Belfasttelegraph.co.uk - Virginia Ironside RSS Feed

Virginia Ironside: Why there should be no shame in standing by your man.

Tue, 25 Nov 2008 13:22:15 GMT

In an age when couples seem to split up over the slightest thing and find so much in their relationships "unforgivable", I have to say that I find the set-piece photo opportunity of troubled couple holding hands outside their home quite admirable.

Virginia Ironside: Skinflint ex took my heart then my cash

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 03:50:42 GMT

Dear Virginia, I brought up my daughter and supported both of us single-handedly, but two years ago I met a wonderful man.

My do-gooder husband has left no time for me

Thu, 06 Nov 2008 11:47:18 GMT

Dear Virginia,

I am married to a do-gooder. He retired at 50 and is always out visiting lonely old people, or putting himself forward for local committees.

My mum won’t move on after dad’s death

Sat, 25 Oct 2008 07:00:39 GMT

Dear Virginia,

How can I help my mother? My father died four years ago, and she refuses to look for anyone new, saying no one can replace him. She’s only in her fifties, but won’t consider training for a career. She has sold her flat and now rents, has no pension, and I am desperately concerned about her future. She seems happy enough, but does nothing all day. I’m 34, single and work as a tour guide, and every time I leave the country I’m sick with worry.

Yours sincerely, Elsa

My son is terrified that end of the world is coming

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 05:00:55 GMT

Dear Virginia,

How can I reassure my son, 11, that the end of the world isn’t coming?

I just can’t live with my mum’s non-stop rants

Sat, 27 Sep 2008 05:00:14 GMT

DEAR VIRGINIA

My mother is generous, clever and loves her two sons (I’m the younger at 35), but her Mary Whitehouse tendencies are getting worse: loudly proclaiming her loathing of immigrants, hatred of anything she disapproves of, fury at any bad language.

Virginia Ironside: Can I go to the funeral of my secret gay lover?

Sat, 20 Sep 2008 05:00:49 GMT

Dear Virginia

I’m a gay man and I had been having an affair with a married man for 10 years. We loved each other very much, but he would never leave his family for me. He led a completely double life and his wife and children never knew. A year ago he got cancer, and he died recently. I feel utterly bereft. I know when the funeral is, and where, and it would mean a lot to me to go, but I haven’t been invited, of course. Can I just turn up? I keep agonising over what to do.

Yours sincerely, Patrick

Virginia Ironside's dilemmas

Thu, 21 Aug 2008 11:15:21 GMT

Virginia Ironside's Dilemmas: 'What is it about men and farts?'

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 09:34:55 GMT

Dear Virginia, I love my boyfriend very much, but he has bad personal habits and still appears to find crude toilet humour deeply entertaining. For example, he finds burping and farting very amusing, and his smelly feet are a constant source of hilarity. And that is by no means the worst of it. I'm not a prude, but I cringe at his behaviour. When I ask him to stop, he just laughs. His mates are just the same. I know it sounds silly, but I'm starting to get really upset. What can I do? Yours sincerely, Zara

Virginia Ironside: Divorce hurts – and it hurts the children most of all

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:00:15 GMT

When my parents separated – I was 14 at the time – I remember the terrible mixture of horror and relief that I experienced. Both my parents were, in their own way, shell-shocked by what had happened, with very little room in their shattered lives to explain to me what was going on.