My Favourite Movies of the Decade.

I decided I'd make a Top Twenty list of my favourite films that were released over the last ten years. There are probably a few films I'd have put on this list if I had seen them but there's not a lot I can do about that now, is there?

"Watch them?"
Shut up, omnipresent critical reader, you're always trying to put me down.
Without further to do, my list, which I've split into an unordered top twenty, with my favourite ten being those with a short paragraph.

Top Twenty Films of The Noughties.

• Anchorman
• The Departed
• Sin City
• Spiderman
• Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind
• Lost In Translation
• Thank You For Smoking
• Shaun of the Dead
• Sideways

Watchmen

Probably the least well received movie on this list, but I absolutely adored it. While the ending was different to the comic's, director Zack Snyder otherwise stayed loyal to the source. The characters are perfectly brought to life and fantastically played, with the stand out being Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach appearing as if he'd walked straight from the pages of Alan Moore's comic to the big screen.

Casino Royale

The 21st James Bond movie saw Daniel Craig make his bow as the famous 007. Casino Royale does not continue where the other twenty left off, but rather introduces us to a new timeline in which we see Bond as he earns his license to kill. It is a far grittier and more realistic movie than any Bond outing before it and this was crucial as the series had started to become clichéd, cheesy and formulaic.

WALL-E

In 2008, the geniuses at Pixar delivered, in my opinion, their best film to date(which says something looking back at their stellar filmography). WALL-E is a waste collection robot who spends his live collecting and sorting the waste that forced human kind to abandon the Earth. WALL-E finds love in the form of EVE, a robot sent by the humans to search for living plant life. I actually challenge anyone to watch this film and not feel an overwhelming sense of childhood innocence and wonderment.

Spirited Away

Spirited Away is a 2001 release from the legendary Studio Ghibli. The story revolves around young girl as she encounters a world of ghosts and spirits while moving to a new town. It won the 2002 Oscar for Best Animated Film and is the highest grossing movie in Japanese history. The film is also hand drawn, something which is not all that common in today's world of computer generated imagery which gave the film an even more charming quality. Spirited Away is nothing short of magical and is as good as, if not better than, anything the House of Mouse have produced.

Pan's Labyrinth 

Pan's Labyrinth was the most unforgettable movie of 2006. A dark and twisted fairytale set against the backdrop of the Spanish Civil War, it weaves its way through horror, fantasy and history seamlessly. Guillermo del Toro' let his imagination run free and created a visually arresting work of art. As a pure cinematic experience, it is a masterpiece.


The Dark Knight

I was going to feature Batman Begins instead because of what it did for the Batman franchise, but I couldn't leave it's 2008 sequel off this list. The Dark Knight just picked up exactly where BB let off and set the standard for not only comic book movies, but all action blockbuster movies. It showed that movies with explosion don't need to be devoid of plot, dialogue and character development (Michael Bay, I hope you're reading). Any mention of TDK isn't complete with mentioning Heath Ledger's role as The Joker which, in my opinion, is the best example of character acting ever.

The Motorcycle Diaries 

The Motorcycle Diaries is a biopic based on the memoirs of Ernesto "Che" Guevara from when he travelled across South America at the age of 23. Ernesto, accompanied by his best friend Alberto Granado, see firsthand on his travels the impoverished state of the people of rural South America. The film shows the passion of a young Guevara that lead him to become the iconic revoultionary that he became. Andrew from SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEXPIALIDOCIOUS! commented on this film 'After watching The Motorcycle Diaries, did anyone else think "Fuck, I'm wasting my life"?'

Donnie Darko

Richard Kelly’s twisted indie film Donnie Darko managed to slip under the radar in 2001 but became a hit with its DVD release and even managed to propel Gary Jules to a Christmas number one. It is a mind bending masterpiece that stays with you for a long time after you see it. Just try explaining it to your friends though.

The Wrestler

It could be argued that any of Darren Aronofsky's film made over the last decade could have featured on this list, but for me The Wrestler was his best. The story of Randy "The Ram" Robinson is one that so many real life professional wrestlers have lived, obsessing over their glory days and denying to themselves that they ever ended. This is a must see for everybody and most definitely is not just for wrestling fans.

The Lord Of The Rings

The word "epic" has become a bit of a cliché these days, but there is no better word for TLOTR trilogy. I'm including the trilogy, as last year I watched all three in one sitting and it was probably the most enjoyable ten straight hours of my life and if you ever get the chance to do it, don't hesitate to say yes! The trilogy won 17 Oscars overall, with each film winning the award for best visual effects, deservedly so as they are all stunning.

Amelié

Not only is this my favourite film of the last ten years, Amelié is my favourite movie of all time. The film centres around one of cinema's most enchanting characters Amelié Poulain (played by the mesmerising Audrey Tatou) and her journey to make people happy which, over the course of the film, causes her to fall in love. This is a film that, no matter how many times I watch it or whatever mood I am in, will always leave me with a great feeling of happiness and satisfaction. Lastly, the soundtrack, composed by the wonderful Yann Tiersen, is an absolute classic.

There you have it, a no doubt, highly disagreed upon list. I'd like to thank Aidan Greene for helping me get this done by the end of the year.

Interview with George Michael.

I recently had the privilege of interviewing George Michael. As it is Christmas I decided to ask George about the class "Last Christmas"

Me: So George, is there any deeper meaning to the song or is it just a song of love and heartbreak?

George: Actually Dave, sorry, is it okay if I call you Dave?

