This picture is for Breezy Willow Kelly from the hills of Glenties. Breezy I know your Mother Willow tree is missing you at the moment and her message is ‘haste ye back’ as soon as possible. I came across this bush last week outside a care home in Belfast and I thought it was some sort of hydrangea but I was told, no, it’s a bush willow! It sends you love and so do all your fans in my part of the world.
99 year old Henry Kissinger said: “The world is in chaos.’ back in the mid 20s – if it was then it’s worse now and our esteemed prime minister laughs. You can just see the look of ‘doesn’t matter to me mate’ on his face. But who is responsible for this chaos in the UK if not government forces? There is no one to cling onto for a better future, an election won’t make any difference nor I suspect will a new prime minister next week. If the time throws up the man – he’s late. And is he a man? Or a woman!
FAREWELL MR MUSIC MAN
News of Robin Irvine’s death in New York last week has touched people from around the world. Tributes from all arts and parts mostly from international musicians because Robin was a tour de force having been a founder member of Chips the 1960s band that toured Ireland and said to be Louis Walsh’s all time favourite. Many hundreds of us danced to their music, one Facebook message from fellow musician Paul Lyttle sent in the recent past emphasised the lasting camaraderie: “Hey – how’s it going R I – greetings from the ‘oul sod – hope all is well with you. I was just thinking about the old days – must be an age thing – God we were good when we all sang from the same hymn sheet – I think some of my fondest Chips memories were during that Christmas Cabaret we did in Tito’s in Belfast and Colin McClelland’s notes and stage diagrams – we tore the place apart ’cause cabaret, it was not !!!”
The band was managed by McCellend.
“Robin was our bass player and singer, he’d a terrific stage presence. He was a big hit with the female fans, in fact, I think at one time he had his own fan club. He’s the first of the original lineup to die and this now makes us all feel a little bit older. Unlike many pop groups, the original members remained friends long after Chips disbanded, and at our annual reunions we’d always make sure to include him via Skype or FaceTime from New York. The reunions won’t seem the same without him.”
Bill Morrison remembers girls falling at the feet of this glamorous rock musician. “`However, when we toured in America it didn’t work out, however Robin stayed in the States and became a tour manager for the top artists.” He was responsible for the world wide tours including Sting, Barry Manilow, and with American band Foreigner, he was a close friend of Yoko Ono and John Lennon’s companion May Pang. Singer Zyndi Lauper became a family friend.
Keith Baker and Robin were lifetime companions, they were neighbours in Enniskilllen, born six weeks apart, lived two doors apart, went through school, were flat mates and band members together. “He was kind and funny, the friend you never lost, we were always in contact and just picked up where we left off. He was a cool dude, we made and shared memories all our lives and it’s strange and sad that there’s only me left.”
Robin kept a close relationship with his first wife. Both teenagers, he and Pat met on a Sunday afternoon outside Caproni’s in Bangor and she was with him through the years of show bands and his time with Ulster Television working in the publicity department both in Belfast and in London. He then joined a public relations company where he excelled when representing clients. His good looks, his charm and wit delighted us all, Robin was an honest friend who kept his promises. I worked with him in 1967 at the time his baby was born, a little boy called Jeremy, now known as Baz, who has followed in his father’s footsteps and is now a much sought after cinematographer working all over the world. When his Dad was near the end last week Baz flew to be by his bedside in Upstate New York and to comfort Robin’s wife Lisa and their three daughters.
He had been ill for some time but such was his spirit that he was on the road until two years ago when the cancer and the chemotherapy meant he had to conduct his business from home.
Bill Morrison remembers how his dear friend liked to sing the songs of Blood Sweat and Tears especially one that resonates today reflecting Robin Irvine’s positive outlook on life and death : And when I die and when I’m gone, There’ll be one child born in this world to carry on, to carry on.
Robin died aged 77 on 24th August. With deepest sympathies to Pat, Lisa, Baz and Robin’s daughters.
HE’S DONE SEA AND SAND – NOW IT”S THE CLIFFS OF SLIEVE LEAGUE
Ask Paul Dawson what makes him tick, he’ll tell you he’s bloody minded. I add determined, and brave and full of good craic. It’s not an easy life for this man who was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis when he was 25 years of age.
Perhaps it wasn’t such a surprise as when, a teenager on the sports field, he lost the sight in his left eye and was paralysed on one side. The neurologist said in a letter to his parents that he suspected MS, however they made the difficult decision to keep the news from their son.
Did He Resent This?
“No. If I’d known it would have effected my life decisions. Instead I went into the military fire service before serving with South Wales fire service. If I’d known I‘d have had to declare it and probably wouldn’t have the same opportunities or been able to lead such a full life for so long.”
Paul, who was born in Scotland met Julie from Wales at around the same time as his diagnoses and typical of the couple, they didn’t accept that news and decided to go for a second opinion but it was the same result. They went to hospital to see the specialist together and have been together ever since.
