Month: April 2026

THERE’S no need to give up on booking a summer getaway just yet.

If you’ve noticed holiday prices getting steeper, we’ve got some good news, as it turns out there are plenty of affordable holiday deals you can book for this summer.

Top UK travel companies have crunched the numbers to find the short-haul holiday spots ranking the cheapest for this summer.

From Travel Supermarket to TUI and Loveholidays, insiders have shared their tips on where to look for cheap breaks.

From white sand beaches that rival the Caribbean, to volcanic black sand islands that offer a natural spa setup – here’s the cheapest places to holiday abroad this summer.

Agadir, Morocco

Agadir has been named the most affordable destination for a seven-night summer holiday in 2026, according to research by Loveholidays.

The travel company analysed data for package holidays departing between 1st June and 31st August 2026, with Agadir coming out on top.

Summer holidays in Agadir averaged at just £230pp for a week away – but we found deals even cheaper.

Sun-drenched Agadir offers a six-mile-long sweep of golden sand, attracting everyone from surfers to sun-worshippers.

Choose to spend your days soaking up the 30°C heat on a lounger, strolling along the palm-lined promenade, or sipping a chilled mint tea at the glitzy marina.

For those who want a break from the beach, the Souk El Had market offers a maze of stalls selling everything from vibrant spices to handmade jewellery.

Neapolitan Riviera, Italy

If you’ve had an escape to the scenic coast of Italy on your bucket list, there’s never been a better time to book.

According to Travel Supermarket, holidays in the Neapolitan Riviera have seen the biggest price drop since the start of the conflict in the Middle East.

Holidays in this region have seen an average price drop of a whopping £231.53, when compared to what travellers were paying for the same trips last summer.

The Neapolitan Riviera stretches along the sun-drenched coast of Campania in Italy, from foodie-heaven Naples to sunny Sorrento.

This shimmering stretch of coastline also includes some of the country’s trendiest resorts, such as the dramatic Amalfi Coast and the pretty town of Positano.

For an underrated coastal city break, take a trip to Naples, where you can sample world-class handmade pizza in the colourful Spanish Quarter.

Gran Canaria

Holidays to the Canary Islands are one of the most affordable options for a summer holiday abroad this year.

Holiday company TUI have revealed to The Sun that “Gran Canaria comes up trumps for families due to plenty of free kids’ places still available at family resorts” this year.

Gran Canaria is a total sun-soaked paradise, famous for its endless golden sands and sparkling Atlantic waters.

The star of the show is Maspalomas, where dramatic rolling dunes meet the sea, offering beach days with spectacular surroundings.

Along the coast in Meloneras, it’s all about shopping, dining and trendy beach clubs. As the sun sets, the beachfront boardwalks come alive with the buzz of outdoor bars.

The TUI BLUE Tres Vidas lines up family-sized apartments in a prime position for beach days on the sandy shores of Bahia Feliz.

Bodrum, Turkey

If you want to book a trip to the hotspot dubbed the St Tropez of Turkey, now’s the time.

According to Travel Supermarket, holidays to the stylish resort of Bodrum in Turkey are also much cheaper than usual, with average prices for a summer holiday dropping by £118.30 compared to the same period last year.

This upscale seaside spot balances ancient historical sites with plenty of glam beach clubs, fancy restaurants and rooftop cocktail bars.

Explore the glittering marina by strolling its palm-lined waterfront, dipping into a seafood restaurant for lunch or jetting out on a boat trip to a nearby bay.

Plus, history buffs will love a trip to the 15th-century Bodrum Castle perched upon a rocky peninsula, or the preserved Bodrum Amphitheatre that is free to explore.

Tenerife

Tenerife is a classic summer holiday favourite, but did you know that the island offers some of the cheapest trips for adults this summer?

Holiday company TUI told us that while “Great deals can be found across all of the islands…Tenerife comes out top for adults-only trips”.

When it comes to a classic fly and flop beach holiday, Tenerife is a top contender. The crescent of Playa de las Teresitas is straight out of a holiday magazine, with golden sands dotted with palm trees and calm, shallow waters.

Playa de la Arena, on the other hand, has a natural spa-like feel with mineral-rich, volcanic black sand.

And with the temperature hovering at 28°C in the summer months, this reliable and affordable hotspot continues to shine.

The adults-only TUI BLUE Los Gigantes sits at the ocean edge, so visitors get sea views from almost every vantage point. Glass-wrapped terraces give it a contemporary look, and with wine-tasting sessions, cocktail masterclasses and cooking courses all on offer.

Cape Verde 

For those craving a white-sand beach and turquoise waters without the long-haul flight or the Caribbean price tag, Cape Verde is your answer.

Holidays to this stunning archipelago have seen a significant price drop in price, with average costs falling by £98.82 compared to the same period last year, according to Travel Supermarket.

The country’s ten islands offer miles upon miles of pristine beaches and unspoilt volcanic landscapes.

On the popular island of Sal, you can laze on the golden sands of Santa Maria Beach, or explore the colourful town behind it, packed with lively surf bars and restaurants.

And with temperatures reaching 30°C in the summer months, it’s the perfect place to escape the unpredictable British weather and soak up some sun.

Costa Dorada, Spain

Spain‘s Costa Dorada ranks as the second cheapest place to book a summer holiday this year with Loveholidays.

The travel company’s research found that a seven-night summer break this year averaged just £381pp.

This Spanish resort is ideal for anyone who wants to mix lazy beach days with action-packed family adventure.

You can spend your morning conquering the world-class rollercoasters and waterslides at PortAventura World, before retreating to the palm-lined promenade of Salou for a chilled drink.

For a dose of history, the ancient city of Tarragona is right on your doorstep. Here you can wander through a Roman amphitheatre that overlooks the Mediterranean Sea.

Antalya, Turkey

Antalya remains an affordable spot on the Turkish Riviera, offering a high-end feel for a fraction of the usual cost this year.

Summer holidays in the region are now costing £90.29 less than they did before the Iran conflict, according to Travel Supermarket.

To the east, the soft sands of Lara Beach are lined with luxury resorts, while the pebbled shores of Konyaalti on the west have clear waters backed by the impressive Bey Mountains.

With summer temperatures regularly hitting 34C, it is a paradise for those who want to tan with a view and warm waters to dive into.

Make sure to tick off Kaleiçi, where you can wander past Ottoman-era architecture and narrow cobblestone streets that lead down to the Roman harbour.