Me: Well I'd really rather you didn't...

George: Well Dave, "Last Christmas" is really about an unfortunate accident that lead to a man dying and his family donating his heart to a girl on Christmas Day. However, her body rejects the heart and she too passes away and the heart is then donated to another person. The entire ordeal is narrated by the spirit of the heart's original owner.

Me: I see, I see. What about the more romantic lines such as "I wrapped it up and sent it with a note saying "I Love You" I meant it."?

George: True story actually, Andrew (Ridgeley) once sent a sheep's heart with a love letter to a girl he saw on the bus once.

Me: Wow! Was it over things like this that lead to leaving Wham?

George: Sort of. As I've stated before, I wanted to make music for a more adult, sophisticated audience and Andrew wanted to continue targeting teenagers, both musically and sexually.

Me: I think we shall leave it there. Thank you very much for your time sir!

George: Don't mention it Dave!

George Michael: May or may not have participated in this interview.

The Spirit of Christmas is dead?

I was walking home from getting a late bite to eat with my friend Conor earlier on tonight when I notice two ladies crossing the road to my side. As I walk down the road one of the two ladies shouts to a passing car,

"Are you looking, love?"
Now, I must say that I didn't immediately think that they were hookers when I saw them for the simple reason that I didn't think they came in pairs (or should that be pretend to come?). I must say that Conor lives in a very nice and posh part of Dublin, it just happens to be a preferred spot for those on the game.
Back to me walking down the road! I pass the two women and the following conversation happened;

Hooker : "How're you tonight dear?"
Me : "I'm pretty good, and yourselves?"
Hooker : "Are you looking for some business?"
Me : "I'm afraid I'm not. Sorry!"
Hooker :"That's all alright. Take care love!"
Me : "Same to you. Have a nice night."
Hooker : "You too!"

So as you can see it was all very pleasant and polite, as all refused sexual transactions should be. However, I remembered Conor pointing out two Gardaí just before we got to his place. I call back to the prostitutes.
Me : "Eh, excuse me, sorry!"
Hooker : "Yeah?"
Me : "There are two Gardaí around that corner just so you know."
Hooker : "Aww, thanks very much love, that was very kind of you."
And with that they crossed back over the road and headed off into the snowy night as I continued home content in the knowledge I kept someone from spending Christmas in a jail cell. We can only imagine the fun, magical and mysterious adventure they're on right now.

Like this, only sluttier.

Although it's probably a safe bet to assume that it involves some chap's bell end tickling their tonsils.
People say the spirit of Christmas is dead; not on my watch it is.

"Lessons Learned" - Matt and Kim

"And so I stayed up all night
Slept in all day
This is my sound
Thinking about tomorrow won’t change how I feel today."

Pretty much me at the moment!

The messed up sleep/all over the place part, not the streaking tendencies...

Best Movies of the 2000's - My shortlist.

This is my list of films that I will be considering for my list of the top ten, possibly top twenty, of the last ten years. Please leave your suggestions and opinions in the comments section below. The final list will be posted this day week!

300
8-Mile
Amélie
American Psycho
Anchorman
Batman Begins
Bourne Trilogy
Casino Royale
Cast Away
Catch Me If You Can
City of God
Cloverfield
The Dark Knight
The Departed
Donnie Darko
Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind
Fantastic Mr. Fox
Garden State
Gladiator
Harry Potter series
Hellboy
Howl's Moving Castle
Juno
Kill Bill I
Lars and The Real Girl
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Little Miss Sunshine
The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy
Lost In Translation
Me and You and Everyone We Know
Mean Girls
Memento
Motorcycle Diaries
Napoleon Dynamite
No Country for Old Men
The Notebook
Pan's Labrynth
Oceans 11
Oldboy
Requiem For A Dream
Shaun of the Dead
Sideways
Speed Racer (happy Eamon?)
Spiderman
Spirited Away
The Spongebob Squarepants Movie
Star Trek
Thank You For Smoking
Up
Wall-E
Watchmen
The Wrestler
Zoolander

Again, please feel free to leave suggestions and opinions in the comments sections.

David "Nationwide (for a minute)" Reilly Vs. Megan "The Most Hated Family in America" Phelps-Roper

Recently the wonderful Mr. Kevin Smith was poking fun at Megan Phelps-Roper over Twitter so I went on to her Twitter page to see her responses. I noticed something that annoyed me a bit so I replied to her questioning it. The following are the screen grabs of our back and forth.

First however, I'll just explain who this girl is, she is the granddaughter of the head of the infamous Westboro Baptist Church, Fred Phelps. The Phelps family were featured on Louis Theroux's television show "The Most Hated Family in America" and are known for they're condemnation of homosexuality, Judaism, Catholicism, USA, Ireland and Sweden as well as picketing military funerals. Most Calvinists and Baptist regard Phelps's church as a cult.

I must note that it is not the aim of my comments to Megan Phelps-Roper to call into question the Protestant faith but to object to her ignorance and narrow-mindedness. I myself am a Catholic, a church with a ridiculous amounts of problems I know, but above all else I believe that people should treat others with love and respect and it is this belief that lead to me to objecting Phelps-Ropers statements.

Finally, I MAY have gone a tad overboard with my last comment, so I do apologise if it causes any offence to readers, that is never my intention.




I should note that it was here she stopped replying to me, but she did continue to reply to others. She then tweeted the following;

To which I suggested;
Perhaps a little much but she truly is a vile, hateful person. I'd like to say a thanks to anyone supported me on twitter.


