And if you are in Dublin in mid-August, you can celebrate the city's feisty Viking history at the Dublin Viking Festival, where a Viking craft village is the central attraction.

BBC: Dublin's Viking heritage

Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro is suspended for the trip to Dublin and his Juventus team-mate Nicola Legrottaglie is likely to play in central alongside another club-mate Giorgio Chiellini.

BBC: Lawrence gets start for Republic

In 1986 the rebels (in the person of Martin McGuinness, now one of those ministers) formally renounced their central contention, recognising that there were two governments in Ireland and that the one in Dublin legitimately ruled an Irish state.

ECONOMIST: Ireland