Majorca, Spain

Majorca is a firm British holiday favourite, and this year the Balearic gem is more affordable than usual.

According to Travel Supermarket, average holiday prices for the island have taken a dip of £86.28 compared to the same period last year.

This sunny Spanish island is full of variety. Lose yourself in the winding, cobblestone streets of Palma’s Old Town, overlooked by its massive Gothic cathedral, or head north to Puerto Pollensa for a more relaxed pace along its pine-lined promenade.

For nature lovers, the Drach Caves offer an otherworldly underground experience, with one of the largest subterranean lakes in the world.

Of course, the real draw is the sun-soaked coastline. With summer temperatures averaging a perfect 30C, the island’s Blue Flag beaches are calling this summer.

Es Trenc is a particularly beautiful beach, with shallow waters that are almost a luminous blue.

Rhodes, Greece

Rhodes continues to reign as one of TUI’s most affordable Greek destinations, and the holiday company have told us that there’s “an abundance of brilliant deals still to be found” there this summer.

The UNESO-listed medieval Old Town is home to historic sites and Gothic palaces, whilst the seaside tavernas that line the coast offer a scenic spot to enjoy a cold beer or a fresh Greek salad.

When it comes to beaches, Faliraki Beach boasts three miles of soft sands and shallow, bath-warm water that’s perfect for a lazy afternoon.

The resort of Ixia offers a cooling breeze that makes the 30C summer heat all the more comfortable.

In Ixia, the Lito Hotel has outdoor pools facing scenic coastal views, all just a 5-minute drive from the main town centre.

A hiker has shared the location of “one of the best places to see bluebells in the UK”, stating that it’s so unknown, “you’d never find it unless you knew it was there”

For walkers and lovers of the great outdoors, a peaceful corner in the South West of England has been hailed as “one of the best places to see bluebells in the UK”. South Devon hiker, Elise Spicer, shared insider knowledge during a recent ramble in South Brent, highlighting a spectacular woodland area.

“Hardly anyone talks about it, but tucked away in South Brent, Lady’s Wood is one of those spots you’d never really find unless you knew it was there,” she explained in a video. Accompanied by her dog, Elise went on to describe how the walk becomes “absolutely beautiful” when the bluebells are in bloom, as they are now.

She continued: “It’s only about 1.5km circular and takes about 30 minutes – so it’s perfect if you just want something short and easy, plus it’s really great for kids.”

Elise captured more footage of her surroundings as she passed beneath a viaduct arch, drawing attention to the walk’s serene clear stream and wild garlic flourishing amongst the flowers.

“It’s such a peaceful feel all the way round and there’s a little river at the start. It’s actually part of a nature reserve too, so it’s really well looked after,” she added.

Elise also noted that there’s a footpath leading directly onto Dartmoor for those wanting to venture further into the National Park.

Devon Wildlife Trust describes the location: “This small reserve acts as a gateway to the wild landscape of Dartmoor. Bluebells and dormice are the stars of our oldest nature reserve.

“A wonderful woodland lying on a gentle north facing slope above the Glaze Brook. The nature reserve holds a wonderful bluebell display each spring and is a stronghold for the hazel dormouse. This was Devon Wildlife Trust’s first nature reserve and remains one of its loveliest.”

To reach it, take a minor road from South Brent towards Cheston/Wrangaton. A track leading to the reserve can be found on the right-hand side of this road, just past Glazebrook Court.

Responding to Elise on TikTok, one user enthused: “It’s beautiful, my partner used to live there, done that walk many a time.”

Another person chimed in: “Ooh gonna check this out.”

On the subject of bluebells, the RHS notes: “Woodland floors carpeted with bluebells are appreciated for their natural beauty, with many people visiting bluebell woods in mid- to late-spring.

“The flowers can attract bees and butterflies, including the brimstone, orange-tip and pearl-border fritillary. As a source of nectar in spring, bluebells are a useful addition to wildlife gardens. They can also provide good ground cover in spring and summer, particularly under deciduous trees and shrubs.”

SWEET stations in the lobby, statues of famous cartoon characters and a rip-roaring theme park right outside your bedroom window.  

This might just be the best family resort out there. 

The new Nickelodeon Hotel, which opened last year at the Land of Legends complex in Antalya, is bursting with fun. 

On top of character meet-and-greets at all times of day, there’s free gaming stations and an energetic kids’ club.  

And that’s before you even get to the splash park and heated pool, available for hotel guests only. 

My kids had watched Land of Legends being built on other family trips to Antalya over the years, and the excitement had grown on each visit. 

READ MORE ON FAMILY HOLIDAYS

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PLAY TIME

I took my kids to the huge slime ‘playground’ at UK’s most famous toy store

But with Joshua and Jessica now 12 and nine, my partner Jo and I wondered if we’d missed the boat, or rollercoaster. 

We needn’t have worried, though.  

Land of Legends, which turns ten this summer, caters for all ages, tastes and daredevil levels. Designed to be a giant entertainment resort, visitors have access to hotels, shopping avenue, waterparks and, of course, a theme park in one place. 

Best of all, anyone staying in the onsite Nickelodeon Hotel can use a private entrance to access the theme park — meaning they can ride when they want, pop back for meals and drinks and then go again.  

Spongebob’s Bikini Bottom became a solid family favourite. The new indoor addition to the park features rides for all ages, including an interactive coaster where you shoot targets as you go. 

Young kids will also love the Star Trek simulator, Family Coaster and the crazy Typhoon Coaster where you go up in a lift before splashing down log flume-style. 

And once me and Josh got our big-boy pants on, we were ready for Hyper Coaster — a ride that rollercoaster enthusiasts travel across Europe to try. 

Trust me, it’s not for the faint-hearted, but I had to at least pretend I was being brave by laughing when Josh was next to me on the ascent, saying: “Dad, I think I’m going to pass out.” 

I couldn’t really hear him over my screams after that, as we plummeted, looped, corkscrewed and flew our way across the park. 

I’m not ashamed to say it took me a good 15 to 20 minutes to be able to feel my knees again. 

For a little less speed, there’s a neat Paw Patrol section of the park and Masha and the Bear area — a favourite of our children when they were toddlers so the boat ride was a lovely trip down memory lane for us all. 

On days when the Turkish heat gets too much, holidaymakers can get more thrills at the waterpark (open April to October). 

