  We have used DOLORES at the TNG to obtain B,V time series photometry of NGC
2419, one of the most distant and bright clusters in the Galactic halo. These
data will be used to study its variable star population in order to check
whether the cluster could be the relic of an extragalactic system accreted by
the Milky Way.
  Using the Image Subtraction technique (Alard 2000) we have identified about
300 candidate variables, many of which are in the cluster central regions.
Several of the variables appear to be RR Lyrae stars, but we detected
variability also around the tip of the red giant branch, and in other regions
of the colour-magnitude diagram. To improve the light curve sampling and to
resolve variables in the cluster inner regions, the TNG data were combined with
HST archive data. Preliminary results are presented on the light curves from
the combined data set.
