD said he was informed by the Dept on Friday that it is their ...