Issue 39

October 2010

Cover by: Ciara Karagianni

Issue 39

October 2010

Editor: Oscar Finn

Sub-Editor: Jonathan Keane

Design: Oscar Finn

Contributers:

Daniel Balteanu

Brendan Beagon

Faye Bollard

Dan Brady

Kieran Broderick

Samuel Burgess

Graham Butler

Oisin Collins

Paddy Daly

Anthony Digan

Ian Donegan

Jojo Chau

Brian O’Donoghue

Barry O’Sullivan

Agnieszka Kowalska

John Lalor

Emma Loughran

John McSweeney

Gill Pringle

Jacquie Ryan

Maiken Woll Eide

Advertising Enquiries:

01-4150463

Printed by:

Speciality Printers

Griffiti Magazine

Students’ Union

Griffith College Dublin

South Circular Road

Dublin 8

Ph: 01-4151463

email: griffiti@gcd.ie

Griffiti Magazine is the Students’ Union publica-

tion at Griffith College. It was established in

2004.

All contents copyright of Griffiti, Reproduction of

any part of the magazine without permission

from the publisher is strictly prohibited.

The views expressed in Griffiti do not necessarily

reflect that of the college or the SU

A Note From the EditorHi everyone, welcome to issue 39 of Griffiti.

Firstly I would like to thank The SU for giving

me this opportuinity to work on the magazine,

Of course this magazine isn’t possible without

contributions from you guys so I look forward to

meeting with you over the year and seeing

some fantastic articles. I would also like to take

this opportuinity to say thanks to Alan Gill and

Ryan Brennan for helping me get started and

to the IT department for saving me from mental

collapse on several occasions.

That’s all for now, see ya next month

Oscar Finn

Managing Editor

Contents

3

4 state of the union 6 students union news9 freshers week10 Party people12 Joe Rooney interview15 south dublin’s finest18 in focus: Photography22 griffiti at the movies25 Music reviews26 the genuine article28 liverpool article30 Joe Duffy interview31 gorillaz competition

Hi guys,

First of all I'd like to thank everyone for

their participation in Freshers Week

and I hope everyone enjoyed all the

different events throughout the five

days as much as we all did. The Lord

Mayor of Dublin stopped by, there

were a lot of people down in Arthur’s

on the Monday night, the Football

Tournament was a great success, Joe

Rooney made everyone laugh, the

Freshers Ball was packed and people

got shot at the Paintball excursion on

the Friday! Like always, our SU House

Party the week after was as untamed

as ever! If you didn't get to come to

any of the events, don't worry, as there

will be plenty more things going on of

different varieties later in the year.

In the upcoming month, we have

Catherine McGuinness; former Sena-

tor, retired Supreme Court Justice and

President of Law Reform Commission

coming in to speak to us on Wednes-

day 13th October at 2pm in the AF

Building. On top of this we have our

annual Halloween Ball taking place

the last week of October which is al-

ways a great event. Fancy dress is es-

sential and all the other details are on

the poster to be found later in this

magazine.

For first year students, thank you for

picking up 'Griffiti' for the first time -

this will be your source for everything

that is going on throughout the year

here in the Students' Union. As for

people who were here last year, you'll

notice some slight changes in the size

and layout of the magazine. Our 3rd

year photography student Oscar Finn

is our Editor and is handling every-

thing to do with it this year. If you want

to submit anything for publication, he's

the capable man you can talk to about

that!

As for changes in the SU, we've unfor-

tunately seen the departure of our

Manager John McSweeney and Vice

President, Clubs and Societies Officer

Paddy Daly. I was relishing the oppor-

tunity to work with them both for the

year but regrettably it wasn't to be.

Even though they are continents away

from us right now, I hope that myself

and the other students that got to

know them over their tenures here will

get to meet them once again in the fu-

ture. From everyone here in the SU,

we'd like to thank them for the contri-

butions they've made and we wish

them the best of luck in Australia and

New York and hope they'll return to us

one day! We've been graced with the

appointment of Paul McCormack as

the new SU Manager who we've been

working really well with over the past

6 weeks to ensure the Union will be

constantly improving and achieving

new heights in the next year.

As promised during my election cam-

paign, we will be seeing a new Griffith

College Students' Union Constitution

implemented during the year as the

previous one was not used as a 'living

breathing document' as it should have

been. Some amendments are re-

quired to bring it up to speed with the

current structure that exists in the

Union. This new Constitution will em-

power the Union to have a much

greater say in student affairs in the col-

lege and improve the communication

links between the general student

populous and the Students' Union of-

ficers. One of the key reforms I want

to see implemented is a year-round

Students' Union Officer Board. As it

stands, the Union runs only 9 months

of the year leaving a gap right through-

out the summer. This new extended

time period I'm proposing will run from

1st July-30th June which would see

some vast improvements.

1. This new extended period would be

used for a proper handover between

officers from year to year. This is cur-

rently non-existent and a real problem

which must be addressed.

2. It would bring the Griffith College

Students' Union in line with other all

other college Students' Unions

throughout the country where it is the

standard practice.

3. A full year plan would be drafted

and implemented allowing for greater

organisation and bigger events the

Union could be involved in.

Another important issue that the Union

must look at is a future affiliation with

the Union of Students in Ireland (USI).

At present, we are not affiliated mem-

bers but as Ireland's largest and lead-

ing private third level institution, with

so many graduates in this country, in-

cluding some of our own now being

forced to emigrate or sign onto the live

register, the time might be right for

everyone in the college to look to-

wards membership of USI to ensure

Griffith and our graduates are repre-

sented at a national level.

If you have any proposals of how we

can improve the Union for you or have

any queries at all, we're contactable at

any time either in the Meagher

Building or the details listed above.

Your Students' Union President,

Graham Butler

StATE OF THE UNIONOffice Opening Hours:

Monday - Thursday: 09:30 - 19:30

Friday: 09:30 - 17:30

email: su.president@gcd.ie

Ph: (01) 415 0418

Graham Butler

Students’ Union President

4

Hey All,

Welcome back and a big welcome to all the new students,

who by now I am sure have settled into life here in Griffith.

I hope you all had a fantastic summer and that you are

looking forward to the year ahead which will be full of sports

and entertainments. We had a fantastic number of students

signing up to Clubs & Socs during Freshers' week in the

tent. If you missed the sign ups please feel free to pop into

the SU building and we can add you to any sports or soci-

ety you are interested in.

The first set of soccer trials took place on the Wednesday

of Freshers Week. We had a huge turnout and Leroy

Rhodes, our coach was impressed with the skills you guys

displayed on the day. On the Thursday of Freshers week

we had our 5-a-side soccer tournament. The games went

on from 12:30 until after 15:00. The games were great and

refereed by Leroy, the college soccer coach. The league

was won by team Finesse, the players included John Ojo,

Kay, Paul Mc Cormack, Alix Busari, Ciaran Verso and

Nigal. They had a fantastic game and congratulations to

them all.