So that's my little rant over! It'll be back to the lighthearted stuff from here on out!

My new doggie!

He helps me find puzzles and save babies in trees and rescue cats from wells and put out fires and brushes my teeth and tidies my flat and buys all my food and fixes my bike and scares away drug addicts and prostitutes and tucks me in a night and has a USB 2.0 port and a 1Tb hard drive so I can store lots and lots of songs on him and he makes sure I'm always on time because he is awesome. He is Dogpoop.

One of the all time greats...

...shows up a trash talking fan! :)

Sorry guys for all the Youtube videos in the last few days, I just wanted to get the Thierry Henry post moved to the 2nd page so it wouldn't be the first thing visitors saw. All will be back to normal soon. :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

So as I said I was supposed to be part of the colab video AceNichols33 made for Thanksgiving but I hadn't time to record my part.
I had some spare time earlier so I decided to film a quick video. I'm not laughing at the end, it's more a smile of embarrassment at the joke. :)

The Muppets: Bohemian Rhapsody

Quick equation.

The Muppets + Anything = 100000(Anything)(Better)

WWE Smackdown Vs. Raw 2010 Ad.

I love this trailer, it reminds me of the the old Smackdown 2 ads with The Rock and Kurt Angle. Kofi's face is fantastic as he rushes to help Kelly.
The best part of trailer, in my opinion, is John Cena's "OH COME ON!". As much as I dislike Cena's in ring character, I've a huge admiration for his work ethic and dedication to his profession.

Besides the fantastic advert, I'm looking forward to getting that. After a steep decline since 'WWE Smackdown! Here Comes The Pain', last years edition was a welcomed improvement so hopefully this year they'll continue with last years progress.

IKea-d you'd not, swedish furniture stores rock!

I recently went to the Republic of Ireland's first IKEA store out in the beautiful Dublin suburb of Ballymun*

*More hyperbole than has every been used ever before.

Long story short, I love IKEA. Rather than talk about the furniture et al, which is the same the world over, I'd like to thank the staff.

For what?

For not giving a fuck about what we did!

Ladies and gentleman, I present to you a picture of all the free pencils I took in the 2-3 hour time period I was there.



The above is exactly 140 pencils and 3 pens!

"KNACKER!" I hear you yell, but I've two very solid defences.

1.) When in Rome! (or Ballymun rather)
2.) I'm from Cavan, when we see free shit we take as much of it as possible.

There, two defences that would hold up in any court in the land!


Oh, yeah I bought a table too. Thought you'd like to know.

EXCLUSIVE! THIERRY HENRY IN POO PORN SHOCKER!

Guys and girls, coincidentally and conveniently after he cheated Ireland out of a World Cup spot, a picture of Thierry Henry partaking in some highly questionable acts have emerged. It is 100% legit and is in no way a bitter photoshopping on my part...

Shocking, I know!

Wish Me Luck.

While I should probably announce this on the actually <419 site, I get more traffic here so it seemed like the best option.

I've decided to write a <419 book. Well more "illustrate" a <419 book. I'm using inverted commas as I hardly consider myself as an illustrater or even a semi-competent drawer. Anyhoo, I've not 100% decided upon a title or theme of the book but for the moment it will be called "50 Ways To Break Up With Your Partner (Without Them Knowing)"

With exams and projects, it'd be unrealistic of me to thing I'll get this started in the next 3-4 weeks but while I'm off for a month after Christmas I will be hopefully hammering my way through like a coked up blacksmith.

Keyboard cat pops up on RTEs 'The Frontline'

David Reilly: The Drinking Game!

Today I learned that some girls I met a few weeks ago at a Trinity residences ball now have a drinking game named in my honour. This is how it was described to me, direct copy and paste:

marcus olaoire says:
someone shouts DAVID REILLY
and they have to create a visual representation of your hair
last one to do it drinks

I think it's an achievement, I'm up there with Sting and Eddie Murphy in one respect now at least.



But I will not be responsible for anything like the above happening.

I am flattered though. :)

EDIT: I'd like to point out the lovely irony in naming a drinking game after someone who is edge!

Teh Internetz knows my name lulz

Popped on to Youtube just there to see how many views my UCD Life videos had gotten so far. As I typed in my name Youtube suggest 'David Reilly Stand Up'. Needless to say I find this pretty deadly! :D


So then I decided to see if Google would be the same, seeing as they own Youtube. The results were a little weird and lead me to think I either have some sort of super secret, super large following somewhere, perhaps a cult deep in South America, or else I need a new stage name as there are far too many comedians going by David Reilly.


I know that near 99% of those 51000 results no doubt have nothing to do with me, but to all those who have acknowledged my online presence by following me on Twitter, Youtube or here, I offer you my most sincerest thanks and gratitude.

My UCD Life Episodes 3 and 4

My UCD Life

I've been recruited on to the UCD Video Squad, a position which requires me to make a series of videos about my life in UCD (University College Dublin for those of you not from Ireland, and by 'those of you' I mean 'both of you'). The idea is that our videos will be uploaded onto the UCD website so prospective students will get an idea about life in UCD. I've decided to post the first two of my videos here before they go up on the university's website. Enjoy!

Pull your punches perhaps?

Just saw the below advert on Facebook and it struck me as amazingly controversial.

