The Dubliner Magazine

The Recession Hasn't Gone Away

Seen on a window on Barrow Street

The Twitternet

Social networking just got a little more intrusive

Isn't it bizarre that Stephen Fry, Britain's favourite avuncular sophist,  has become the poster boy for something as phenomenally inane as Twitter? It's like Jade Goody hosting Mastermind.

Wait, it's too soon for comments like that, isn't it?

Take your mind off it with this video about they what tweet.

Ballet to the Head

New Wave hits Dublin's Docklands

Apparently hell has finally frozen* over and Dublin's 80s nostalgia-junkies can rejoice as the boys from Spandau Ballet are set to reform for the first time in 20 years and play their first gig at the O2 in our fair city.

Should be golden.

*Tony Hadley's words, not ours.

Art for Art's Sake

Biffo Picasso

Bravo to the prankster who surreptitiously hung this portrait of our proud Taoiseach in the National Gallery amidst the Yeats's and Carravagio's last week.

And a double bravo to the description underneath which read, "Balancing a public image that ranges from fantastically intelligent analytical thinker to big ignorant f**ker from Offaly, the Taoiseach proves to be a challenging subject to represent."

Maybe a bit harsh on the moobs though...

Dunblane Game

Tabloid Lows

None other than Father Ted creator Graham Linehan gives a masterclass in media ethics.

This Is Not On

Complaints, complaints, complaints

So RTE and pooch fancier John Ryan's baby Nightlive has come under fire from the Broadcasting Complains Commission who deemed that some of its sketches were 'in poor taste'.

The complaints specifically referred to one sketch about a celebrity charity appeal for leukaemia sufferers and another about a terminally ill boy.

“Such treatment of a child’s death is inappropriate and the manner and context of a child’s death went beyond acceptable standards,” it said. “The Commission was of the view that the humour was in poor taste and that it was likely to cause undue offence.

“The broadcaster did not exercise due care and the manner and content of the sketch were not appropriate or justifiable.”

Poor taste indeed - and many viewers seemed to think the whole affair was generally pretty poor - but was it really offensive to people suffering from such awful illnesses?

As far as we remember the offense was aimed squarely at media imbeciles and buffoons. In the first episode mentioned, the sports correspondent Trevor Corcoran laments his father's passing, "He never got a chance to see me drive Formula Ford at Mondello or caddy for me at Castleknock’s new golf course."

Shouldn't Trevor Welch be complaining instead?

 

The Best Things In Life Are Free

Taking the Scientology Stress Test Because It's Free

"Like it or not, Scientologists are likely to gain the upper hand "in this economy." With so many unemployed people loitering about in public, unable to figure out what to do with their time, the Church of Scientology is telling itself "Haha! Good thing we’ve set up home base everywhere!”

In this economy, it's important to find Stuff That Unemployed People Like.

Other examples that we can think of closer to home include pitch and putt, hanging round the Ilac Centre library and setting fire to cats at Halloween.

Running Low

Lost in Spar

The oil's running out, the midlanders are flipping out and the Greens are marauding the earth over at RTE's Storyland where the national broadcaster are trying to choose a new web drama to produce from a list of entertaining contenders.

The pick of the bunch is the post-apocalyptic Running Low, a sort of reworking of Endgame featuring Xboxes, battle hurleys and the fat one from Bachelor's Walk.

The Dubliner St. Patrick's Festival Debate

Thank you to everyone who voted in our online poll on the people, traditions and events that make you proud to be Irish. We'll be featuring some of your comments in the April issue of The Dubliner.

We had a tremendous response to the event we are hosting at Liberty Hall to discuss Irish national identity. We have given away all the free tickets to the debate so sorry if you weren't able to reserve your places. We hope that all readers of The Dubliner enjoy the St. Patrick's Day celebrations next week.

Here is your top ten list of what makes you proud to be Irish.

1. Irish humour and wit
2. Irish national rugby team
3. Folk music
4. GAA
5. James Connolly
6. The peace process in the North
7. Guinness
8. U2
9. Irish breakfast roll
10. Christy Moore 

Mills and Bono

Bono Fan Fiction Gets Sexy

There's been fan fiction for Spock, Chewbacca and Harry Potter in the past. But now even Bono's getting the treatment... and it's getting a little disturbing.

God, I had missed him so much in the last couple of weeks. In many ways it seemed like months ago that I had been with him in Dublin. It was almost a distant memory now as I felt the warmth of his skin touching mine and heard the peace of his breathing, but it was hard to shake the reality of what had happened.

He had hurt Kieran, and though I didn't care about him, I couldn't help wondering if Bono had gotten into trouble. Edge had mentioned the police getting involved.

Read the stomach churning rest at Heartland Bono Fan Fiction