Dozens of flumes and the quite incredible Turtle Coaster, where you are propelled uphill in a boat by water jets at amazing speeds, were big hits. Although the group favourite was a rubber-ring ride — especially for Jess, as she found it hilarious that I seemed to go backwards the entire way down the steep slopes. 

As we went early in the season, it didn’t really matter what water attraction we went for first as there were no queues. 

You won’t need to splash out on food at the parks when you stay onsite, either. 

The Nickelodeon Hotel operates a “Full-Board+” concept, which means breakfast, lunch and dinner in La Spatula restaurant and all soft drinks are included.  

Alcohol is served at lunch and dinner times with meals, too. 

The food was tasty, fresh and plentiful — from the omelette station at breakfast to the grilled lamb kebabs in the evenings. 

Magic shows performed over breakfast added another element of fun and Jess was still trying to figure out just how the magician had done it by lunch. 

Most evenings, we were so tired that not even the multi-coloured, themed character rooms could have kept us awake.  

Rooms are spacious and our Dora the Explorer suite had a balcony overlooking the park, meaning the kids went to sleep dreaming of the next ride. You can request room types on different floors subject to availability, themed around Spongebob, Star Trek and Turtles. 

In-room fridges filled with glass bottles of pop, plus a pod-coffee machine and snacks in the drawer were a real bonus for the post-park chill before dinner. 

The “Club Nick” kids’ club was excellent, too, with art classes (we painted SpongeBob, obviously) and nightly dance and character shows. 

Included in longer stays is an afternoon trip to sister hotel Rixos Premium Belek, with a minibus laid on. 

Lunch out was good and it meant we could get a drink by the sea.  

This was our fifth visit to Turkey in three years and the destination never fails to impress. The locals delight at welcoming tourists and showing off their country. 

Not everything is still “cheap” here, but this part of the world definitely knows how to do value for money. 

And if you did want to spend a few more lira, the front of the hotel opens out on to the Land of Legends shopping avenue — a Las Vegas-style strip with a canal, high-end stores and evening shows all centred around a Disney-like castle. 

For a slightly more chilled vibe, there are dancing fountains scattered around the shopping district, which Jo and I enjoyed while Josh and Jess played on the PS5s and arcade games. 

I tended to avoid those because, you know, it’s hard to keep letting them win every game . . .  

Los Angeles — Lisa Rinna said she would return to the “Real Housewives” franchise, but to get her husband Harry Hamlin on board, it would have to involve some big numbers.

“You guys are gonna laugh and think I’m ridiculous, but I was like, ‘I might do it for $5 million,’” Rinna explained. “He’s like, ‘No, 10. $10 million, you can go back.’”

The “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” alum wasn’t afraid to throw shade on a sunny Saturday morning during her panel at The Times’ Festival of Books.

The “You Better Believe I’m Gonna Talk About It” author sat down with Times senior television writer Yvonne Villarreal to talk about Rinna’s journey from soap star to her rise on the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” and her recent “The Traitors” fame.

As a “Real Housewife,” Rinna was known for her snappy comebacks and for sharing her candid emotions. Her memoir explores Rinna’s experience during Season 12, which was filmed shortly after the death of her mother, Lois Rinna. Rinna explained that her grief manifested into feelings of “rage.”

“Rage was the first emotion that came. I didn’t expect that. You know, you think you’re going to be in shock, and then you think you’re going to be really sad? Well, I went immediately into rage, and that’s not really very cute,” Rinna said. “But I think my being in grief triggered the housewives, and it triggered the audience.”

After Rinna’s time on “RHOBH,” she joined the cast of Season 4 of “The Traitors.” The show — loosely based on the game Mafia — selects celebrities to be faithfuls and traitors, and the faithful must attempt to discover the traitors. Wearing outfits like her viral cheetah-print ensemble, Rinna skyrocketed to fan-favorite status during her tenure as a traitor.

“So when I decided to do ‘Traitors,’ I was like, ‘Self, listen. You’re gonna go in there and just be you. No Housewives s—, no, none of that reactionary stuff, no, you’re gonna just be you,’” Rinna said.

She also joked that being a traitor was the “highlight” of her year: “I could kill people, I could lie, I could deceive, I could backstab. Heaven.”

Rinna compared the objectives of “RHOBH” to “The Traitors” and the different strategies she had to employ on the franchises.

“‘Housewives’ is not a game. ‘Traitors’ is a game,” Rinna explained. “‘Housewives,’ you just tried to literally protect yourself from the drama and the toxicity. And it’s even though it’s a television show, it’s real. I mean, no one is writing a script for you. You’re dealing with interpersonal relationships and conflict.”

WASHINGTON  — A man carrying a gun and a cellphone entered a federal credit union in a small town in central Virginia in May 2019 and demanded cash.

He left with $195,000 in a bag and no clue to his identity. But his smartphone was keeping track of him.

What happened next could yield a landmark ruling from the Supreme Court on the 4th Amendment and its restrictions against “unreasonable searches.”

Typically, police use tips or leads to find suspects, then seek a search warrant from a judge to enter a house or other private area to seize the evidence that can prove a crime.

Civil libertarians say the new “digital dragnets” work in reverse.

“It’s grab the data and search first. Suspicion later. That’s opposite of how our system has worked, and it’s really dangerous,” said Jake Laperruque, an attorney for the Center for Democracy & Technology.

But these new data scans can be effective in finding criminals.

Lacking leads in the Virginia bank robbery, a police detective turned to what one judge in the case called a “groundbreaking investigative tool … enabling the relentless collection of eerily precise location data.”

Cellphones can be tracked through towers, and Google stored this location history data for hundreds of millions of users. The detective sent Google a demand for information known as a “geofence warrant,” referring to a virtual fence around a particular geographic area at a specific time.

The officer sought phones that were within 150 yards of the bank during the hour of the robbery. He used that data to locate Okello Chatrie, then obtained a search warrant of his home where the cash and the holdup notes were found.

Chatrie entered a conditional guilty plea, but the Supreme Court will hear his appeal on April 27.

The justices agreed to decide whether geofence warrants violate the 4th Amendment.

The outcome may go beyond location tracking. At issue more broadly is the legal status of the vast amount of privately stored data that can be easily scanned.

This may include words or phrases found in Google searches or in emails. For example, investigators may want to know who searched for a particular address in the weeks before an arson or a murder took place there or who searched for information on making a particular type of bomb.

Judges are deeply divided on how this fits with the 4th Amendment.

