Tessera

Dan McGinn

@danmc2.bsky.social

Dad, Husband, dog owner, Comms geezer, film critic, Blogger, Facebooker, Instagramer, less frequent Tweeter & West Ham dreamer.

197 Posts104 Follower 216 Folgt

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2d ago

For the day that's in it.. #GlenHansard.. youtu.be/lQm08_9hr_k?...

HD - Glen Hansard (live) - The Parting Glass @ Haus der Musik, Austria 21.07.2012

YouTube video by AustriaHDconcerts

youtu.be

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 3d ago

Some days it's a pleasure to do the job I do and this was one of them. Have a great week. Enjoy. #Fleadh #Belfast

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last wk.

ONE IRISH ROVER: The tragic death of #Oscar winning songwriter #GlenHansard in a motorcycle accident in Dublin at the age of 56 has robbed Irish music and film of a unique talent. Pomona remembers the Dublin musician, actor and activist.. pomonarewind.blogspot.com/2026/07/one-... #Once #ireland

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last wk.

So shocking. #GlenHansard was a huge figure in Irish music and a great performer. A massive loss.. www.newstalk.com/news/glen-ha...

Musician Glen Hansard dies after Dublin road traffic collision

The singer-songwriter is survived by his wife, Maire Saaritsa, and their young son, Christy.

newstalk.com

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last wk.

THE SPLIT: #JermaineClement's comedy pedigree isn't in doubt but how does he end up being eclipsed by #NicolaWalker in #Hulu & #Disney+'s #AliceandSteve? Pomona gives its thoughts on the six part sitcom .. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/07/the-... #joelfry #YaliTopolMargalith

Jermaine Clement and Nicola Walker play friends torn assunder in Hulu and Disney Plus's Alice and Steve but does the six part sitcom have comic bite?

Joel Fry is Alice's younger husband Daniel in Alice and Steve but does the actor get to properly mine his proven comic sensibilities?

Yali Topol Margalith is Alice's daughter Izzy but what are we to make of her relationship with her mum's fiftysomething best friend in Alice and Steve?

Alice and Steve goes for War of the Roses style rage humour but who comes out the more sympathetic character in the feud between friends?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2w ago

WILDE AT HEART: The ability to laugh at ourselves by laughing at others is very much at the heart of #TheInvite. But what does Pomona make of the #OliviaWilde movie and the low budget #Irishlanguage heist tale #Aontas?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/07/wild... #sethrogen #cinema #penelopecruz

Olivia Wilde stars in and directs The Invite with Seth Rogen, a comedy feature film that shines an uncomfortable light on marriage and sexual conventions.

Eva-Jane Gaffney, Carrie Crowley and Brid Brennan play an unlikely trio behind a village credit union heist in the ambitious Irish language thriller Aontas.

Edward Norton and Penelope Cruz play unconventional neighbours in Olivia Wilde's cheeky comedy The Invite.

Operating on a very tight budget, director Damian McCann shows a lot of narrative ambition in the IFTA nominated Irish language heist thriller Aontas which is available on the BBC iPlayer.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2w ago

Two of America's finest TV shows #TheBear and #Hacks have delivered fifth and final seasons. But how well have both comedy dramas delivered their climactic seasons?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/07/sink... #JeremyAllenWhite #JeanSmart #AyoEdebiri #HannahEinbinder #EbonMossBachrach

The fifth and final season of The Bear sees the Chicago culinary comedy drama starring Ayo Edebiri and Jeremy Allen White take a bog departure, setting most of its events over the course of one day.

Jean Smart and Hannah Einbinder have one last season as the comedy legend Deborah Vance and her writer Ava Daniels but does the show deliver the finale we want?

Ebon Moss Bachrach and Will Poulter head into the kitchen for one more season as FX's The Bear reaches a dramatic conclusion on Hulu and Disney Plus.

Kaitlin Olson's DJ Vance and her mum Jean Smart's Deborah Vance go the route of a celebrity reality TV show in a bid to revitalise their careers in the HBO Max comedy drama Hacks, available on the streamer as well as Sky and NowTV in the UK and Ireland.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2w ago

THE REFUSENIK: #BrendaFricker did not play Hollywood's game but she left behind a host of memorable screen performances. Pomona remembers a wonderfully no nonsense, trailblazing Irish actress.. pomonarewind.blogspot.com/2026/07/the-... #Dublin #film #jimsheridan #marcevans #thomfitzgerald #tvdrama

Oscar winner Brenda Fricker played strong and sometimes stoic women in a range of TV and film roles from The Ballroom of Romance and The Field to Cloudburst and Holding.