Our first trip off campus happened on Friday the 1st of Oc-

tober, the paintball society went to Frontier Paintball in Bray

Co Wicklow. The bus left campus at 11:30am. Everyone

had a fantastic time, although there were a few people who

got some rather painful looking wounds. Each of the play-

ers deserve our congratulations as they braved the hang-

over from Thursdays Freshers Ball and endured a day of

shooting. The Students’ Union of course was there to help

giving all the members a free Red Bull shot so they would

have a lively day. The students were not such fans of Bray

when we suggested stopping off for an hour to see the

town, we were met with rejection and sad faces `all we

want to do is go back to Griffith and bed´ said one Spanish

gentleman. So we escaped Bray without a visit to the coast.

Everyone will be contacted over the next few days with the

meeting times and venues of the Clubs & Socs but if you

have any questions drop me a line or come visit me in my

office.

I am currently getting ready to take part in our annual

cricket tournament, the weather is great and so far it is

shaping up to be a great day. I will report back on how it

went in the next issue.

If you need gym or locker keys, just call into the Students’

Union and I will organise it for you. Lockers are EUR25 but

you get EUR10 back when you return the key at the end of

the year likewise the Gym is EUR15 deposit for the key

which is fully refundable when the key are returned to the

SU. There is a quota of gym keys so I would recommend

you call in to me as soon as possible as they are going fast.

If you have not signed up to a society please come into the

SU and do so. Societies are a great way to meet people

and they really help you to become a part of college life.

There are plenty to choose from. Such as Comedy, Pool,

American Football, Film, Equestrian, Debating, Badminton,

Counter Strike, Drama, Paintball, Cheerleading, French,

Fashion, Cricket, Music, DJ, Journalism, Law society, In-

ternational Society, Table Tennis, Irish Language, G-Soc,

Boxing, Tae Kwon Do, Kick Boxing, Surfing, poker, shoot-

ing, handball, Choir, Glee, and many more. If there is a so-

ciety that we do not have and you think that enough people

would be interested in getting involved please feel free to

come and talk to me so we can set it up.

Lastly I look forward to seeing you around campus, and let

you know that over the next two weeks I will be in contact

with everyone regarding societies.

Thank you,

Jacquie

StATE OF THE UNIONOffice Opening Hours:

Monday - Thursday: 09:30 - 19:30

Friday: 09:30 - 17:30

email: su.sports@gcd.ie

Ph: (01) 415 0460

Jacquie Ryan

Acting Clubs & Socs Officer

5

Students’ Union News

Ch-ch-changesAs I’m sure many of you are aware by now the S.U. has

seen a few changes to it’s line up. Over the summer John

McSweeney and Paddy Daly departed the Emerald Isle

to seek their fortune. Recently we caught up with John

and Paddy to see how they are getting on and give them

an opportunity to say au revoir to all their friends and fans

at Griffith.

G'day to all in Griffith. Over the past few weeks a number

of students have sent me messages asking me why I left

the SU, I'd like to thank the new Griffiti Editor, Oscar, for

giving me the opportunity to answer them en mass!

I chose to leave Griffith at the end of July as I felt it was

time for me to delve into the world of travelling and back-

packing (something I have been putting off for years). A

lot of people said I was mad to leave a job in the middle

of a recession, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do! I didn't

wanna be looking back in 10 years time and regretting

not taking the leap when I was still relatively young and

free! I saw this as one of the last times in my life that I

would be able to undertake such an adventure before life

started getting too serious! However, it was by no means

an easy decision, as I can honestly say being SU Man-

ager was the best job I've ever had and probably ever

likely to have!

It was my privilege to be the SU Manager for 2 years. My

role was a very rewarding one, to see the progression of

students from quiet nervous Freshers at induction to the

confident individuals they evolved into over their years in

college really was just fantastic.

I also took great pride in my work with the union and do

genuinely see my tenure as a successful and fruitful one

for the SU, from the development of the SU building and

establishment of the Student Council to the better rela-

tionships forged with other college departments as well

as the increased International Student participation in the

union. I am incredibly proud of what I and the SU Officers

over the past two years were able to achieve.

I would be here forever if I was to name all the people I

wanted to thank, from the SU Sabbaticals who I worked

with, to the Griffith staff I dealt with. Suffice to say I would

like to thank Griffith College for giving me the opportunity

to work there and to the staff members who became my

friends and the many students who made my job worth

while!

So on that note I say goodbye, I wish Paul Mc Cormack

all the best as my successor, he is more than able for the

role and I'm sure will do a great job in the years to come.

From Australia - catch ya later! – John

We would just like to take this opportunity to thank every-

one; students, staff, colleagues, friends and family who

have supported us throughout this new venture for us.

During our 4 & 5 years in Griffith we have had a ball,

made some fantastic friends, met some wonderful people

and worked with only the best! No one could ask for a

better start off than that! But now, it’s time for us to try

new things. New York is amazing and we are having a

ball! Hope you all have an amazing year! Remember, life

isn't about waiting for the storm to pass, it’s about learn-

ing how to dance in the rain! :)

Love,

Ciara & Paddy - xxx

Both John and Paddy will be missed and we here in the

S.U. wish them all the best in their future endeavours.

6

Students’ Union News

Lord Mayor Visits Griffith

7

L-R: Alan Gallagher (Chairman, Dublin YFG), Lord Mayor

of Dublin Councillor Gerry Breen, Graham Butler (SU

President) and Bernard White (Meath YFG).

At the beginning of Fresher's Week the Students' Union

at Griffith College, was pleased to welcome Lord Mayor

of Dublin Councillor Gerry Breen who visited the Young

Fine Gael stand at this year's sign up tent in the mar-

quee on the green.

Brand New SU manager

First of all, I would like to warmly

welcome everyone to the first se-

mester of a new academic year.

The sun is still shining, and there is

much to look forward to in the year

ahead with a new ambitious Stu-

dents Union team with a certain en-

couraging glint in their eye “this is

going to be a year to remember.”

For some, the return to college is the end to summer explor-

ing, to others this is the beginning of an adventure away from

their home shores. Mutually, the challenge that lies ahead is

the same; the task of studying, having a ball, and hoping that

it doesn’t come to the stage that you’re looking under the sofa

for small change that may just get you through another night

out.

As we forge ahead into the new year, the Students Union’s

drive is to create more opportunities for the students to enjoy

non-academic events, from social outings to Sports & Soci-

eties. With the inception of the new Music Society, we are ex-

cited about the idea of having our very own GCD performance

night, bringing together a melee of international musical tal-

ents, including song writers and our very own choir. Perhaps

you’re thinking this could be Griffith’s version of Glee, and per-

haps you could be right.

In our magazine Griffiti we have a new editor on a mission,

to bring our Publication to a whole new level, one that urges

students to participate and to push the boundaries on all that

is current and relevant. Our new President, El Presidente as

he likes to be called will literally shake every hand he gets the

opportunity to. Why, because there’s a real politician behind

Graham’s demeanour, so we expect great wonders from this

devotee of student life.

All in all, we will commence the year with gusto, always with

you the student at the forefront of all that we intend to do. Our

door is always open, and we welcome you to drop by with any

of your concerns or to listen to any ideas you may have.

So for now, remember, you can’t study life, you can only enjoy

it.

