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Dromoland Castle will host the Women’s Irish Open from September 22 to 25 – the first women’s professional tournament in the country in 10 years. Mark Nolan, Managing Director at Dromoland Castle said, “We are absolutely thrilled that Dromoland Castle will play host to this year’s Women’s Irish Open. “The return of women’s professional golf to Ireland is hugely important to the further development of women’s golf in Ireland. “All of us at Dromoland Castle are delighted to be able to support women’s golf and look forward to extending our legendary hospitality and showcasing the estate’s world class facilities to Europe’s top golfers. “At Dromoland, we are also continuously striving to improve our environmental practices and are delighted to confirm that our aim is to deliver the most green and sustainable tournament in Ireland.” Held 15 times between 1994 and 2012, the Championship has been won by some of Europe’s top golfers including Norway’s Suzann Pettersen, Sweden’s Sophie Gustafson, England’s …

A NEW Bill which will enable local authorities to use CCTV to tackle illegal dumping is to be published in the coming weeks, Clare’s Fine Gael TD has learned. The issue which has been a huge source of concern, especially in the south and east of the county where large-scale fly-tipping is a recurring problem. The matter has been raised several times by local authority members who have been told the law must change in order to permit the use of CCTV at dumping blackspots. Deputy Joe Carey asked the Department of the Environment for a progress report on the legislation and regulation to enable local authorities to use CCTV in their fight against illegal dumping. In response, Minister for State Ossian Smyth outlined progress to-date. “The General Scheme of the Circular Economy Bill 2021 was published on 15 June 2021,” he told Deputy Carey. “It is my intention under the Bill to facilitate not only the use of CCTV, but also …

TO celebrate the 60th anniversary the West Clare Drama Festival the critically acclaimed professional production Seven Ages of MAM will be coming to Doonbeg for one night only next Wednesday, March 9.  Billed as Mam’s hilarious and thought provoking, take on motherhood, sexuality, grief, infidelity, ageing, love, lust and loneliness, this new, laugh-out-loud funny yet poignant one woman play stars Pauline O’Driscoll. You may know Pauline from television as Pat Shortt’s wife in the IFTA nominated drama series Smalltown, or the hospital doctor trying to talk some sense into The Young Offenders in the Christmas Special of the popular TV series and yes that’s her cheekily swiping right in the Bord Bia Fish Advert too! Having been nominated best new play at Brighton Fringe in 2019, the play written by Mark Evans and Pauline only began touring Ireland at the end of 2021 (because of Covid ) and has been wowing critics and audiences alike and garnering 5-Star reviews along the way. “We’ve been blown away by the audience response. People are hungry for this type of show, something real but funny, something that makes them laugh and brings a tear to their eye. You just …

ON March 1 Teresa Woods will retire having been Parish Secretary for the last 17 years. She took up the role in February of 2005, working for then parish priest Father Tom Ryan, with the Parish Office having opened a couple of months afterwards. People call into the office for all sorts of reasons, from baptisms to bereavements, buying mass cards and booking weddings.  Looking back on the last 17 years Teresa says the people she has encountered have made the job a really fulfilling experience. “I’ve worked with incredible people in the parish. First of all the clergy have been terrific. The parishioners as well.” Shannon has a unique mix of people, and she feels that one consequence of its demographics is that people give each other a chance. “We’re a very unique parish in that we’re all kind of blow-ins, and we all get on well with each other, we take each other at face value. I think …

INDEPENDENT councillor Gerry Flynn put forward a motion at a recent meeting of Clare County Council seeking to reduce the burden of inflation on those with lower incomes, writes Owen Ryan. “I am calling on the Minister for Finance to broaden the Household Benefits Package and include exemption from property tax for those people that are under extreme pressure to meet day to day expenses in light of the rising cost of living and their struggle to survive on a very low level of income,” he said. His motion was passed unanimously and he asked that it be circulated to other local authorities and Oireacthas members.  Speaking about the matter, Councillor Ann Norton said, “There are people out there on social welfare who are getting in and around €203. We all know the cost of living has gone up, we know people are suffering out there, we see the amount of people that are going to collect vouchers for food …

Jan Carson, who appears at Ennis Book Club Festival, tells Owen Ryan about her efforts to reflect all sides of the protestant experience WHILE they share the same island, it’s safe to say that most people at the Ennis Book Club Festival will know little of the culture of Antrim Presbyterian communities. Jan Carson, whose latest novel The Raptures has won widespread acclaim, is from such a background and it’s where she set the book, which tells the story of 11-year-old Hannah, in the summer of 1993. Hannah lives in the fictional village of Ballylack, and over the course of the summer her classmates begin to succumb to a violent and mysterious illness. Also in the village, tempers simmer, panic escalates and long-buried secrets threaten to emerge. The Republic was nowhere near as liberal as it is now in 1993, but the community Jan grew up in was far more conservative than anything the vast majority of people in Clare …

Eoin Brennan was on hand for the Champion as CBS Ennistymon progressed to an All-Ireland final CBS Ennistymon 3-12 St Columba’s Stranorlar (Donegal) 0-6 CBS Ennistymon maintained their momentum-fuelled dual charge when powering to the All-Ireland Senior C Football Final at the expense of Ulster champions St Columba’s Stranorlar this afternoon. Played in the spectacular setting of the new Connacht GAA Air Dome in Bekan (Mayo), CBS Ennistymon rose to the challenge with a dominant display. Seven first half wides ensured only a 0-5 to 0-2 interval lead but the Munster champions hammered home their superiority on the turnover when Joshua O’Brien (2) and Sean Connelly raided for three goals in the space of seven minutes. Led by Sean Rynne, tireless wing-backs Liam Cotter and Brian McNamara and spare defender Marc O’Loughlin, the only downside for the North Clare school was an ankle injury for Diarmuid Fahy that forced he early retirement of the full-forward just before half-time. CBS Ennistymon …

THE Irish Aviation Authority has been given planning permission for the replacement of boundary/perimeter fences at two of its buildings on Woodcock Hill with new 2.4metre high, pallisade fences. A letter which accompanied its two planning applications stated, “Having reviewed the option of replacing the existing fence with an identical type, our Safety and Security people have recommended that the existing fence be replaced with a more secure type fence to prevent the risk of unauthorised entry to the site with the possibility of injury to the trespassers and damage to the critical air navigational aids, which, if damaged, will affect operations in Irish airspace. “The specialist equipment located on site is not easily repaired or replaced in a hurry. “In order to prevent this happening, we are proposing to remove the existing fence and gate and replace it with a green plastic coated 2,400mm high palisade fence and gate.” It said that this would allow it to meet it …