For playing Christy Brown's mother in Jim Sheridan's 1989 movie My Left Foot, Brenda Fricker captured a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award opposite Daniel Day Lewis who won for Best Actor.

Children knew Brenda Fricker as the Central Park Pigeon Lady in the hit family comedy sequel Home Alone 2: Lost in New York opposite Macaulay Culkin

One of Brenda Fricker's last screen roles was as a housekeeper in Kathy Burke's ITV adaptation of Graham Norton's rural west Cork comedy thriller Holding with Conleth Hill.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2w ago

THE GENT: Few actors were as beloved as #SamNeill by his fellow performers and the public. Pomona remembers the Northern Irish born Antipodean screen actor.. pomonarewind.blogspot.com/2026/07/the-...

Playing Dr Alan Grant in Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park movies was probably Sam Neill's best loved and best known role.

Sam Neill caught the eye of Hollywood movie producers playing Sean Connery's right hand man on a Russian submarine in the Cold War thriller The Hunt For Red October.

Taika Waititi's quirky New Zealand comedy The Hunt For The Wilderpeople handed Sam Neill one of the best roles in an impressive movie career.

Sam Neill relished playing a tough Northern Irish policeman in the BBC Birmingham gangster series Peaky Blinders opposite Cillian Murphy.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last mo.

BIRTH OF A NATION: 250 years on from the founding of the United States, a new #Netflix docuseries reflects on #TheAmericanExperiment. Featuring academics, lawyers and quite a few politicians US Pomona's #4thofJuly review of the show is in.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/07/birt... #USA250

As the US celebrates 250 years, a new Netflix docuseries reflects on the Founding Fathers and The American Experiment.

Former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is among those opining on the decisions of the Founding Fathers in Netflix's five part docuseries The American Experiment.

Senator Ted Cruz waxes lyrical about the promise of America in Brian Knappenberger's five part Netflix docuseries The American Experiment.

In the Tom Hanks executive produced Netflix docuseries The American Experiment, key historic events from the Boston Massacre to the creation of the Bill of Rights are recreated and reflected on.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last mo.

WIDE AWAKE: Take a #U2 fan favourite, examine the story behind the song and build a documentary round it. Pomona reviews the RTE1 documentary 'Bad: The Song That Saved My Life'.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/07/wide... #AndyRown #Bono #Dublin #Guggi #addiction #heroin #VirginPrunes #Troubles

'Bad: The Song That Saved My Life' tells the story of Andy 'Guck' Rowan, a drug addict who inspired three U2 songs.

U2 frontman Bono provides an insight into the life that inspired three of the band's songs.

Andy 'Guck' Rowan provides a frank account of the trauma that fed his drug addiction and the personal toll it exacted

Witnessing the 1974 Dublin bombings are just one of the factors that traumatised Andy 'Guck' Rowan as a child.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last mo.

THE ROAD TO HELL: If you are going to devour the final season of The Bear make sure you also watch the special one off prequel episode #Gary. Pomona gives its thoughts.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/the-... #ebonmossbachrach #jonbernthal #marinireland #gillianjacobs #thebear #roadtrip

Jon Bernthal's Mikey Berzatto and Ebon Moss-Bachrach's Richie Jerimovich undertake an epic road trip from Chicago to Gary, Indiana in Gary, a one-off prequel episode to the final season of The Bear.

Richie recalls a road trip with Mikey Berzatto in Gary, a standalone prequel episode of The Bear on FX, Hulu and Disney+ but what is its significance?

In the Christopher Storer directed Gary, fans of The Bear get even more insight into the character of Jon Bernthal's Mikey Berzatto whose off screen suicide has haunted the FX, Hulu and Disney+ show.

En route to Indiana, Richie and Mikey take in an impromptu basketball game in a memorable scene from Gary.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last mo.

ALTERED STATES: #YouTube #webseries creator #KaneParsons has created a stir with his #featurefilm debut #BackRooms. But does his #psychological #horror #scifi #movie convince?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/alte... #ChiwetelEjiofor #RenateReinsve #LukitaMaxwell #FinnBennett #MarkDuplass #film

Chiwetel Ejiofor plays a furniture store owner who discovers a series of rooms behind a basement wall in Kane Parsons' striking directorial debut hit 'Backrooms'

Renate Reinsve is a therapist trying to figure out what's going on with a furniture store owner in Backrooms and who finds herself being drawn into his disturbing world.

A seemingly never ending world of weird rooms, corridors and artefacts exists behind a basement wall in Kane Parsons' smash hit psychological horror sci-fi flick Backrooms.

Lukita Maxwell and Finn Bennett are the furniture store employee and her boyfriend who are persuaded to explore the disturbing world of the Backrooms.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · last mo.