All the best for now,

Paul McCormack

Griffith Cricket tournament

Well done to everyone who took part in the Griffith Col-

lege Cricket Tournament, which was kindly sponsored

by Shop-Easi. The tournament was won by Ali’s team

with Johar’s team taking the runners up place. Man of

the match went to Sunny. with Best Batsman going to

Washi, and Jamal taking the title of Best Bowler. The

title of Best Fielder went to Vimal with Nirmal claiming

the title of Best Supporter.

Congratulations to Jacquai, Paul, Ali, Junaid, Bilal,

Imran, Shani, Johar, Vimal, & Nirmal who did a fantastic

job organising the day’s activities. We would also like to

say a special word of thanks to Diarmuid Hegarty who

came down to launch the tournament.

Students’ Union News

Unless you have been walking around campus

with your head buried in a book, which could hap-

pen, you would have been unable to miss the

fantastic posters pasted to every wall in Griffith

which promote this years SU events. Well the

posters were designed for the SU by the very tal-

ented Glenn Bolton, who is from Greystones and

a second year Visual Communications student in

DIT Mountjoy Square, and we here in the Stu-

dents’ Union would like to take this time to thank

him for all his hard work and we are looking for-

ward to seeing what he comes up with next.

8

Fantastic Su Posters

Freshers’ Week 2010 kicked off on Monday

morning with the arrival of a myriad inflatables

that illuminated the green. Also, there was the

return of the sign up tent where everyone could

sign up for various clubs and societies and avail

of an obscene amount of free stuff as well as

being pestered slightly by the unnervingly

pleasant AIB reps.

Also, Lord Mayor of Dublin Cllr. Gerry Breen

visited the Young Fine Gael stand at this year’s

sign up tent.

However the real festivities began with the 6th

annual BYOB Party On The Green followed by

a live band in the marquee. Tallaght’s Bipolar

Empire played us out until we all ventured down

into Arthur’s for the, as expected, outstanding

Freshers’ Monday Night Madness.

The night also saw a guest DJ appearance from

Phantom 105.2’s Laura Lee Conboy.

The inflatables remained for Tuesday and at

lunch time we were joined in Arthur’s by The

Riptide Movement who played a mellowed out

set. Check out their latest release, Hot Tramp

now.

Tuesday also saw the SU building open up for a

Champions League night with all the night’s

matches being shown and free pizza was avail-

able. One can assume that went more than

well. Then on Wednesday there were ‘Urban life

size games’ on the green and the island.

Thursday though was possibly the busiest day

of the week. A Five a side Football tournament

took place on the green and congratulations to

the winning team of Finesse

Meanwhile in Arthur’s, comedian and actor of

Father Ted and Killinaskully fame, Joe Rooney

performed an hilarious 45 minute gig, contain-

ing esoteric nods to rural Irish humour, that

seemingly only Roscommon, Kerry and Carlow

students “got” as well as a multitude of national-

ity slagging. Furthermore there was nothing bet-

ter than jokes regarding the urinary habits of

men while trying to eat your lunch.

That night though the 2010 Freshers’ week

reached its highlight with the Freshers’ ball in

Sin Night Club Temple Bar. A great night was

had by all with a great turnout from all years.

Finally, Friday featured the return of the all-day

paintball trips.

Thanks to everyone that came out for the vari-

ous events at this year’s Freshers’ week and for

making it a success. Hope you all have great

year in Griffith College.

9

Freshers week 2010

10

11

Griffiti: How did you get started in the comedy business?

JR: I was in a band for a few years. We released a few sin-

gles and then broke up but it gave me a taste for performing

on stage so myself and my friend Paul Tylak started doing

sketches together. Our first gig was in a club that Gavin Fri-

day ran on the quays called Screaming Blue Jaysus Club.

I got a great adrenaline rush from doing comedy. Later I

decided to do stand up and that was a difficult switch to

make because I wasn't comfortable being myself onstage.

Now I love it and really feel relaxed onstage but it took me

ages to get to that level. However I would hate to be just a

stand up and am always trying to get a new comedy acting

role. Playing different characters is what drew me to com-

edy at first. I used to shoot a lot of comedy videos at home

with friends playing different characters.

Griffiti: Who were your influences and which current co-

medians are you following?

JR: When I was a kid I loved Groucho and Harpo Marx and

still do. Then the early Steve Martin films and his stand up,

Richard Pryor , The Simpsons, Father Ted, The Office and

Ricky Gervais especially the podcast with Karl Pilkington.

Of late the best stand-up I've seen have been Jason Byrne

and Paul Sinha.

Griffiti: I remember seeing you on the Den, how was that

experience, and what advice would you have for those

looking to get work in the media?

JR: I did that for one summer. It was quite exciting at first

but I found it difficult in the begining working in a big corpo-

ration like RTE where it's hard to do things just off the cuff.

For example, If you want to wear a wig then a person from

make up has to be on stand by. I wasn't used to this and

found it stifled creativity. I was also shocked at the lack of

enthusiasm among the general work force in RTE. It does-

n't feel like a creative environment.

Griffiti: You are probably best known for your perform-

ances in Father Ted and Killinaskully. What was it like to

work on those shows and how has it impacted your career?

JR: I really enjoyed working on Father Ted. The atmos-

phere on set was lovely. I was just looking at some footage

I shot while I was working on the show and it was amazing

how all the actors and crew got on so well. There were no

divas as far as I could see. I didn't realise at the time that I

would be recognised on the street for playing a small char-

acter in one episode and I certainly didn't think I'd be still

getting recognised 15 years later. Killinaskully was a great

experience for me because I got to act alongside alot of

great actors over a 5 year period. I also got to write in the

last two series so over the experience was invaluable. I still

get a lot kids looking for autographs from my character

Timmy, especially down the country.

Griffiti: What's your take on the Irish comedy scene, any

rising stars?

JR: The live scene in Ireland is thriving and there seems

to be tons of people doing stand up. Now that the recession

has kicked in there's bound to be some new stars who

would have otherwise been doctors or estate agents.

Griffiti: What can we look forward to seeing from you next?

JR: I am working on a submission to Storyland with a life

coach character called Batty Ryan. I am going to take the

live show to Edinburgh Fringe Festival next year and doing

some gigs in Switzerland early next year.

After his phenomenal performace at Freshers’ Week Joe Rooney takes some time to talk

about comedy and the future

Joe Rooney gets fresh in Arthur’s

12

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As we strolled down Grafton

Street, caramel frappalatte in hand,

the dark sombre residue of the reces-

sion lingered around what was once

Dublin’s golden mile. The morning

papers were scattered about on the

floor of the corner shop as victims of

the morning rush. With the dreaded

‘R’ word slapped across every paper

it is evident the days of ‘put it on my

Visa’, are long gone.

As hipsters and indie kids take over

the streets, we see less and less of

the ‘D4’ crowd. What happened to

them, where are they now? Well,

Brian and I went to find out and who

better to ask than the Golden Boy of

South Dublin, Ross O’Carroll Kelly?

