InstagramVictoria Rose is selling ex Danny Cipriani’s rugby memorabilia[/caption]
Among the items for sale are Danny’s framed jerseysInstagram/VictoriaRoseCiprianiThe pair split in November 2023
The retired rugby ace, who split from American actress Anna-Lynne McCord in January after nine months of dating, denies ever cheating.
Revealing why she is selling Danny’s playing jerseys and medals, Victoria wrote on Instagram: “For months, actually, years, I’ve been paying for storage, holding onto boxes of Danny’s career, memorabilia, kits, medals, and personal items.
“Not because I wanted to. But because I genuinely believed, at some point, he’d want to collect them. That he’d care enough to take responsibility for his own history. He didn’t.
“In our most recent court appearance, he was once again offered the chance to collect it all. No obstacles. No drama. Just take what’s his. And he declined.”
Victoria claims to have spent thousands of pounds on storage fees and said her home feels like a museum paying homage to Danny’s career.
Among the items is a framed Gloucester shirt and a signed Sale Sharks jersey.
Some items have already been donated to charity.
“I’ve held onto the past for long enough,” Victoria continued.
“So for those who’ve messaged: this isn’t petty. It’s overdue.
“And I’ll say this with love: You don’t get to walk away and expect someone else to hold the weight of your story forever.”
The Sun has contacted a representative for Danny for comment.
Danny and Victoria wed in April 2021, but the marriage lasted just two years.
The pair’s latest court hearing was in March and insiders called it “tense” and “far from done”.
Following her post about Danny’s belongings, Victoria then shared some positive personal news.
The model has qualified as a neuroscience practitioner, scoring impressive exam results.
She said: “A while ago, I made a decision, not just to heal emotionally, but to truly understand why we behave the way we do under stress, grief, and survival mode.
Victoria is selling to the highest bidderInstagram/VictoriaRoseCiprianiDanny shows off his player of the season awardGetty Images - Getty
“So I became a student of neuroscience.”
After revealing her 93 percent pass mark, she continued: “This isn’t just a title. It’s a deepening.
“I’ve studied how the nervous system governs our responses, how trauma wires the brain for protection, and how we can begin to reprogram what survival taught us to believe.
“I didn’t get here through manifesting. I got here through pain, practice, and a relentless need to understand myself, so I could support others to do the same.”
5 days agoBlogsComments Off on Govt back legislation to strengthen CAB powers in fresh move to target ‘organised crime money’ & freeze bank accounts
THE Government has backed new legislation to strengthen the Criminal Assets Bureau’s ability to identify, freeze and confiscate assets linked to organised crime.
The move has been hailed as the most substantial reform to Ireland’s civil asset forfeiture laws since their inception in 1996.
Minister Jim O’Callaghan said the move will help fight against organised crime Department of Justice Ireland
One of its key parts is the reduction of the disposal time frame for assets deemed to be the proceeds of crime, from seven years to two.
The legislation also gives CAB extra investigative powers, including the freezing of bank accounts when there is reasonable suspicion that they hold dirty cash.
Financial institutions can be directed to freeze accounts for up to seven days to stop the money being quickly moved or hidden.
And the District Court will be able to issue restraint orders for up to 90 days, and the option to renew it, to prevent the dissipation of suspected criminal assets.
Breaching these directions or court orders will constitute a criminal offence.
Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan said: “Seizing the proceeds of crime, be that money, property or vehicles from criminal individuals or organisations is central to combating organised crime.
“Organised crime is driven by money and the harder the State makes it to obtain, launder and keep the money, the weaker these organised groups are.”
The Bill also introduces measures to ensure the quick appointment of receivers for assets determined by the courts to be proceeds of crime.
This will prevent those being targeted from continuing to benefit from the property or cash during the disposal process.
Another aspect of the reform is the streamlining of processes.
DELAYS REDUCTION
Once a court has determined that assets are proceeds of crime, this finding cannot be repeatedly challenged, significantly reducing delays.
Minister O’Callaghan noted that these improvements will not only bolster the fight against organised crime but also benefit communities.
He added: “The Proceeds of Crime Acts allow for reinvesting the proceeds of crime back into communities to support projects that build safer and more secure environments.
