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Monthly Archives: March 2016

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If you've managed to make it to work/college this morning without have a total meltdown, pat yourself on the back.

Commuters in Ulster and Leinster were given QUITE the treat this morning, with snow, sleet and ice blanketing a large chunk of the country.

While much of the 'snow' turned to mush and slush, certain more sheltered areas saw heavy snowfall. All in all, it was a total disaster, especially for anyone trying to get to work on time.

Buses, trains and LUASes turned into warm, overpacked tin cans:  

 

But anyone with a car really had to suffer:

 

A few brave souls even risked getting frostbite to stop and take a picture:

 

And of course there were a few ice-related accidents too.

 

Plus, the inevitable delays on EVERY form of transport – including planes:

Thank God it's Friday. We could NOT do this all over again tomorrow.

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Union J's Josh Cuthbert, Jaymi Halmsley and JJ Hamblett are about to become a trio – at least until they find a replacement for George Shelley.

The band confirmed via a statement on Facebook this morning that they would be continuing on their "incredible journey" without George.

While the statement describes the decision as a 'mutual' one, it seems the reality is quite different.

Union J – 2016Moving Forward In 2012 we started something that has been the centre of our lives ever since, a band…

Posted by Union J World on Friday, 4 March 2016

George's former bandmates alleged in interviews with The Sun this morning that he just wasn't putting in the required effort any more, especially after gaining more media attention following his stint in the I'm A Celebrity jungle.

"He did the jungle, he came off it and his head space was different to ours," Josh Cuthbert said of the decision to continue on without George.

"Using a sporting analogy, he wanted to turn up to the big matches but not turn up to training."

In a statement on Twitter today, JJ Hamblett insisted the decision was George's alone, adding, "We feel we are just getting started and owe it to you guys to continue."

 

As for Jaymi Halmsley, he was also quick to point the finger of blame in George's direction, saying. "He wasn't putting his full effort in. One member is not bigger than the band."

There's been no word from George via social media as yet. The singer, who came out as gay last month after weeks of speculation about his relationship with his I'm A Celebrity co-contestant Ferne McCann, is apparently keen to focus on his broadcasting and acting career.

This includes work on Capital FM and the BBC3 show Murder in Successville.

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This video of a veterinary assistant comforting a dog after surgery has been spreading good vibes across this internet this week and it is also kind of making us want to change profession. 

This footage shows Dennis Moses, a staff member at the BARCS Animal Shelter in Baltimore, giving much-needed cuddles to terrified pup Meesha who had just come out of surgery. 

Baby Meesha was coming off her anesthesia and was a little scared because her body felt so weird. BARCS Surgical Assistant Dennis Moses took her out into the quiet hallway to comfort her. One of our awesome volunteers just happened to be walking by to capture this sweet moment. Thank you to Dennis and all the staff who work long, tireless hours in the background of our shelter—saving lives and loving the animals. (Turn on the sound, it will melt your heart!)

Posted by BARCS Animal Shelter on Thursday, February 25, 2016

"BARCS Surgical Assistant Dennis Moses took her out into the quiet hallway to comfort her. One of our awesome volunteers just happened to be walking by to capture this sweet moment."

And it seems that the internet is totally enamoured by the duo as the video has raked up over ten million views. 

And there was good news for the pup as the shelter shared an image of the adorable rescue dog settling into her new home. 

Yay for happy endings! 

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We were sceptical to say the least about the reported romance between the recently-divorced Cheryl and One Direction's Liam Payne when it broke last weekend, but the pair have since confirmed the romance. 

Well, sort of. 

They are definitely teasing fans with social media posts and some cryptic messages. 

So is it real or have they been playing a big ol' trick on us? Here's all the evidence: 

1) Initial rumours 

The story was 'broken' by British tabloid the Sun in a huge front-page splash last weekend which seemed to come out of nowhere. 

The paper reported that the duo were a few months into their relationship and very happy. 

While Liam and Cheryl may have simply decided to come clean about their romance, reports have speculated that they could also have just decided to play along… 

2) THAT Tesco snap 

A picture of Liam and Cheryl reportedly doing some grocery shopping in a Tesco in Guildford earlier this week emerged, supposedly confirming the romance. 

Though it certainly looks like them, the photo was taken from behind thus leaving it open to suspicion. 

Also we find it hard that the pair would be picking up groceries together in a small town in rural England at midnight. 

3) Those comments 

Liam was also caught commenting on Cheryl's Instagram snap that she shared as she headed off to the Brits. 

4) Liam's Instagram 

Liam (the scamp) appeared to confirm the rumours by changing his Instagram profile pic to a picture of him topless with his arm around Cheryl. 

He also changed his profile description to simply: "Happy" 

However, the next day he deleted both the pic and the description. Hmm. 

3) The Mystery Men 

All of a sudden, Cheryl and Liam began openly posting pics of each other as they spent time together yesterday. 

First, Chezza shared a snap of herself with man's arm around her. The arm was later confirmed to be Liam's when she posted another pic featuring herself, Liam (donning the same purple jumper as the aforementioned photo) and two other men. 