Two years ago, the conservative U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit in New Orleans ruled “geofence warrants are general warrants categorically prohibited by the 4th Amendment.”

Chief Justice John Roberts sided with the court’s liberals in a 4th Amendment privacy case in 2018.

(Alex Wong / Getty Images)

Historians of the 4th Amendment say the constitutional ban on “unreasonable searches and seizures” arose from the anger in the American colonies over British officers using general warrants to search homes and stores even when they had no reason to suspect any particular person of wrongdoing.

The National Assn. of Criminal Defense Lawyers relies on that contention in opposing geofence warrants.

Its lawyers argued the government obtained Chatrie’s “private location information … with an unconstitutional general warrant that compelled Google to conduct a fishing expedition through millions of Google accounts, without any basis for believing that any one of them would contain incriminating evidence.”

Meanwhile, the more liberal 4th Circuit in Virginia divided 7-7 to reject Chatrie’s appeal. Several judges explained the law was not clear, and the police officer had done nothing wrong.

“There was no search here,” Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson wrote in a concurring opinion that defended the use of this tracking data.

He pointed to Supreme Court rulings in the 1970s declaring that check records held by a bank or dialing records held by a phone company were not private and could be searched by investigators without a warrant.

Chatrie had agreed to having his location records held by Google. If financial records for several months are not private, the judge wrote, “surely this request for a two-hour snapshot of one’s public movements” is not private either.

Google changed its policy in 2023 and no longer stores location history data for all of its users. But cellphone carriers continue to receive warrants that seek tracking data.

Wilkinson, a prominent conservative from the Reagan era, also argued it would be a mistake for the courts to “frustrate law enforcement’s ability to keep pace with tech-savvy criminals” or cause “more cold cases to go unsolved. Think of a murder where the culprit leaves behind his encrypted phone and nothing else. No fingerprints, no witnesses, no murder weapon. But because the killer allowed Google to track his location, a geofence warrant can crack the case,” he wrote.

Judges in Los Angeles upheld the use of a geofence warrant to find and convict two men for a robbery and murder in a bank parking lot in Paramount.

The victim, Adbadalla Thabet, collected cash from gas stations in Downey, Bellflower, Compton and Lynwood early in the morning before driving to the bank.

After he was robbed and shot, a Los Angeles County sheriff’s detective found video surveillance that showed he had been followed by two cars whose license plates could not be seen.

The detective then sought a geofence warrant from a Superior Court judge that asked Google for location data for six designated spots on the morning of the murder.

That led to the identification of Daniel Meza and Walter Meneses, who pleaded guilty to the crimes. A California Court of Appeal rejected their 4th Amendment claim in 2023, even though the judges said they had legal doubts about the “novelty of the particular surveillance technique at issue.”

The Supreme Court has also been split on how to apply the 4th Amendment to new types of surveillance.

By a 5-4 vote, the court in 2018 ruled the FBI should have obtained a search warrant before it required a cellphone company to turn over 127 days of records for Timothy Carpenter, a suspect in a series of store robberies in Michigan.

The data confirmed Carpenter was nearby when four of the stores were robbed.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts, joined by four liberal justices, said this lengthy surveillance violated privacy rights protected by the 4th Amendment.

The “seismic shifts in technology” could permit total surveillance of the public, Roberts wrote, and “we decline to grant the state unrestricted access” to these databases.

But he described the Carpenter decision as “narrow” because it turned on the many weeks of surveillance data.

In dissent, four conservatives questioned how tracking someone’s driving violates their privacy. Surveillance cameras and license plate readers are commonly used by investigators and have rarely been challenged.

Solicitor Gen. D. John Sauer relies on that argument in his defense of Chatrie’s conviction. “An individual has no reasonable expectation of privacy in movements that anyone could see,” he wrote.

The justices will issue a decision by the end of June.

It’s time to reveal memories, laughs and crazy times from Randy Rosenbloom’s 55 years as a TV/radio broadcaster in Los Angeles. He’s hopping in a car next Sunday with his wife, saying goodbye to a North Hollywood house that’s been in his family since 1952 and driving 3,300 miles to his new home in Greenville, S.C.

“When I walk out, I’ll probably break down,” he said.

He graduated from North Hollywood High in 1969. He got his first paid job in 1971 calling Hart basketball games for NBC Cable Newhall for $10 a game. It began an adventure of a lifetime.

“I never knew if I overachieved or underachieved. I just did what I loved,” he said.

Randy Rosenbloom (left) used to work with former UCLA coach John Wooden for TV games.

(Randy Rosenbloom)

John Wooden, Jerry Tarkanian and Jim Harrick were among his expert commentators when he did play by play for college basketball games. He called volleyball at the 1992 and 1996 Olympic Games for NBC and rowing in 2004. He’s worked more than 100 championship high school events. He did play by play for the first and only Reebok Bowl at Angel Stadium in 1994 won by Bishop Amat over Sylmar, 35-14.

“There were about 5,000, 6,000 people there and I remember thinking nobody watched the game. We ended up with a 5.7 TV rating on Channel 13 in Los Angeles, which is higher than most Lakers games.”

He conducted interviews with NFL Hall of Famers Gale Sayers and Johnny Unitas and boxing greats Robert Duran, Thomas Hearn and Sugar Ray Leonard. He’s worked with baseball greats Steve Garvey and Doug DeCinces. He called games with former USC coach Rod Dedeaux. He was in the radio booth for Bret Saberhagen’s 1982 no-hitter in the City Section championship game at Dodger Stadium. He was a nightly sportscaster for KADY in Ventura.

Randy Rosenbloom, left, with his volleyball broadcast partners, Kirk Kilgour and Bill Walton.

(Randy Rosenbloom)

He was the voice of Fresno State football and basketball. He also did Nevada Las Vegas football and basketball games. He called bowl games and Little League games. He was a public address announcer for basketball at the 1984 Olympic Games with Michael Jordan the star and did the P.A. for Toluca Little League.

Nothing was too small or too big for him.

“I loved everything,” he said.

He called at least 10 East L.A. Classic football games between Garfield and Roosevelt. He was there when Narbonne and San Pedro tied 21-21 in the 2008 City championship game at the Coliseum on a San Pedro touchdown with one second left.

Probably his most notable tale came when he was doing radio play-by-play at a 1998 college bowl game in Montgomery, Ala.