‘ENHANCE SAFETY’
“The Community Safety Fund, now in its fourth year, ensures money seized from criminal networks is reinvested to enhance public safety, wellbeing and opportunity in localities.”
The Proceeds of Crime and Related Matters Bill 2025 will now go before the Dail after Cabinet approval.
Love Island fans think Helena is ‘obsessed’ with ShakiraErotemeThe pair have been competing for the same menEroteme
Not only has she taken a liking to the bikinis and clothes Shakira wears, often borrowing and wearing them while chatting up the same men Shakira likes.
The pair have both been coupled with villa bad boy Harry, with he and Helena striking up an early connection before cooling things off almost as quickly as they began.
Footballer Harry then pursued Shakira, leaving Helena to pursue others boys.
She never truly got over their separation though, despite interest from bombshell Gio during the Sleepover.
Ever since returning to the main villa, she’s been sharing flirty exchanges with Harry, battling Shakira for his affections and ultimately winning out even though they’re not officially paired.
Now in Casa Amor, Shakira has been getting to know hunky Barnsley lad Ty, with the two Yorkshire-based singletons finding they have lots in common.
But tonight Helena swoops in and steals him for a chat while he’s mid conversation with Shakira.
Fans now feel she’s purposely trying to undermine Shakira’s efforts in the villa.
One commented: “At this point it’s blatantly obvious Helena only goes for for the men that are interested in Shakira.”
Another said: “Whoever Shakira is interested in, Helena is right there… what is it with Helena Meg and Emily … jealousy????”
A third said: “Helena seem to be jealous of shakira already going for the guy shakira likes or wants.”
A fourth joked: “Helena would pull a flower pot for a chat if Shakira had it first.”
As a fifth complained: “I said it from the start, Helena’s obsession is not with Harry or Harrison it’s with Shakira. Even the wearing of Shakira’s bikini not once. I actually think @loveisland need to do something now it’s so uncomfortable to watch.”
Shakira’s frustration is now beginning to show.
Tonight, Ty confesses to her: “I’ll be real, I’m very interested in you.”
Shakira replies: “I thought you were all about Helena last night, I’ve had enough of that triangle… I feel like we might have a case of musical beds tonight.”
Mid conversation, Helena boldly interrupts the pair and beckons Ty “for a chat”.
Sarcastically, Shakira says: “I thought she had an undeniable connection with Harry, I thought he was the love of her life.
Keen to stake her claim on Ty, Shakira then decides to interrupt him and Helena in The Snug and steal him right back.
But who will win out in the battle for his affections?
Shakira has the hots for Barnsley boy TyErotemeInstagramHelena interrupts them and steals Ty for a chat[/caption]
5 days agoBlogsComments Off on ‘National disgrace & an international embarrassment’, says campaigner as kids left waiting YEARS for psychology therapy
ONE child in Dublin has been waiting more than 13 YEARS for psychology therapy, shocking new figures show.
It comes as teenage disabilities campaigner Cara Darmody urged the Government to take real action to tackle the enormous waiting list for children in need of a range of therapies.
Cara Darmody is calling on the Government to take action on the growing waiting list for assessmentsCillian Sherlock/PA Wire
Figures obtained by Social Democrats Cork TD Liam Quaide reveal the shocking practice of children being forced to wait years for therapies and treatments.
A child in Dublin north west is the longest on the waiting list in the HSE system – left lingering 706 weeks for a psychology appointment.
In Galway, a child has been left waiting nine and a half years – 500 weeks – for the same psychology therapy appointment.
The devastating waits are equally as long for other therapies, such as occupational therapy, with one child in north Dublin waiting 502 weeks, while a young child in Meath has been left waiting 452 weeks.
For physiotherapy services, the longest on the waiting list is a child in north Lee, Co Cork, who has been waiting for the therapy for seven years.
Deputy Quaide said he faced a battle just to get this data from the HSE, who were initially only willing to provide him info on how many children were waiting over one year without giving him access to the length of these waits.
Teenager Cara Darmody – who has been campaigning for better services for her brothers who have additional needs – today held a briefing for politicians in Leinster House to highlight the shocking lack of therapies in Ireland for kids.
Under the law, the State is required to provide an assessment of needs for children within six months – however, tens of thousands of children are not getting these checks to establish what therapies they need.