I know, you're thinking "Yeah, it's a seasonally relevant ad; the type I've come to expect on social networking sites. What's your point David? Well??" Well hypothetical passive aggressive reader my point lies not in the advert itself, but, rather in the photograph in the ad.

Sure the guy has a very pronounce chin and indeed a very large, wall-like forehead. You could go so far as to say his ears are a little on the big side and that his cheek bones pose a threat to anyone in his vicinity when he turns around. But that is no reason for the people who commissioned the advert to draw notice to these harrowing facial features by comparing him to Frankenstein's monster. For shame.

"But the bolts in Frankenstein's neck, surely those signify that it's all a gentle and playful advertising campaign?"

Well to you my dear and equally hypothetical sympathising reader, that is where the advertisers have really gone to town on this poor man. Underneath the collar of his jumper are two bolt shaped tumours, one on either side of his neck. Yes, tumours. Still think it's a playful, harmless advert? Want to know who most certainly doesn't think so? Tumour neck up there.

Green Man

For fans of the TV show "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" you will no doubt know and love Green Man. For those who aren't aware of the show, Green Man is the alter ego of bar janitor Charlie. He has a tendency to pop up at the most random moments and is one of my favourite characters on television. So I thought for Halloween I'd buy myself a green morph suit and dress up as him. I got my suit in the post today so as soon as I got home I had to try it on!

Green Man sound bite  It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia sound bites

Eh, I'd rather not thanks!

So, I just saw this ad on Wrestlezone and was very, VERY disturbed by it.


Everyone has seen a 6 pack or in some cases and 8 pack (see: John Morrison) but who among us has previously seen the above. To me it looks as if he is about half a second from having a baby alien burst from his stomach.
It may just be me but I'd rather stay scrawny and weak than have a body that looked as if some one had vacuum packed me with left over bits of a pork.

Also what is with those two veins coming from from his crotch? Don't act like you've not noticed them.

Despite the ad saying not to waste money on protein powders or creatine, the side the ad links to sells (not free! The Internet lying? Whodathunkit!) some fat burning crap that I wasn't too bothered reading about.

Finally, how smug does that fucker look!? "Ooohh look at me! Look at my freakish abs and veins! I am the hawttest guy around! Sure I can no longer maintain an erection. But hell, with my downward pointing nipples and ring-pull belly button, I'm the happiest man around, way happier than you normal guys with your normal bodies and your veins that just pump blood, not liquid suppressed shame like mine!'

And now for...

THE OBLIGATORY CHEESY JOKE.

"I got ripped in four weeks!"
"More like ripped OFF!"
/snare rimshot
/muffled cough
/tumbleweed

Update!

I've not got a chance to post anything in the last month because of college work (ghey) and a deadly amount of comedy gigs(yay).

I WILL post more often.

Next up will be another installment of Diary of a (War)crack Addict. Check out parts 1 and 2 here and here!

In the mean time keep up with me on twitter.

Happy happy happy!

The below is a site I just came across that made me giggle like the proverbial schoolgirl! The URL looks a bit suspect, I know, but it's not harmful. Do check it out! :)

http://www.libo.ru/i447.html

If you don't giggle a little, you are a heartless monster!

EDIT: I'd advise you open the link by right clicking and selcting 'Open in new tab/window' so as to avoid the advertising bar from this site. :)

Clare Island

I spent the last six days on Clare Island, which is an awesome wee island of about 120ish people of the west coast of Ireland. I had insane fun with Marcus, Adam, Will, Laura and Aoishe and our islander chums Joanne, Saoirse Bob, Brian, Marian, Matthew, James and of course Eoin.

The below is just a snippet of what we got up to. Photos will follow once I find my USB SD card adapter!

Movie Madness update.

A long overdue update of the films I've seen from this list.

• All the Rockys
• Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
• The first 3 Rambos
• Fargo
• Independence Day
• Trainspotting
• Dawn of The Dead (2005)
• Casino
• North By Northwest
  

Pathetic I know, and I've spent far too many nights doing nothing or watching forgettable movie. As I will more than likely be living alone this coming college year, I'll get loads of time to watch the rest of the movies on the list.

Love this picture so much, it's almost a physical love.

Diary of a (War)crack Addict. #2

First of let me just say the reason it's taken me over 2 weeks to post another 'Diary of a (War)crack Addict' is because of the 174678 patches I've had to download. Everytime I open WoW I was told I need to download a patch. These patches were to get me from what I think was version 3.0something of the game to the current 3.2 version. However at about version 3.1.0something, after numerous 9 hour patches, it decided that that would do and I'd actually be allowed to play the game.
I went to Blizzard's EU website and upgraded my account to the Burning Crusade expansion. (Thanks very much again to Remi Rockit for her being her usual helpful self.) Having two new races available to me I chose the 'baddie' of the two new options, the blood elf.

P.I.M.P

The above chap is my Mage Blood Elf. He is currently at level 4 after a few embarrassing deaths to some Tenders and a fence post (well at least that's how it looked from my angle.)
As I said in the first edition of this 'Diary' this was not going to be a record of what happens in the game, more my take on the games effect on my social life, sleeping pattern, general health etc. I just stopped playing for the night and it's 5.30am I've spent the last 4 days dosed with a horrible prick of a cold which I've still to fully recover from and I've a very busy 2 weeks ahead including a wedding and a comedy show. Soooo, all in all, WoW has so far only become a minor hindrance in my plan to fix my sleep pattern to one which is somewhat sociable in GMT.

On that note I shall go to World of Dreamcraft.


