EACH WEEKDAY EVENING, TheJournal.ie brings you five stories you really should check out before 5pm.

1. #ROYAL VISIT: The sense of history unfolding around Queen Elizabeth II’s first trip to Ireland continued today as she became the first British monarch to set foot on the hallowed turf of Croke Park, home to the GAA and scene of a 1920 massacre by British army auxillaries. Today, she also steered Prince Philip away from a pint of Guinness, met Enda at Leinster House and laid a wreath at the war memorial gardens in Islandbridge. See it all in pictures here.

2. #DOCTOR DOOM: On the day that another €3bn of funds are released to Ireland as part of its bailout programme, so-called ‘Doctor Doom’, economics professor Nouriel Roubini, is warning that our country will go bankrupt if we don’t burn the bondholders.

3. #CUSTOMS: Eight million cigarettes – with an estimated retail value of €3.5m – have been seized in a cross-border operation. Two men have been arrested in connection with the find in a container marked ‘Office Furniture’ at Dublin Port.

4. #SYRIA: The Syrian president is blaming poorly-trained police for the death of anti-government protestors. His claims come as his regime also claimed this morning that reports of mass grave of slain demonstrators is rubbish.

5. #BIGMAC: A retired American prison guard has hit a major life landmark – he has just eaten his 25,oooth Big Mac. “I plan on eating Big Macs until I die,” said 59-year-old Don Gorske.

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