NEED TO CATCH up? TheJournal.ie brings you a round-up of today’s news.

Ireland

Barbie and The Fat Controller with Sophie Clarke (5) from Maynooth at the Christmas Toy Show at the RDS. Conor McCabe Conor McCabe

• The cost of the nationwide water metering programme was underestimated by €107 million it was revealed.
• A man was robbed in Dublin this morning by another man carrying a handgun and dressed as a woman.
• The parish priest of Portlaoise is set to do defy a “ban” placed on him from visiting a direct provision centre.
• A man was rescued from the Tolka river in Dublin after he jumped in to rescue his dog.
• Irish Water is aiming to collect “over 90%” of water charges according to its managing director.
• The same British Airways jet made its second unscheduled landing in three days at Shannon Airport.
• Visits by the IDA to sites were broken down, county-by-county. 

International

An Indian student dressed like an army soldier during a drill in Bhubaneswar. Biswaranjan Rout / PA Images Biswaranjan Rout / PA Images / PA Images

#AFGHANISTAN: Around 50 people were killed and 60 others wounded when a suicide bomb blast ripped through crowds at a volleyball game.

#CHARING CROSS: A dramatic fire at London’s Charing Cross station was deemed not suspicious.

#SAN FRANCISCO: A window cleaner fell 11 stories from the roof of a San Francisco bank and survived despite suffering terrible injuries.

Innovation

• From climate control to vacuum robots, here’s a run down of the best smart items for your home.
• Android’s latest update is out. It’s called Lollipop, here’s what we thought of it.  

Parting Shot

Not for the faint hearted, this is the Skyscraper. It will open in 2017 and will take the mantle of the world’s tallest roller-coaster.

Here’s what happened yesterday >