The musician on his upbringing in Offaly, and then Dublin
Songwriter Johnny McEvoy has just released a new album. Photo: Mark Condren
It was starting to feel like that song by Little Richard, Keep a Knockin’ (But You Can’t Come In). At the appointed time of noon, I knocked seven or eight times on the door of Johnny McEvoy’s fifth-floor apartment in Greystones. Through the wooden door I could hear the voice of Long Before Your Time and The Boston Burglar talking to someone.
I was about to give up when the door opens suddenly – Darren, who turns out to be his manager, invites me in. Johnny is sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of tea.
A Hmong American woman who is a mother of five has been deported from the Milwaukee area to Laos, a country she has never set foot in, according to a new report.
Ma Yang, 37, is being held in a rooming house in Laos, surrounded by military guards, the reports. She does not speak the language, knows no one, and says the military is holding all of her documents.
“The United States sent me back to die,” Yang told the outlet. “I don’t even know where to go. I don’t even know what to do.”
“How do I rent, or buy, or anything, with no papers?” she added. “I’m a nobody right now.”
ICE deported Ma Yang, a mother of five, to Laos last month (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)
The 37-year-old is also without insulin for her diabetes and is running out of her medication for high blood pressure.
Yang was born in Thailand and was a legal permanent US resident until she pleaded guilty to marijuana-related charges and served more than 2 years in prison. She took the plea deal after her attorney incorrectly stated it wouldn’t affect her legal permanent residency, which was later revoked, the Journal Sentinel reports.
Yang says she would’ve taken a longer sentence to keep her legal residency.
“I made a mistake and I know that it was wrong,” she told the outlet. “But I served the time for it already.”
After her sentence, Yang was taken to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Minnesota. There, a new attorney told her to sign a document that allowed her to leave but required her to agree that a deportation order would be entered against her, according to the Journal Sentinel.
Yang’s attorney believed she would never be deported, as the US typically deports a small number of people to the country each year and Laos has typically refused to accept deportees, the Journal Sentinel reports. Yang also thought her case would be re-opened because she had poor representation.
It wasn’t.
“I just keep getting screwed in this system,” Yang told the Journal Sentinel.
In February, ICE agents asked Yang to report to their Milwaukee facility. From there, she was detained, sent to Indiana, transferred to Chicago, and finally put on a series of flights to Laos.
Yang was removed from the US after President Donald Trump vowed to deport “millions and millions” and conduct the largest deportation operation in US history.
Trump signed an executive order Saturday invoking the act, which is intended to be invoked when the country is at war or if a foreign nation has invaded the U.S. or has issued threats that they will.
However, Chief Judge James Boasberg issued a temporary restraining order on deportations under the wartime law on Saturday night. The order blocks the deportation of any non-citizens who are in custody and facing removal under the Alien Enemies Act for at least 14 days.
After more than 30 years in the classroom, including time as an acting principal, Penny McGann knew parents were struggling to help their kids with maths homework.
“I’d get messages from them saying, ‘We’re not doing maths this week, it’s causing too much drama,’” she recalls.
“It wasn’t just about the kids struggling – it was a cry for help from the parents, too.”
Penny saw the root of the problem: the way maths is taught in schools has changed dramatically over the years, leaving older family members feeling out of their depth.
“Even in the latest syllabus, which has only been in place for about two years, there have been terminology changes,” she says.
“Parents were just starting to understand the old terms, and now there’s a whole new set.”
Recognising the gap, Penny created MathsBites – an online resource designed to give parents the tools and confidence to help their kids with maths.
Why MathsBites works
MathsBites provides short, easy-to-understand videos that explain the methods used in classrooms today.
“Parents are busy, they don’t have time to sit through long sessions,” Penny explains.
“That’s why most of the videos are under seven minutes. They’re designed to be quick, clear, and practical.”
The key to MathsBites is not just explaining how to solve a problem but why it works.
“As adults, we jump straight to the most efficient strategy because that’s what we’ve learned,” Penny says.
“But kids need to understand all the steps that lead up to that efficient strategy, otherwise they can’t apply it independently.”
Penny gives the example of a parent struggling to explain fractions.
“One mum messaged me after watching a video and said, ‘Oh my god, this makes so much sense — why didn’t I learn it like this?’