And he’s still succeeding in living a full life even thought he’s a motorised wheelchair user. It’s his transport, he’s the driver but his conductor is Julie, the another member of team Dawson. They are two sides of a coin and the love and respect is obvious.
So Is A Sense Of Humour.
“I don’t mollycoddle him, “ Julie insisted. We were sitting in the sunshine in their home in Narin, Co. Donegal. “Tough love sometimes but it works. We were in a supermarket recently and he wanted something from a shelf, almost out of reach and he asked me to pass it down. I said ‘do it yourself’ and pretended to box his ears! The other shoppers stopped in their tracks and I got a lot of dirty looks. I just say to people he’s out on day release I’m taking him back later!”
When we met there was big news.
Thanks to a demonstration model of a new style wheelchair Paul was able to travel over shallow water from Portnoo to the ecclesiastical Ininshkeel Island and then travel the length of the beautiful strand at Narin. It was the first time the chair had been used on any Irish beach.
Paul and Julie and their three children decided there and then this chair must become part of the family and fundraising has begun.
The Magic Mobility Extreme X8 will allow Pul to travel to just about any destination. It can cope with sand, snow and shallow water. Certainly it’s ideal for this man who has an adventurous streak and determination to achieve; Paul and Julie point out the chair is for anyone in the community to use and for holiday makers to the area as well as for his own use.
At an exciting fundraising event at the end of this month he will demonstrate the chair in the Narin beach car park and the Duck Street band will play.
This adventurer will tackle anything.
Recently he was in Co. Meath paramotoring in a basket blown into the air by a big fan. “Then, when Julie went skydiving I immediately wanted to do it too, exhilarating 14,000 feet up although it didn’t go quite to plan and there were a few dodgy moments!” Not content with this challenge Paul is tackling the 2000 feet cliffs of Slieve League next month. His new chair will take him half way up and the Donegal Mountain Rescue team will pull him up the rest of the way! Why?
“Because I want to see the view and to prove that because I’m in a wheelchair and have a disability won’t stop me,”
Without doubt the biggest challenge to the couple came five years ago and it was huge.
“We’d begun to research stem cell therapy and discovered it was available at Artemis private hospital in India. I decided to give it a go, my condition was moving on and it was the right time to try to get this.”
Community Support
Finding £60,000 in a hurry seemed daunting but the community took these two to their hearts and within six months the money as raised. They flew to New Delhi and for the next 40 days they were isolated in one room as Paul’s stem cells were removed from his body, his immune system bleached out with chemotherapy and his stem cells replaced. Their room consisted of a hospital bed for Paul and a sofa bed for Julie, a bathroom and a window which had to remain closed at all times in case of infection.
But it was worth it as the next three years he was clear of any progression. “If I hadn’t had those three years I’d be three years further down the line so it was extremely valuable.”
I asked Paul what drives him, “As I say, I’m bloody minded, strong willed and I have a wonderful family and the support of a great community.”
It’s been a rough time. The operation was risky so he recorded four voice messages, one for Julie and one for each of his children, Thomas, Natasha and Tara.
“It was a good bye message and it was difficult to do but I wanted to be honest with them all. I wanted to tell them how much I loved them and that they were each capable of shining a light anywhere in the world.” They listened but there was no sadness, Paul was home and still the same bloody minded darling dad..
Julie summed up. “One day at a time, we stopped looking into the future a long time ago. We accept the situation and we’ll take it one step at a time and deal with it.”
Demostration and for more information at – Narin And Portnoo 4×4 Off Road Beach Wheelchair
Fund raising link https://www.gofundme.com/4×4-off-road-wheelchair
A FEAST OF COLOUR
Good wishes and happy days to Vinko Kalcic ace artist, writer and photographer who brightens up the world with his photographs of the Nottinghill Carnival. Today’s the day Vinko, hope it’s a good one.
Roger Bolton has long been a favourite on BBC radio as presenter of Radio 4s Feedback. 23 years, so he knows his business. Now he’s been axed who knows why except the bosses. However, he’s had the last laugh speaking out as he signed off urging listeners to continue asking difficult questions: “After all the BBC belongs to all who pay for it. Not those who are paid by it.” Well I’ve a question. Why in the name of all that’s wonderful have said bosses decided to ditch the excellent Scott Mills and Chris Stark programme on 5Live 9 a.m. Saturday morning. A live programme full of interest and entertainment not least primary school aged children assessing their parents choice of music. Hilarious.
Yesterday morning it was replaced with Kammy (Chris Kamara) and Ben’s (Ben Shepherd) Proper Football Podcast with football pundit Chemmy, who has a speech disorder at the moment, giggling over the other presenter and their guest’s comments. I understand the podcast had already been aired twice during last week so this can be nothing but a cost cutting exercise, Suddenly only those who like football are serviced, the programme following is the Question of Sport then Fighting Talk (sport) and 5 Live sport from 12 until 9 p.m. – I for one have had my fill of sport this summer. 5LIVE is a news and sport station but also many tremendous programmes of general interest – our own Murry and Nolan amongst them. Saturday isn’t saturated with sport for all of us BBC bosses.
