Ray and Maureen make an odd couple straight out of some tired sitcom: she’s the elderly Dublin shopkeeper with a pessimistic streak; he’s the exuberant gay blow-in with a fancy café next door. We sandwich in between them.

When it comes to mixing craic, atmosphere and a bit of sophistication to boot, there’s nothing to beat a night out at the casino. These Dublin venues are consistently popular with beginners and seasoned gamblers alike.  

They may be signed to a ‘major’ and produce bombastic rock, but Fangclub are DIY and rather humble about their approach to music.

If bingo’s your thing, you certainly won’t be stuck for a game in Ireland, especially in Dublin.

The DropChef box of goodies comes complete with pre-portioned ingredients and easy to follow recipe cards developed in collaboration with cookbook author Finn Ní Fhaolain.

“You need to keep evolving, tweaking and there is no time for resting on laurels.” Ronan Rogerson, owner of Drury Buildings.

Taking the plunge to abandon the freelance world of design and set up your own studio can be daunting. Seán O’Beacháin and Clara FitzGerald did it and created So&So. They talk to Richard Seabrooke about the process and experience.

Dave O’Carroll has been creating a gorgeous portfolio of video stories in The People We Meet.

The Donegal Shop aims to offer a little piece of Donegal in Dublin.

“With this kind of food, palate fatigue begins to insinuate itself quite early on, the barrage of relentless refinement becomes wearing.”

A unique story about two independent girls as they transition to womanhood hand-in-hand.

Farmer Browns has grown from its origins on Bath Avenue to now encompass four locations. Manager Todd Ryan talks to us about seasonality, locally sourced ingredients and their new location in Kilternan.

As the space squeeze continues, the plight of artists is often be shaded by larger-scale crisis. Mart Studios persists in trying to provide affordable spaces for a disparate range of artists across its network of studios.

Showcased in Florence twice a year, this trade-fair-meets-sartorial-extravaganza is famed for its Peacocks (i.e the impeccably-clad men who attend), many of whose heads have been embellished by Peto.

“Workwear is a longstanding challenge for tradeswomen.” Ripping up the rulebook of male-dominated trades, we meet five women ‘tradies’ who wear it, work it and own it.

Riding the wave of hefty critical acclaim for their debut album Dogrel, the Fontaines D.C. share their earnest thoughts on being Irish.

Ten years ago, a weekly e-zine called Le Cool dropped into the mail box of a number of early adopters. Over the next six years, it forged a bond with can-do creators in showcasing their undertakings to a wider audience.

“Apparently, brunch has been supplanted, as a thing to talk about in ‘food circles’, by the ‘Sunday Roast’.”