“That’s the goal – helping parents understand so they can explain it clearly to their kids.”
Penny McGann. Image: Supplied
How MathsBites works
MathsBites is available for a one-time payment of $99 per child, giving parents unlimited access to the full library of resources.
“You could sit down with a bag of popcorn and binge-watch the whole thing if you wanted to,” Penny jokes.
“But realistically, it’s designed for parents to dip in and out of as needed.”
The platform covers core concepts from kindergarten to year six and is structured around the New South Wales curriculum, but Penny points out that it’s applicable to parents and kids across Australia.
“The underlying maths concepts are the same,” she says.
“It’s about helping parents speak the same language that’s being used in the classroom.”
Parents can search for specific topics like addition, subtraction, or fractions and find clear explanations of the methods used in schools.
“It’s not about sitting down and doing more homework, it’s about embedding these concepts into everyday life,” Penny says.
“If you’re at the shops and your child asks about splitting an orange in half, you can explain it in a way that aligns with what they’re learning in class.”
Image: Supplied
Building confidence for parents and kids
One of the biggest benefits of MathsBites is the confidence it gives parents.
“One parent told me it was so nice to finally understand the language teachers use,” Penny says.
“That’s what this is about, giving parents the confidence to help their kids without feeling like they need to become teachers themselves.”
Mathsbites is designed to be simple and stress-free.
“Parents don’t need another thing on their plate,” says Penny.
“It’s just a helpful tool – a little topping on the ice cream, not the whole tub!”
Penny also ensures that MathsBites stays up to date.
“I’m constantly checking the syllabus for updates,” she says.
“If anything changes, I update the videos, so parents always have the latest information.”
Penny has created more than just a set of videos, she’s built a bridge between school and home.
“Parents don’t need to feel helpless anymore,” she says.
“MathsBites gives them the knowledge they need to help their kids succeed, and maybe even enjoy maths along the way.”
It’s MathsBites 1st birthday and to celebrate we’re having a sneaky little sale. From 5-19 March, a subscription is only $75. Use the code MRSH at the checkout.
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Steph Claire Smith appears to be enjoying her pregnancy as she counts down the final weeks until she is due to give birth to her second child.
The Australian fitness influencer shared a photo to Instagram in which she showed off her huge baby bump.
The 30-year-old revealed her growing bump as she lifted her T-shirt and posed for a mirror selfie.
Steph was simply glowing as she posed in the bathroom of the home she shares with her husband Josh and their three-year-old son Harvey.
She also posted a second image showcasing of her huge bump as she relaxed in the pool.
Steph wore a black bikini and protected herself from the sun with a black hat as she posed for the camera.
Fitness influencer Steph Claire Smith flaunted her huge baby bump as she counts down the weeks until her due date
It comes after Steph revealed the reason why she no longer shows her son’s face on social media.
In January, fans took to the comment sections on her posts to query why the previously very open internet personality has begun hiding Harvey’s face in family photos shared to her public account.
Steph previously documented several details of Harvey’s life online.
Her Instagram page still has two ‘highlight reels’ dedicated to her firstborn called ‘bump’ and ‘Harvey’ that contain hundreds of videos showing his face.
‘Just curious why have you just started hiding his face? I’m sure in your stories I used to watch his face wasn’t blanked out?’ one fan commented on a set of poolside family photos.
‘Why do you keep covering his face when you have shown his face loads of times?’ another person asked.
Taking to her Instagram Stories, Steph shared a screenshot of her response to the frequently asked question and hit back at the ‘judgmental tone’ of the questions.
‘This question comes up a lot. And quite often in a judgmental tone, not a curious one,’ she wrote.
She also posted a second image showcasing of her huge bump as she relaxed in the pool
It comes after Steph revealed the reason why she no longer shows her son’s face on social media
In her reply to the second commenter, Steph penned: ‘The older he’s gotten, the more he’s settled into what he’s going to look like as a kid.
‘He was getting recognised when he was out in public with other people like my mum, not even with me, and I was uncomfortable with that.’
In recent posts, the influencer has been covering Harvey’s face with emojis, scratching it out, or only sharing photos in which her toddler is turning away from the camera.
