Possibly the best spam email I’ve ever seen.
The (Great?) Belfast Toastie Hunt
I don’t know where this came from. I think it’s partly down my friend Andy’s LIFETIME AMBITION to open a toastie shop, coupled with a rare period of boredom in work last week where the ultimate comfort food became a topic of conversation. Read more…
Speak softly, carry a big stick and don’t cry over spilt milk.
“Our efforts must be primaily about putting more SDLP votes into ballot boxes and I will give you all I’ve got in return to ensure that’s achieved,” The words of Alasdair McDonnell on accepting the leadership of the SDLP last year. What he failed to mention was he wanted a little somethin-somethin in return… Read more…
Image management, it’s a hell of a drug. #MTVEMA
Did you hear the one about Bob Dylan, Justin Bieber and yer man from Maroon 5 going on the Titanic boat tour…ON A SUNDAY?
With the MTV EMAs this weekend, the awesome, awesome, incredible hyperbole is kicking off all over town. But it’s worth noting where these ridiculous rumours start — the PR control freaks.
Everything from the perkiness of the waitresses serving Gaga and bloody Kasabian, to the colour of the walls backstage, is under the watchful eyes of MTV’s PR bods.
Local photographers have been told “No wide angles” ahead of Sunday night’s show.
To give you an idea of how sensitive these image-makers are, here’s an excerpt from Rihanna’s photo-contract from her recent Belfast gigs:
Photographer shall provide copies of the “Photographer’s edit” of the Images
to Tourrihanna either: (i) promptly following the exclusivity period granted to the
Publication; or (ii) or if no exclusivity period is granted to the Publication,
promptly following completion of the shoot. Photographer agrees that any
Images, and all copies thereof, which were not provided to Tourrihanna as part of
the “Photographer’s edit” shall be permanently destroyed/deleted by
Photographer so that they may never be seen by any third party.
You can see the rest of this typical, self-important contract here.
Enjoy Sunday night!
Legal threat from @NITODAY
In what has to be a legal first, NITODAY have managed to summon the police, to what is normally a civil matter.
I expect legal bods will be pouring over this case for decades to come.
After questioning the non-existant charity status of a claimed charity, I received a series of DMs from @NITODAY. Enjoy:
#ComeDineWithKeith Sweet Rum & Coke Chili
Ok, so here is my amazing Sweet Rum & Coke Chili, that somehow developed into a live-tweet extravaganza. Read more…
Now FIVE ‘super injunctions’ active in Northern Ireland.
After Justice Minister David Ford announced there were four super injunctions in place in June this year, I can reveal a fifth injunction has been granted.
Mr Ford confirmed the number in a response to questions by MLA and Assembly agitator Jim Allister.
When pressed for more details on the nature of the fifth super injunction, a spokesman for Courts NI confirmed: “One order prohibiting publicity on the granting of injunctive relief has been granted since 6 June 2011.
“Further information cannot be provided on extant orders without risking contravening the terms of the order.”
So, there you go. Another super injunction granted by an anonymous court, restricting the reporting of god only knows.
Watch this farcical space.
Funded fleg burning…
Belfast City Council must be proud of their Bonfire Management Programme.
The Sandy Row boney is probably one of the most high-profile pyres in the city, located a wkd bottle’s throw away from the Europa Hotel and Crown Bar - it has the highest footfall in town. Tourists travelling up on the Enterprise from Dublin today will be met with a slightly jarring message as they make their way up Great Victoria Street. “Enjoy your stay in Northern Ireland, but don’t you fucking dare cross that border.” Read more…
Tom Elliott wants to take us back to the 80s…will the UUP jump in his time machine?
So what’s he playing at?
Do modern unionists really refer to Sinn Fein as “scum”?
This might be the biggest PR disaster of the election. Whilst reaching out for what he sees as the lost sheep of the TUV, he’ll be wiping out his core support from the moderate unionist centre.
Deary me.
Video of Tom’s outburst on UTV Election live blog.
Can we just get on with it?
It’s horrible, it’s pure barbarism and it happened the day before Mother’s Day. Ronan Kerr’s murder was not ‘mindless’ or ‘without logic’, but it was almost certainly futile.
The 25 year old Catholic PSNI recruit was killed by dissidents in a car bombing in Omagh.
This attack and those before, both botched and thwarted, serve a purpose and as the peaceful horrified majority, it’s vital we understand this. To dismiss the acts of Dissidents as mindless is just wrong and dangerous.
The bottom line is they want to achieve three things:
1) Police retaliation. Doors broken down, houses searched and harassed families in tears.
2) Army on the streets.
3) Loyalist retaliation.
Either one, or all three of the above would help solidify a sympathetic community behind their ’cause’, and without the support of the community, any armed struggle is nothing more than random acts of violence, thuggery and murder.
So really, it’s very simple. We starve them of these three goals, and they gain nothing. Absolutely nothing.
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