“I look down and a giant tarantula is crawling up my pants,” he said. “My color man took all the press notes, wadded them up and hit the tarantula like swinging a bat.”

Did Rosenbloom tell the audience what was happening?

“I stayed calm,” he said.

Then there was the time he was in the press box at Sam Boyd Stadium and a bat flew in and attached itself to the wooden press box right next to him before flying away after he said, “UNLV wins.”

Recently, he’s been putting together high school TV packages for LA36 and calling travel ball basketball games. He’ll still keep doing a radio gambling show from his new home, but he’s cutting ties to Los Angeles to move closer to grandchildren.

“I’m retiring from Los Angeles. I’m leaving the market,” he said.

Hopefully he’ll continue via Zoom to do a weekly podcast with me for The Times.

He’s a true professional who’s versatility and work ethic made him a reliable hire from the age of 18 through his current age of 74.

He’s a member of the City Section Hall of Fame and the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. He once threw the shot put 51 feet, 7 1/2 inches, which is his claim to fame at North Hollywood High.

One time an ESPN graphic before a show spelled his name “Rosenbloom” then changed it to “Rosenblum” for postgame. It was worth a good laugh.

He always adjusts, improvises and ad-libs. He expects to enjoy his time in South Carolina, but he better watch out for tarantulas. They seem to like him.

The EU’s election observer said the vote met democratic standards despite fraud allegations.

Peru’s presidential election result will not be finalised until mid-May, with challenged ballots from last Sunday’s vote still being reviewed, says the electoral authority.

With 93 percent of ballots counted, right-wing candidate Keiko Fujimori leads with 17 percent, according to officials.

Under Peru’s electoral system, the top two candidates advance to a second-round runoff. A close contest has emerged for second spot between left-wing candidate, Roberto Sanchez on 12 percent, and ultra-conservative Rafael Lopez Aliaga close behind on 11.9 percent.

The margin between the two widened slightly on Saturday to about 13,600 votes.

Yessica Clavijo, secretary general of the National Jury of Elections (JNE), said the delay was due to the review of more than 15,000 challenged ballots. About 30 percent concern the presidential race, the rest relate to legislative elections.

Lopez Aliaga, a former mayor of the capital Lima, has been the most vocal critic of the delay. He has alleged fraud without presenting evidence and called for the election to be annulled. He urged supporters of his Popular Renewal Party to protest on Sunday.

Sanchez also criticised the election process, telling reporters: “These serious organisational issues must be investigated and there must be appropriate sanctions”.

A record 35 candidates ran for president in Peru, a country that has faced years of political instability. Four of its last eight presidents have been impeached by Congress.

Voting was disrupted by delays in the delivery of election materials, forcing authorities to extend polling into Monday in parts of Lima.

Despite the setbacks, the European Union’s election observer mission said the vote met democratic standards. On Friday, prosecutors raided a warehouse belonging to the National Office of Electoral Processes (ONPE), the body responsible for organising the election. Four officials have been reported to the JNE over alleged offences linked to voting rights.

L3Harris is pushing its modular Wolf Pack family of “launched effects vehicles” for the U.S. Army, including to equip its H-60 Black Hawk series and AH-64 Apache helicopters, with an eye on the specific demands of a future conflict in the Pacific. The family of vehicles includes the Red Wolf, configured for long-range precision strikes against targets on land or at sea, and the Green Wolf fitted with an electronic warfare payload. Overall, these are part of a wider drive toward fielding modular, relatively cheap, and small systems that increasingly blur the line between uncrewed aerial systems, especially longer-range kamikaze drones, and cruise missiles, as well as decoys.

Readers can refer to our previous coverage of the Wolf Pack family, and it is also worth noting that the company is under contract with the U.S. Marine Corps to deliver the related PASM, the Precision Attack Strike Munition.

At the Army Aviation Association of America’s Army Aviation Warfighting Summit in Nashville, Tennessee, this week, TWZ caught up with Brad Reeves, the director of strategy and requirements for the Agile Development Group at L3Harris, to talk about the company’s vision for the Wolf family with the Army.

TWZ: What is the primary driver behind the Wolf family, and how is it relevant to the Army’s rotary-wing fleets?

Brad Reeves: The Department of War has a heavy emphasis on the Pacific and a conflict over there. Mass is an issue. We have a lot of exquisite weapons today, but the numbers are not maybe as high as we might hope for a conflict over there. So, they’re trying to solve that problem. Affordable mass has kind of become the buzzword, which basically means, “hey, how do we get capability that we can buy in quantity without breaking the bank?” And so, with that, the Department of War, actually Secretary Hegseth, issued a memo on April 30 of last year. And one of the things he called out specifically was launched effects, the urgency to get that fielded beginning this year. So, that’s a high-emphasis item for those guys.

Launched effects are really meant to be an affordable mass solution for the Army. But the real story behind this is what we call our Wolf Pack family of systems, and our offering and the capability it brings. And the story here is it’s very capable, but it’s what it does for the Army and for Army aviation. So it’s transforming Army aviation, and it’s addressing platforms that lack some relevancy today in the fight. Black Hawks, Apaches, etc, have a very short-range capability, relatively speaking, when you’re talking about the Pacific, and you have the tyranny of distance and anti-access/area-denial threats. It’s a much harder challenge than what we’ve dealt with in the decades since those aircraft were first invented.

Now we’re basically bringing relevancy to those platforms. We’re transforming from a weapons-effectiveness range and lethality range of single-digit kilometers, maybe up to a dozen kilometers, and we’re now extending that to hundreds of kilometers. We’re taking what before was a single-mission aircraft that’s supporting the Army; it’s doing close combat attack missions for Army soldiers on the ground, and is basically specific to that single service. And we’re now expanding that, and we’re giving that platform a joint or coalition viability in a Pacific flight. And so, the relevance now has increased. We’re taking what was before, a single-domain, fully land-based capability. We’re turning it into multi-domain, so now surface, meaning maritime, and land. And then we’re taking the target sets, which were traditionally tanks, maybe threats that we get from ground forces, etc. Again, we’re expanding that so it can be maritime threats and ground threats. It’s kind of a revolution in the way that the Army is going to fight and what they’re going to contribute to the joint coalition force. The Army desperately needs this capability.

TWZ: And what are the differences between the Wolf Pack family members?