"My mystery man line up," read the cryptic caption followed by the hashtag #whosworthit, which is the tagline of L'oreal with whom Cheryl has a contract. 

Considering that Cheryl was clearly doing some publicity for her various brands on the day, fans have been speculating that Liam was present to drum up some publicity… 

4) Finally, that tweet 

Cherly also shared this very cryptic tweet yesterday, which could be about people assuming her and Liam are an item. 

Or it could be about something else altogether. We'll let you decide.  

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We all know that top models Kendall Jenner and Gigi Hadid are bosum buds but they took their friendship one step further today by transforming themselves into each other. 

Yep, for today's Balmain fashion show Gigi went brunette while Kendall donned a peroxide blonde shade for her locks. 

And they still looked amazing, obviously. 

The BFFs were joined by a whole host of famous faces, but everyone was talking about their hair transformation. 

While they may be wigs, it's safe to say that this pair could work any shade and style. 

Also donning stunning Balmain pieces were Jourdan Dunn, Rose Huntington-Whitely, Bella Hadid and Karlie Kloss.  

Gigi, who suffered an embarrassing nip-slip at the Versace show last week, was totally covered up today in grey hues while Kendall donned a fur-lined ensemble. 

And the capes of course, who can ignore those stunning cape-like coats. 

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And so apparently that is that. 

The love affair that broke up relationships, clogged our newsfeeds and caused turmoil in the Celebrity Big Brother  house is officially over, though we doubt this will be the last we hear of Jephanie. 

Jeremy McConnell spoke to Dáithí and Maura on the Today Show confirming the rumours that he 'cheated' on Stephanie while she was still in the house. 

"What happened, I was evicted a week and a half before the finale, she had a boyfriend in the house," said the Irish model. 

"When I got evicted, I went down to Newcastle, I ended up with a girl that night. But this was before she got out of the house.

“I was with someone that night. I didn’t deny it."

And it seems that Steph has called it quits. 

"I don’t know," came the reply when asked if the pair were still together. 

"Stephanie is in Majorca at the moment. The way she put it to me, she has split up with me."

The confession comes the same day as Steph tweeted her chat with the alleged girl in question, 19-year-old dancer Caroline Pope, which was since deleted. 

Jez also went on the share a pic of a ream of furious texts from the former Hollyoaks actress before also removing them. 

And that, as they say, is that (for now). 

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We may associate Maisie Williams with being a child star, but she's already 18 and looks every part the woman in her latest cover shoot for In Style. 

The Game of Thrones actress has hinted to having a man on the scene before, but she finally opened up about her relationship. 

"We've been together for over a year. I guess you could say things are getting pretty serious. He's not famous, I met him at school. And now he's my boyfriend.

"People feel it’s strange that someone who’s famous can go out with someone who’s normal. I don’t meet anyone else. 

"Maybe I’m doing it wrong, but I don’t go to all these parties. I don’t meet the other young, male actors. I just like normal people, I guess."

They have already been together a year, but there's still no sign of her secret bae on her social media pages and it seems she would like to keep it that way. 

The star reveals that she struggles with her fame as she is actually quite shy. 

"I don't want to upset anyone.

"But like I said, sometimes I'm really quiet and so I'm stood with a fan and it's like, silence. Sometimes they walk away and I just think, god, they're really disappointed."

However, it certainly seems that the star, who started acting at the age of 13, is really all grown up. 

"I’ve come back to that point where I don’t want to do the 'tits and teeth', but I also don’t want to be angry and mean about everything. I’ll just be somewhere in the middle where I can be myself.

"I always used to say and do the right thing. But as I got older and formed my own opinions, I said things wrong and got in trouble. 

"After going through all of that, I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m never going to please everyone and so I should just be happy."

Words of wisdom. 

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If you were bracing yourself for a nightmare commute to work through Dublin city on Tuesday next, you can breathe a sigh of relief.

Planned strike action on March 8th has officially been called off, according to reports just now.

Although further strikes – on St Patrick's Day, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday – may go ahead, Tuesday's strike was called off to allow both sides of the current dispute to speak at the Workplace Relations Commission.

Luas drivers are currently fighting for a 53% pay rise, although SIPTU spokesman Eoin Reidy said last week that they were willing to reconsider their demands.

"We've always said that that's an opening position, we've always said we're prepared to negotiate, we've always said we're prepared to moderate that and compromise," he told the WRC.

SIPTU has also acknowledged that if drivers do strike during Easter weekend it will be "tragic," not least because of the many 1916 Rising commemorations planned for those days.

Transport Minister Pascal Donohue seems hopeful that the planned talks next week could result in a resolution to the pay dispute.

"I sincerely hope that this signals an intention to resolve the matter so that regular services, without interruption, can be resumed", he added.

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If you're rocking a serious rack, then you'll know only too well how much stress those ladies can cause on a daily basis, right?

