over the sacking of the group business editor, Colm Rapple, but in fact, the company was insolvent with accumulated losses of €19m and the company applied to liquidate with a few days of the dispute starting. The group had not been in a healthy financial state for several years. When it eventually closed, with indebtedness of £19 million, 600 people lost their jobs. A relaunch in 1988 of the Irish Press as a tabloid did not help matters. In 1989, Ralph M. Ingersoll Jr. took a 50 percent stake in Irish Press Newspapers. Several efforts were made to relaunch the newspapers but these failed. Independent Newspapers invested £1.1 million for a 24.9 percent stake in Irish Press Newspapers and had made loans of £2 million when the titles ceased publication. It recouped £1 million arising from a charge against a loan when the Irish Press office in Burgh Quay was sold in 1996. The final editor from 1987 to 1995, Hugh Lambert died after a short illness on 26 December 2005. Irish Press plc today The company, Irish Press plc, remained in existence after cessation of printing of the main titles. Irish Press bought Thom's Directories for £355,000 in October 1999. The directors of the company are Éamon De Valera (grandson of the former Irish president that founded the newspaper) and Jimmy A. Lehenan. Vincent Jennings was Chairman 1992–2005. The company experienced mixed success with its Thom's Directory venture. Since getting out of the newspaper business, the company has struggled on occasion to produce profits. The company entered voluntary liquidation in 2017 following the sale of all its remaining assets except Thoms Directory, which had ceased printing in 2012 and moved to an online directory format afterwards. No buyer was found for Thoms, which was then itself liquidated. The Irish Press group sponsored a trophy for the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship in 1949, the winners ever since, being awarded the Irish Press Cup. References 1931 establishments in Ireland 1995 disestablishments in Ireland Press Defunct daily newspapers Defunct newspapers published in Ireland Irish republican newspapers Newspapers published in the Republic of Ireland Political newspapers published in Ireland Publications established in 1931 Publications disestablished in 1995