Actually, it was the actor who plays

him, Rory Nolan, in the new RO’C-K

play: ‘Stuck Between Foxrock And A

Hard Place’. We got a chance to sit

with Rory Nolan and Lisa Lambe who

play Ross and Sorcha in the luxuri-

ous surrounds of Dublin’s Westbury

Hotel.

Griffiti: Were you fans of thebooks before the plays? Rory: Yes, very much so. Well I’m

roughly the same age as Ross and I

left school around the same time as

he was winning the Leinster Schools

Senior Cup. I grew up in South

Dublin and went to a rugby playing

school; it was a very different world

to Ross’. And I went to UCD, ten

years later I’m wondering if I was

playing him sub-consciously. But

yeah, I can see were Paul Howard

[author] was coming from and I find

the books and the newspaper

columns very funny. I really think

Howard is the best satire writer

around. Ross is an amazing charac-

ter like, twelve years of shenanigans

and the longevity is still there, he

must be doing something right. The

arc of Ross’ character is immense;

the time that Ross has lived in re-

flects the times we see. The Celtic

Tiger, the recession and all the stuff

that went on in the naughties, it was

an amazing time in Ireland. It’s bril-

liant material for a character like

Ross to navigate his way through Ire-

land or in his case south east Dublin.

Lisa: I was a huge fan, a really big

fan of the books, I had a real affinity

with Sorcha. I felt sorry for her be-

cause she had this juxtaposition of

being all for amnesty but at the same

time she would always have the

newest furs and clothes, and she

was like that with a lot of things. I did

the voice of Sorcha about four or five

years ago for “Ross O’Carroll Kelly’s

12 days of Christmas” so I was de-

lighted when the play came to fruition

it was so nice to be approached to

play her.

Griffiti: Do you think Ross, Sorchaand Erica represent a part ofDublin life?Rory: It’s heightened of course but

people do relate to them, there’s a bit

of Ross in everyone. Love him or

loath him people still want more and

that’s the genius of it, everyone can

identify with him in some way, shape

or form. People see certain aspects

of him in not just themselves but

other people too. Ross is certainly a

presence. Now he is living in a time

were Reynard’s is closed and Mint

restaurant is gone. His haunts are

gone and everything is crumbling

around him. He is getting older; his

chances of playing for Leinster are

slimmer and slimmer. As I said, like

him or loath him he is just fun. You

can’t help but follow his adventures

and I really think the columns and

books hold up a mirror to life during

the boom. Everyone was living on

credit. The books say this is how we

lived and this is how we are, albeit in

a heightened model. I think it’s very

interesting and I think in a hundred

years people will look back at the

Ross stuff and it will probably still be

going. But they will look back at it

and think, ‘WOW’ what a mad coun-

try that was.

Griffiti: Do you ever feel yourselfturning into your characters?Rory: No, you have your shower

after the show and try to wash it off.

But no, interestingly enough bits of it

do stick around. But it’s only because

Paul Howard is so sharp that some of

the observations and one liners just

stick. It’s a great privilege to play the

role and work so closely to Paul and

such a great list of people.

Lisa: I think there is a lot of me in

Sorcha, I can relate to her, I wasn’t

South Dublin’s FinestBy Oisin Collins

and Brian O’Donoghue

15

really a big fan of rugby before I

played her, but I am now! I love

clothes too and fashion but I think

she’s quite sensitive really and she’s

got a good heart even if it’s not al-

ways in the right place, and she has

that soft spot for Ross which a lot of

girls can relate to, the whole going

back to the guy who doesn’t exactly

treat you right, it’s a very human

thing I think.

Griffiti: Do you have a favouritebook?Rory: I’d have to say it was, ‘I should

have got off at Sydney Parade’, just

the ending. Ross is this awful charac-

ter who has a misconception on how

life should be lived, but there is a real

human cord running through him,

he’s actually a very good father. He

has a great relationship with his son;

he doesn’t have a great relationship

with his parents. There are moments

where Ross O’Carroll Kelly will sur-

prise you.

Lisa: I loved “P.S I scored the brides-

maids”, because it was about Sor-

cha’s wedding and Ross hooking up

with “my” sister I thought that was

fantastic and the last book too when

Sorcha went to L.A. that was really

good, it’s hard to pick a favourite.

Griffiti: Is comedy something thatyou enjoy doing?Rory: Well everything and anything

really. Personally, I’m lucky to have

such a diverse career for want of a

better word. This year I went from

Shakespeare to Oscar Wilde in the

Gaiety. It’s great as an actor, all the

work and it being so diverse. It’s very

fulfilling and as an actor you’re al-

ways learning and seeing the world

from different points of view and dif-

ferent perspectives.

Lisa: Absolutely, I love theatre in

general. I think the live element is

amazing and with this there are so

many committed Ross fans that they

generate great noise and no matter

how used to being on stage you are

that buzz is still there every single

night.

Griffiti: If you could give yourcharacters one word of advicewhat would you tell them?Rory: I’d tell him to cop on. Ah no, as

I was saying, he has some really

good qualities that are overshadowed

by him being a womanising megalo-

maniac. His ego is in outer space

and well let’s face it, he’s not the

sharpest tool in the shed. But if I

could give him a bit of advice, well

someone like that, so set in their

ways, I don’t think I could give him

advice. He could certainly give ad-

vice and take it or leave it I always

think Ross is worth listening to.

Lisa: I think in the last couple of

books she has really grown up, she

has that definite weakness for Ross, I

think I’d tell her to be stronger and

not to be so sensitive. She is becom-

ing more independent and when she

was going out with Killian she had to-

tally moved away from Ross that was

probably a move in the right direc-

tion. She needs to be more street-

wise, like how she couldn’t see Erica

and Ross carrying on is beyond me.

Griffiti: So in real life is Lisa at-tracted to men like Ross?Lisa: Oh god no! I do love rugby

players, I’m a bit of fan of them but I

think Ross and Sorcha met when

they were very young so they had a

special connection and in this latest

version they can get quite snappy

with one another but they also have

some very tender moments, it’s like

they have a magnetic draw to each

other and it’s quite special.

Griffiti: How do you get into char-

acter?

Lisa: Well for Sorcha all you need to

do is go to Dundrum shopping cen-

tre, look around and copy what you

see! But seriously, I suppose the

books are a great primary source of

information I just try to be the girl that

I see in my head when I read the

books. Something I’m always worried

about is whether I’m being the Sor-

cha that everybody pictures, so I

guess I’ll have to hope my image of

her is the right one.

Ross O’Carroll-Kelly – Between

Foxrock and a Hard Place will be

on in the Olympia Theatre from

October 15 – November 14

OH My Gawd!

Griffiti has, like, two tickets for the show. Ifyou want to, like totally, win them suggest atitle for a Ross O’Carroll-Kelly book involvingthe Students’ Union. Email your suggestions& your name to griffiti@gcd.ie

16

18

19

20

21

Griffiti At the Movies

Title: Savage

Cert: 18

Running time: 83 minutes

Release date: Out Now

Savage is Brendan Muldowney’s debut feature film and

for a debut effort, it sets a tall order. Funded by the Irish

Film Board, it is perhaps one of the darkest Irish films

you’ll ever see and definitely one of the best of this year.