I mean bed; I shall go to bed.


Knight!


I mean night; night!

Quick question folks.

Who took this picture??

Ireland's Eye: Ensuring the survival of Irish stereotypes...

...one, lonely, old potato farmer at a time.

Next, they'll be making out we've a fondness for the drink!

Wotcha gonna do brutha?

I'm going to enjoy my tea from an awesome Hulk Hogan mug is what!

Suspicious eh?

This is a screen grab I took a day or two before going to Oxegen so apologies for it being delayed. It's the Last.Fm homepage and it shows who most users are listening to. Now, as you can clearly see Mr. Michael Jackson is (was) the top most played artist or the day or whatever time period they base their numbers from. This is of course understandable as he had died the week previous, and it was sort of a big deal.
However, the little red bit on the artists' picture says 'On Tour' and is displayed if a band or singer is, obviously enough, on tour. Now, as can be seen from above MJ is currently touring, despite, well, 'pining for the fjords'.
This does however confirm the rumours that MJ shall be touring in the form of the infamous Thriller zombie.

Oxegen 2009 - The Good, The Bad and The Muddy.

Oxegen 2009 was my fourth consecutive Oxegen festival. In order to avoid a huge wall of text I'm going to review it in bullet points under three headings.

The Good

• Getting to the campsite and setting up in good weather.
  
• AC/DC tribute band Hells Bells playing the Thursday night stage.
• The Xbox Live stage in the Blue Campsite.
• Niall Gaffney's childlike excitement towards returning to Oxegen.
  
• "I'm sorry, I thought this was America"
  
• "I like your schtyle!"
• "So basically, we're lucking for trouble."
  
• Having an awesomely warm and dry tent.
• Having awesomely warm and dry tent mates!
• 'Free' stuff.
• Pendulum playing Master Of Puppets.
• Charming some free Ben & Jerry's
  
• Good nights of sleep.
• Showering.
  
• Meeting people from all over the place especially Tyrone (Sean, Shauna and Hannah) and Belfast (Sophia, Meabh and of course Max)
  
• Trip into Naas and associated 'free' bowl and salt shaker.
  
• Chancey Tent.
• The relationship between Ken and Ferghal.
  
• Getting recognised by a random Londoner as 'David Reilly the Comedian!!'
• Seeing my friend Jon Hozier-Byrne's brother Andrew play the IMRO Stage.
• Seeing The Killers play songs from Hot Fuss.
• The random sunny intervals.
• Not having to worry about tents or bags on Sunday.
• Mud fights.
• Learning how to make the Blood symbol.
• The guy in the horse mask doing the 'look'.
  
• Experiencing Of Montreal's show.
• Toplessness.
• Dancing to Song 2 in my boxers with Conor.
• Meeting Conor and Ken just as the "Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaahhh!" from Sabotage by The Beastie Boys kicked in during The Bloody Beetroots.
• Niall's return from Naas Hospital.
  
• The Frothy Gashes were the band of the weekend. Followed by The Bloody Beetroots or Of Montreal.

The Bad

• The rain.
• Sunburn.
• The toilets.
• Niall refracturing his leg.
  
• Over abundance of chavs, knackers, scumbags, skangers, scobes, spidies, pillheads etc.
• Festival virgins shouting "It's Oxegen!!" whenever anyone did anything sensible like sleep.
• Sleeping on a rock.
• Getting soaked going to the Schuh Welly Exchange only to find it to be closed.
• Being three minutes from meeting Maximo Park but being too pissed off about the Schuh tent to wait.
• Ladyhawke getting sick. (Swine Flu or the good AIDS I reckon)
  
• The Game cancelling (Shot no doubt)
• People losing phones and cameras.
• Overcrowded tents.
• Knackbags acting the prick during The Gaslight Anthem waiting for The Game.
• Getting headbutted at Pendulum.
• Scumbags moshing. They don't know how to. If someone falls down, you let them up, not swing kicks at them.
• Hearing The Killers play songs from their second and third album.
• Not meeting more Tweeple or friends from Kilkenny or Dublin.
• Dropping medication on the Dance Hall's floor and having to take it anyway.
• Missing some great bands due to clashes or weather; Mars Volta, Regina Spektor, Nick Cave and The Bad Seeds, Digitalism to name a few.
• Not being able to find my tent, regardless of time of day.
• Being chased by a security guard for peeing on a fence while trying to put it away without peeing on myself or catching myself in the zip.
• Foals not playing Hummer.
  
• Constantly being asked for 'yokes', pills or E's.

The Muddy

• Anto Lynch
• Conor Kelly
• Brendan McKiernan
  
• Emma Finch
  
• Ferghal Hand
• Hannah Tyrone
  
• James Henry
  
• Joseph O'Sullivan
  
• Ken Ryan
  
• Leanne Brady
  
• Louise O'Malley
• Lucy Doyle
  
• Marcus Sheridan
  
• Maxine Clarke
• May Belfast
  
• Niall Gaffney
• Niall Murray
  
• Oisin Henry
  
• Oisin McDonnell
  
• Rob Hand
  
• Robbie Kane
• Sam Moore
  
• Sarah Reilly
  
• Sean Tyrone
  
• Shauna Tyrone
  
• Sophia Connolly
  
• Sorcha Almond-Murray
• Tereas Cronin
  
• Me :)

All in all, it was an enjoyable year. Out of the four I've been to, I'd rank it in third place ahead of 2007, and behind 2006 and 2008.Will I go back next year? Can't say for sure, but no doubt, like every year, I'll change my mind 418 times before next July.

