It's late June in the seaside town of Bantry, in West Cork, Ireland and a combination of high winds, driving rain and coastal fog have curtailed our planned trek on nearby Sheep's Head Peninsula.

So with time to kill, we wander around the harbour, at the edge of Bantry Bay, catching an outdoor gig by a traditional Irish band, in the drizzle, and enjoying the eccentric humour in this colourful local art project on a waterside toilet block.

We're not the only ones, we also learn from historical information panels beside the harbour, to have been frustrated by Bantry's weather.

In 1796, the so-called "Second French Armada", with 10,000 troops aboard, reached these shores, primed to join forces with Irish Republicans, led by Theobald Wolfe Tone, to topple the British regime, but were forc

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