Wayne Rooney
Jun 13th, 2008 | By Bock | Category: Politics, World, popular cultureI’m not a million miles away from the Telegraph’s view on Wayne and Colleen. Like the Telegraph, and everyone else who doesn’t wear a gold neck-chain, I think Wayne and Colleen are a pair of half-witted numpties, and therefore, this comment isn’t about chavs, or chav royalty. This comment isn’t about dimwits – or not directly. This isn’t about the appalling underclass that the likes of Wayne Rooney represents.
No.
This comment is about the condescending, sneering, anti-Irish undertone that still pervades British society, no matter what we do, and no matter what détente our two countries arrive at.
Here’s an extract from the Telegraph’s report on Wayne and Colleen’s wedding:
… the footballer threw a party in a hotel to which, after putting £10,000 behind the bar, he invited large numbers of his extended Liverpool-Irish family.
The evening ended in a mass brawl between the Rooneys and the McLoughlins, and a stand-up row between the young couple’s respective mothers over who was to blame. “You’ve ruined my daughter’s night,” Mrs McLoughlin is said to screamed. “Your ******* family started this,” howled Mrs Rooney.
Liverpool-Irish? Excuse me? Is this a new nationality? So Wayne Rooney isn’t English after all? He’s Liverpool-Irish. I see.
And when England plays in the World Cup, just remind me what nationality Wayne Rooney will be?
Let me point out to you that Britain has no shortage of howling drunkards like Mrs Rooney, the length and breadth of the country, and let me also point out to you that while some of them may well have originated over here, the great bulk of then are home grown. Go to any British city late at night and observe the behaviour, as we did a couple of weeks ago, to our horror.
Suppose Didier Drogba got married and this was published in a British paper:
the footballer threw a party in a hotel to which, after putting £10,000 behind the bar, he invited large numbers of his extended London-African family
Supose the paper went on to associate Drogba’s racial origins with a mass brawl.
There would be outrage. It wouldn’t happen.
No journalist would be so crass as to write such a thing, and no editor would be so insensitive as to print it. And yet, this sort of casual, dismissive, racist nonsense is routine fodder for the British newspapers, but nobody takes them to task for it.
As an Irish person, I’m hurt by this kind of nonsense, and it isn’t because I identify with Wayne Rooney.
I do not.
Wayne Rooney represents the worst of British chav culture. Wayne Rooney has nothing to do with me. I resent the suggestion that Wayne Rooney or his chav family have anything to do with Irish culture.
Wayne Rooney is British and I wish the British press would claim him, just as they continue to claim Irish athletes whenever they win anything.
You’re spot-on, Bock. We Scots have had that a lot too. A British athlete (from Edinburgh) wins a Commonwealth Games medal, but a drunken Scot was arrested in Hartleypool over the weekend.
Yeah. It’s fuckin bullshit, and although I don’t usually do the English / Irish thing, this sort of gratuitous jibe pisses me off so much I can’t stay quiet about it.
Well, their job is done. It’s riled at least two of you. Don’t forget that this is probably the work of two people – the incompetent journalist and their equally incompetent editor. I’m constantly surprised at the lack of journalistic quality today, not just in the papers, but everywhere. It’s disgusting. The power that these publications have is immense at guiding and goading the public at large. It’s not worth getting bothered about – we just need to find a way to combat it. The problem is that if they print something wrongly and it sells a million more copies, they just put an apology in a corner in next weeks edition and settle out of court for twenty grand – they’ll do this until the cows come home. I don’t know what the answer is, but not everybody is represented by the views and language of this small minded set of individuals. It’s the same everywhere, but then you know that as you’re constantly alluding to it – keep it up, don’t get distracted by one article, it’s the whole of the press that’s rotten.
A Thundering Read, Bock.
In the Telegraph they describe Rooney as an English prodigy in the opening paragraphs and then the report just descends into the kind of hateful and jealous diatribe reminiscent of Punch magazine (circa 1960s and before):
Wayne wasn’t known as a ladies’ man. He wasn’t, frankly, known for anything other than kicking footballs and sweating malt vinegar.
Wayne’s brother is going to play for Ireland so there must be an Irish connection somewhere.
Fox: You’re missing the point. I’m saying that Rooney’s Irish origins have nothing to do with the behaviour of his family. The Telegraph was happy to highlight the Irish dimension in connection with a drunken brawl, but will claim him as English when he succeeds in sport.
