Today's TV Thursday 6 May

Gregory Campbell, Paul Frew and Paula Bradley vie to be DUP deputy leader

Woman (61) died after Lisburn house fire

Indian Covid-19 variant detected in Northern Ireland

Non-essential cross-border travel must be stopped ‘by enforcement if required'

Donegal Covid-19 outbreak linked to wake

Director of Public Prosecutions complains to PSNI chief over Bobby Storey funeral ‘confidentiality’ breach

Bereaved families voice hurt and anger at Troubles ‘amnesty' plan

Deanes at Queen's cancels bookings after being told terrace does not comply with Covid regulations

The Wicker Man craft store in Belfast to close after almost 30 years

Latest

Gary Wallace: From Tyrone titles and ultra-marathons to Northern exposure with Baraclough's boys

Shane Duffy's Celtic career over as Derry defender returns to Seagulls

Seamus Heaney described as being from 'Londonderry' by Tourism Ireland

Fiona Donohoe voices concerns on Channel 4 News about investigation into Noah's disappearance and death

Michaél Martin warns British government that unilateral Troubles amnesty would be 'breach of trust'

'Manufacturers prepared to sell lead on the roof than risk losing skilled workers'

Coronavirus

Donegal Covid outbreak linked to wake

DOZENS of new Covid-19 cases have been linked to a wake in Donegal - the county with the Republic's highest rate.

Topics

Indian Covid-19 variant detected in Northern Ireland

The Department of Health has confirmed that the Indian variant of Covid-19 has been found in Northern Ireland.
No further deaths linked to Covid-19 as 102 new cases recorded

There have been no deaths linked to Covid-19 as the Department of Health released its latest figures on the pandemic.
Republic's youth support workers ‘stretched to the limit' during Covid

Rachael Treanor of the National Youth Council of Ireland described the sector as ‘grossly understaffed’.
EU proposes co-ordinated approach to develop Covid-19 drugs

So far, the antiviral medicine remdesivir is the only drug authorised across the EU for treating coronavirus patients.

News

Tim McKane: 100 is old enough to start trying to grow up

Marketing expert Tim McKane, who grew up in a unionist background before flirting with left-wing republicanism in his student days, says it is time to take off green or orange glasses and focus on prosperity on both sides of the island ::::::: A century, one hundred, a time to celebrate? Or to reflect on the failure to change, to move on from divisive politics, and the lack of separation of church and state.

Topics

Thirty times more people waiting over six months for cardiac surgery in NI than year ago

PEOPLE will die as waiting lists for heart surgery and referrals grow longer, a charity has warned.
Pupils demand significant omissions to future exams

PUPILS are demanding that "significant omissions" be made to next summer's GCSEs and A-levels due to two years of disrupted learning.
Crime gangs in Georgia and Albania running people-smuggling operation through Ireland into the UK

ORGANISED crime groups from Georgia and Albania are running a major people-smuggling operation through Ireland into the UK, it has been reported.
Authors from Northern Ireland who have experienced sexual violence to take part in online discussion

AUTHORS from Northern Ireland who have experienced sexual violence are to speak about how writing helped them as a form of therapy following their trauma.

Business

Belfast-based AquaQ backed by London private equity firm Sovereign

BELFAST-based big data firm AquaQ Analytics has taken a significant injection of private equity cash from London firm Sovereign Capital Partners as it looks to continue its fast growth.

Topics

Fresh £2m investment round will help accelerate growth at Datactics

SPECIALIST investor Par Equity has increased its stake in Datactics, leading an investment of £2 million in the Belfast-based data and analytics software firm.
ABP buys remaining 50 per cent stake in Linden Foods

ABP Food Group, the Irish beef company privately-owned by Larry Goodman, has assumed full control of Northern Ireland-based meat supplier Linden Foods.
Plans unveiled to expand Loop film studios

PLANS have been revealed for the expansion of Loop Studios in Belfast, which has previously hosted high-profile films and television series including Game of Thrones and Dracula Untold
Deloitte appoints Belfast partner Jackie Henry to UK leadership team

BUSINESS advisory firm Deloitte's Northern Ireland lead partner Jackie Henry has been appointed to a new role in its UK leadership team as managing partner for people and purpose.

Sport

Brendan Crossan: A dose of John Morrison was always good for the soul

OVER the past week I would love to have been able to lift the phone to John Morrison.

Topics

Gary Wallace: From Tyrone titles and ultra-marathons to Northern exposure with Baraclough's boys

IT’S funny how life works out sometimes.
Padraig Hampsey: Young guns boost Tyrone chances

Padraig Hampsey has reluctantly accepted veteran status at the age of just 27, but says he's excited by the young blood coursing through a new-look Tyrone squad.
Ulster prop Tom O'Toole patiently aiming for Irish and Ulster starting jersey

ULSTER prop Tom O'Toole has admitted he must remain patient in his ambition to become Ireland's top tighthead as he continues to bide his time both for his province and at international level.
Shane Duffy's Celtic career over as Derry defender returns to Seagulls

SHANE DUFFY'S unhappy one-season loan stay at Celtic came to an end yesterday.

