KCC to support national Toilet Access scheme

Councillor Patricia Logue of Derry & Strabane District Council, with the window sticker format used by participating businesses in the area.

Kildare County Council plans to support the development of a national 'No Wait' card scheme designed to help individuals with medical conditions that require urgent access to toilet facilities, writes Brian Byrne. The issue was raised at the recent full Council meeting by Cllrs Aoife Breslin, Mark Leigh, Rupert Heather, Angela Feeney, and Ann Breen.

The motion also proposed a voluntary 'Urgent Access' initiative in County Kildare, encouraging local businesses to participate by providing cardholders with urgent access to toilets. This scheme would include window stickers, promotion through local business networks, and collaboration with relevant health organisations and disability groups to raise awareness among residents and businesses.

Officials agreed that, through the Community Department, the Council would work with the Health Service Executive to develop its plans for this initiative and, subject to available resources, explore opportunities for the Council to support HSE-led activities in this area.

Similar schemes already operate in other areas: for example, in Derry and Strabane, the Community Toilet Scheme, managed by the Council in partnership with local businesses, allows members of the public to use the facilities free of charge during regular opening hours without making a purchase. Participating businesses receive an annual fee from the Council, based on the facilities they offer.

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Kildare Jazz Festival to return, expanded

The Kildare Jazz Festival will return for 2026, over a weekend beginning 27 March, writes Brian Byrne. The event will offer a diverse programme of jazz, workshops spanning visual art and dance, and more.

Performing at the Riverbank Arts Centre event will be Emerging Act, the Michael Buckley Quartet, Music Generation, and Origin Story. There will also be art and music workshops in Newbridge Town Hall.

It's the third year of the festival, and this year, the weekend before the Festival proper will feature a programme of free jazz events presented by Kildare Jazz Festival and hosted at Maynooth University, Straffan’s Barista Bike cafe, and across Newbridge. Acts will include Cormac O’Brien and Tom Halferty, Tenters Ensemble, Bobby Mc and Oninao.  

Tickets go on sale on Friday, 19 December and will be available from riverbank.ie.

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Recruitment scam warning

Warnings have been issued about a serious recruitment scam circulating in Ireland, targeting job seekers via WhatsApp and similar messaging apps, writes Brian Byrne. 

Individuals are contacted by someone claiming to represent a well-known recruitment agency. They are offered what seems to be easy, flexible work-from-home roles with daily pay rates typically between €170 and €250, along with “free training” and minimal entry requirements. The tasks are often described vaguely, such as product boosting, market research, or item reviews for well-known retailers. 

Victims are then directed to register on fake websites and complete simple initial tasks. Very quickly, they are asked to pay a small fee, supposedly to unlock higher-paying tasks, validate their account, or meet a minimum funding level. These demands often escalate into hundreds or even thousands of euros before the scammers cut contact and disappear with the funds. 

The Employment and Recruitment Federation (ERF) says that the use of real company names and logos makes this scam especially dangerous. Warning signs include unsolicited contact via messaging apps; promises of unusually high daily income for straightforward online tasks; being directed to unfamiliar websites to register, with pressure to act quickly or complete tasks immediately; and any payment request, regardless of size, to access work, training, account activation, or to 'unlock the next level of tasks'. 

Legitimate recruitment agencies in Ireland are paid by employers, not by candidates.

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Parish Carol Service

A reminder that four local singing groups will take part in the Kilcullen Parish Carol Service TOMORROW, Thursday, 18 December, in the parish church.

They are The Kilcullen Gospel Choir, the Kilcullen Family Folk Group, Kilcullen Parish Choir and the Gormanstown Parish Choir.

The event, A Night of Joy, an evening of prayer and song, starts at 7.30pm. Entry is free, and everybody is welcome.

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Parish Lotto Draw results

The numbers drawn in the Kilcullen & Gormanstown Parish Lotto Draw held on 16 December 2025 were 14, 17, 20 and 25. There was no Jackpot winner and next week’s main prize will again be €20,000. The value of the follow up Draw stands at €19,800.

The winners of the €50 Open Draws were Joan Norlokken (Promoter Wednesday Bridge Club), Vivienne Clifford (Self) and Mary Fisher (Parish Office).

The winners of the Promoters Draw were John Archbold and Anne Brennan and the winner of the Draw for those in the Parish Centre in the night was Ronan Murray.

