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Displaying items by tag: Alastair Campbell

Tony Blair’s former spin doctor has bestowed an unusual honour upon the Port of Kinsale’s special Christmas tree.

Earlier this week, Alastair Campbell named the lobster pot creation by local fisherman Eamonn O’Neill has his ‘Unusual Tree of the Day’ on social media.

According to the Southern Star, O’Neill first installed the tree — comprising 170 lobster pots stacked 15ft high next to the harbour master’s office — a year ago, with the help of the local maritime community, to support Kinsale RNLI.

At the time, O’Neill said he was inspired by similar structures he’d seen while fishing along the west of Scotland.

This time around, as the Kinsale Advertiser reports, the lobster pot tree was dedicated to raising funds for The Well Project, which unites three local charities related to mental health and wellbeing.

And there may still be time for those in the area to make a donation and guess the number of pots in the tree for some fantastic prizes.

Campbell currently co-hosts the podcast The Rest is Politics with former Conservative MP Rory Stewart.

Published in Kinsale

Tom Dolan, Solo Offshore Sailor

Even when County Meath solo sailor Tom Dolan had been down the numbers in the early stages of the four-stage 2,000 mile 2020 Figaro Race, Dolan and his boat were soon eating their way up through the fleet in any situation which demanded difficult tactical decisions.

His fifth overall at the finish – the highest-placed non-French sailor and winner of the Vivi Cup – had him right among the international elite in one of 2020's few major events.

The 33-year-old who has lived in Concarneau, Brittany since 2009 but grew up on a farm in rural County Meath came into the gruelling four-stage race aiming to get into the top half of the fleet and to underline his potential to Irish sailing administrators considering the selection process for the 2024 Olympic Mixed Double Offshore category which comes in for the Paris games.