Cara, from Ardfinnan in Co Tipperary, said she wanted to call out the “blatant lawbreaking” of the State by failing to complete assessments on time.
The teen said the crisis over assessments of need has escalated to “a national disgrace and an international embarrassment”.
She was initially motivated to pursue her advocacy because her two brothers, Neil, 12, and John, eight, have autism and severe intellectual disabilities.
Cara said they were “both failed dramatically by the State” in relation to the assessments and services that they received.
However, she stressed that her advocacy is focused on the national picture rather than solely on the experiences of her brothers.
‘TAKEN ABACK’
During the briefing, Cara said that she had met with a Co Tipperary-based psychologist who claimed that “HSE red tape” is preventing her from doing more assessment of needs because an instruction from her local manager has meant she is tied up in supervising all aspects of the work of her junior psychologist colleagues.
Cara said she recently told HSE chief Bernard Gloster about the experience of this psychologist, adding that he was “seriously taken aback” by what he heard.
She said she asked Mr Gloster to launch a brand new, heavily advertised recruitment campaign for therapists and psychologists.
Campaigner Cara Darmody held a briefing for politicians in Leinster HouseLiam McBurney/PA Wire
5 days agoBlogsComments Off on My man was 44 & healthy but collapsed & died – I was pregnant with our 6th baby & am begging strangers for help
A SINGLE mum of six fears losing her home after her ‘healthy’ partner died suddenly from a stroke while gardening.
Amanda Conlon, 40, is hoping to raise £200,000 to pay off her mortgage after her partner Clint Robinson, 44, died from a strokein July 2024.
SWNSAmanda Conlon was left heartbroken after partner Clint Robinson died from a stroke in July 2024[/caption]
SWNSAmanda is now a single mum of six and fears losing her home[/caption]
SWNSClint died suddenly from a stroke while gardening[/caption]
Clint was out tending to his vegetable patch on a sunny Thursday morning when he came stumbling inside asking his pregnant partner for help.
Amanda said: “While I rang 999 he was still able to talk a little bit – they were asking what happened and he said he’d got a headache and went dizzy.
“He went to call our two year old, and he said her name wouldn’t come out of his mouth.”
Clint was rushed by ambulance to Scunthorpe General Hospital‘s stroke unit where he complained that he was unable to feel the left side of his body.
Amanda, who rushed to the hospital in pursuit of her partner, says a nurse told her she should return home to allow Clint to rest, and had assured her he’d be back to normal by the following day.
When she tried to return to the hospital at 8pm, however, she was told she wasn’t allowed to visit her partner of 24 years – but she was assured he was fine.
The following morning, however, her worst nightmares came true – doctors said Clint was only responding to touch and that a bleed on his brain had continued overnight.
He was taken to intensive care, but Amanda had to make the difficult decision to turn off his life support after 10 days when she was told there was ‘no activity’ in his brain.
Amanda feels like her last hours with her partner, whom she was planning to marry next year, were taken away from her due to the hospital’s decision to bar her from visiting.
She said: “I called at midnight and they said ‘he’s fine, he’s been asking for you quite a lot but he’s gone to sleep now’, I said ‘please can I come and sit with him then’.
“I just feel like they took that away from me – any time I could have had left with him, they took it away because they told me he was going to be fine.”
MORTGAGE WORRIES
To make matters worse, the mortgage on the couple’s home was entirely in Clint’s name, and the qualified joiner was without life insurance after cancelling it over financial difficulties during the Covid pandemic.
The distraught mum was told her home could face repossession if she is unable to remortgage or pay the home off in full.
SWNSClint with one of his daughters[/caption]
SWNSClint was taken to intensive care, but Amanda had to make the difficult decision to turn off his life support after 10 days when she was told there was ‘no activity’ in his brain[/caption]
SWNSAmanda has little help raising her kids[/caption]
Orphaned at nine years old, Amanda, who works as a teacher trainer, doesn’t have any parents she can rely on for financial help.
Now, the single mum, whose children are aged 20, 15, eight, three, one, and five months, has set up an online fundraiser to pay off Clint’s mortgage and ensure her children have somewhere to live – something she knows is a tall order.
