Rock Star April Fools pranks Find out how Kid Rock, Trent Reznor, Bjork and Metallica tried to dupe fans this April Fools. http://tinyurl.com/aprilfoolsrock Drum for the Smashing Pumpkins! After Jimmy Chamberlain left the band a couple of weeks ago (again), Billy Corgan (the only original member left) posted an open call looking for his replacement. Hurry though, auditions are today in LA! http://tinyurl.com/spdrummer Picturegate Reaction, photoshop parody and nudie postcard exhibitions referred to on Twitter show what most people think of the Brian Cowen picturegate incident. http://tinyurl.com/picturegate... Similar posts

Gotta love the stuff coming from Doris/Magee these days - here they tackle Picturegate (or Cowengate if that be your... Similar posts

The recent controversy over Picturegate transcended Conor Casby’s paintings. It revealed a national broadcaster in preemptive terror of the government; a meddling Government Press Office that overstepped the procedures the rest of us have to adhere to if we have a broadcasting complaint; and a Gardai that are clearly taking directions from murky corners of Irish politics. The full implications of a very strange week have yet to be teased out but many people are waking up to the rot in Irish political life and the episode has revealed some strange definitions of satire, and strange attitudes to the human body. If any of this concerns you, and as a citizen of a democracy it should, you should express that concern. The Leave Conor Casby Alone group on Facebook approaches 6,000... Similar posts

Martin Rowson of the Guardian just sent me his contribution to Fústar’s nudie Cowen postcard exhibition. The exhibition is open to everyone. Send us your... Similar posts

I mostly avoided the Internet and Twitter last week but it was still hard to escape the whole “picturegate” saga. Brian Cowen needs to sack his press officer for making a non story into something which rumbled on through the week and onto the Late Late Show on Friday night. The real question in my mind is whether or not there would have been a picturegate at all if Brian Cowen sported a six pack instead of a double chin and big belly? It was the equivalent of kids in the schoolyard taunting the overweight child and calling him or her “fatso”. It had nothing to do with political satire and why RTE even bothered running it as a news story is beyond me. Image owned by sukisuki and used under the terms of a creative commons license. The original image is some very good advice from... Similar posts

Maxroam have launched a new site design, nice. Silicon Valley electric vehicle startup, Tesla, have unveiled the Model S, also nice! Don’t forget to turn everything electrical off for Earth Hour 2009, 8.30pm local time, Saturday March 28th. It’s not going to save Mankind alone, but it’s a start. New site for free events in Dublin. Via Darragh Doyle. Twitter has sold an ad! First of many? And in case you were living under a rock this week, here’s that RTÉ news piece that was broadcast about the Brian Cowan paintings. It was subsequently removed from the RTÉ website and apologised for, and has been written about here, here, here, here, and here, to name but a few. I have nothing to add to what’s been said, other than I’m delighted to see that the... Similar posts

The Picturegate t-shirts went missing this morning from Irish Election’s Spreadshirt shop. Here’s why: Hello Allen, Many thanks for your email. Unfortunately I have to tell you that we cannot release the motif at this shop. I know that you are the copyright holder of the specific desigs. But they infringe the personal rights of Mr. Brian Cowen. According to German law it is not allowed to use pictures of famous persons without permission. This applies to satiric or caricature too. The use of such designs can lead to very high fines. We hope you understand. For further questions please don’t hesitate to contact me again. Best regards Spreadshirt Service I really don’t know what to say. EDIT: Something smells bad here. I’ve just pulled all these images from... Similar posts

This post has little directly to do with the English language, except that it uses it, and that it’s about the freedom of expression. If you came for grammar and English usage, you will find some further down, or in your preferred category on the right-hand side. Most Irish writers and artists – i.e. most of the country – are well aware of the state’s history of censorship, be it the banning of books, the cutting of films or the more generalised self-censorship that accompanied our passage from paganism through earthy Christianity to a starker form of Catholicism. Lately the repressive spirit pounced on a couple of nude portraits of the Taoiseach (head of government) Brian Cowen, which were briefly and unofficially hung in the National Gallery and the Royal Hibernian... Similar posts

My, but it HAS been an enlightening few days, hasn't it?After pouring over a virtual plethora of material from numerous media sources, so-called "mainstream" and otherwise, here is just a sample of the new fascinating nuggets of information I know now that I didn't know last Monday morning when I was seeing off the last of my Grand Slam hangover.If you hang a portrait in a gallery without permission, the gardaí will come after you.Our current Taoiseach is overweight.Our current Taoiseach has little or no sense of humour.Our current Taoiseach seems to spend time on matters other than adequately handling the financial crisis.There are those in RTE who do the government's bidding.Bloggers believe in free speech.John Waters is a knob.Would it be too much to hope that this #picturegate thing... Similar posts