Brad Reeves: Our launched effects offering, we call it the Wolf Pack family of systems. Today, we have two high-level mission capability variants. We have the Red Wolf, which is the kinetic variant, so a cruise missile. We have the Green Wolf, which has a purely (non-kinetic) electronic warfare payload. So now you’re also doing suppression of enemy air defenses. These types of missions, the DILR mission — detect, ID, locate, report — and/or electronic attack to suppress this threat.

Wolf Pack is designed to have multiple variants, so one aircraft, let’s say an Apache in this instance, you could launch multiple variants, Green and Red. You have a Green Wolf that goes out ahead and is searching and building the EMBM, the electromagnetic battle management. Through some software we call DISCO, which is AI-driven software, it’s building the landscape where the threats are, whether on the surface or on the land.

TWZ: How does PASM, the Precision Attack Strike Munition, differ from these?

Brad Reeves: It comes out of our Wolf Pack family. It’s a unique variant designed for the U.S. Marine Corps AH-1Z Viper, and we’re delivering early operational capability. They did a long-range precision fire, LRPF, last September, and that was somewhat of a graduation event. Now we’re basically starting to work with production at our plant in Virginia.

TWZ: So these are basically loitering munitions?

Brad Reeves: We don’t consider it a loitering munition, but technically, by definition, yes, what it’s doing is it’s flying a pattern. It’s very smart: it goes out, starts detecting threats, then it will set up a pattern to make sure that a) it’s survivable itself, so it doesn’t fly over a threat and get shot down. But b), it will maximize the search pattern, and then it will deconflict with the others in the pack, so that you can, if you have a large area, you can have one, one will say, “hey, I’m going to go do maybe a zigzag pattern over here looking for threats. You go do a zigzag pattern and then report those back.” Once they find the threats, they’ve got options. Either the aircraft can just avoid the threats because they know where they are, or if they need to go through them, then you can either use electronic attack to jam them, or you can send a signal to one of the kinetic variants. Then the kinetic variant does the destruction of enemy air defenses mission.

That’s kind of why we call it the Wolf Pack: working together collaboratively in a pack to perform a mission that’s assigned by the pilot, and they do that autonomously. They have been ground-launched. They have been air-launched from both manned and unmanned platforms, and they can be launched from rotary-wing or fixed-wing. Since we’re here with the Army, the target is Black Hawks and Apaches very specifically.

TWZ: Would you say that the Wolf Pack is oriented generally towards the SEAD/DEAD mission?

Brad Reeves: It is much broader. But certainly one of the main applications is SEAD/DEAD. With the EW variant, that’s really applicable when you’re doing SEAD/DEAD, or you’re just looking for platform survivability, meaning you’re going towards a mission, but you want to maybe send something out ahead. These fly at high subsonic speeds. They’re going out ahead when launched from a helicopter. They’re scouting out the area, giving them the picture, and allowing them to either avoid, suppress, or defeat threats that may be in their way.

TWZ: Presumably, the cost point of these means the numbers can be fairly scalable, depending on the requirement?

Brad Reeves: Absolutely, it depends on the mission set. One of the advantages is that, while it is an affordable mass munition, it also comes with significant capability. There are some, what I would call differentiators, that put this capability at the high end of the affordable mass, meaning it’s very inexpensive compared to traditional legacy weapons that the forces are using today. We usually say it’s about five times cheaper than what these aircraft would be using today. There are BAAs, broad area announcements, something the U.S. government will release to industry, asking for different capabilities. Right now, when they’re asking for this type of capability, they’re usually targeting somewhere between $300,000 to $500,000 for that market, per round, and we’re certainly in that sweet spot.

TWZ: Aside from the small turbine engine that they share, how modular are the Wolf Pack vehicles themselves?

Brad Reeves: Some people call it a truck, but for some reason, that offends me. But you’ve got the platform, and we’ve designed it modularly with what’s called WOSA, weapon open systems architecture. And so you can interchange the payload. You can take the platform, you can put a warhead in it, and it becomes kinetic. You can take the warhead out, you can put an EW payload in it. I’m oversimplifying a little bit because with the kinetic variant, there are sensors and other stuff. So you probably wouldn’t physically take a kinetic one and swap out the warhead for an EW payload.

TWZ: When it comes to Green Wolf, which has no warhead, is this designed to be expendable or recoverable?

Brad Reeves: We have both. We have a recoverable variant. It depends on what the customer wants. In some instances, they want recoverability. And with recoverability, you lose a little bit of range. So in some instances, it’s going to be on a one-way mission; they just want maximum range. Basically, the parachute equipment we use to recover it takes up a little bit of space that otherwise would be fuel tank space.

TWZ: How do these vehicles navigate?

Brad Reeves: It has the standard inertial navigation and GPS. It has those capabilities inside of it, and then the seeker effectively is used purely for in-game targeting.

TWZ: To what degree would you be able to surge production to meet urgent demands?

Brad Reeves: We gave our manufacturing team the problem and said, “Hey, multiple customers are asking for as many as a thousand per year. We expect this to really blow up. How do we know how big a plant to build? How do we know what we can do?” And so they actually designed a modular, scalable production plan. In theory, you can scale up to as many as you want. But right now, what we’re doing is we’re scaling towards a thousand a year, which is the current path, and then if the demand signal spikes, we have the ability to scale above that.

The beauty of this vehicle is that there’s a lot as a significant amount of commonality, which does allow us to scale, and also gives us economies of scale, price, etc.

Meet the “Wolf Pack”

TWZ: Where are you now with testing?

Brad Reeves: We’ve flown over 50 times in test events with the military. So we’ve done multiple services. We’ve done formal testing with those services. It’s been launched twice off the AH-1Z. We’ve launched off fixed-wing UAS, but this gets a little sensitive with the customers, as to what those platforms are. And we’ve done ground launch.

TWZ: Do you have a pathway toward testing on the Black Hawk and Apache?

Brad Reeves: I am very passionate about making sure this gets fielded to U.S. Army soldiers, specifically the Apache and the Black Hawk. Right now, we’ve obviously got Epic Fury. But if something lights off in the Pacific, this just pales in comparison. If I were young enough to be flying in that fight, I would want more capability. And so I am a little bit of a zealot. The U.S. Army, I know, has to have this capability, and I believe they want it. It’s going to be a game-changer for them, and it’s going to be important to the joint force and coalition forces. It is a significant transformational capability.

Jamie Hunter contributed to this story.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

Fowey, Cornwall

“Fowey is frequently overlooked for the busier and more famous Padstow, but therein lies its charm.