Writing on the GoFundMe page, she said: “I still can’t find the words for what it felt like to stand there holding my children while telling them their daddy was never coming home. I still hear their cries at night. I still can’t believe this is real life.
SWNSThe distraught mum was told her home could face repossession if she is unable to remortgage or pay the home off in full[/caption]
SWNSAmanda has been left to raise their six kids alone[/caption]
“Now I’m here, I’ve given birth to our youngest daughter without him by my side. A single mum with six children — three of them under the age of 3.
“I have a newborn baby in my arms, and I’m trying to hold everyone together with no partner, no parents, no grandparents for my children.
“I can’t work right now — I’m home with three babies under three, doing every feed, every bath, every sleepless night alone. And at the same time, I’m trying to grieve a man I can’t even begin to live without.”
MONEY PLEA
SWNSAmanda has launched a GoFundMe page to help with her mortgage[/caption]
Amanda has currently raised over £15,000 – a large sum, but under 10 per cent of the target.
She said: “The amount I’m trying to raise is a substantial amount – I don’t want anyone to think ‘oh, wouldn’t we all like our mortgage to be paid’.
“The reason why I’ve done it is because I think if I died tomorrow then my children have got a home – it would be my oldest daughter who would need to look after them.
“If anything were to happen to me, they would have that security.
I can’t work right now — I’m home with three babies under three, doing every feed, every bath, every sleepless night alone. And at the same time, I’m trying to grieve a man I can’t even begin to live without
Amanda Conlon
“If everybody just put in £1, if 200,000 people put in £1 that would make all the difference.
“I’m not asking anybody for a large amount, I don’t even like asking anybody for anything, but I’ve always helped people and Clint has always helped people. He always told the children that if anybody needs help, it’s really important to help.”
Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust has been contacted for comment.
What are the symptoms of stroke?
The FAST method – which stands for Face, Arms, Speech, Time – is the easiest way to remember the most common symptoms of stroke:
F = Face drooping – if one side of a person’s face is dropped or numb then ask them to smile, if it’s uneven then you should seek help.
A = Arm weakness – if one arm is weak or numb then you should ask the person to raise both arms. If one arm drifts downwards then you might need to get help
S = Speech difficulty – if a person’s speech is slurred then this could be a sign of a stroke
T = Time to call 999 – if a person has the signs above then you need to call 999 in the UK or 911 in the US for emergency care.
Other symptoms include:
sudden weakness or numbness on one side of the body
5 days agoBlogsComments Off on Our first date was watched by the whole country on RTE – what happened next was life-changing, we never expected it
LIGHTS, cameras, microphones and a full television crew aren’t usually what you’d have in mind for a romantic blind date – but for one Irish couple it was the perfect combination for a first encounter.
Gabrielle O’Connor and John Creegan, both aged in their 60s, felt the spark instantly when they met on RTE’s First Dates Ireland, and are still going strong five years on.
Gabrielle and John had a magical first date and ‘clicked’ from the get goGarrett White - Commissioned by The Sun DublinThe happy couple are still together almost five years laterGarrett White - Commissioned by The Sun DublinThe pair opened up on their expectations and nerves before their on-screen dateGarrett White - Commissioned by The Sun DublinRTEThe happy couple told others to ‘go for it’[/caption]
Though their relationship started on screen, it quickly turned into a real connection that has lasted long after the cameras stopped rolling.
Signing up to the reality show, which pairs couples up for blind dates and films the experience, was certainly a daunting feat, with John admitting he thought: “God knows what’s going to happen.”
While Gabrielle knew it was time to take the leap back onto the dating scene after her daughter told her: “Mam, you need to find someone for you now.”
John told The Irish Sun: “I suppose I was at an age where I needed a bit of female company, rather than be on my own.
“Everybody needs a bit of love and all that, so I said I’d put myself out there sure, God knows what’s going to happen.”
Gabrielle admitted that it was originally her daughters who nudged her to apply and later helped her fill out the forms.
She said: “My youngest was starting college and my eldest daughter said, ‘Mam, you need to find someone for you now’.
“And I said, ‘I’m happy on my own, I’m grand’, but she said, ‘No you need someone that you can go on holidays with, go for weekends away, because you’re going to be here on your own’.”
