Do Ireland's St Patrick's festivities reflect our new multi-culturalism?
Features
Chilly St Patrick's Day parades draw to a close
Parades throughout the country have drawn to a close and the street clean-ups are beginning after a colourful, but otherwise cold and miserable St Patrick's Day.
Kilian Doyle, takes a wry look at how St Patrick would fare if he were to return to Ireland today. It starts with a quiet January afternoon in O'Hooligan's Irish pub in Heaven.
The conservative chairman of Manhattan's St Patrick's Day parade has a message for his many detractors: "Listen buddy, if you want a piece of my rear end, go right ahead because there's plenty left for the next fella."
Let's assume he has the gift of omniscience and has his own viewing platform over Éireann's green valley this week... Kathy Sheridan asks what will glorious St Patrick actually see?
'It's great to be Irish' was emblazoned boldly on the little girl's banner. She was dressed from head to toe in green, white and gold and jiggled excitedly around a busy Trafalgar Square as the first floats came into view.