And yet look at the way the Irish people lap up the British press here. We must be the only people on earth that pay over the counter for gratuitous insults directed at ourselves from a foreign source.
I’m old enough to remember seeing The London Evening Standard during the ’80’s which had as its heading – “Wouldn’t you rather admit to being a pig than being Irish”…even then they wouldn’t have tried that on the Islamic community but Paddy was always good for a kicking. Why would they change their attitude when we’re actually buying it.
Imagine too how happy the propagandists at “the Times/Sun/Mail/Torygraph” etc., are today, at having not alone told people here how to vote against Europe, but managed to have them pay for those rags in the first place.
When Barry McGuigan won his title he was British. And when he lost it he suddenly became Irish. Drives me up the wall. And if Patrick Kielty or Graham Norton ever get arrested for something, you can be sure they’ll be Irish in capital letters in the British papers.
But the Beatles, now. You never hear of Liverpool-Irish connections there, do you.
I remember the late Richard Harris giving a speech after recieving some acolade or other from the UK establisment, and commenting about how he was looking forward to being hailed as the talented British actor in the following days press. Unless, of course, he got drunk and got in a fight, in which case he would be the rowdy irishman.
A very astute man, was our Dicky.
Name one Irish athelete who the British have claimed when they won something. Bet you can’t.
mary peters?
mary peters
Right. Mary Peters was born in Liverpool and grew up in Northern Ireland. She didn’t complain when she got her MBE or CBE. She competed for the UK team for chrissakes. Sounds more British than Irish to me.
Very sorry Niall, I wasn’t trying to out-smart you, just wondering. I hang my head!
Mapstew: Don’t be so apologetic. Niall knows perfectly well that the British media have made a habit of claiming Irish artists and sportspeople when they’re successful, but disowning them whe they screw up.
I know that it’s an unsubstantiated myth you mean. Hey, don’t let that get in the way of your Brit bashing though. 800 years and all that. Now, where did I put my Wolfe Tones CD?
Niall: What kind of paranoid shite is that? Brit-bashing my arse. Unless you started reading this site yesterday, you’ll know there’s no Wolfe Tones crap here. Make grown-up comments why don’t you, instead of this juvenile mud-slinging.
I’m not a regular visitor, no. I just notice on the few occasions that I do visit that you seem to generalize a great deal. This week, the British media. A few weeks ago you wondered whether the entire country of Austria was evil because of Joseph Fritzl and Hitler. I could dig out other examples but I can’t be arsed.
So is Niall the same person as Brock Landers or what? I’m confused. And I think he/they need to visit more often before they start talking about ‘generalizing’. Bock writes a lot of common sense, and often very amusing common sense too.
Brock, you really are losing it. I didn’t generalise about the entire British media and I didn’t wonder if all of Australia is evil. You’ve been on the mushrooms again.
Nora: I learned years ago not to argue with someone else’s invented version of my own words. It’s a waste of time and it only legitimises the misquote.
Bock, being a rugby man I assume you accept the term ‘London Irish’, if so then why not ‘Liverpool Irish’?
You didn’t read this at all, did you?
That’s why I don’t read the papers, I’m delighted to say. Run by, and largely for, utter cunts.
Hey, BD. How’s it goin?
‘You didn’t read this at all, did you?’ — Bock
I’m in stitches!!!
I never said your generalized about ‘Australia’. I said Austria. I don’t know how you would describe this sentence as anything but:
Who knows? Perhaps evil really can seep into the stones of a town.
Or a country.
It seems Austria has a great ability to ignore ugly facts.
British Media? Generalization? Over here folks:
And yet, this sort of casual, dismissive, racist nonsense is routine fodder for the British newspapers, but nobody takes them to task for it.
Niall and Brock Landers are the same person.
Troll. Banned.
Howdo. I’m very well, ta. Mad busy, way behind with work, but mostly very, very well indeed.
Delighted you had a good night with Mr Cohen, the review was great by the way.
Appalling chav underclass. Sounds good. If only I could be part of that.
Oh wait.. I’m from limerick.
Big night on the bottle Audrey?
something like that. lots of chav around, uck!
(i wish the smokin ban never came in, some of ye men are such smelly bastards)
Audrey: Could you try and stick to using one name in the comments, as mentioned in the Comments Policy section. You’ll notice that I’ve very thoughtfully altered the name in your previous three comments from “..” to “Audrey”, which is the handle you used to have.
yes. noticed. very thoughtful. thanks so much. thanks again.