Sun comes out in Dublin after record 11 cloudy days

The sun has reappeared in Dublin after a record-equalling 11 days of cloud.

It is the first time in more than half a century that there has been no sun in the Irish capital for this length of time.

"I looked at the blue sky this morning and felt such a lift," Isabel Ryan told BBC News NI as she enjoyed a walk in the sun with friends along Sandymount beach.

Met Éireann, the Irish meteorological service, has confirmed that its observation station at Dublin Airport recorded zero sunshine between 8 and 18 February.

It means that this month's dull spell has now equalled a record dating back to March 1969, almost 56 years ago, when Dublin Airport recorded 11 consecutive days without sunshine.

When the sun eventually reappeared in in the skies above the Irish capital city on Wednesday, many locals headed for the coastline.

Isabel said: "It's just stunning."

"I was delighted that we were all meeting for a walk. Yesterday I'd have thought 'maybe not' but today is amazing."

Her friend, Linda Kelly, said people were getting fed up with this month's dull period.

"Not a glimmer of blue sky," she said.

But today, she was feeling relief as the sun appeared during the early part of the day.

"It's shining on the water here in Sandymount and it's just glorious. The lighthouse in the distance, it's just beautiful."

Another friend, Deirdre Clerkin, added: "We are out today and the sun is amazing and I'm so happy because it just puts a smile on your face."

Met Éireann explained that Ireland normally gets between 1,100 and 1,600 hours of sunshine each year.

The Irish meteorological service told BBC News NI that the sunniest months are May and June when sunshine duration averages between five and 6.5 hours per day over most of the country.

The extreme southeast gets most sunshine, averaging over seven hours a day in early summer.

December is the dullest month, with an average daily sunshine ranging from about one hour in the north to almost two hours in the extreme southeast.

Over the year, most areas get an average of between 3.25 and 3.75 hours of sunshine each day.

The country's longest recorded stretch of consecutive days without sunshine since 1941 is 16 days.

This has occurred twice, once at Belmullet, County Mayo, between 1 and 16 September 1956 and, more recently, at Cork Airport between 23 December 2018 and 7 January 2019.