Already, it has accumulated a tidal wave of hefty ap-

provals and accolades including eight IFTA nominations

and much appraisal at the Dark Light film festival.

Muldowney himself has described Savage as a film that

examines violence and masculinity, and what makes a

man as well as desiring the tough guy exterior. But Sav-

age explores so many other facets of human behaviour

from the animalistic to the timid and freely comments on

an increasingly depraved society.

We’re taken into the world of tabloid photographer Paul

Graynor in a stunning performance by Darren Healy.

Graynor, a man valiant in his work but shy and reclusive

in every other characteristic, has his life thrown into dis-

array and alarm by a brutal, ferocious and completely

unprovoked attack. He subsequently loses control of

himself and any reasonable perspective of his world

around him, fading away into a morass of fear and re-

gret. From there we follow Paul through four chapters

in his ordeal, an ordeal that totally surprises in a dis-

tressfully macabre fashion.

But primarily, this film looks at the human mind and the

ever escalating violence in society, honing in on urban

surroundings. Savage is a dark piece of work in every

aspect and exposes the most sinister, murkiest corners

and mires of Dublin; in fact, that of any city. It’s been

called a revenge story but that lacks any tact as it only

loosely describes one piece of a much grander puzzle.

Savage is most certainly not for the faint hearted,

whether it’s by way of its explicitly violent scenes or un-

settling mental breakdowns, Brendan Muldowney has

created a deeply harrowing world. It pulls no punches

and is wholly uncompromising.

4/5

Jonathan Keane

Title: The Death and Life of Charlie St. CloudCert: 12ARunning Time: 100 minutesRelease Date: October 8

Zac Efron stars as Charlie St Cloud the town’s local sailing

hero. At the start of the movie Charlie is on top of the world,

popular with his peers, winning boat races and has a boat-

ing scholarship for Stanford University. He has a great rela-

tionship with his brother Samuel (Charlie Tahan) with whom

he has made a pact to help with his baseball pitch everyday

at sunset “come rail, hail or shine.” Nothing it seems can

bring him down, that is until a tragic accident takes his

younger brother away from him and Charlie’s miraculous

recovery leaves him with much more than just physical

scars.

Five years later we see that Charlie has deferred his schol-

arship and is now working as an undertaker at the grave-

yard Sam is buried in. His once proud sailing boat is now

his bed and he seems content with being the mysterious

quiet guy who everyone wonders about. His brush with

death causes him to see more than just the spectre of his

brother but of old friends too. When the arrival of old high

school friend and sailing rival Tess (Amanda Crew) causes

excitement in the town, the two are drawn to each other and

it forces Charlie to have to and figure out what he wants and

what is important to him.

The move is a dramatic difference from previous movies

we’ve seen Efron in. Gone is the care free teenager and

here is a character that is grief stricken and torn between

two choices. The supporting cast has been well chosen,

Charlie’s English gin loving friend from work, Alastair (Au-

gustus Prew) is a great character, funny and a loyal friend.

This is a movie that will have you reaching for your tissues.

The storyline takes you on quite the emotional rollercoaster

with its mixture of grief, romance, panic and it leaves you

with this warm feeling. Yes it’s cheesy, not one you would

go to with the lads. It’s a date movie or a girls’ night out

movie, but if you love sailing it’s well worth watching just for

the race at the start! The location is spectacular and the

soundtrack really ties in well with the movie.

3/5

Katie Harnett Devereux

22

Griffiti At the Movies

Title: Wall Street – Money never sleepsCert: 12ARunning Time: 134minutesRelease Date: October 6

In the original Wall Street, Gordon Gecko (Michael Douglas)

was like the Devil, promoting the idea that 'greed is good' and

manipulating global financial markets by any means neces-

sary until Bud Fox (Charlie Sheen) stands up to him and he

is sent to prison. In this sequel Gecko is back and he needs

to get back in the game. The other side of the story follows

Jake Moore, played by Shia Lebeouf, a young hot shot finan-

cial whizz-kid who just happens to be engaged to Gecko's

daughter, played by Carrey Mulligan. Moore seeks out Gecko

and the two agree to help each other, Moore to reunite Gecko

with his estranged daughter and in exchange Gecko will give

Moore the information he needs to challenge a major bank

who brought ruin to his employers.

The film boasts a fantastic supporting cast with star turns from

Susan Sarandon, Eli Wallach and Frank Langella. Josh brolin

plays the villain in the film, or rather the head villain as his role

functions as Gekko 2.0. For those who aren't familiar with the

original movie this may feel like a waste of time as much of

what this film has is built on the nostalgia from the original, al-

though for many who love the original this may disappoint as

it does not have the same hard edge and it only serves to add

to the argument that Oliver Stone has lost his edge.

Overall I did enjoy the movie. The presentation of New York

as a giant Crystal palace hints at the fragility of the financial

markets as evident by the real world global economic melt-

down. There are plenty of references to the original including

a very cheesy cameo by Charlie sheen (I was half expecting

the cast from Two and a Half Men to be in the background).

Talking Heads fans will be interested in the soundtrack by

David Byrne. In the end what you get is Wall Street lite and I

think Stone missed an opportunity to make a comment on

what American banks did to the markets to land us in the

mess we are in. Money never sleeps but it occasionally dozes

off behind the wheel.

3/5

Oscar Finn

Title: BuriedCert: 15ARunning Time: 94minutesRelease Date: Out Now

I heard good things about this movie and was interested

to see how the film makers would approach this buried

alive thriller. After having seen Kill Bill Volume 2 and the

‘Grave Digger’ episode of C.S.I. (both directed by Quentin

Tarantino incidentally) I was intrigued to see if director Ro-

drigo Cortés could bring anything new to the scenario and

I have to say I was pleasantly surprised. Once the lights

go down in the cinema we find ourselves buried with Ryan

Reynolds.

I’ve been a fan of Reynolds for a while now, unfortunately

I haven’t been a big fan of most of the films he has been

in; with this film I think we are really starting to see his po-

tential as an actor. In the film Reynolds plays Paul Con-

roy, a truck driver and family man, who awakes to find

himself buried alive with his air running out and only the

contents of his pockets to help him survive.

Considering the film contains nothing more than a man in

a box it does rattle on at a fair pace and Cortés does man-

age to create a balance between tension, emotion and

humour and just when you think you know what is going

to happen next it goes in a different direction.

Of course Conroy isn’t the only character in the film, one

of the items he discovers buried with him is a half charged

mobile phone which he uses to try and get help which

leads the story along by building a back story to the

events prior to his burial and also his location and who

may be responsible.

I personally interpreted the film as a parable for American

society evident by Conroy’s frustration at trying to get help

from robotic phone operators and his frustration at his

captors who level responsibility for the U.S. invasion of

Iraq on his shoulders. In summary a well paced thriller

that holds your attention right to the final frame.

4/5

Oscar Finn

23

25

music ReviewsCarthage – The Lost And Found

The Lost And Found is thefirst full length effort fromDublin based singer song-writer Carthage Carroll(though originally from

Sligo). It’s a record two years in the making be-tween writing and recording in various locationsboth sides of the Atlantic.

