Tim O'Brien

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Tim O'Brien

A dead spider in a loaf of brown bread, a live insect in a burrito bowl and a pack of muesli full of maggots were among the issues complained about to the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) last year. In a report on the more than 8,500 complaints and queries handled by its advice line in 2024, the FSAI said other complaints included a piece of glass in a chicken breast, a large piece of rubber in a protein bar and a toothpick in a bag of chips.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Tim O'Brien

Dublin city councillors will meet on Monday to discuss problems caused by large numbers of drinkers who gathered at the Grand Canal in Portobello, Dublin, at the weekend. Several hundred people thronged the canal banks and nearby open spaces on Friday enjoying the sunshine, but leaving a large mess behind. Local councillor Dermot Lacey said he received a number of complaints on Saturday alleging the canal-side revellers were using their gardens as lavatories.

1 week ago | irishtimes.com | Tim O'Brien

A man and woman aged in their 60s are to appear in court on Saturday charged in relation to the discovery of €342,000 at Dublin Airport on Wednesday. Gardaí attached to the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau along with officials from Revenue Customs Service seized the cash from two passengers on Wednesday evening. The two were subsequently detained for questioning at a Garda station in Dublin under the provisions of Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act.

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Tim O'Brien

Sam the Trinity fox and brief pandemic celebrity has died, having spent his final few weeks in an animal sanctuary. The fox became famous in campus lore and newspaper images during the Covid-19 lockdown for his nightly patrols of the Trinity College Dublin grounds and environs as well as occasional ventures into Temple Bar. Reports abounded of the fox socialising from a safe distance with students and tutors, even following joggers, whose property the fox frequently appropriated.

2 weeks ago | irishtimes.com | Tim O'Brien

Gardaí are using the 20th anniversary of the death of Co Clare woman, Emer O’Loughlin (23), to appeal for information which may help find a man who owned the mobile home in which she died. Ms O’Loughlin’s remains were found in the mobile home where she lived with her boyfriend at Ballybornagh, Tubber, on April 8th, 2005. The mobile home, which belonged to a man named John Griffin, had been completely destroyed by fire. Tests on Ms O’Loughlin’s remains indicated she died a violent death.