Moooo, moo moo moo moo moo moo moo moo. Moo moo moooooo!!! Moo. Moo moo. Moo moo moo moo moo moo moo. Moo moo moo moo? Moo moo moo moo moo. lol
The Colleen Bawn, directed by Jimmy Fay, centres on Hardress Cregan’s (played by Ian Lloyd Anderson) secret marriage to Eily 'The Colleen Bawn' O'Connor, a woman considered to be below his station, and the fact that he is due to wed the wealthy Anne Chute, which would solve his family's financial woes.
It’s that time of year again as last week saw 12 of the finest releases of the last year selected for the Mercury Prize short-list. Launched in 1992 the Mercury Prize remains one of the few awards to still hold some merit in these X-Factor driven times and once you’re a UK or Irish artist and actually bother to apply then you’re in with a shout.
As most people know, The A-Team was a popular television series that ran for five seasons from 1983 to 1986. Even people that didn't grow up watching the show are familiar with the catch phrases and characters that followed its aftermath. I'm very surprised that an A-Team feature film hasn't graced our cinema screens before this summer but it's here now and it most certainly the epitome of a summer blockbuster.
The bible of psychiatry, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV (the DSM, currently in its fourth edition) classifies voyeurism as a psychosexual disorder. It is defined in the manual as the practise of looking at “unsuspecting individuals, usually strangers, who are naked, in the process of disrobing, or engaging in sexual activity”...
Carlsberg's Comedy Carnival at the Iveagh Gardens drew to a close last night after four days of sunshine and laughter and we put together an A to Z of the festival as a reminder for those who were there and a taste of what you missed to encourage you to go next year if you missed out.
Last year I did some posts from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and this year in an aim to get ahead of myself this is the list of shows I am looking forward to seeing this August. I've inserted links to the show details where possible.
It's not the custom for a cover version to outshine the original, so when you do come across a particularly wonderful cover, it's a real treat. There are those, like Wheatus' version of A Little Respect, that are brilliant because it's so obvious that the band adore the original and are having the time of their lives singing it...
The 2010 iteration tempted me across from years of playing and loving Pro Evolution, which was no mean feat. The two competing titles, FIFA and Pro Evo, have been at loggerheads for years with fan boys on both sides proclaiming their title as the superior. However with last year's releases, there was a consensus amongst critics that FIFA had surpassed Pro Evo for the first time, indeed becoming the biggest selling sports title ever.
Something to play with over the Bank Holiday weekend. Take 35 movies as compiled by Felix Meyer, Sarah Biermann, Torsten Strer and Pascal Monaco. Then turn them in to a 2 minute animation. Can you get all the titles (I think “Singing in the Rain” is the first one).
35mm from Felix Meyer on Vimeo.
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Surreptitiously petitioning for Lindsay Lohan’s release, so you don’t have to.
There’s such a gender imbalance in celebrity gossip, don’t you think? Female celebrities are subject to much deeper scrutiny than their male counterparts – their weight, their hair, their clothes, their partying, all of which are much more readily criticised. The “standard” for female celebrities is a much narrower concept than that for men, with little room for quirks or nonconformity. So naturally, women are more likely to be featured in gossip columns and much more likely to be made the butt of the jokes of a sad skanger (that’d be me) … because there’s just that bit more interest, that bit more fodder, that bit more scope for natural deviance from the stiff, virtuous ideal they’re supposed to adhere to.
Oh, hold on. The fellas are misbehaving this week! Caloo calay for equal rights!
Caloo calay, too, for political gravitas and a much-needed weighty perspective on celebrity happs. US President, Barack Obama, a celebrity in his own right coz he’s only gorgeous so he is, has finally given his personal viewpoint on the real issue facing down his tenure – whether or not to acknowledge celebrity delinquency. When asked on The View whether he was aware of Lindsay Lohan’s incarceration, the president made the biggest fuck-up of his political career, and said, “I actually know that, yes.” Well Holy God, is no one safe? The Prez did claw back some cred by claiming not to know who Jersey Shore dimwit Snooki is, only to put the plughole in the draining sink of frivolous stupidity by refusing to answer questions about Mel Gibson. ““Let me answer the Afghanistan question!” he stuttered, because he knows what’s good for him. Mel smash!