John added: “It was a big leap for me because I’m normally very reserved and I didn’t know what to expect. But then I said, ‘Look I’ll go for something different’, and I did.”
Despite their reservations before walking into Dublin’s Gibson Hotel, where the hit show is filmed by COCO Content for RTE, the spark was clear from the get go.
Gabrielle said: “I was nervous as anything, but when I went in there and had the interviews and went for the actual day of the thing, I was a bit nervous.
“But as soon as I walked in and we met each other at the bar it was just like naturally meeting someone, it was like, this is meant to be. It just went so smoothly and we just connected.”
She continued: “There was so much connection there from the word go, it was amazing.
“It was a big leap, scary at the time, but once you got in and started chatting you didn’t feel all the cameras around and you didn’t feel anyone else was in the room.”
SHOW SECRETS
What surprised Gabrielle the most was how relaxed it all felt once the cameras started rolling.
She said: “I was thinking there would be someone standing behind you with a camera and the big microphone coming across the room over your head.
“I had all these visions of what it would be like behind the scenes – but when you actually go in and you’re there in the restaurant, it is like you’re in a normal restaurant.
“So you can just be yourself and when you start chatting and the conversation is flowing – you’re giving yourself because that’s what you’re there for.
“So being open and being honest was the easiest part of it because we clicked so well.
“It just makes you feel so comfortable, it doesn’t feel like a television show at all – that was the biggest surprise for me.”
John admitted he felt the same and revealed he didn’t feel like he had to put on an act.
He said: “I just felt very comfortable and I didn’t have to put on a show or anything like that, I just was myself.
“If you go on something like that, you have to give 100 per cent of yourself because you’ll be found out later on if you’re spoofing.
“Just be natural, just let it flow and see what happens, and that’s what we did.”
TAKE THE LEAP
The pair agree it’s a great opportunity to meet someone no matter what age you are and encouraged others to take the First Dates plunge.
John said: “It’s like everything else, the older you get the more mature you are, so you realise what you want.
“With all our life experiences, we know what type of person you want to meet and you know quickly whether they’re your type.
You want someone to go on holiday with, you want someone to have a weekend away with. You want something else in your life, to fill that gap”
“It’s great to be on a programme like that, normally programmes like that are for young people but it’s great to see a mature person, and it being older people than us.”
He added: “It’s a good start because at our age, where do you go dating now? It’s not like years ago where you could go to dance halls, whereas nowadays it’s all online and you don’t know who you’re talking to.”
Gabrielle said she would tell anyone in a similar position to take the leap and apply for the show.
She said: “You get to an age where when you are on your own and your kids are grown up and you are thinking, ‘I wish I could go out and do that’.
“Like my daughter said, you want someone to go on holiday with, you want someone to have a weekend away with. You want something else in your life, to fill that gap.”
She added: “I think it’s brilliant that they’re doing it for the older generation and for more mature people because they do know what life they’ve had and what they want and what they don’t want.
“When they’re young, they want to go out and they want tall, dark and handsome, they want a man with a good job, they look for an awful lot of things, the younger generation want that perfect man or perfect girl on their arm.
“As you get older, you just know what means more to you in a personality, in a companionship and in relationships.”
GO FOR IT
John revealed that he almost didn’t take the opportunity because he was “a bit shy” but knew he genuinely wanted to meet someone and said he was “lucky”.
He added: “Go for it, go for it. Be open and honest. Life is an experience so it’s just another chapter in your life.”
Gabrielle also advised that applicants should be “open and honest” about what they want and to trust that show bosses will do their best to match you with the right person.
As for what’s next, the couple told how they’re simply just enjoying life together at their own pace.
John said: “We enjoy each other’s company. It works for us, we don’t put each other under pressure, we go out and have good times and that’s all you can ask for.”
Gabrielle added: “We have great time for each other. We have our own lives separately and we have our lives together.”
First Dates Ireland airs on RTE 2 and is also available to stream on RTE Player.
And the tables are set, the champagne is on ice and the First Dates restaurant is now ready to welcome its next batch of blind daters.
So if you fancy your own shot at finding love, no matter what age you are, you can apply here to take part in the new series.
John and Gabrielle enjoy their lives both together and separately after meeting on First DatesGarrett White - Commissioned by The Sun Dublin