The fruits of his labour are borne here but it’s alla little patchy. First track Hang ‘Em High is apoor indication of where the record is headed.It’s The Lost And Found’s weakest moment so itcreates an unwarranted sense of disappoint-ment from the get-go. It’s not until the title track,the third that the record really begins to gathersome pace, particular in its mid section to itclose.

Stillborn’s ambling guitar work wouldn’t soundout of place on ‘driving tunes’ compilation andsimilarly, the angular riffs of Lock Up Your Soulare inescapably hook laden. Although, there arestill faults and the major one is with Carthage’svocals. They remain repetitive for the most partand at times can become tedious.

Conversely though, the serene, Angel Lightproves that he can stand up vocally whenneeds be. The Lost And Found, though reachesits climax, very much so, in its closing moments.Closing two tracks Colour Blind and Night Light,alongside the aforementioned Angel Light arethe album’s standout moments.

The Lost And Found is a wavering effort to saythe least, still bearing in mind it’s a debut. Itisn’t a record of staggering peaks, however ithas its moments of lustre but they can bequickly lost. Hopefully things will only improvefor Carthage in the future as there are snippetsof high-quality here that should only be utilizedand developed ten fold.

Jonathan Keane

Rook and The RavensCrawdaddy 2/10/10

Rook and the Ravens arean up and coming 5 pieceband from Manchester.After a successful summercovering the festival circuitthey are gearing up for the

big time. I was invited along to their gig in Craw-daddy recently for the launch of their new single‘ALPHA’ and I have to say they were one of themost impressive bands I have seen this year.

What is great about R&R is that when you firsthear them they sound like a band you havebeen a fan of for years, in saying that the songsare new and unique with an infectious qualitythat once you start listening to them you wontbe able to stop. For a sample of what the bandis about check out their Myspace page(http://www.myspace.com/rookandtheravens)for a selection of songs, tracks like 'Little Rib'and their fantastic cover of 'The Air That IBreathe' show off the bands vocal talents whilesongs like 'Alpha' display their skill for craftingenergetic upbeat songs.

Live the band put on a great show and it's clearthey are hungry for it and enjoy what they do.They come across as a band very comfortableon stage playing great songs interspersed withjovial banter between themselves and the audi-ence. With three singers they do not presentthemselves in the usual manner of front man +band but rather the entire band shares the roleof front man which can seem a little daunting atfirst because there is so much happening it'shard to know where to look.

Check them out if you like bands like, TheFrames, Crosby, Stills, & Nash and Mic Christo-pher, you wont be dissapointed.

Oscar Finn

music Reviewstwo door cinema club

Interview by Ian Donegan

Photo by Tom Morgan

Two Door Cinema Club were in town the other day so

we sent Ian Donegan and Tom Morgan to chat with

bassist Kevin Baird fill us in on what the bands up to .

Griffiti: Two Door Cinema club is a very unusual name fora band, where did that come from?KB: There’s a Cinema close to where we live in Northern

Ireland just outside Bangor called the Tudor cinema and

we’ve been there a few times and we were trying to come

up with band names and Sam came up with Two Door Cin-

ema Club. We asked him where he got that, and basically

he was under the impression that Tudor was pronounced

‘Two door’. He can’t really read. Anyway, this became a bit

of a joke, it was funny at the time.

Griffiti: Electropop indie rock is your genre, are there manyother bands of that genre?KB: I don’t think so. We’re the only one (laughs). In terms

of musicality I guess our closest comparison would be

Phoenix. But I don’t know, we never knew how to describe

ourselves in, like, three words in terms of genre. It’s so dif-

ficult.

Griffiti: You’ve opened for of a number of successfulbands, including Phoenix, have you found that that has im-proved your popularity much?KB: I think doing support slots is not so much about win-

ning fans. I mean, if you go to a gig and you see a support

band you might say ‘oh wow those guys were great, I must

look them up when I go home. And then say, Phoenix

comes on, the band you were there to see and there amaz-

ing, they’ll completely overshadow anything that came on

before. It’s a lot more about experience and getting on the

road and learning from other bands. Obviously there is a

small degree of winning over new fans. But I think our sup-

port status has been more beneficial from a learning point

of view.

Griffiti: Your first album, Tourist History, came out in March.For a first album it’s been quite successful, hasn’t it?KB: Well, I wouldn’t say were anywhere near getting a gold

record or anything like that. We’re just on a small indie

label. We didn’t have the fans to really push it in terms of

promoting or bill boards or anything like that. We didn’t

have a big marketing budget so it was sort of a soft release.

But it’s nice that it’s had a steady climb. And because of

that we’re releasing it as a dulux version next month to give

it a real proper push. We’re in a place where we can afford

to do so now.

Griffiti: In your song Undercover Martyn, who’s martyn?KB: Martyn is a fictional character. The song is kind of

about a guy who knows he has to do something but he’s

kind of scared. It’s a song about us saying ‘come on, grow

a pair’. It’s about ourselves really because we knew this

was going to be scary but we had to jump into it because it

was what we wanted to do and we believed in ourselves.

But there’s still that fear in the back of your head when

you’re putting yourself out there and going for it. That’s

what it’s about.

Griffiti: You seem like a bunch of everymen, you don’tseem like rockstars. Is that how you see yourselves?KB: Well, too often you see guys who, because there in a

band they need to be these dick rockstars, I mean what’s

the point. We do what we want to do. We play a show, we

get drunk, we do other things (laughs). But we don’t try and

make it a feature of our band. We’re about the live shows,

not about how much we drink or how many girls we sleep

with.

Griffiti: You and the guys are constantly with each otheron the road and gigs and whatever, do you ever get oneach others’ tits?KB: All the time! (laughs) It’s never gone to blows, or any-

thing like that. I think I nearly punched Sam once. We were

playing a gig and we were muckin’ around and he threw

something at me and it hit me in the eye and I freaked out

so I chased him trying to punch him but I couldn’t catch him.

I ran out of breathe so I said fuck it. But we’ve all known

each other since we were fourteen years old and we’ve

been best friend since then. We could say the worst things

to each other and there isn’t even a need to apologise, the

next day it’s fine.

Griffiti: Out of all the bands out there who would you mostlike to collaborate with?KB: We’ve always said we’d like to work with Daft Punk.

That would be brilliant, but maybe a little bit unachievable.

But we met them once and they were really nice guys and

we also obviously have that French connection. Yeah

maybe one day, that would be brilliant.

Griffiti: You’ve got an American tour coming up.KB: Yeah, we leave in a week. It’s five weeks of headline

shows. The last American tour we did we were supporting

Phoenix. We’ve just got one show with Phoenix this year.

We love touring America, it’s like the best place to tour. It’s

so different but so familiar at the same time. Because

you’ve seen so many movies and shows set in America.

Some of the best gigs we’ve had have been in America.

The Genuine Article

McCormack Contemplates Juventus Move

Daly pulls outof sports office,sports office notpregnantby Daniel James,

Chief Correspondent

Remember that little chubby guy

running around campus last year

trying to organise sports and so-

cieties? That’s right, Paddy Daly!

The guy who ran unopposed for

the sports officer job and, to

most of our surprise, won.