“Crowd free, but with all the magic of a sleepy, typically Cornish town, – great cafes whipping up homebaked treats, locals sharing weekend gossip in the quirky bookstore and, most importantly, those glorious harbour views.

“Pick up a coffee and freshly prepped sarnie from Olive Branch Cafe – the oozing eggo mayo and crispy onion one is a crowd pleaser – then wander to Fowey Old Grammar School Garden for a picnic-style lunch among the flowers and overlooking the bobbing sailboats.

“For a sitdown meal that you’ll be dreaming of for years to come, North Street Kitchen at the opposite end of the town is where to head.” – Sophie Swietochowski, Assistant Travel Editor

Witney, Cotswolds

“The Cotswolds is always a busy place during bank holidays, but my hometown of Witney is one where you can avoid the crowds but enjoy the beautiful buildings its known for.

“There is the amazing Huffkins and Hunters Cake Company for a cuppa and a slice of cake, or hop in the queue at Sandwich de Witney for hugely overfilled baguettes.

“Kids will love Cogges Manor Farm where they can feed some of the animals, or you can practise your mug painting at The Pottery Place in town.

“Want to stay longer? I recommend the Blue Boar Inn as a cosy place to stay, or splash out on Estelle Manor just out of town – named one of the best hotels in the world.” – Kara Godfrey, Deputy Travel Editor

Chester, Cheshire

“This historic Cheshire town is perfect for a Bank Holiday trip – with an intoxicating mix of beautiful architecture, history and great food and drink.

“Head to The Rows for shopping that dates back 700 years with the medieval timbered, double level shopping galleries hosting a range of brands.

“Shopaholics can get their beauty fixes at the new Harrods H beauty hall that opened in the town last month – the first outpost of the posh brand outside of London.

“Or stroll along the two miles of city walls, the most complete Roman and medieval walls in Britain that offer a unique perspective of the town.

“A new Ivy Brasserie opens its doors this April and for street food from around the globe, head to the New Chester Market.” – Lisa Minot, Head of Travel

Weston-Super-Mare, North Somerset

“When you think of Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset you probably picture the Grand Pier, and that’s with good reason.

“The famous attraction is a great day out and doesn’t have to cost much either. You can swap a couple of quid for pennies and get competitive with your family on the slot machines.

“If you do want a bit more of an adrenaline rush though, the pier does have other attractions including a 300-metre indoor Glo Kart track, House of Horross and a freefall ride.

“After a fun day on the pier, make sure to walk along the two-mile beach and grab an ice cream.” – Cyann Fielding, Travel Reporter

Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire

“Sometimes I like a lazy day in my homecounty over a Bank Holiday weekend, and being in Hertfordshire, Welwyn Garden City is a lovely spot for a daytrip.

“While it might be lacking in the shop department, apart from its fab John Lewis store, it certainly is thriving when it comes to cafes and restaurants along Howardsgate like Megan’s to Welwyn Coffee Lab, Postino Lounge and the Two Willows.

“One of my favourite spots is slightly out of the town. Called Tewingbury Farm, it’s primarily a hotel and wedding venue, but visitors are welcome to pop in anytime.

“I particularly rate the oven-fired pizzas which you can tuck into at the Courtyard which has outdoor fires, and games like pool and table tennis.

“In classic Easter fashion, it’s lovely to then take a stroll around the ground and farm where you’ll spot plenty of cows and pigs.” – Alice Penwill, Travel Reporter

Sheringham, Norfolk

“This sprawling Victorian seaside town is a hit with families visiting the North Norfolk coast, and it’s clear to see why.

“Entire days can easily be spent on golden stretches of sand backed by beach huts, with bucket and spade in hand.

“But it’s worth pulling yourself away from the shores for a ride on the heritage steam railway, where the pretty Poppy Line runs from Sheringham to Holt.

“There’s even an Easter Eggspress egg hunt taking place onboard, costing £26 per adult and £18.20 per child with unlimited rides all day.

“Plus theatre fans will love a visit to Sheringham Little Theatre, where family-friendly productions, quiz and bingo nights fill the historic theatre with a lively buzz.

“Stroll along to Stevenson’s Fish and Chips to grab a takeaway tea and catch the sunset, and you’ve done a visit to this seaside town right.” – Jenna Stevens, Travel Reporter

On the first Sunday night of Coachella, headliner Karol G told her American fans, and her global audience, to keep fighting.

“This is for my Latinos that have been struggling in this country lately,” the Colombian superstar told the tens of thousands watching her in person, and many more on the fest’s livestream. She’d recently criticized ICE in a Playboy interview, but this set was about her fans’ resolve. “We want everyone to feel welcome to our culture, so I want everyone to feel proud of where you come from. Don’t feel fear — feel pride!” she said.

Any artist would be proud to play that caliber of headline slot. But right now, many foreign acts also feel fear — or at least wariness — about booking substantial tours in the United States. A year of brutal ICE raids, tensions at border crossings and policed political speech, coupled with sky-high prices for expedited visas, fuel and other touring logistics, could push international acts away from the U.S.

“The fears that ICE would raid shows didn’t really materialize, but there is a chilling effect,” said Andy Gensler, editor of the touring-biz trade bible Pollstar. “Trump’s only been back in office a year, so we haven’t fully seen the effects, but it does send a message that if you’re a political artist you won’t get a visa. With the economic shock of gas prices and tourism way down, the signifiers are out there.”

The music economy is still thriving in SoCal. Coachella sold out with record spending from fans, and fears that ICE might show up for a prominent Latin headliner proved unfounded. (The agency did not respond to a request for comment on Coachella, and Lt. Deirdre Vickers of the Riverside County Sheriff’s office said that their office “does not participate in immigration enforcement operations.”)

But in smaller venues featuring emerging and mid-tier global acts, some see trouble ahead.

Pollstar’s Gensler estimates that the total number of concerts in the U.S. they tracked for the first quarter of 2026 was down about 17% from last year. That could be due to many economic factors — but slower international touring could be contributing.

“The U.S. is still incredibly lucrative market, the arena and stadium level buildings are vast and you can make more money here than any market in the world,” Gensler said. “But I’ve heard anecdotally that fewer people are going to South by Southwest, and tourism from Canada is way down, and that includes music tourism to California. As barriers go up, and the economic shock of gas prices impacts touring, it’s hard to know how that will all shake out.”