Diary of a (War)crack Addict. #1

I used to make fun of my friend Eamon for playing the MMORPG World of Warcraft. However due to my status as an unemployed and unpaid comedian I started to become a little interested in WoW. One day I received an email from Eamon containing a '10-day free trial'. I decided to download the trial but when I went to play it I misread something a thought the trial didn't work. Seeing this as a sign I concluded that I wouldn't try it again.
How wrong I was.

After my friend Jane tweeted asking for people to play WoW with her I decided I'd give it another go, this time at least I'd have someone to help me start it off so I'd know what to do. So I set about creating a character named Daithí. He is a Tauren Druid, as I'm sure you could all tell from the picture below.

Awesome, no?

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand I've pretty much been hooked since!

I originally planned on not buying the game after my trial expired.
But like most thing I decide not to buy, I bought it. But I didn't just buy the game, I bought the World of Warcraft Battle Chest which contains the game, and expansion pack and two guides, all for the humble price of €18.

So, the aim of my 'Diary of a (War)crack Addict' posts will not be to document how I'm doing and needless boring any readers, but will rather to document the effect WoW may possible take on different aspects of my life, be it social, health, mental or what have you. And of course, if I encounter any proper nerdy losers (pot/kettle anyone?) while playing I will be sure to mention* them here.


*read = make jokes at their expense

Be sure to read part two of Diary of a (War)crack Addict here!

Laugh Out Loud at Anseo 2: Electric Boogaloo.

My stand up comedy appearance at Anseo on Camden St. Dublin on June 29th.

Screw Iran, THIS is conflict.

In recent weeks most of the news media has been primarily concerned with the controversial re-election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the subsequent street protests, violence and deaths. Due to restricted foreign media within Iran, sites such as YouTube and Twitter are proving to be alternative, unbiased news sources.
However, without taking from the problems in Iran, there is an issue much closer to home that I feel needs as much, if not more press coverage.

'Shit-your-pants terrifying' - One local politician's take on the situation.

Yes that is right folks. The seemingly ongoing row over turf cutting rights has indeed heated up again. Who this row is between is unknown to me. I did try and research the story, but unfortunately the article was too boring to comprehend, I will wait for the inevitable big budget Hollywood adaptation, hopefully directed by Micheal Bay or Oliver Stone.

Apocalypse Next Tuesday Or Whenever Suits You.

Birthday Vlog.

Narcissism or Self-Deprecation.

Lies.

I think I'll stop making films for a while, they seem to be rapidly getting worse.

Ooh, All The Juicy Bits Left In!

This is my latest short, that YouTube felt the need to disable the audio on, so i'll host it here too.

Winter In Reno

I don't feel I could explain anything that the title doesn't already.

Not the Bee all and end all...

Moments ago, ladies and gentleman, I went through somewhat of an ordeal. I was going about my business in the bathroom, as one does, when a bee flew in the window. Now, not wanting to get stung while, well you know, so I didn't make any sudden movements. When I was ready (hands washed), I prepared to do battle. I took a towel an twisted it into the form known as a 'rat tail' and faced my striped foe.
Not wanting to spend much time with it, I waited until the bee came to a stop on the window. I twirled the towel some more and flick my wrist, hoping to deal a killer blow. A killer blow was indeed struck, but alas, it was a death knell to mum's vase that sat on the window sill. As the vase crashed of the cistern and to the floor, the potted plant in was home to flew through the air, landing at my feet.
I looked at the destruction I had caused, then stared intently at the bee as it mocked me. Not wanting to have broken the vase in vain, I twirled the towel again and flicked me wrist. Bulls eye. This first strike did not kill my adversary, only riling it more. I continued my attack, assuming a fencing style of striking and bouncing backwards on the balls of my feet.

After what I had thought was the final strike I left to get my phone to document the chaos. When I returned I poked the dead bee with the corner of the towel. Before I made contact though, my fallen foe lifted a leg/arm as if to say 'No more sir. Let me go honourably, alone with just my thoughts to sooth me'.
It was at this moment I felt a pang of remorse and empathy. What had I done? Had this bee just gone on a early afternoon flight, perhaps to look for work or a new home for his family who had grown weary of hive life and wanted a more relaxed pace of life? As these thoughts buzzed around my head, I slowly cleaned up and left my respected foe to feel the sweet embrace of death as he thought of his loved ones.

Bumble B. Buzzington

2009-2009

May he rest in peace.

Om Nom Nom!!

Insomnia + Paper I Found While Tidying + Half A Bag Of Gummy Snakes I Felt Too Sick To Eat =

Phish Guts Shake.

Third milkshake in three days. I'm quite impressed at myself:)



Ingredients:

- Milk
- Vanilla ice cream
- Ben & Jerry's Phish Phood
- Cadbury's Turkish Delight
Steps:

-Claire Richards

Add 500ml of milk to the blender.
Then add 6-8 squares of Turkish Delight.
Blend for about 30 seconds to break the chocolate up well enough.

-Faye Tozer

Now add three scoops of vanilla ice cream and two scoops of Phish Phood.
Blend!


-Lisa Scott-Lee

Test it.
It may need to be blended a bit for to get that milkshake constituency. If so...
Blend!