The Parish Office will be closed 23/12/25 and Reopens on 02/01/26. The next Lotto Draw will take place on 23/12/25 - tickets for this draw can be left in the Parish Centre. 

The tickets for the lotto Draw on 30/12/25 can be left in the letterbox of the Parochial House. 

Kilcullen & Gormanstowns Parish Lotto would like to take this opportunity to thank all of our customers and wish you all a Happy Christmas and a Healthy New Year. 

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Casablanca tonight: "Play it, Sam"

A reminder that the classic Casablanca is showing TONIGHT for the Christmas Cinema evening at Kilcullen Bridge Cinema. Doors open at 7.30pm with festive mulled wine served. The film starts at 8pm.

Casablanca was released in 1942 and stars Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman. Directed by Michael Curtiz, it was to become one of Hollywood's most memorable romantic melodramas.

Tickets are €7 and are on sale now on Eventbrite and in Woodbine Books, Kilcullen.

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Fittest Schools Competition returns for 2026

The Ireland's Fittest School 2026 competition sponsored by Fyffes gets underway on 26 January and will run for eight weeks, writes Brian Byrne. Irish Olympian, sprinter David Gillick, is again the headline ambassador.

A series of exercise routines recorded by Gillick, alongside Irish fitness trainer Sharon Flanagan, can be adopted by competing schools as part of their PE curriculum, with performance measured and tracked online.

The competition is in its fifth year, and according to Fyffes' head of marketing, Emma Hunt-Duffy, it continues to grow in interest across schools nationwide.

Details and registration are available at this link. 

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GAA Christmas Draw winners

The 1st Prize winner of the Kilcullen GAA annual Christmas Draw was Claire Curtis, who won the Big Christmas Voucher worth €350. The club thanks everyone who supported it and congratulates all prize winners and all club members who sold tickets over the past few weeks.

2nd Prize: Trailer of Split Wood - Elaine Schwer.

3rd Prize: Nolan's of Kilcullen Voucher - Tommy O’Connell.

4th Prize: 4x Irish 2000 Guineas Tickets - Dr Michael Kelly.

5th Prize: 2x Leinster Football Final Tickets - Brenda Maye.

6th Prize: 2x Leopardstown Xmas Festival Tickets - Josie Kelly.

7th Prize: 2x Tickets Naas Races Jan 2026 - Mark Steed.

8th Prize: Joe O’Farrrell & 9th Prize: Ray De Courcy.

Online Draw Winner: Aaron Cotter.

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Comet arrival before Christmas echoes biblical story

(Image credit: NASA, ESA, STScI, D. Jewitt (UCLA). Image Processing: J. DePasquale (STScI).)

An interstellar comet will be visible in the skies on 19 December, coming the closest to Earth than it has been during the whole life of the universe, writes Brian Byrne. Comet 3I/ATLAS is only the third known interstellar object to enter our solar system.

The object was first spotted on July 1, 2025, by the Deep Random Survey remote telescope in Chile, part of the ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System) project.

Astronomers believe 3I/ATLAS has been travelling through the Milky Way galaxy for billions of years. It will be visible through telescopes and strong binoculars.

Its closest point of arrival just before Christmas could be seen as appropriate in the context of the biblical story of the star reputedly guiding the Magi (wise men) to Jesus at his birth.

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Nativities from around the world on display in Kilcullen

When you’re a collector, you can forget just how much you have of what you collect, writes Brian Byrne. Which explains why, when Ger and Lorraine Hegarty Kelly planned this year’s exhibition of Nativities in the Parish centre, they merely said it would be ‘over 200’. 

It was. And more. “When we had them set up, we counted them, and there are more than 300,” Lorraine told the Diary yesterday—three times the number shown in the first exhibition in 2020. 

Some are donated, and they also buy new ones when they travel. The representations of the essential Christmas story come from all over the world, reflecting its myriad cultures and ethnicities, all united by a common faith.

Our pictures here give just a flavour of the display; it is well worth a visit to look at the detail and hear the stories behind many of them from Ger and Lorraine.

The exhibition is open until 5pm today, Monday, and finishes at 7pm tomorrow, Tuesday. Donations go to parish funds.

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Run Club hosting Christmas Walk

The Kilcullen Community Run Club is hosting a Christmas Walk on Saturday next, 20 December. The meeting point for the 5K event is Kilcullen Community Centre.

Participants step out at 10am, and Christmas outfits are encouraged—there's a free hot drink for the best-dressed.

All welcome.

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