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frank 20 July 2009

In a showbiz way, my nephew died today – and that’s not a good thing at all, whatever way it occurs – I played Frank McCourt’s mean Aunt Aggie in the wonderful Alan Parker realisation of the buke ANGELA’S ASHES. It was one of the most extraordinary experiences of my life in that I could not believe I landed that part (I happen to know there were Hollywood stars and starlets queuing for it) and also what a lovely experience it was too. I was not on the set anytime Frank was but I met him at a launch of a book 15 Irish authors (including me) had written for AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL (YEATS IS DEAD, is it by the by) and loomed over him as he looked a little frightened when he realised who I was, in another setting as ‘twere (don’t worry it was all kindly). The novel is bonkers and well worth a look – Roddy Doyle wrote the 1st chapter, little realising that everyone else would kill off all he had seeded and then put it up to every other author to follow in a like manner (I was most obedient to the lovely Joseph O’Connor, editor extraordinaire, ‘cos a) he is a GOD and b) I was a newbie and c) I hated to see him cry, asked me to come onboard. He had intended to write the last chapter himself but HAD to step in halfway through to stop the BLOODY SLAUGHTER and so it fell to Frank to do the honours at the end. When we, all but one, read at the launch in Dublin it was wonderful to hear Frank’s gentle tones announce that he was a Limerick man and therefore a Gentleman – I believed it then, I believe it now – we are the poorer for him passing and have lost a GOOD storyteller.

inspired 19 July 2009

Alright – Tom Watson may not have done it at the Golf today but he was SO close and an inspiration to all. Reminds me of my birthday recently (when, strangely, I returned for a long time to my early 40s) and my brother Ian and the lovely Curly sent me some lottery scratch cards – one of them was called BIG MONEY and I so nearly won just that. To be precise, I nearly won 100,000 euro as I had 2 of the 3 symbols needed and, you know what, I would have taken 2 thirds at 66,000 – actually I’d have settled for 60,000 and left it at that and been happy….but weirdly there was no provision for that. Ah well..so close and yet so far (as Franki Valli and the 4 Seasons sing).
The writing suffered because of my devotion to the golf today – I don’t regret a moment of it right now…but i will…i WILL…oh yes….

138th Open Chmpionship 18 July 2009

Endeavour, as some of you will know, is the first name of Inspector Morse of book and tv fame – I like what it stands for. As many of you will also know I have a peculiar devotion to watching golf on tv and, although at the moment I have to ration it, I did indulge in some of the Open Championship from Turnberry today = Oh. My. God. Basically, 59 year old Tom Watson is in the lead – he is the oldest man ever to lead the Open, let alone the oldest man to lead the Open into its final day (by some years). He still has his genial smile of yore and wonderfully easy swing and he’s still dapper, though the colours of his gear are a tad more muted. What I love is that he is total proof that if you can, you should – in fact, I wonder if you MUST! I hope he wins tomorrow and makes a mark for all of those who are getting on but still as good, if not getting better, at what they do! Tom Watson is an inspiration – you gotta have great time for that.
And Turnberry is a Links course which means it is by the sea, rough, windy and a nightmare if you go off fairway. When we holidayed as kids we did so by Strandhill in Sligo, which has its own Links course and I like the challenge you face on one of those. Strandhill is, as it happens, the only course I have ever played on and very bad I was too – I have no proper co-ordination for such things – but I LOVE that good walk wasted as it was once called (I also disagree that it is). Some day I’d like to get a game of golf together but when I do I suspect I will do nothing else and need to win the lottery to fund my new lifestyle…well, it COULD be me (apparently)
Kinda opens up the whole debate about retiring again – I think it should be optional. I also think most people deserve to give up if they want and take their pension after a lifetime’s work BUT if some people want to continue and there’s no health and safety issue with that LET THEM. One tiny thing – I do realise Tom Watson is only 59 but in sporting terms I guess types might think that a sorta ‘retirementy’ age…clearly not so…
All of the above is easy for me to say, of course, from my recent parking in the early 40s…where I shall be for some time…