‘So it’s a decision we have made for now,’ she continued.
‘Every parent can make up their own mind and also change their mind. If you’re uncomfortable with that, then that’s on you.’
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Fitness influencer Steph Claire Smith flaunts her huge baby bump as she counts down the weeks until her due date
A few weeks ago at the 2025 Elimination Chamber PLE, John Cena attacked Cody Rhodes and finally turned heel. Joining hands with The Rock, Cena and rapper Travis Scott then launched a violent attack on Rhodes. Leaving the arena in complete silence, the Leader of Cenation let his greed for the 17th World title dictate him.
Rhodes’ mother, Michelle Runnels aka ‘Mama Rhodes’ has finally addressed Cena’s heinous attack on his son. “Mama Rhodes” was a common target for The Rock leading up to his son’s championship chase ahead of WrestleMania 40. She has now involved herself again ahead of this year’s WrestleMania.
Speaking with Bill Apter of Sportskeeda WrestleBinge, Runnels opened up on Cena’s betrayal and claimed that he “should be ashamed of himself”. While Cena was never their family friend, she was still shocked at his actions, and never expected them.
“I was just shocked. Completely shocked. I would have never, never thought that was going to happen. I mean, he was a friend of Cody’s, and, of course, Dusty knew him, but I wouldn’t call him a family friend.
I would say, ‘John, you should be ashamed of yourself. You had a beautiful career. Everybody loved you and and now you’re just an a**hole.’”
“No, no, no. Cody got what he got, smacked in the face. You go out there and you want to taunt and scream profanities in the people’s faces, the ‘F you,’ you going to get smacked and that’s what happened. They had his hand down, head down, smacked them. Ain’t going to happen to me though, I’m going to be I’m going to be the one smacking all of them.”
While a young man is initially excited about his parents’ help, he is getting more and more suspicious that there’s an ulterior motive. Would he be wrong to choose independence and possibly hurt his parents’ feelings?
Let’s read all the details.
I (M20) and my gf (F20) had been considering moving to a nearby larger city to be closer to some good friends and have more of a scene for younger people.
Turns out my brother (m17) was planning on going to college in the same city.
Then, plans changed:
When I dropped out of community college last school year my parents (both in the 50s) were so desperate for me to go to school they offered to pay my gf and my rent in any city as long as we were going to school.
When we brought up moving to the city, my gf mentioned she was considering going trade school and my parents completely jumped on the idea.
They pushed me to go to school as well and I made to jump decision to possibly go to a different trade school.
Now we’re a month from the original conversation and my parents have almost closed on a house they expect me, my gf, and my brother to live in.
The opportunity is amazing and not something I really expected.
And they changed again:
Now, however, the entire agreement has changed including dictating what room we will have, the spaces that we take up, and we will be having to pay rent.
My parents have made so many plans for the different rooms in the house that they seem to have completely neglected any of our actual needs or having any space for the items/furniture we already have
Is any of this worth it?
I can start an apprenticeship in the field I’m interested in that will take way less time than going to school for the same qualifications and my gf is in a spot where she can get grants to cover her schooling.
We are honestly valuing more independence and space than just having rent partially covered.
It’s a pretty nice house, brand new, but that doesn’t mean much if we don’t get to use it or truly live in it.
I don’t want to disappoint them by changing my mind but it seems like buying a big fancy house was almost a ploy into controlling my life again (I moved out about 6 months ago after disagreements following my dropping out of community college).
Negotiations have already broken down.
I’ve attempted to have a conversation to negotiate just having a bigger bedroom considering there is two of us, a cat, and we both have decent sized collections of books, vinyls, music equipment, and art.
These conversations usually result in them blaming my gf saying that she is demanding too much and that I need to tell remind her of all the positives (?) to which I remind them that it’s me coming to them expressing my feelings to no avail.
Am I the [jerk]?
That does sound like a big decision. What’s more important, independence or a new house?
Let’s see what people on Reddit had to say in the comments.
This person wouldn’t move into the parents’ house.
Better safe and poor than sorry:
The consensus was unanimous:
A little struggle is just fine:
Your parents may love ya, but they don’t deserve to control ya.