Though don’t celebrate Mel’s influence too soon; not everyone’s been so careful with the cold shoulder this week. There was bad news in Melopolis when Inception uberstar Leonardo DiCaprio pulled out of Gibson’s next project, an as-yet-unnamed story about Vikings. Whoa. It’s not every day you get the chance to play a Viking; Leo must feel really strongly about domestic violence, racism and misogyny, I guess. A source from his camp stated, “Leo has earned the right to pick and choose who he works with and Mel Gibson is not one of them,” which I wish I could attribute directly to Mr. DiCaprio, because it’s just the right side of snippy to be rather glorious. I might even forgive him for Titanic. Funny how the crazy rantings of an old, spoilt lunatic puts the celluloid crimes of other actors in perspective, isn’t it?
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The August bank holiday weekend can mean only one thing on the gay calendar – Gaze is here again, and I for one am very excited. This year marks their 18th birthday and sees the Festival, in their own words, come of age. 2010 also marks its second year at the Light House Cinema at Smithfield, a match made in gay heaven, and one where it seemed right at home last year. As usual the programme includes a mix of drama, comedy, documentary and more, and there should be something here for everyone, even if you’re not of the LGBT persuasion.
Take a look after the break for some of the movies to look out for this year.
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I have to admit that I haven’t seen Toy Story 3 yet. While enjoying the original and its sequel, I never really got as emotionally involved as most people, and wondered where the third installment would have to go to pique my interest. In these days of high-octane thrills and unsettling mystery, I thought, how could a simple cartoon keep me on the edge of my seat? But how was I to know that Christopher Nolan had taken the reins? I mean, you just don’t see that kind of brave leap of the thrillingest faith made these days!
Whoa. The franchise has really grown up.
Is this the best new ad on telly at the moment? Yes, I do believe it is.
Like Bounty’s Juan Sheet commercial, it’s the type of ad you want to watch over and over again. It’s a perfect anthropomorphical package of the ridiculous and the sublime. The whole notion of doing a Jim’ll Fix It for Mary the cow, so that she can realise her dream of running on a beach like a stallion is pretty amazing. The power ballad soundtrack is perfect and the addition of the au natural Muller chick ups the hilarity factor by having an ever-so-slightly bestial quality about it (while also allowing ample time to show the product being consumed – and the brand manager goes TICK!).
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There aren’t words to describe how awful I think this film will be. Please, Dan Aykroyd, go back to making good movies again. Please. Pretty please.
What do you think?
When the interval arrived, I was eager to find out more about the play’s history, so I leapt on to Wikipedia and I was surprised to discover it was written 150 years ago. The ‘Quiet Man’ style Oirish brogue seemed so over the top, that I thought it a brilliant modern parody of the era. Instead, I discover that this exciting, fast paced and very funny melodrama was written by Irish playwright Dion Boucicault in 1860.
The Colleen Bawn, directed by Jimmy Fay, centres on Hardress Cregan’s (played by Ian Lloyd Anderson) secret marriage to Eily ‘The Colleen Bawn’ O’Connor (Liz Fitzgibbon), a woman considered to be below his station, and the fact that he is due to wed the wealthy Anne Chute (Charlie Murphy), which would solve his family’s financial woes. Anne is also being courted by the lovely but lost Kyrle Daly (Will Irvine) and the Colleen Bawn is receiving attention from the poor rogue Myles na gCoppaleen (also played by Will Irvine). With additional spanners flung in by the demented manservant Danny (a scene stealing Michael Glenn Murphy) and the despicable (but a delight to watch) magistrate Corrigan (Ciaran Taylor), the melodrama gives way to farce and the audience is taken from laugh to laugh in fine auld Oirish style. And if you want a more complicated rundown of the setup, here’s the Project’s fun promotional video:
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It’s that time of year again as last week saw 12 of the finest releases of the last year selected for the Mercury Prize short-list. Launched in 1992 the Mercury Prize remains one of the few awards to still hold some merit in these X-Factor driven times and once you’re a UK or Irish artist and actually bother to apply (it’s £195.50 if you fancy your chances…) then you’re in with a shout. The eventual winner will receive £20,000 but more importantly a shed load of press coverage which should see a healthy jump in album sales in the coming months (cue dollar signs in Record Label executive’s eyes).
