An extra dramatic act was provided by the Gods (in case we have any ancient Greeks amongst our readers) at the opening of the Birmingham Irish Heritage Group Event on Wednesday 6th of May 2009. IT equipment necessary to show the film was affected by gremlins’ or fairies and just when the two committee members involved were after a long struggle about admit defeat a man charged to the rescue from a distant horizon.
Well! Actually it was a man named Jackie who came forward from the rear of the crowd and modestly offered his help, and got the film started. Believe it or not, it was his first visit to a Heritage Group Event always held at 7pm on First Wednesday of each month, talk about divine intervention. A famous quotation is appropriate “Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Man”.
If you have heard a rumour that the committee staged all this for dramatic affect, and that the man who came to the rescue was an actor who been had hidden away, it is untrue. In fact he is a student of architecture. However it worked just as well, providing a drama in which good triumphed over evil, i.e. the IT bad spirits defeated by divine intervention.
Then came the very moving film “An Bothar Fada” (The Long Road), an historic record of two generations from Ireland who migrated to Britain from the forties on. An appropriate name for the story of the men who toiled on many long roads, and the women who worked the buses on endless city streets, and others who worked long nightshifts nursing the sick in the NHS.
They toiled and struggled to make a home, as strangers in a strange land. John Kane a long standing supporter of the Heritage Group, gave a moving contribution from the floor of how he had toiled under such harsh conditions. Mary Pearson another well known supporter of the Heritage Group, voiced the need for a film to celebrate the contribution of the Irish in building up British Trade Unions, represented well above their numbers at all levels of leadership.
Peter Mulligan coming all the way from Northampton to present the film, spoke with great determination on how the young Irish, put much into building up the economy of the host community, and because they were young and fit took very little out, a fact often forgotten. Motorways and other long roads of Britain, are monuments to the unsung generations of Irish who built them.
They are however monuments without inscriptions to recognise their work, the only inscription being to Government Ministers with unsoiled hands. At least they are remembered in this film, and other records of heritage brought to all by the Birmingham Irish Heritage Group. Now bringing you a little known almost secret aspect of Irish Heritage at 7pm on Wednesday 3rd of June 2009 at the Irish Club, High Street, Digbeth, Birmingham. All Welcome, no charge, refreshments.
Here’s the presentration given at the last Birmingham Irish Heritage Group meeting – Deirdre O’Byrne talks about ‘The Disappearing Anglo-Irish In 20th-century fiction & autobiographies’. These very enlightening meetings take place on the first Wednesday evening of each month at 7pm in the Birmingham Irish Club. The next one will be on Weds 1st April, unsure as yet of the subject but whatever it is it will make a little voice in your head go, ‘ooooohhhh…well I never’.
‘Echoes of Erin’ 2009 Comhaltas Concert Tour stops at the Irish Clubon Wednesday 25th February, 8pm. The evening will be ‘a colourful and exciting show of Irish traditional music, song & dance featuring Seán Ó Sé.‘ I’m told that after the concert the band will be sinking a few pints at the Spotted Dog on Warwick Street, possibly playing a little more whilst they’re there.
EC Arts brings major public art to Digbeth – Artist Claire Farrell tells the world about the Digbeth public art project she’s involved with via the Custard Factory’s blog. ‘The final piece, she says, will be “181 linear meters spanning Mill Lane, Bradford St and Rea Street, standing at lowest point 2.2 meters per sculpture/haunch and rising to 6 meters tall” and is due to be finished next Autumn.’ You can also read the artist’s statement by Rob Colbourne & Stuart Mugridge, which is lots of serious writings about ‘Industriality’, ‘Movement and Flow’, ‘Transparency’ and ‘Colour and Finish’. Or you could just watch the telly film like me and see that it has much pretyy, being see-through with red flections.
No need to go beyong the Custard Factory for your Chistmas shopping. Go to World of Homoeopathy for gift vouchers or treatment vouchers for Reiki, Hair Analysis and Homoeopathic Consultations. Get some hand-made Xmas cards from Cinnamon Aitch and if you’re after something really special, order some seriously personalised Kings of Neon footwear from Looks Can Kill.
Fused Magazine – Eastside Projects – Fay Khan writes her thoughts about a visit to Eastside Projects, where everything is art, down to the door handle, which never I never realised before. ‘It felt invigorating to be joining an exhibition as it is being created, as its narrative is being written. This growth process allows a new aspect of exhibition creating to come to the fore, exposing all involved to the fact that no matter how much planning is carried out, no one can really read the final chapter until Eastside Projects has written it.’
Last Round! – Melinda Schwakhofer bought a round of drinks with Art Money during her visit here, which got landlord John Tighe into the Birmingham Evening Mail for being the first Birmingham business to accept it as payment. I’m holding the cameraman’s flash for that picture. I’ve a great face for blogging.
IN BIRMINGHAM FREESPACEBRUM PRESENTS – The Common Place in Leeds ‘was recently attacked by authority, its entertainment and alcohol licence revoked in order to damage it financially. In solidarity, Birmingham’s autonomous social centres collective present an evening of radical films on the evening of Tuesday 14th October at The Spotted Dog pub Alcester/Warwick St.’
Birmingham St Patrick’s Festival History project to present a copy of ‘A great day: celebrating St Patrick’s Day in Birmingham ’ to Birmingham community libraries – The presentation will be made on Friday 10th October at 9am at Erdington Library. ‘ The book is a record of the voices of ordinary people in Birmingham , telling their stories, which could easily be disregarded or forgotten. In the course of the research for the project, the Festival discovered that Birmingham held the 1st St Patrick’s Day Parade in England on Sunday 16th March 1952.’ To help with this year’s St Patrick’s Day festival attend the public consultation meeting next Thurs 16th Oct at The Irish Club at 8pm.
Gigbeth Myspace marathon – Just like last year Birmingham it’s Not Shit do a Gigbeth Myspace trawl, ‘having a quick shuftee at the myspace page of every act that was listed, listening to what we found and “reviewing” the bands based on only that. Quickly — no second goes, no in-depth research.’
Animation Galore at Hello Digital festival – Michal Makarewicz, award-winning animator on Pixar features such as The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille and Wall-E will be ‘in conversation’ on 24th October as part of Birmingham’s Hello Digital Festival. The free event takes place at 3.45pm at Think Space at Millennium Point.
Narrowboat Debdale: September Cruise – Day Four – Holidaymaker Adam takes his narrowboat Debdale through Digbeth, chugging along the Grand Union canal, through Warwick Bar, and a quick spin into Typhoo Basin. Then through the Curzon and Ashted tunnel to the Ashted locks and Aston Junction. I got flashed at in the Curzon tunnel whilst cycling through it the other week. Ring my bell.
Spaghetti Gazetti: Birmingham St Patrick’s Festival – Get involved in Digbeth’s biggest festival by going along to the community consultation on 16th October 2008 8.00pm – 9.30pm in the Irish Club, High Street, Digbeth.
Hello Digital/Hello World – Discover the future at The Midlands’ first digital festival Hello Digital in Millennium Point 23-26 October, with accompanying conference Hello World.
New custard mix – D’log gives his thoughts on the new Custard Factory website, and the creative industry’s uphill struggle against the credit crunch.