Madison Brush, the 28-year-old daughter of Janelle and Kody Brown, revealed that she and her husband Caleb Brush have welcomed their fourth child — a daughter named Emilia Estelle Brush — on Friday, March 14.
On Instagram, she shared a photo of the newborn appearing to rest peacefully in a bassinet. The child could be seen wearing a plum-colored outfit with a matching hood and had a pink pacifier in her mouth.
“Absolutely worth the wait, Miss Emilia Estelle Brush has finally made her grand entrance!” Madison captioned the photo shared on March 15.
“Our sweet girl took her time, keeping us all in suspense, but when she decided it was time—she didn’t waste a second. Born on 3/14, she arrived absolutely perfect,” she added. “We are completely smitten with our newest little love.🩵.”
Madison and Caleb are also parents to son Axel, 7, and daughters Evie, 5, and Josephine, 2.
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The reality star announced her pregnancy in September 2024, sharing a look at her cradling her growing baby bump. She captioned the photo, “What a wild year! Looks like 2025 might be a little crazy too!”
“Baby Brush #4 coming March 2025. 💛,” she added. Her mother, Janelle, reposted the photo on her Instagram Stories, writing, “Pretty dang excited,” across the photo.
A photo of Meri Brown, Christine Brown, Janelle Brown, Robyn Brown.
Puddle Monkey Prods/Figure 8/Kobal/Shutterstock
Emilia’s birth comes during a tumultuous time for the family. Janelle officially left her plural marriage with Kody in December 2022, almost one year after Christine did the same in November 2021. Kody is now only married to his fourth wife Robyn Brown after he and Meri publicly separated in January 2023.
Madison is also currently estranged from her dad Kody, as seen during this season of Sister Wives. In a Sept. 22 episode, Janelle explained in a confessional-style clip: “Kody really did kind of cut off communication with Caleb and Maddie when the family started to really dissolve, and the kids really don’t know who he is. He’s not been out to visit. He doesn’t call.”
She continued, “Maddie and Caleb don’t really have much of a relationship with him.”
However, Kody shared his perspective of the situation later on in the episode, saying, “To be honest with you, I didn’t really cut off communications with Madison. She cut it off with me.
“Every time I talked to her, it was a fish for gossip and I got tired of it,” he added.
Jamiu Abiola, the son of the late winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Chief Moshood Abiola, has stated that probing former military Head of State Ibrahim Babangida over the death of his father is unnecessary.
In an interview with Sunday PUNCH, Jamiu explained that the time for such investigations had passed away, stating that many key figures involved in the June 12 tragedy are no longer alive.
“There is no need for prosecution or probe. So many years have passed, and most of the good and bad actors in the June 12 tragedy have passed away,” Jamiu said.
He added that the ideal time for a probe would have been during the second term of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, when Nigeria’s democracy was more stable and many individuals involved were still alive and could provide accurate accounts of events.
Jamiu further stated that for those interested in knowing more, his book, The President Who Never Ruled, offers insights into the annulment and the surrounding events.
“It (the book) will let you know exactly what happened during the annulment and why it happened,” he said.
However, he cautioned readers to approach it with the goal of understanding the truth, not seeking revenge.
Jamiu said the best way to compensate the Abiola family would be for Nigerians to embrace the values of unity and national cohesion that were exemplified on June 12, 1993.
“The best way to compensate our family is for the Abiola family to see all Nigerians adopting the attitude they adopted on the day of June 12, 1993, which in a nutshell is to reject tribalism and religious differences when electing leaders and to see themselves as members of the same family regardless of their states of origin,” he explained.
He further noted that Nigerians should focus on transforming the country from a divided nation to a unified one.
“By so doing they will be heeding the call of President Bola Tinubu to shun ethnicity and transforming Nigeria from a country to a nation.
“I will not ask for more than that because to do so would bring down the high standing of Moshood and Kudirat Abiola following their unique sacrifice. They gave up their lives and will be rewarded with more than 500 million years in a place better than any castle in this world,” he added.
While acknowledging that any worldly honours bestowed upon his late parents would be appreciated, Jamiu firmly believes that such recognition pales in comparison to the eternal reward his parents are enjoying.