There have been some outstanding albums this year so this was always going to be an interesting set of nominees in terms of wild cards and exclusions and perhaps the most notable name on the list, certainly to us on the Irish shores, will be the inclusion of Villagers. The brainchild of former The Immediate member Conor O’Brien, Villagers debut album Becoming A Jackal (my review of which can be found anseo) shot to the top of the charts here in April and still remains in the Top 40 at present. Despite this Villagers have remained relatively unknown in the UK to date (bar a stirring performance on Jools Holland) and this nomination is both a welcome surprise and another high in an incredible year for O’Brien and chums who have made this music lark seem like a walk in the park. With songs this good it really was only a matter of time before people from further afield began to notice and this nomination should prove to be another big step in their seemingly meteoric rise to the top.
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As most people know, The A-Team was a popular television series that ran for five seasons from 1983 to 1986. Even people that didn’t grow up watching the show are familiar with the catch phrases and characters that followed its aftermath. I’m very surprised that an A-Team feature film hasn’t graced our cinema screens before this summer but it’s here now and it most certainly the epitome of a summer blockbuster.
The television show was loved for its characters and over the top action sequences and I believe that the movie brings those exact qualities to the big screen. With a very lovable cast and some great one liners, there is some great chemistry to enjoy. The A-Team cast consists of Hannibal (Liam Neeson) who loves it when a plan comes together, Face (Bradley Cooper) the irresistible ladies man, B.A. Baracus everyone’s favorite mohawked man (Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson) and Murdock (Sharlto Copley) perhaps the best character of all.
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The bible of psychiatry, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV (the DSM, currently in its fourth edition) classifies voyeurism as a psychosexual disorder. It is defined in the manual as the practise of looking at “unsuspecting individuals, usually strangers, who are naked, in the process of disrobing, or engaging in sexual activity”. Now, exempting the “unsuspecting individuals” part, Chatroulette must be the biggest forum for voyeurs known to man. And it’s just a mouse-click and a webcam configuration away folks!
But what do the compilers of the DSM know anyway? They have a long and chequered history of “disorder” classification; homosexuality was only declassified in 1973, back in the sixth revision of the second edition of the manual. What is and what isn’t a “disorder” has always been up for debate. Where voyeurism is concerned, the last decade has seen both social and technological change which would classify us all by the standards of 1994 when the DSM-IV was published. Reality TV made voyeurs of us all back in the late ‘90s but we’ve also seen porn go mainstream, an increased appetite for celebrity gossip fuelling the reign of the paparazzi and, of course, the rise of social networking which gives us access to the mostly-inane but nonetheless intimate details of the lives of our online friends. Chatroulette is just another symbol of a globalised society of voyeurs only too happy to ‘broadcast themselves’. It pairs webcam chat technology with the randomness of a roulette game, so you end up face-to-face with other voyeurs from around the world.
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Carlsberg’s Comedy Carnival at the Iveagh Gardens drew to a close last night after four days of sunshine and laughter and we (myself and Eoin (Pluincee)) put together an A to Z of the festival as a reminder for those who were there and a taste of what you missed to encourage you to go next year if you missed out.
With thanks to Andrew Stanley, Eric Lalor, PJ Gallagher and Kevin Gildea for posing for us, here’s our snapshot of the festival (the cringey rhyme is mine and the pretty photos are his).
A is for Andrew, who does the Mish Mash
Andrew Stanley
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Last year I did some posts from the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and this year in an aim to get ahead of myself this is the list of shows I am looking forward to seeing this August. I’ve inserted links to the show details where possible.
The Vaudevillians, The Sun Also Rises, Assembly 30th Anniversary, Jimmy Carr, Divine Comedy, Adam Hills, Andrew Maxwell, Andy Zaltmen, Axis of Awesome, BBC Comedy, Betrayal of Penguins, Bo Burham, David O’Dotherty, Dead Cat Bounce, Des Bishop, Foil Arms and Hog, GB 25th, Jarlath Regan, Jason Byrne, Maxwell Fullmooners, Newsrevue, Paul Merton, Penny Dreadfuls, Political Animal, Stand Up for Freedom, Two Episodes of Mash, Wittank, Duke Special, Eels, Magnets, Modest Mouse, Fame, Hairspray, Spring Awaking, The Author, Flesh and Blood, Freefall, Girl Yellow Dress, Breakfast @Traverse, Daniel Kitson, Ladder and Moon, La Locandiera, My Romantic Histrory, Newsrome, The Not So Fatal Death of Grandpa Fredo, While You Lie, Traverse Live, Speechless, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, Roadkill, Penelope.