Where is that guy?

The Genuine Article spoke to a

close friend of Paddy’s who pre-

ferred to remain anonymous.

‘His bird went to America, and ya

know Paddy, needs to ride her at

least twice a day or he breaks

out in hives, so he followed her

over. But once he was there he

didn’t want to leave after seeing

how the Americans live life; two

litre tubs of ice cream, a pint of

butter with your popcorn and all-

you-can-eat buffets, he just re-

fused to leave.’

Paddy informed the SU of his

resignation in late August leav-

ing President McLovin with the

task of finding a new Sports Offi-

cer. He has so far been unsuc-

cessful and begs anyone who

feels up to the job to contact

him. ‘Please! I keep getting first

years in to me asking about soc-

cer, cricket and rugby! Do I look

like I play rugby! I don’t know

when they’re going to be set up!’

the President said.

Daly’s girlfriend, Ciara, being

madly in love with him for rea-

sons unknown decided to stay

with Paddy as he explores the

American dream. Meanwhile,

ex-President Jacquie Ryan has

temporarily taken up the post.

Ryan is not one bit happy about

the situation. ‘I practically did his

fucking job for him last year and

now I’ve to do it all over again

because he discovered Choc-

apocalypse ice-cream! I’m

ragin’!’

Whether this arrangement will

work out in the students’ interest

has yet to be seen, but, of

course the monkeys in research

for The Genuine Article will in-

vestigate further and keep you

posted.

by Coco Trixibelle

Sportsdesk

Just days after Paul ‘lightning feet’ McCormack

made his stunning debut for Griff Utd it looks like

he could be making a surprise move to Juventus.

Unbeknownst to the team there were several tal-

ent spotters in the crowd who were very im-

pressed by the skills and dedication displayed on

the pitch. One of the spotters (who asked to re-

main anonymous) was quoted as saying “not

since Stanley Teabag debuted for the Worthing

Dynamos in 1985 have I seen such raw talent.

We here at the G.A. hope McCormack will stay

with his home team and lead Griff Utd. to a

brighter future.

News In briefOfficial language of Norway: Clicks

and Whistles

Spar drops ‘r’ from name

Hegarty admits Fashion not really a

course. To be replaced by Sandwich-

Making

Daly disputes ‘chubby’ comment

Freshers not putting out as planned,

Butler enraged

Hector Heathwood finally gets joke

about name

26

This just in: Alliteration poor choice

of headline technique

There are some things mankind has never been

able to explain, like why do we exist? How is

Jacquie Ryan still in college? And what in the

name of Saint Rita in a rickshaw is that wet patch

in the underground car park?

We can just about accept the two old cars that

have been lying there gathering dust and rats for

years now but the strange phenomenon that is

this crazy wet patch lying right at the entrance/exit

area of the car park has finally been solved.

The Genuine Article’s worker monkeys have being

studying samples from the dubious liquid for some

years now and a result has been finalised.

SEWAGE

Yes folks, it’s true. The wet patch is a combination

of toilet and shower water which drips down from

the dodgy pipes over head, bringing the poo and

pubes of Griffith Halls’ finest straight to your car

tops. When asked if this was acceptable the head

of maintenance declared loudly as he cruised by

in his Russian army tank “Who in the name a jay-

sus are you? What pipe? That water is there to

disinfect the tyres of the cars that pass through”

he then ran away hiding his head with his hood.

Who does he think he is fooling? Has he seen our

worker monkeys? They’ve got red waist coats.

The Genuine Article believes that a solution to the

wet problem will never be found, may god have

mercy on us all.

Car Park Pee

Predicament

P e n e t r at e d

Arthur’s Staff Ruin Arthur’s Day

There are many of you, I am sure, who will not think this articlewas worth writing or that the topic is important. But it’s bloodywell important to me and something needs to be done aboutit.

Arthur’s Day rolled around again this year on the 23rd of Sep-tember and I, like every other proud Irishman, was very ex-cited. My lectures finished up at 17:50. My colleague and Imade our way to Arthur’s (the on campus bar, not the day) and ordered two pints of Guinness at approximately 17:55.

At 17:58 it all went horribly wrong. The bartender, Vod Kashotzhanded us two pints of Guinness IN AMSTEL GLASSES!Now, I come from a part of Ireland where it would be perfectlyacceptable to smash a glass over the tender’s fucking head ifhe handed you a pint of Guinness in anything other than aGuinness glass!

The only thing that saved Arthur’s from, what my doctors callan episode, was the fact that there was no time to pull anotherpint before 17:59 and it was imperative that my mouth be fullof the black stuff at that time. So I toasted to a great Irishmanand grudgingly drank from a glass made for a substandardlager.

Point in case: Arthur’s management, please send your staff toany country pub to work for a week. They may come maimedin some way but I guarantee that they won’t be long learningwhat a pint of Guinness goes in.

Under the Spotlight

Name:Tony Ward

Occupation: IT guy/Batman

Hobbies: Wizards chess/Trying to resurrect Elvis

Likes: A nice pair of slacks

Dislikes: Tight binding belted-up jeans

Interesting fact: Is Chairman of the Grapefruitworshiping cult, ‘Stingsalittle’.

The contents of this section are satirical and may offend. The views expressed do not represent the views of the SU

27

It’s been Liverpool's worst start

to a season for 18 years, and it

could have been a lot worse on

the domestic front had captain

Steven Gerrard not grabbed a

much-needed headed equaliser

against a Sunderland side

threatening to grab all three

points at Anfield on Saturday

September 25th as the

Merseysiders clocked up an-

other draw in the Premier

League.

If the Black Cats had held on at

2-1, Liverpool would have been

staring at their worst top-flight

opening sequence of results in

56 years. Their misery was fur-

ther compounded by defeat at

the hands of newly promoted

Blackpool 2-1 at Anfeild. On the

flip side, they have played the

top sides already this season ,

having played Manchester City,

Arsenal and Manchester

United; however this cannot

hide the current problems

threatening to engulf the fa-

mous club as they languise in

the relagation zone. Liverpool

finished sixth in 1992/93 sea-

son, the last time they got off to

such an atrocious start and it

seems fans can expect more of

the same this season.

Rescuing a draw at home

against a side that has not

scored a goal on the red half of

Merseyside in over a decade is

not what Liverpool fans are

used too. Either is one win in six

in the opening stages of a new

league campaign. Add to that

the most embarrassing cup exit

since the defeat to non-league

Worcester City in 1959 and Roy

Hodgson’s start has been less

than ideal. A bad result against

top-flight newcomers Blackpool

next Sunday and the pressure

will increase further on the

club’s new manager.

Reds legend Kenny Dalglish

believes the current financial

mess at the club should not af-

fect the players once they cross

the white line, however these

are not the same calibre of

player that Dalglish was used to

playing with, or managing, at

Liverpool. This is a sub-stan-

dard squad which has been

under-invested in, with new

manager Hodgson being forced

to raise cash for new signings

from player sales, due to the

club’s current financial restric-

tions. The club’s supporters are

infuriated by the situation that

thousands stayed behind after

the Sunderland game to protest

against the current American

ownership in an attempt to in-

crease pressure on the duo to

sell.