“Any worldly honour given to them is definitely welcome, but believe it or not, it will be only a drop in the ocean compared to what they are enjoying right now and will continue enjoying while every single one of those who cheated and killed them burn in hell forever and ever by the special grace of God,” he stated.
On a recent flight to Zurich, I was struck by how wealthy some of the passengers seemed. One toddler appeared to have been dressed not for the cold but for a Joshua Reynolds portrait, in knickerbockers and crested velvet slippers. Mostly the affluence was worn discreetly: the signifiers were tailoring, leather weekenders and kids sitting with staff although their parents were on board elsewhere.
Zurich’s moneyed “gold coast” is the backdrop to the clunkily titled (In)Justice: Killer Privilege, a new six-part true crime podcast series from Wondery and the Evening Standard. Katie Strick, a Standard journalist, revisits the bludgeoning to death of the 23-year-old Londoner Alex Morgan in 2014 and his mother’s legal fight to ensure her son’s playboy killer, Bennet von Vertes, was brought to justice. For those fascinated by “rich f***-ups” (and who, from Henry James readers to White Lotus viewers, isn’t?) there is a rubbernecking element here, as Strick explores the psyche and lifestyles of the jet-set elite.
Morgan’s mother, Katja Faber, had moved from London to Zurich after her separation from Alex’s father, the Scottish financier Benedict Morgan, believing it a safer place to bring up three children. Apart from a few years boarding at Gordonstoun, Alex had been schooled in Switzerland, mixing with a privileged crowd.
But it was as an undergraduate at Regent’s University in London that Alex had become friends with von Vertes, the son of an international art dealer with a Zurich gallery. On December 30, 2014, they went out with friends before taking a taxi to von Vertes’ family villa in the lakeside village of Küsnacht.
There, in the small hours, the drug-taking and drinking continued until something prompted the 6ft 5in von Vertes, high on cocaine, ketamine and alcohol, to throw his friend against a glass table and attack him with a heavy candlestick, before shoving a candle down Alex’s throat. After his friend had choked to death, von Vertes showered, dressed and called the police, complaining of a bleeding hand and claiming self-defence.
Faber was at her avocado farm in southern Spain when a Zurich friend called, having heard distressing rumours. When the police arrived hours later, Faber knew to assume the worst.
But nothing could have prepared her for the gory details of her eldest child’s violent death, the callousness of Swiss bureaucracy (she was charged for plastic sheeting used to remove his corpse, and offered the candle along with his personal effects) or the gruelling legal slog ahead.
In 2017 von Vertes was convicted of voluntary manslaughter, along with a separate rape charge, and received a 12-year sentence. But in 2019 he successfully overturned his conviction of “intentional homicide” (a Swiss legal term for unpremeditated murder), claiming drug-induced psychosis. Faber sold her Zurich flat to finance her fightback.
This is a gripping, if not entirely unknown story. Strick, who has a great broadcast voice, tells it compellingly, bar the occasional wincing lurch into cliché about “grieving journeys” or fangirling about the steely Faber.
Another podcast series with a cautionary tale about the allure of the wealthy is the BBC hit Stalked. Hannah Mossman Moore, a young Edinburgh University graduate, wanted to break into jewellery design. While on an internship, she was befriended at London Fashion Week by a Hong Kong businessman who seemed to have access to all the hottest international events including Dolce & Gabbana’s Milan show and the Cannes Film Festival. An invitation to Art Basel Miami seemed too good an opportunity to pass up.
The trip went weirdly wrong, but what followed was worse: multiple hacks of Moore’s phone and years of online abuse, as well as impersonation by malevolent actors who always seemed to know where she was. Vile, misogynistic versions of her were created online. Employees and friends were duped, her parents and new boyfriends targeted. She moved jobs, countries and still it continued, throughout what should have been her most carefree years.
A small piece of luck for Moore is that her father’s ex-partner is the renowned investigative reporter Carole Cadwalladr. When Cadwalladr introduced her to a BBC producer, the harassment suddenly abated.
Six episodes into the ten-part series, I am beginning to worry that Stalked may not sustain itself. But the initial episodes are fascinating. There is a modern cautionary tale of naivety here, as well as an age-old story about what happens when a woman’s reputation is threatened.
Which podcasts have you enjoyed recently? Let us know in the comments below