Opinion

Denis Bradley: Consequences of partition have cascaded down the decades

‘The Last of the Name' is a much-loved book from Donegal.

Topics

Alex Kane: If the assembly goes down again, it isn't coming back

Ian Paisley was leader for 37 years.
Troubles victims and their families failed again

VICTIMS and their families have been dealt another blow after reports that the British government plans to legislate to stop any future prosecutions over Troubles crimes.
Unique selling point of grammar schools is their sense of ‘elitism'

Newton Emerson writing in his column ‘Grammar ethos could be key to resolving selection debate’ (April 29) points out that the end of selection need not mean the end of grammar schools here and that if our secondary schools were allowed to convert to non-selective grammars and embraced the ‘concept of grammar ethos’ by introducing stricter discipline and more rigorous academic standards then the debate about the abolition of grammar schools could become redundant.
Tom Collins: Unionism faces its day of reckoning

So here we are, four days into a new century under partition.

Magazine

Astronaut helps Coldplay debut new single via International Space Station

The band have been teasing the track for more than a week.

Topics

Imperial War Museum to open extensive new galleries this autumn

The museum is also publishing two books delving further into the stories explored in the galleries.
Sir Ian McKellen: My work got better after I came out as gay

The Lord Of The Rings star said his life and work had improved after he had revealed his sexuality publicly in 1988.
Dame Darcey Bussell on whether she would return to Strictly Come Dancing

The ballerina also spoke about an acting audition she did alongside Hollywood star Harrison Ford.
Government urged to use Online Safety Bill to protect consumers from scams

Online platforms have ‘very little' legal responsibility for protecting their users, despite profiting from scam advertising, a coalition has said.

Life

Four calling male corncrakes recorded on Rathlin Island

FOUR calling male corncrakes have been recorded on Rathlin Island for the first time since the early 1980s.

Topics

Republic's youth support workers ‘stretched to the limit' during Covid

Rachael Treanor of the National Youth Council of Ireland described the sector as ‘grossly understaffed’.
Deanes at Queen's cancels bookings after being told terrace does not comply with Covid regulations

Deanes at Queen's, located on College Gardens, has emailed customers to tell them they cannot honour their bookings.
Today's TV Thursday 6 May
The Ashers bakery case: A, B, C of conscience

The complex issues at the heart of the Ashers bakery 'gay cake' case are to be considered by the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Dr Joseph McBride assesses the philosophical questions raised in the debate

Arts

What films should you look forward to when cinemas reopen?

FILM fans have faced much false hope in recent months, but long stretches spent waiting to get back in a cinema should soon be coming to an end, with May 24 the latest 'indicative date' for reopening.

Topics

Noise Annoys: New music from Exhalers plus news on Oh Yeah's Virtual Tour of NI

:: Exhalers – Exhalers (album, self-released) WHILE most of us managed to achieve the square root of frankly not much at all during lockdown beyond perhaps finally attempting the odd bit of long put-off DIY and/or gaining a few extra pounds while surfing the sofa, former LaFaro drummer Alan Lynn has put us all to shame by writing and recording an entire album.
Royal Blood's Mike Kerr: It's easy to be falling apart if you're the singer in a rock band

MIKE Kerr is remembering how, aged around 15, he performed with his then-band Hunting The Minotaur covered in gold paint in the style of Goldfinger, wearing a faux fur coat with a keytar strapped to his chest.
Cult Movie: 1969 chiller I Start Counting is an understated but oddly affecting cult classic

I Start Counting I WAS aware of Basil Kirchin's soundtrack for I Start Counting long before I ever got to see the film it graced.
Albums: New music from Rag'n'Bone Man, Weezer, Iceage and Pink Floyd

RAG'N'BONE MAN – LIFE BY MISADVENTURE RAG'n'Bone Man's new album sees the musician showcase his baritone voice in a collection of reflective songs.

Brexit

Edwin Poots faces legal challenge over stop to work on Irish Sea border posts

AGRICULTURE minister Edwin Poots is to face a legal challenge over work being stopped on permanent border control posts at ports.

Topics

Police back assessment that loyalist paramilitaries did not threaten port staff

A Stormont committee is examining the circumstances around the withdrawal of staff carrying out Brexit checks earlier this year.
How do you solve a problem like the protocol?

The acid test for the next DUP leader is how they deal with the Irish Sea border.
Edwin Poots threatens legal action over NI Protocol

Edwin Poots told Stormont Assembly members that ‘ultimately the protocol needs to go’.
New DUP leader should be prepared to walk away from Stormont over NI Protocol, says Orange leader

THE new leader of the DUP should be prepared to walk away from Stormont in the fight against the Northern Ireland Protocol, a senior Orangeman has said.

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