Irish Actors+Film nominated for 'Best British' awards.

[YesSireeeBob]

From The Irish Times:

Once director John Carney and Atonement actress Saoirse Ronan are both
British, according to the London Film Critics Circle. They have been nominated
Once, which was set and shot in Dublin, for best British film of the
year and shortlisted Carney in the British breakthrough (film-making) category.
Ronan also gets two nominations, as best supporting actress and for British
breakthrough (acting).
Atonement and Control top the list with eight nominations each,
even though neither is nominated for best film. The awards will be
presented on February 8th.

http://img213.imageshack.us/my.php?imag ... titsm2.jpg


There was a discussion on this story on Wednesday's Liveline:
http://www.savefile.com/files/1309968 (13mb)
http://www.rte.ie/radio1/liveline/ (43.40mins)


This is part of the reply the caller got from the London Critics Circle:

Dear Emmet,
..................though you're rather cross about our nominations,
the fact is 'Once' did not stand a chance in the Foreign Film Category,
while we acknowledge it was filmed entirely with Euros, we have included it
in the British section (we do normally include Irish actors ect also).
..........
I entirely take the point that the film and the stars not been labeled
Irish but you must appreciate that been a British critic he/she accepts the film as
British.
..........and until the Irish Film Industry rolls out a substantial number of movies, they will
be accepted as us as British Isles (sic).

And guess what? The letter writer is Irish, Denise Silvester-Carr.
Although, it was the film critics that nominated actors/films for particular

William Russell distanced himself from the letter on LL yesterday. Although he just spoke a load of blather himself.

Two points:

1. Thank God we are still not part of the UK. All our success stories would be labeled British. We would almost be culturally banished.

2. Who's the nationalist? The Irish for responding to this or the British?
I think a lot of people listening to Liveline would think the Irish caller was a nationalist and not the British.

[Corcaigh33]

The 26 counties not being part of Great Britian does not stop our success stories from being labelled British and in my opinion, much as it pains me to agree with a troll, we are almost culturally banished.

Our television shows British soaps, there is more Emmerdale, Coronation St, the Bill and Eastenders on Irish television than there is on English. Our Oirish tabloids are their English counterparts with Irish television and the odd bit of GAA - editorial lines are exactly the same as the English ones. In an effort to compete our main broadsheets have followed suit. I admit I am Spurs fan but our sports have been subsumed in the rush for news about the premiership to the detriment of FAI soccer even. Our entertainment stars think nothing of accepting English honours (of course then we are at fault there as we don't have an honours system of our own).

Don't even get me started on Croke Park?

It's as if our recently found wealth and largesse has triggered a de-evolution of mindset back to the "priviledged classes" of yesteryear, spurning all things Irish, culturally etc for fear of not being cosmopolitan in the "new" Ireland.

P.S. In my 900 and odd posts it will be clear that I am not advocate of a uniquely Irish culture uninformed and isolated - if anything I have posted on many occasions for our need to embrace and integrate other cultures into our own especially those of our newer foreign citizens. However, I believe culturally we have been assimilated in the most "Borg"-like fashion and we need to do something about it soon before it's too late.

[YesSireeeBob]

I don't know why you refer to me as a troll.

This story was published in The Irish Times and received almost 15 minutes on national radio. Are they trolls?

I think you're mixing up two points, the labeling of 'things' Irish as British and
the domination of our culture by British media.

If you came to Ireland in, say the 1960's, most people would have consumed Irish media,
and still at that time the British media would have co-opted some of our culture as British. And the reason for my post is that they are still at it.

I can see how you are mixing up the two. It may seem that everything in Ireland today is British but this is our own fault.
For example, it would be very easy for there to be 10-15 Irish TV channels distributed on an Irish system. This would have a huge impact on our culture.
It is however not our fault that the British sometimes refer to us as British.

[Corcaigh33]

No I wasn't referring to you as a troll at all. Apologies that you thought I was.

The particular troll I am referring to there is Charlie Martel who in an earlier thread more or less said we had a British culture anyway.

I also agree that one point led into the other in my original post as opposed to be mixing them up and apologies again for that.

[YesSireeeBob]

No problem Corcaigh.

I have read the rantings of Mr Mantel.

I think we need a new word other than 'troll' for his type.

How about "Gaelbaiting"

[White Horse]

Denise Silvester-Carr clearly stated that the use of the term "British" is purely geographical rather than political.

A reasonable position that only anti-British bigots would have a problem with.

[gaelach]

Denise Silvester-Carr clearly stated that the use of the term "British" is purely geographical rather than political.

A reasonable position that only anti-British bigots would have a problem with.

Eh, no White Horse. You sound a bit like your man Charles Martel when you say things like that.

[Corcaigh33]

It's been a while WH - by that logic do you think "The Wind that Shakes the Barley" is a British film too?

[joel]

Denise Silvester-Carr clearly stated that the use of the term "British" is purely geographical rather than political.

A reasonable position that only anti-British bigots would have a problem with.

Ireland is not British in a geographical sense - and only a bigot would say it was.

[White Horse]

Denise Silvester-Carr clearly stated that the use of the term "British" is purely geographical rather than political.

A reasonable position that only anti-British bigots would have a problem with.

Eh, no White Horse. You sound a bit like your man Charles Martel when you say things like that.

If the term was not clarifed as being purely geographical, I could understand objections. However, the application of a geographical term "British" is the same as "European".

I may be missing something, but only someone to who the word "British" is illogically an anathema could have a problem with this.