We’re known for a lot more things than just the black stuff, though Guinness is probably as well travelled as the Irish ourselves.

All this travelling is all very well, and it’s a good job we’re good at it, for on our island there are only four and a half million of us, spread over more than 27,000 square miles. That’s only about a fifth of the population density of a country like England. It doesn’t make finding our ideal partner any easier.

Then of course there’s religion. While most of us in the Republic consider ourselves Catholic whether practising or not, it’s still a sensitive area for us to negotiate - especially when bringing a new date to meet our families.

The fact that we’re so spread out may explain why matchmakers were popular in Ireland until only a couple of generations ago, and there’s s till an annual matching making festival at Lisdoonvarna on the west coast. In September the town takes on a crazy love fuelled atmosphere as visitors from near and far come hoping to find the partner of their dreams.

While Lisdoonvarna is a huge amount of fun, it’s probably not the best way to bridge the distance between you and your ideal partner. It’s a whole lot more likely that you’ll find success using an excellent compatibility matching service such as that offered by Parship where much time is invested finding the potential partner to match your personality.