conference 17 July 2009

My various jobs bring me to odd places at times. Yesterday I got a glimpse into a world I wouldn’t normally be part of – I attended some of an international conference on fostering. It’s being held in University College Dublin and the film HELL’S PAVEMENT which i made (about the uk fostering system) was shown to the delegates and then they had some workshops based on the issues raised in the movie and I took part in one of those. Later there was a screening in the centre of town and it was the first time I had seen the finished work – it’s good I am delighted to report and I didn’t even hate myself in it too much – I really don’t like looking at myself on tv or in films as I am looking at things no one else would notice, probably, and being horribly self critical all the time.
Aston Villa Football Club are following me on Twitter now – how cool is that! I should probably get into that properly BUT I have so many other ways of wasting time that I worry about adding another, which will become a handy way of avoiding writing and it’s high time I got STUCK into the novel – I am working on it all the time but it needs to go up a notch now as time is running out.

argument 15 July 2009

interesting stuff today – it’s to do with the ISE or IZE that you have to choose at the end of a word. if you are writing on a laptop you feel at the end of the american versus british version of stuff and, may i say, i always thought i sided with the Queen – BUT discovered today it is more complicated than that. It’s all about etymology (oh yes my friends look THAT lil baby up!) SO you chase the word back to the latin or the greek basically and for example Oxford University Press favour the Greek lads = the Hellenic and the IZE on the end of things whereas Cambridge prefer the Latinate ISE…so, nothing actually to do with us and the Yanks and the way i hope we rope in and mould the language and so do they at times- apologies to all my yanks out there but ain’t it GREAT to say YANKS out loud – as you all know i am a great fan of the C word too so it feels a little like that…
which is why i have to ask my UK peeps – michael gambon is doing a radio advert for HSBC at the mo and he says ‘current account’ SO quickly it sounds like c**t account – and i think it’s deliberate…and i’m not complaining AT ALL = fair play to him…just saying is all

24 14 July 2009

I did 24 radio interviews today to promote the mass paperback size of MISSING YOU ALREADY and I can (proudly) say that that’s a personal best. I sat in an unmanned studio in the bowels of the BBC in London and spoke to different regional stations, and the armed forces (big shout out to them) every 10 minutes – with a short break for lunch and a trip in person to my old station BBC London (used to be Greater London Radio when I worked there). I kept hydrated, my sweets, water and tea and coffee, and talked AT AN INTERNATIONAL LEVEL for Ireland – hope it translates into book sales! It was most enjoyable to be honest and, although I loved talking to all, some of the stations are in places I now consider very dear to my heart like Kent (the films for Maev like GYPO and THE CALLING were made there) and Devon (JAM AND JERUSALEM) and Wales (the sit-com HIGH HOPES and sporting adventures with various rugby lads) and Manchester (SHAMELESS now!) and so on.
Weirdly, there was a window in the small studio I was in (they are usually dark holes with little air and no clue as to where you are – ah, the glamour!) and though it looked across on a building site it was a window nonetheless and therefore SPECIAL.
Learned a few things from the live shows I joined…like…did you know that you can save £20 in 20p pieces in an empty Steradent tube?….a few of those and you have Christmas sorted!
As usual, I got something wrong in Forthcoming Events – I am doing the Wright Stuff on UK tv in the morning and that’s nothing to do with Steve Wright but everything to do with the lovely Matthew (no relation). And anyone around the library in Peterborough at lunchtime tomorrow do come along and we’ll have a laugh for an hour and discuss the whole crazy mess that is life and how we must try to live it…

perfect day? 13 July 2009

Lovely day – well, let’s be honest, any day encountering the Loose Women is always good. Include in that heady mix the fantabulous group JLS and you have one happy McLynn Lady. I have no worries about those boys – they are SO well adjusted that fame will have a hard time turning them into either the Helpless or Monsters – they are TOTALLY WONDERFUL – go buy the single ‘cos, forgot to say, they are talented also..what a combo…
Other ‘showbiz’ news is that I decorated a teapot for the WILLOW FOUNDATION, which is devoted to providing respite and much needed good times for chronically ill children, and mine raised the second highest funds in this particular outing – I was beaten only by a teapot signed by the ENTIRE Arsenal team – yes, you read right, it took 11 men combined (at least) to beat me…happy ‘bout that – lads, I say ‘BRING IT, if you think you’re hard enough….’