Talent firms who specialize in bringing young acts to the U.S. began noticing pullback before this year’s festival season. Adam Lewis is the head of Planetary Group, a marketing agency that produces and promoting musician showcases in the U.S., with a significant roster of artists from abroad. He said that performers who ordinarily would leap at the chance to play U.S. festivals are taking hard looks at the payoffs and risks.

“Artists are thinking twice, based on what the government is doing right now,” Lewis said. “You can look at the economics — the fees are cost prohibitive to get a visa. People are scared, at the bottom line. Artists and industry people are afraid to come to the U.S. for any music event. The money is going elsewhere.”

South by Southwest, the March Texas confab for music, film and tech, was among the first festivals to feel a pinch this year. Several sources said they saw fewer foreign showcases and acts amid a broader culling of music. In 2025, Canada canceled its popular annual showcase, after deciding that hostile policies made the risks not worth the rewards. Many still pulled off successful events, but acknowledged the mood has shifted.

“The perception of how hard it’s gotten has taken root, and that has meant that not as many acts will take the chance on the threat of being turned away or risking future entry,” said Angela Dorgan, the director of Music From Ireland, the Irish Music Export office (which is funded by Culture Ireland). That organization has helped break acts like CMAT (a hit at Coachella this year) and Fontaines DC in the U.S.

“Artists want to continue to come here in spite of the trouble and not stay away because of it. There’s a unique pull to America for all Irish people, so we don’t want to see you hurting,” Dorgan said. ”Irish artists feel that their U.S. fans need music more than ever now and want to continue to connect with and support their fans.”

Takafumi Sugahara, the organizer of “Tokyo Calling X Inspired By Tokyo,” a Japanese showcase at South by Southwest, agreed: “Bringing artists to the United States has always been challenging when it comes to obtaining visas, but it feels like the process has become even more difficult than before — perhaps due to the current political climate under the current administration.”

Fans watch Karol G perform at the Coachella stage last weekend. “We want everyone to feel welcome to our culture, so I want everyone to feel proud of where you come from. Don’t feel fear — feel pride!” the Colombian superstar said.

(Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

After high-profile incidents of tourist detainments and fear of reprisals for political speech, those worries and long-dreaded expenses may shift their priorities. “From my point of view, the impact of global conflicts or wars does not seem to be affecting artists’ decisions very strongly for now,” they said. “However, if the current situation were to worsen, it’s possible that we could begin to see that change.”

Coachella usually hits a few visa snafus every year (this year, the English electronic artist Tourist had to cancel. Last year, it was FKA Twigs). Yet the Grammy-winning Malian Algerian group Tinariwen had to cancel a major tour this year, after the Trump administration placed severe new travel restrictions on 19 countries, including Mali. Folk legend Cat Stevens scotched a book tour after visa problems. Outspoken acts like the U.K.’s Bob Vylan have been denied U.S. visas for criticizing Israel, and the Irish rap group Kneecap faced hurdles after their visa sponsor, Independent Artist Group, dropped them for similar reasons last year.

The Times spoke to one European band (who asked not to be named, for fear of reprisals from the U.S. government) who had a substantial tour of U.S. theaters booked last year, before their visas were denied just days before the tour was due to begin. They were forced to cancel those dates and reschedule for spring 2026, losing tens of thousands of dollars in up-front costs and non-refundable fees. (A performance visa routinely costs $6,000 with now-necessary expedited processing.)

“Our manager said, ‘This has never happened before, but even though you paid lot of money and the check cleared, you won’t have visas,’” the band said. They wondered if their pro-Palestinian advocacy might have played a role, but now believe it was due to changes in their application forms.

That small discrepancy “meant we lost tens of thousands of [dollars], which for a mid-tier band with a loyal cult following, was quite ruinous,” they said. “We had to put on fundraising shows to get to zero, then re-apply for visas, and paid four grand extra to expedite them. We took out a loan to pay it. We felt relentlessly fleeced,” they said. “We love the U.S., but now there is a reality in which we have to cut our losses and stop coming. A lot of bands are giving up on the U.S., for sure.”

“It’s a different feeling now where the U.S. government can do anything to us, and we just have to take it,” they added. “They’re moving the goalposts the whole time. It’s scary.”

That fate can befall even major acts, particularly those from Latin America.

Last year, superstar Mexican singer Julión Álvarez canceled his concert for a planned 50,000 fans in Arlington, Texas, when his touring visa was revoked. Grupo Firme faced a similar fate at the La Onda festival in Napa Valley. Los Alegres del Barranco saw their visas canceled after they projected an image of drug kingpin “El Mencho” during a concert.

“That was a moment where people realize how serious or scary it can get for promoters with this administration when comes to the visa situation, how quickly things can change and you can lose millions,” said Oscar Aréliz, a Latin music expert at Pollstar.

An act the caliber of Karol G might not face quite the same risks, though she told Playboy that “If you say the thing, maybe the next day you’ll get a call: ‘Hey, we are taking your visa away.’ You become bait, because some people want to show their power.”

If it can happen to a stadium-filler like Álvarez, it can happen to anyone. That might make some Latin acts prioritize other regions.

Bad Bunny demurred on touring the continental U.S. for fear of ICE raids at his shows, opting for a lengthy residence in his home territory of Puerto Rico instead.

Local Latin music hubs like Santa Fe Springs and Pico Rivera have suffered greatly under recent ICE raids and have seen fans retreat in fear. Las Vegas is a major touring destination for acts during Mexican independence celebrations in September, but now “it feels different,” Aréliz said. He expects the city — typically boisterous with Latin acts then — to lose a big chunk of music tourism from the north and south.

“Vegas’ top tourist countries are Canada and Mexico, so we’re going to see other countries benefit from this. If acts struggle to tour here because of the visa situation, they’re going to tour Mexico and Latin America instead,” he added.

Tours typically book a year in advance, so the full effects of the visa issues and ICE fears may not be felt until later in 2026 or 2027. The results of the midterm elections may change global perception of America’s safety. The country is still an incredibly valuable touring market for acts that can make it work.

But the world’s music community now looks at the U.S. like an old friend going through a rough patch: They’ll be happy to see us once we pull it together.

“Certainly over the last number of years in the U.S., we have been thinking of where we could find these new audiences for Irish music,” Dorgan said. “The unofficial theme of our at home showcase Ireland Music Week was, ‘America. We are not breaking up with you, but we are seeing other people.’”