Billy Leahy on The Bank in the Gallery of Photography in Temple Bar: a sponsored group exhibition exploring different aspects of Dublin's Central Bank

Michael McCaughan looks at two sets of memoirs written from the front lines of global battlefields by witnesses who join the revolution with no agenda other than their passion and idealism

The NewsTalk 106 line-up for its national debut is God-awful. Claire Byrne of TV3 and Ger Gilroy will offer no challenge to RTÉ's Morning Ireland. Ryan Tubridy and Pat Kenny were/are there for the taking in the 9am to noon slot but Orla Barry and Brenda Power won't take them. Someone called Eamon Keane will present the lunchtime news against Sean O'Rourke on RTÉ's News At One. No contest. And on into the afternoon with only George Hook offering token resistance to RTÉ's new recruit Mary Wilson.

If you find the contenders for the 2006 Man Booker Prize unfamiliar, you are not alone. When the shortlist was announced, even Book Notes was alarmed that so few established writers had failed to make it to the final round.

The average of opinion polls since the last election shows: a substantial decline in support for Fianna Fáil; a failure by Fine Gael to make substantial gains; and gains for Labour and Sinn Féin. By Colin Murphy

Haunted Homes strikes fear into our hearts with its clichéd attempts to scare while Up for the Match is frightening for viewers, guests and presenters alike

How many interviews can you fit into your first week as party leader? How many different headlines can you make? As many as possible, if you are Michael McDowell, who is using the same 'climbing up a pole' strategy that he did in the run up to the last election – ie to get as much media coverage as possible, about anything.

One of my missions in life is to encourage young people to keep journals. It helps them develop writing skills and to reflect on their experiences. That is why Tony Hickey enjoyed Dear Me so much.

The government's failure to establish the Criminal Law (Mental Health) Review Board means that mentally ill people will be detained indefinitely if arrested. By Erik Salholm and Emma Browne

Fabulous Beast's The Flowerbed is enchanting and coherent, but SaBooge's Every Day Above Ground meanders away from Colin Murphy