Conal Ó Gráda: The Eavesdropper & Strop the Razor [Jigs]

Micho Russell Video

My Name is Yu Ming

Via the photoblog Ireland from a Polish perspective, here's a funny but slightly tragic film from TG4 about a Chinese man who spends six months learning Irish so that he can work in Ireland. It's full of great comic moments and worth five minutes of your time, I think.

Come West Along the Road

Are you (if you're a U.S. resident) a Netflix member? If so, you might be interested to know that Netflix has Come West Along the Road, one of RTÉ's DVD compilations of music recordings from its archives.

Like a lot of compilations, it's a mixed bag. But there's some brilliant material on the DVD. There is (brief, unfortunately) footage of Frankie Kennedy, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh, and other Ó Maonaigh family members playing in a pub in Gaoth Dobhair. There's footage of Joe Cooley, Denis O'Brien (Donncha Ó Briain), Tommy Peoples, and Matt Molloy.

While I was watching one of the segments — it must have been Planxty or The Bothy Band — my wife came into the room and said, "They look like hippies!" I laughed and replied, "They are hippies; this was taped in 1973!"

Sure, most of this has been pirated onto YouTube, but the DVD quality beats the heck out of Flash video. I'm not sure I'd pay $30 for it, but getting it "for free" (as a Netflix subscriber) is a great deal!

John Sindt video

Here's a two-minute video about whistle maker John Sindt.