1 Up and at it – what is your morning routine? I usually wake at about 8am and turn on the radio to hear if we still have a world, while reading the paper (on my phone) at the same time.

THE costumed alter ego of orphan Peter Parker has been spinning a web of intrigue across popular culture since 1962 in comic books, TV series, newspaper strips, films and a Broadway musical.

HER book editor mum may have just published her first book in 22 years, but tenacious Phoebe Lyle is also rewriting the script when it comes to severely disabled young people reaching for their dreams.

RTÉ has said it will not censor the word 'faggot' from The Pogues' gritty Christmas hit Fairytale Of New York.

WE KICK in the door of this week's Noise Annoys in style with long overdue words on the latest release from fast risin' Derry punk rock trio Touts.

WILLIAM Castle was a proper Hollywood huckster, famous for the inventive ways he marketed his movies rather than for the quality of them.

"FOR us to be touring and playing music for over 20 years is ridiculous, to be honest with you," says Dave King, Dublin-born founder and leader of Irish/American tradpunks Flogging Molly.

Today The Proclaimers – The Ulster Hall, Belfast Snow Patrol, Ryan McMullan, Sam Fender – SSE Arena, Belfast The Bonnevilles, Conor Keys, Ruairi Woods – Foundry, Belfast Ten Ton Slug, Nomadic Rituals, Elder Druid etc – Crypt of The Riff II, Voodoo, Belfast Villiers & The Villains – The Black Box, Belfast Vokxen, Reevah – The Menagerie, Belfast Saturday December 8 Duke Special, Vinny Peculiar – The Elmwood Hall, Belfast Snow Patrol, Ryan McMullan, Sam Fender – SSE Arena, Belfast John Spillane – Duncairn Arts Centre, Belfast Cursed Sun, Skypilot, Erosion – The Limelight 2, Belfast, 5pm Jon Collin, Conor McAuley & Kevin McCullagh etc – Lawrence Street Workshops, Belfast Blood, John Deery – The Sandwich Co, Derry Lost Avenue, Mosmo Strange, Fierce Pit Bosses – Bennigans, Derry Sunday December 9 The Coronas – The Ulster Hall, Belfast Monday December 10 Villagers, Kitt Philippa – The Empire, Belfast Tuesday December 11 Runabay, Ethan Hanna, Matt Helders O'Reilly etc – 39 Gordon Street, Belfast Wednesday December 12 Maria Doyle Kennedy – The Black Box, Belfast Wynonna Bleach – The Duke of York, Belfast Connor Hutcheon, Kevin Young & VerseChorusVerse – Accidental Theatre, Belfast The Murder Capital – Voodoo, Belfast Thursday December 13 AMY, B-Side, Pearl Natasha etc – Volume Control, Oh Yeah, Belfast Saint Sapphire, Mosa, The Fake Flirtations – The Empire, Belfast The Murder Capital, Just Mustard – Sandinos, Derry Altan – Strule Arts Centre, Omagh Friday December 14 Mortiis, Drakonis, Oracle – The Palm House, Belfast GBH, Buck Eejit, Confrontation Time – Voodoo, Belfast Anthony Toner – Strand Arts Centre, Belfast Mick Flannery, Brigid Mae Power – Duncairn Arts Centre, Belfast The Lost Brothers – Strule Arts Centre, Omagh Saturday December 15 Gin Palace, The Fake Flirtations, Red House – Voodoo, Belfast Sinocence, Lock Horns, A Little Bitter – The Limelight 2, Belfast, 5pm In Memory of Robert Holmes – The Menagerie, Belfast Stayne, Pearl Natasha, Cara Quinn etc – Roisin's, Derry Grainne Duffy – Market Place Theatre, Armagh Sunday December 16 Flogging Molly, Skinny Lister – The Limelight, Belfast Tuesday December 18 Ryan McMullan – The Black Box, Belfast .

OLLY Murs has just been asked: How have you managed to last for so long when so many of your X Factor peers have vanished into thin air? It's clearly not an easy one for Murs, who doesn't appear to have an arrogant bone in his body.

Carpenters With The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra WHO knew all we needed to heal our hurting hearts at the end of this somewhat dire year was the music of the Carpenters reworked with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra? Upon listening to these new reworkings, it's almost baffling to think the US duo's original music was not recorded this way.

Yee-haw's the only possible reaction to Kylie Minogue's rescheduled Golden Tour gig that packed out the SSE Arena last night. 

Punchdrunk International adapted their production of Sleep No More so it would be understood by a Chinese audience.

CECELIA AHERN "All the promotion for my new book ends in December, and that's when I binge-read.

1. When did you think about a career in writing and what were your first steps into it? I’ve been writing since I was about 11.

WHEN Sylvester Stallone revealed his plans to retire Rocky Balboa as Creed II opened recently, fans of the franchise were left saddened.

OVER a quarter of a century Belfast firefighters witnessed some of the worst atrocities human beings could inflict on each other – bombs, blast incendiaries, petrol bombs, rioting – while at the same time often being stoned, shot at and threatened themselves.

FILMED in the summer of 2014 before lead actress Alicia Vikander deservedly won her Oscar as Best Supporting Actress for The Danish Girl, director Justin Chadwick's lust-fuelled period romp has been wilting on a film studio shelf for more than three years.

CHICAGO-born rapper Boots Riley makes his feature film directorial debut with an audacious, wildly inventive and frequently uproarious satire about workplace culture, black exploitation and rampant capitalism.