From wardrobe malfunctions to back pain, these DDs of ours definitely aren't all they're cracked up to be, but try telling that to someone desperately stuffing chicken fillets down their bra.

Having a cleavage that rivals Christina Hendricks is not ALWAYS awful (we can rock Fifties style like pros), but sometimes it is. Sometimes it really, really is.

Case in point:

1. The shopping factor
Girlie retail therapy with your less-endowed pals is a no-go if bra shopping is on the agenda.

“Don't mind me, I'll just be in here with Margo and her measuring tape for the next few hours.”

 

2. The shirt factor
You either fasten that annoying button and rock your inner Lunch Lady Doris from The Simpsons or you keep it open and attract some very unwanted attention.

3. The work-out factor
You may be swinging an 18 kg bell or hitting 10 km on the crosstrainer, but when your boobs are knocking you out, these achievements are the last thing on your mind.

“Yeah whatever, I have a black eye.”

4. The cringe factor
Yes, you've been living with these curves for years, but every so often your inner pre-teen will emerge leaving you mortified by your assets.

“Oh my God, my dad knows I have BOOBS.”

5. The style factor
That high-necked, 60's-style dress looked just PERFECT on the hanger, but one quick visit to the fitting room reminds you why that style best left to our lady friends with the neat B-cups.

6. The gravity factor
You may be the envy of your smaller pals, but the first time they see you in your pyjamas without a bra, they realise how fortunate they really are.

“Knees meet boobs. Boobs? Knees.”

7. The gross factor
All boobs sweat, but big boobs? Yeah, they REALLY sweat.

“Pass the talc. I'm going in.”

8. The bikini factor
Just because you're a 12 on bottom does NOT mean you're a 12 on top, and yet those designers just won't listen.

9. The sexy factor
There are definitely times when it's fun to flaunt the girls, right?

And then there are other times when your greasy hair, un-made up face and tea-stained sweat pants aren't in keeping with the cleavage you're accidentally displaying.

10. The jewellery factor
Any girl with big boobs knows they have to choose their neck jewellery very, very carefully.

Torc-style? Fine. Long pendant that suspends from your chest like a make-shift cat toy? Not so much.

11. The seat-belt factor
Necessary? Yes. Comfortable? No.

“Time to divide and conquer, lads.”

12. The cross-body bag factor
Same as above.

“Hey, why does your bag look so much shorter on you than it does on me?! Oh…oh, right yeah, sorry.”

 

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Ghostbusters is getting a reboot and the cast is simply brilliant. 

Set 30 years after the events of the original film, this updated version presents a fresh bunch of faces ready to kick some supernatural butt. 

Helmed by the ever capable and hilarious Melissa McCarthy, the new and improved ghost busting pack is completed by Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon. 

Oh you also have Chris Hemsworth as a sexy secretary to look forward to…

Up until now, fans have had to make do with some cheekily snapped pics from the set but today we got an official picture. 

Let's just say we can not WAIT until July! 

Watch the hilarious trailer below: 

 

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March 3 marked World Book Day, so we've been thinking about different ways to commemorate our love of all things literary.

These artistic souls all made their favourite books a permanent part of their life, with some beautiful yet subtle inkings on arms, backs, necks and more.

Take a look – who knows, maybe you'll get inspired…

1. Harry Potter series by JK Rowling

 

2. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

 

3. The Perks Of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

 

4. Hocus Pocus by Kurt Vonnegut

 

5. Matilda by Roald Dahl

 

6. Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

 

7. The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

 

8. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows by JK Rowling

 

9. Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

 

10. The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader by CS Lewis

 

A photo posted by Alicia (@alaskanamazon) on

 

11. Robin from Beatrix Potter

 

A photo posted by @josielovett on

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We got a lot of love for uber-successful plus sized model Ashley Graham. 

Not only is she challenging beauty standards in the fashion industry, but she has managed to hit back at criticism in a wonderfully poised way. 

Last week, former Sports Illustrated model Cheryl Tiegs criticised Sports Illustrated for putting Ashley on the coveted cover of the 2016 Swimsuit Edition. 

But Ashley has finally answered back after the internet quickly jumped to her defence. 

"Cheryl Tiegs may have said what she said and it may have hurt a lot of peoples feelings," Graham said to E! News

"But my skin is so thick. I kind of rolled my eyes, I was like, 'Oh whatever, another one of these ladies.' 

"But what's great is that—the fact that she said it—it means that other women think like her. And what that means is that we really need to change the industry.

"There are too many people thinking they can look at a girl my size and say that we are unhealthy. You can't, only my doctor can!"

Despite Ashley being the first plus-sized model to ever grace the swimsuit issue of the magazine, Cheryl did not have positive comments. 

"Actually I don’t like it that we’re talking about full figured women because it’s glamorising them," said the 68-year-old to E! News

"Your waist should be smaller than 35 inches. That’s what Dr.Oz [American health expert] said and I’m sticking to it.

"No I don’t think it’s healthy. Her face is beautiful. Beautiful. But I don’t think it’s healthy in the long run."

We bet you're eating your words now Cheryl. 

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