Artists - and a turkey - take action

ARTSCAPE:IT MAY NOT exactly have gone viral, but last week a video went up on YouTube that featured the writers John Boyne and Claire Kilroy alongside actors, a make-up artist, visual artists and, a little randomly, Dustin the Turkey. It was a collective plea to the artistic souls of the viewers to get in touch with their TDs and tell them they don't want arts funding to be cut. And it marks the early run-in to the day of action planned for September 17th.

The video is heartfelt, if a little clunky at times – some of the acting is a little overcooked, even for a campaign video – but it’s part of an overall approach encouraging artists and members of the public to put pressure on their political representatives. The day of action will see arts representatives meeting TDs across the country, and there have been workshops on how to lobby, as well as handy print-out guides on getting a message across. You’ll find all of that, and the campaign’s list of demands, at ncfa.ie. The campaign video is at url.ie/7ao5.

Bishop’s breakthrough

Unlike Druid's theatre success in Edinburgh, there will be no prizes for Irish comedians this year. But Des Bishop's My Dad Was Nearly James Bond, about his father's terminal illness, appears to have been a breakthrough for him.

"The show is only sometimes great comedy, but it's always a totally compelling story about a father's sacrifices, and the midlife awakening of an errant son," said the Guardian's five-star review.

The London Independentgave him four stars, saying, "At the end of the show Bishop defensively asks us not to listen to those critics who say that this show is sentimental. By this time he's already done the hard work, convincing us that he can meld memories with mirth to forge a show that tickles the comedy palate and fully engages the heart and mind."

Bishop doesn’t need any Irish breakthroughs, of course, and will be touring the show across Ireland from October.