This list is my first and will be ever changing as the festival goes on, I’ll endeavor to keep you up to date!
Most importantly its never too late to decide on a quick trip to the festival, with flight prices still pretty low! You could go for a day or a few and there is an awesome amount of shows on to cater to any desire!
You can look at the programme here.
Check out this cool video on how they designed the programme cover this year!
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe is one of seven festivals taking place in Scotland’s capital each August. The Edinburgh Festival Fringe runs for 3 weeks August 6-30th.
Like all drunken Irish balladeers, myself and my friends love a good yowling session of a Saturday night. At our most recent Singstar marathon, my cousin and I got up to sing Erasure’s A Little Respect, and were surprised (really, because we’re terrific singers) to get relatively low scores, until it occurred to us that we’d instead been belting our way through the version by American ridicu-rockers Wheatus. We’d been emphasising the wrong words, rushing through the wrong lines, because we were rocking out to synthpop. Funny thing how a good cover version can nibble its way through your beloved original.
It’s not the custom for a cover version to outshine the original (fear not, Erasure fans! I’m not strictly referring to the Wheatus usurpers!), so when you do come across a particularly wonderful cover, it’s a real treat. There are those, like Wheatus’ version of A Little Respect, that are brilliant because it’s so obvious that the band adore the original and are having the time of their lives singing it. And then there’s the cover which takes the original as a lyrical or musical jumping-off point, and takes it in a completely new direction. The best, most recent case in point is Marina And The Diamonds’ stunning version of 3OH!3′s Starstrukk. The original is an tuneless mess with an ugly sentiment behind it. Marina takes this, slows the tempo, lashes on the melancholy, and creates a mournful spine-tingler that seems to document the dead-eyed isolation of modern romance. Woah. Unintentionally Deep.
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Something for the not that young artists section, Donovan is playing the Olympia on 4th October. From 1966 through 1969, Donovan scored a string of eleven Top 40 hits in a row, including Mellow Yellow and Sunshine Superman. Of interest to Beatles fans, he is one of the few artists to collaborate on songs, contributing lyrics and vocals to the song Yellow Submarine. So that earworm is partially his fault.
Tickets go on sale this Friday 30th July at 9am.
In support of their False Priest album of Montreal are playing Tripod, Dublin on Sunday October 3rd. Of Montreal is an odd bird of a group, with their frontman Kevin Barnes showing up on the children’s show Yo Gabba Gabba, in collaborations with Spike Jonze, on stage spanking pigs with Susan Sarandon, and even spontaneously performing six songs nude during a concert in Las Vegas. No guarantee of spankings or low hanging Barnes on their Dublin date. More interestingly (to me at least) is that False Priest features guest spots from Solange Knowles (Beyonce’s sister) and Janelle Monáe (whose latest record, The ArchAndroid, Barnes guests on).
Tickets on sale now.
Not music but comedy, Ardal O’Hanlon (still living in the shadow of Fr. Dougal Maguire but thriving well) in playing Cork’s City Limits Comedy Club on Saturday 31st at 9pm. Well, ish. Remember that his live shows are not as innocent as you might expect.
John, Shelly & the Creatures play an acoustic show at the Le Cheile Festival in Meath on July 30th and a powered gig (The Monster Mash Stage has got to have amps. Or power tools) the IndiePendence Festival (great line up methinks) in North Cork on August 1st. They’ve also put their ickle pop single “Fools” streaming on SoundCloud if you want to try before you show up. Given that Jedward (yes them) have done backing dancing for them, you might be surprised by who else is there.
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Last night the carlsberg comedy carnival opened. 5,000 % happier than sitting in and watching the 9 0 clock news on RTE this is my must go see gig of the year. I was there last year. And this year was gonna be no different.
Not so many interviews were possible for me this year as my weekend has many trees to be hugged but, I did manage to catch up with comic genius and good friend Eric Lalor who had just played to a packed house and plays again on Saturday.
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