-Lee Latchford-Evans

I managed to get two servings out of the measurements I used.
Top with two slivers of Ben & Jerry's and one sliver of vanilla, and sprinkle with some Flake.
The name comes from the little bits of red turkish floating about and the dismember chocolate phish from the B&J.





-Ian 'H' Watkins

A bit like yesterday's shake, the chocolate tends to get into the little crevices of the the blender so you may have to disassemble it to fully clean it. Just watch out H almost lost a finger on the blender blades. Twat.


Note: I originally thought this recipe would be suitable for vegetarians, but after some research, Cadbury's Turkish Delight appears to be veggie friendly.

Thanks muchly!

Uncle Raspberry's Riproaring Good Time and Chocolate Chip Experience !

I continued my productive ways and decided to make to have another crack at making a milkshake.

Ingredients:
-Milk
-Raspberry Ripple ice cream
-Chocolate chip cookies

Despite not being a fan of measurements or specifics I did note them in case anyone wanted them

Steps:

-Claire Richards

Add 500ml of milk to the blender.
Then add 5 cookies, breaking them once or twice before putting them in.
Blend!

Yummy, eh?

-Faye Tozer

Now add two large slices or three scoops of raspberry ice cream.
Blend!
Blend for about 30 seconds to fully homogenise the mixture.

-Lisa Scott-Lee

Test it.
If it's too runny, add another scoop/slice of ice cream.
Blend!

-Lee Latchford-Evans

By now it should be finished.
Serve in a large glass and top with a little bit of ice cream and some crumbled cookies.

Cookies yet to be added; Latchford-Evans slacking.

-Ian 'H' Watkins

There's a bit more effort invloved in cleaning the blender due to renegade lumps of cookie and ice cream. Buy it's cool, because that's what H is for.


Thanks for reading! :)

Coffee Milkshake!

For those who hate coffee, stop gagging. It's nice!

Ingredients:
-Vanilla Ice Cream
-Coffee (granulated)
-Sugar
-Milk

Not pictured: a cup of hope.

Don't ask me for measurements because I just threw what I felt was the right amount into my smoothie maker.

Steps:

-Claire Richards

Place a good bit of milk in the blending device.
Add two or three spoons of coffee depending on preference.
Blend for a few seconds until the coffee is dissolved and the milk has turned a healthy brown colour

-Faye Tozer

Add 3 scoops of vanilla ice cream and one spoon of sugar.


And blend!

Thumbs up indeed!

-Lisa Scott-Lee

At this stage I did a test. It was a bit runny. So...
MORE ICE CREAM
For some reason I felt the need to add more coffee and sugar. Absolutely no need as it tasted fine.
Then blend!
It was a bit thick this time, so I added a drop of milk and then blend for 4-5 seconds.

-Lee Latchford-Evans

Serve in a large Oxegen cup.
Sprinkle some Flake on the top of it.
And there you have it. Done. Finito. QED.





-Ian 'H' Watkins

Yeah, well I was never a huge H fan so lets leave him with the cleaning up. :)

Thanks for reading, folks!

Kilkenny Fringe Festval blog post...

...will be up in a day or two when I get my hands on some more photos.

Laugh Out Loud at Anseo,

Omegle Conversation

Connecting to server...
Looking for someone you can chat with. Hang on.
You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say hi!
You: hi!
Stranger: u a woman?
You: not yet
Your conversational partner has disconnected.




That's what he gets!

Wrestlemania XXV Review!

So WWE Wrestlemania XXV was one April 5Th 2009.

I watched with my friends Marcus and Adam, and yes that does matter!
I'm going to do play by play review, but more opinion.

It was due to start at midnight and at like 25.45 we find out that one of the most anticipated matches was moved to a pre-show match, which was frankly bullshit.

As I can't give an opinion of the match, I'll just say that The Colóns beat Miz and Morrison to unify the Tag Team Championships.

Money In The Bank Ladder Match:

This match has become a staple for excitement and unpredictability. This year's entrants were Kane, CM Punk, Christian, Kofi Kingston, MVP, Shelton Benjamin, Mark Henry, Finlay and a crazy amount of ladders. Like every year, this match was a spotfest!
However, the pizza guy arrived during this match and I missed Benjamin's leap off the 25ft ladder. /humpf

I thought Kofi and Benjamin were really fantastic, with all competitors putting in a good show.

CM Punk won the bout for the second successive year. Now I am happy he won, as I'm a huge Punk mark, but I thought Benjamin or Christian would have been better choice to win.

RATING: 9/10

Kid Rock
needs to die.

Battle Royale:
25 Divas 'brawling'. It was so messy, but it was cool seeing Torrie Wilson again.

SantinA Marrello won!

RATING:2/10

Chris Jericho V Roddy Piper, Jimmy Snuka and Ricky Steamboat

Very happy Jericho picked up all three pinfalls cleanly. Steamboat was better than Flair was in his last few years in the ring. The Mickey Rourke involvement was a let down. Very brief considering the weeks of build up.

RATING: 6/10

Jeff Hardy V Matt Hardy:

This was a very good match, with both brothers going all out. Seemingly Jeff botched something on a ladder, but I missed it I think. I liked the ending. I don't think Jeff will be able to sit down for quite a while. The Twist of Faith with Jeff's head in the chair was SICK. So cool!
Very happy Matt won as it boosts his standings imo.

RATING: 8/10

Rey V JBL:

Rey's outfit was awesome; a Heath Ledger Joker style mask and clothes.
Rey beats JBL in 21 seconds to win the Intercontinental title.
JBL then quits!
I really dislike JBL but he deserved a better retirement than getting squashed.