With the Reds condemned to

the Europa League this season,

where does that leave the fu-

tures of Spanish star Fernando

Torres and club captain Ger-

rard, both eager to play at the

top European level in the

Champions League? Two play-

ers Hodgson promised that

there would soon be substantial

investment to end the American

nightmare and help build a

bright new future for Liverpool.

Chairman Martin Broughton ini-

tially was hopeful of concluding

Darren Cleary takes a look at the mounting troubles

plaguing Liverpool Football Club

Liverpool - The Party’s Over

28

a takeover before the end of Au-

gust, saying: “It still remains the

objective to conclude a deal be-

fore the end of the transfer win-

dow”. However, nearly two

months later there have not

been any fresh developments.

Results in Europe so far this

season have been positive for

the Merseysiders with a tally of

five straight Europa League

wins, Hodgson’s side were how-

ever frustrated by a scoreless

draw at Dutch side Utrecht. Liv-

erpool arrived with the intent on

adding to his tally of five straight

Europa League wins as Liver-

pool manager but just as eager

to see Torres end an uncharac-

teristically lean spell that has

yielded just one goal so far this

season.

He may well have been content

with the outcome of the first ob-

jective but not the second, after

a misfiring Torres spurned three

clear opportunities.

The problem remains with co-

owner Tom Hicks’ over-inflated

asking price, which has so far

been baulked at by potential in-

vestors. Fellow co-owner

George Gillett has already de-

faulted on repaying his half of

the loan, while in the back-

ground Hicks has been looking

for further bank loans to hold on

to his stake in the club and buy-

out his want-away partner

Gillett. This would give him

more time to sell for the price he

wanted. However the club’s be-

leaguered board will block any

attempts by Hicks to refinance

his loan deal with the Royal

Bank of Scotland.

Potential investors are unwilling

to pay Hicks’ premium price, es-

timated to be around £600m. In-

stead, they will wait until

Liverpool are in the hands of

RBS and look to secure the club

for a bargain £280m. No won-

der there has been little news of

a takeover recently. Meanwhile

the club’s managing director

Christian Purslow has had to

publicly deny the club will go

bust or find themselves in a sim-

ilar situation to Leeds United or

Portsmouth, amid speculation

surrounding the threat of admin-

istration.

With the RBS deadline ap-

proaching, for Hicks and Gillett

to either settle their debt or refi-

nance, looming, it looks increas-

ingly likely English football’s

most successful-ever club will

face the indignity of ending up

being owned by the debt collec-

tors. However, this could lead to

administration and a points de-

duction, something RBS are ob-

viously keen to avoid.

RBS will look to sell the club as

soon as they can, however they

are unlikely to be too concerned

over who they sell it to. The

deadline day may be celebrated

by fans as the day Hicks’ and

Gillett’s reign at Anfield finally

comes to an end, but it should

also provide a stark reminder of

just how far the five time Euro-

pean Cup winners have fallen.

29

JonathanKeaneTalksTo Joe Duffy

The lobby of the Sheraton hotel inAthlone is bedlam. RTE’s radio equip-ment is strewn across a makeshiftstage, there’s a sizeable crowd gath-ered before it and Joe Duffy is givingthe usual thanks to everyone thatcame out. Liveline broadcasted theirFunny Friday show this afternoon soguests were aplenty.

The jammed lobby isn’t helped eitherby the fact that the wedding entouragefrom the nearby church are beginningto scurry in too. The crowd’s presenceis more than summed up by thephrase: “It’s a program that’s totallydependent on having a big audienceand lots of listeners.”

We’ve a few minutes, just about, totalk with Joe Duffy before presumablyreturning to RTE’s Dublin HQ. Theconversation is a general one to saythe least, on whether or not Joe everenvisaged Liveline becoming one ofthe most listened to and indeed criti-cised radio shows in the country. “It’shard to see on the inside what impactit has. I know we’re quite strong onnumbers. But sometimes you’re quitesurprised, to go to Athlone and see thereaction and that so many peopleknow the various topics and issuesthat have been raised on Liveline.”

“I’m well surprised but there’s alsotime and chance. There’s a lot of hardwork by the production team and my-self over the years.”

Liveline may be one of the most lis-tened to radio shows in Ireland, but it’snot without its critics. The show thoughproviding a platform for callers to airmany complaints has been the subjectof much criticism. Joe is quick to re-spond, still in an unperturbed manner,“we get good and bad, some colum-nists and newspapers don’t like Live-line. Sometimes people on Livelineare criticising the newspapers and

that’s part of our job as well to givepeople a forum that they wouldn’t usu-ally get.”

The truth is that, all denigration fromsome taken into account, Liveline’s im-pact can’t be denied. Look to the pass-ing of screenwriter Frank Deasy (fromliver cancer) who appealed for peopleto become organ donors on air. In thefollowing days over 5,000 applicationsfor new organ donor cards were regis-tered. The unavoidable and, indeedoccasionally pointless, rants alongwith those structured aside, an inci-dent like that isn’t one to be sniffed atand Joe Duffy himself is quick toagree.

“What he did in terms of raising aware-ness was just phenomenal but unfor-tunately the tragedy is that Frank died,which was terrible. It was terrible forhis children and his wife – We allshould carry a donor card, every sin-gle one of us.”

“We never lose the run of ourselves”,Joe adds with all this talk on impactand influence, it’s still genuinely in-sisted on that Liveline remains verymuch grounded. “We don’t believe ourown publicity, we try to remember whywe’re here and what the purpose ofour program is, which is to be a publicservice to people and that’s what wedo”, he continues.

We do however live in a time when itis easy to “lose the run” of yourself, es-pecially when media is ever evolvingthanks to our old friend the internet.Liveline is the number one down-loaded RTE podcast, so it’s reachingfurther out than 1.45-3pm, which sur-prises him, he admits. “Liveline is ob-viously very much a live program andI just think sometimes it suffers whenyou listen back to it”, he explains. “It’swhen you listen to it live you becomeengaged and things happen and

change over the 75 minutes, whichoften happens.”

“But we’re on Twitter and Facebook.We’re very conscious of trying to getup on all the platforms and we broad-cast wherever we can.” It seems to bean apt conclusion when discussing theshow now in its tenth year with Duffy.

With that, the talk winds down a littlebit, with a slight change in topic. JoeDuffy was, in his student days, an ac-tive one to say the least, being TrinityStudent Union president as well aspresident of USI (Union of Students inIreland) for two years. 2010 of coursesaw the startling increase in peopleseeking college places, so for some-one desiring a media career in thesefrankly uncertain times it’s challengingto say the least.

However, the response is put franklyby Joe, “you want to be a journalist?Be a journalist. There’s nothing stop-ping you – work!”

“If you want to be in radio, work foryour local radio station. Do stuff, offer.If you want to be a print journalist, goto the courts. If you hear about a trafficaccident, go to the traffic accident. Getwriting, there’s nothing stopping youwriting or recording something. Justget out. If you want to do a course,better still. But just be – be curious, beinterested and get up and go. You willnot be a journalist from behind a com-puter.”

Jonathan Keane

30

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