As Voltaire said, “I don't agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” Well I don’t draw pictures of the Taoiseach naked as the thought of it makes me quite queasy, but if you wish to spend your time doing that then go ahead…Now I didn’t see the original broadcast, but I did see the apology. All I know of the original broadcast is what Vincent Browne has been telling us, they showed it twice and they went down his torso to show his stomach… Brian Cowen’s humourless response to his pictures and actually using the Garda and the national broadcaster as his own personal service, would be quite disturbing, if he’d actually make a good dictator. You see however despicable and evil Tyrannical Dictators have been, they always had that certain... Similar posts

Thanks Gary for the screenshot from the Simpsons' view of Irish planning as they flew into Ireland for St. Patrick's Day.This Picturegate business has gone beyond a joke. I've heard on the grapevine that the Guards have pictures of Trevor Sargent and John Gormley in custody in Pearse Street Garda Station, and I think that its high time they were returned to the Artist. It's time to release the Pearse Street Two.Look, it's beginning to turn into Scrap Saturday on steroids. Sure, we can argue the pros and cons of whether RTE should have run with the prank in the first place, and indeed how they handled the story in the first instance. Personally I don't think it should have involved a full apology the following evening, but this whole sending in the Guards business brings it into the realm... Similar posts

Finally got around to throwing my oar in on the Cowen portraits saga (or #picturegate, as it’s become known). (The London Times has a good rundown of the story so far if you’ve not been following it) Whatever you think of the original RTÉ news report, and the subsequent apology (note RTÉ’s first bit of grovelling to the Government - let’s not forget the Máire Hoctor interview and the withdrawl of Professor John Crown from the Late Late Show), it’s the Garda actions that really annoy me.  As far as can be determined from all the information floating around, the original “crime” was reported to the Gardaí by one of the galleries on 7th March.  The Gardaí, however, didn’t investigate until the 23rd of March, when the Taoiseach’s... Similar posts

The response, thus far, to my request for nudey postcards of An Taoiseach has been splendid & encouraging. Allan, in particular, has been evangelical in his promotional zeal. Allow me to clarify, again, exactly what's "planned". 1) We want you to buy (borrow or steal) a blank postcard. 2) We want you to then adorn this postcard with your own nude drawing, doodle, collage (etc) of Brian Cowen. These creations can be as "amateur", crude or (indeed) lavish as you see fit. There are no rules. The only restriction being the postcard format. Total freedom is yours. Go nuts. 3) Pop your masterwork in the post to me（address available on request). 4) If/When we collect enough postcards together we'll find a sympathetic gallery space where your creations can be exhibited formally. Hell,... Similar posts

Fústar’s been on to me. He wants everyone to send him a nudie postcard of Brian Cowen: Ok. I hereby want to encourage every single person reading this to send me (via post) a nude Brian Cowen postcard (ask for my address and it will be given). If we gather enough together I’ll find a way to exhibit them publicly. If some fail to arrive then we’ll also have “postalgate” to concern ourselves with. This is not a joke. I genuinely want to do it. via Fustar - Recycling Cultural Waste Since 2005 // Filthy Durty Postcards: Badgers, Blu-Tack & Picturegating. You can contact him at fustar[at]fustar.info for his address. Either print mine or Conor’s on a bit of card or even better, make up your... Similar posts

Those idiots in Fianna Fáil and RTÉ have created a major controversy over a couple of satirical portraits of Brian Cowen. Super duper bonus points to whatever dick thought they should send the Gardaí after the artist. Me smells a press diversion just before our mini budget. More seriously this little diversion just brought press freedom out back and put a bullet in it’s knee caps. It also begs the question, how long has our government being directing Irish political and news programs on RTÉ? Want to read more about picturegate? Maman Poulet Alexia Golez Irish Election Damien Mulley... Similar posts

This lunchtime, while the rest of you stuffed your faces with fancy sangwiches, I went on a not-very-dangerous, undercover, guerilla art mission. First port of call was the National Portrait Collection of Ireland, Bourn Vincent Gallery (UL). On its stark white walls I stuck my Cowen/Gravely-ill Badger postcard. Like Martin Luther's 95 theses - only with more dotted lines of piss. And a close up: The total absence of FF-sponsored, brutally repressive, security guard goons was a disappointment - but the CCTV cameras that watched my every move no doubt wired their signal straight back to party headquarters. I'll be found face down in a dumpster with a plastic bag over my head before the week's out. With this job done I flung open the doors and headed out into the wilds (i.e a grassy... Similar posts

A picture says a thousand words, so I have very little to add. For Mr. Major's (Twenty, to his friends) take on the whole affair, look... Similar posts

I’ll be on the George Hook show on Newstalk at  around 5pm to talk about... Similar posts

Brian on Flickr by... Similar posts