wrong 12 July 2009

Ah now, when things go wrong they do so in SPADES. Tonight’s flight Dublin to Heathrow was a classic case…we were aboard and ready to go when a certain langour took over and then people in high-vis vests came and went and eventually the captain admitted to us that there was a problem with the landing gear which had been spotted (phew, prior to take-off – always a boon) and the fault could not be corrected there and then so we were gonna change aircraft and 20 volunteers who switched to other flights would get themselves 125 euro compensation – they, it turned out, were the wise ones as they probably got off long before us and were quids up too. I can’t decide whether I like to know exactly what’s gone wrong when an aircraft is deemed unflyable or is being fixed to fly – some years ago I was on a flight before take off (again, prior = phew) when the computer in charge of everything crashed, and the captain told us as much and that a new one was being installed – I found I didn’t want to know all of the ins and outs as that prompted questions in my head and I fly way too often to let any of that get to me (I cannot afford the luxury of worrying or becoming a bad or nervous flyer). So, tonight, we were eventually let off and marched to another gate and another aircraft and then no one seemed to know what should happen and when we got on the new plane it was ‘sit wherever you like’ and I had the thought that if we went down there’d be eff all help from a passenger manifesto as no seating plan existed for the flight. All of which is to say sorry this blog is late this evening – technology and man’s undoubtedly fabulous, though sometimes troublesome, achievements have been ‘agin’ me for the last week or so and I am just rolling with that at present. Tomorrow, LOOSE WOMEN and radio interviews and lots of wondering if I finished a sentence at all or made any sense trying to talk about the work…I hope you like the latest incarnation of MISSING YOU ALREADY – it’s what we call the mass paperback size (perfect for the handbag or any bag) and is currently selling at a keen price all over – go forth, buy and enjoy!

eek 11 July 2009

Well, another year notched up – had accidental blow-out last night in preparation for same and was bit incoherent,so no blog. Interestingly, Dolores* was hovering (we haven’t seen or heard from her in a while) though she is well out of practice and didn’t manage a full manifestation (she isn’t actually let out at all anymore as she is way too attitudey and I just don’t like her). To mark this latest birthday, I have decided to start lying about my age – I have been very honest up till now (47 today, seein’ as how you’ve asked) but it may be time to start knocking a few years off and working backwards over time from there – in other words, I shall celebrate the anniversary of my 40th birthday from now on while remaining in my early 40s for a long, long time. As they say on the A Team ‘I love it when a plan comes together’. Off to forage for a hangover cure now (that’s something that ain’t improving with age – I am a cheap date and I suffer horribly after) – oh happy day…

*the ‘other’ me – a thundering BITCH

judas 9 July 2009

I went to a theatre show tonight that my niece has been working on (Production Intern, no less) while on work experience in Dublin. She is Ruby of the Stockwellians and 15 now. She has also been sequestered to Rough Magic (of whom you know I am practically bred, theatrically – try saying that quickly while drunk…) and has apparently archived the whole feckin THING (whatever that be, but take it as read tis the company and all 25 years of stuff) over the last fortnight. Good news is that the 2 weeks have been productive for all and have FLOWN. She wants to work in The Industry so I am delighted for her. And the show tonight was great – it’s called THE LAST DAYS OF JUDAS ISCARIOT and deals with just that in a courtroom atmosphere with lots of laughs and clever, insightful writing and acting and direction. I loved it – always thought Judas got the rum end of things and am still of that opinion but what I also think now is that he is US, you and I, faulted as feck…

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