RATING: 2/10

Undertaker V HBK:

Oh. My. GOD! This was one of the best matches I've ever seen. I don't like HBK but I'm not evening considering that. Both he and Taker, despite being in their forties, showed all the boys in the back how to tell a story in the ring, how to get the crowd on their feet, how to entertain and how to put on true 5 star wrestling match.

In one word, wow!

'Taker's streak is intact at 17-0!

RATING: 10/10

Triple Threat Match: Edge(c) vs. John Cena vs. Big Show

Gash. That's what this match was for the most part. John Cena's entrance was epic, as is expected of him at 'Mania. However, why doesn't anyone else in the match get a big, fancy entrance?
Anyhoo, Cena pretty much controlled the match. Edge, despite being champ, got very little offense in. Big Show, who I wanted to win, was his usual reliable self.
Cena wins the strap after impressively lifting both Big Show and Edge on his back, which I believe is over 45 stone.
Cena winning was the obvious outcome. I would have like Show to win as it'd be nice to see a change at the top. Or maybe Edge winning discarding Vickie in the process.

RATING: 6/10

Triple H V Orton:

Orton should have won. They built him this legit menace and threat with two great lackeys in the form of Priceless; they didn't even make an appearance during the match. The quality of the match was good, it always was going to be, it was just the style in which the outcome occurred.
It was fairly straight forward in terms of a PPV main event finish, but this was 'granddaddy of them all', they should have thrown a curveball on this one.
RATING: 7/10

Highlights:

• Shelton Benjamin's 25-30 ft leap in the MiTB match. Despite missing it live, I watched it today and was very impressed. They really need to build him up this year and pull the trigger on him in next year's MiTB.


• Undertaker's dive out of the ring, annihilating the cameraman. Also Marcus had fallen asleep so when I shout 'HE'S KILLED THE CAMERAMAN!', Marcus wakes up and says (iirc) 'Why did he kill him?!'. Awesomes.


• Stone Cold's final beer. Stone Cold zooms around the ring on a farm quad before drinking a few beers in the ring like he only he can. End of an era. One of the greatest ever to step in a ring.

Lowlights

• Moving the Tag Team Unification match to pre-show. Leaving four of the most talented young guys of the main card is a travesty, especially to John Morrison. The man is a guaranteed future World Champion!


• The complete disrespect to ECW. It speaks volumes of how much Vince cares about ECW. The brand champion, Jack Swagger, wasn't on the card at all. Again, this is a guy they hope will be a face of the company in years to come.


• Kid Rock. The fact that their wasn't a angel, watching him from above, armed with a sniper rifle and eager to impress millions of people worldwide.


• Jerry Lawlor : 'Rey's outfit must be a tribute to Heath Ledger.'
  JR: 'Except Rey's career is alive and well.'
  /facepalm

If you read through all of the above, thanks muchly!:)

Omegle - Line of the Day

/facepalm to his sense of ethic


Stranger: but i like to walk down a street and see a white guy once in a while


Preceded by 'I'm not racist, but'


Tool.

Site of the Week - Omegle

Omegle

Omegle is a instant messaging site where two users to one another anonymously.

I've only just started using it, so I'll just post an conversation I just had.
(You = me, Stranger = well, the stranger)

Stranger: SAY HI NOW!
Stranger: BIATCH I SAID SAY HI!
Stranger: NOW!
You: hi!
You: or HI!!!

As I've just found this site, I'll report back later with more.

UPDATE

Connecting to server...
Looking for someone you can chat with. Hang on.
You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say hi!
You: watching wrestlmania?
Stranger: what is wrestlmania?
You have disconnected.
or send us feedback.

The Late Late Show and me.

Pat Kenny has announced his retirement.
It came as a shock to pretty much everyone, I think at least. After thinking about it for a few minutes, I realised that as a nation we lack a certain quality of chat show host.
I feel that as a result of our sub-par standard of broadcaster, that I am as fit for the job as anyone. So I did what I thought was necessary to get the job. Yes, that's right, I started a petition.

A link to my petition!

The above is the link to said petition.
I feel that it is time RTÉ acknowledge that young people watch television too. Shocking facts, I know! Hopefully this news hasn't rattled your core beliefs in all that is right.

If instated I will introduce a more Letterman style of show. I know that Tubridy chap tries, but that is all he does, tries.
I will grill topical guests in a dry and witty manner (hopefully).
I will have the latest and greatest bands perform weekly, and as can be seen earlier in this sentence I have substantial rhyming skills for any rap battles that may break out.

I have experience in journalism, writing for the UCD Observer on 3, yes three occasions, before being unceremoniously ignored by them. (All due to the fact the the singer from The Enemy is an unresponsive douche) Furthermore I have experience in comedy, which I think is a vital skill in hosting a chat show.
I can appeal to the youth of today, being 18 years of age. I can also reach out to the elderly viewers, having once fallen in the shower.

What I am asking of you is not going to increase taxes, reintroduce fees or touch up your nephew after Mass, no ladies and gentleman I simply want to provide light entertainment that not only tends to topical issues, but also provides a giggle.

I urge you, as a friend, as a fellow TV viewer and as a member of this supposed free country, to sign my petition and together we can make a difference!

Will change RTÉ for the best?

Well as Gordon Brown said while quoting Barrack Obama,

YES WE WILL!


Also, there 100% will be one for everyone in the audience!