Courtesy of Martin McDonagh: AMERICAN TOURIST: Been to the top of the tower? RAY: Yeah. Yeah, it's rubbish. TOURIST: "It is? The guidebook says it's a 'must-see'. RAY: Well, you lot ain't going up there. TOURIST: Pardon me? Why? RAY: Youse are a bunch of elephants...

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

ONE FOR THE ROAD: Season 3 of Nancy Harris' #Dublin comedy drama #TheDry is back, wrapping up the misadventures of the Sheridan family. Catch Pomona's thoughts on the last season of the RTE and ITV show and our four sentence review of BBC's #Funboys. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/one-...

The Sheridans are back for one last outing in RTE and ITV's dysfunctional Dublin family comedy drama The Dry, with Roisin Gallagher and Ciaran Hinds leading the line. But does Nancy Harris' show end with a bang?

Rick Donald's Aussie Daryl is catapulted into the Sheridans' lives in the third and final season of The Dry but is his connection to Pom Boyd's Bernie genuine?

Steve Coogan pops up in an episode of the BBC's Northern Irish rural sitcom Funboys but does the second series move on from the previous one's puerile humour?

Siobhan Cullen's Caroline moves in with Eoin Duffy's Rory and his acid tongued mum in the final season of The Dry bit is she cracking at the seams?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

THE WEDDING SINGER: #Dublin filmmaker #JohnCarney is back with another #musicbusiness tale #PowerBallad with #PaulRudd & #NickJonas squaring off in a tale of betrayal. So what does Pomona make of it and the #Japanese comedy drama #RentalFamily?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/the-... #Hikari

Nick Jonas and Paul Rudd play a boyband star and a wedding band singer who end up butting heads in John Carney's bittersweet comedy drama Power Ballad.

Shannon Mahina Gorman and Brendan Fraser star as a young girl hoodwinked into believing he is her dad in Hikari's fascinating comedy drama Rental Family

Keith McErlrean, Peter McDonald, Paul Rudd, Rory Keenan and Paul Reid play members of an Irish wedding band playing covers in Dubliner John Carney's ninth film Power Ballad.

Takehiro Hira's Shinji and Brendan Fraser's American actor Phillip cash in on the art of deception in Hikari's Tokyo based comedy drama Rental Family.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

CATCH US IF YOU CAN: At the age of 79, no-one would dare question #StevenSpielberg's place as one of the greatest #Hollywood #storytellers. But how does his latest #scifi epic #DisclosureDay rank among his #movies in an illustrious career?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/catc... #emilyblunt

Emily Blunt mesmerises in Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day as Margaret Fairchild, a Kansas City weather forecaster who suddenly acquires powers that might just hold the key to uncovering the truth about extra terrestrial beings.

Josh O'Connor plays Daniel Kellner, a cybersecurity expert who along with his girlfriend, Eve Hewson's Jane is prepared to reveal the truth about extra terrestrial contact to the wider public in Disclosure Day.

Colin Firth scowls and snarls his way through Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day as Noah Scanlon, the CEO of a US Government backed corporation that has buried evidence of extra terrestrial life and is determined to keep it that way.

Childhood secrets are the key to unlocking the truth in Steven Spielberg's old school sci fi adventure blockbuster movie Disclosure Day.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Two days of excellent gigs in Dublin - #DavidByrne on Sunday night & #NickCaveandTheBadSeeds on Wednesday. A good start to a summer of live music.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

SIXTY YEARS OF HURT: #DearEngland has made the transition from #NationalTheatre stage to the small screen on #BBC1. But does writer #JamesGraham manage to successfully transfer his #England #football team drama about #GarethSouthgate?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/sixt... #JosephFiennes

Joseph Fiennes reprises his stage role as Gareth Southgate in BBC1's small screen version of Dear England about the former England manager's reign.

James Graham's four part drama Dear England examines how Gareth Southgate fostered a team culture that brought the English football team to two tournament finals.

Jodie Whittaker plays Pippa Grange, the psychologist who helped Gareth Southgate tackle the fear of failure that crippled many English international mens teams.

Will Attenbring plays striker and team captain Harry Kane who helped Gareth Southgate confront racism directed at players.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

HIGH STAKES: #TonySchumacher takes audiences back onto the streets of #Liverpool with the #BBC1 #casino #drama #TheCage. While #TinaFey has returned with a second series of #TheFourSeasons on #Netflix. But do both vehicles live up to expectations?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/06/high...

Sheridan Smith and Michael Socha are casino workers stealing from their employers in the gripping BBC1 Liverpudlian crime drama The Cage.

Colman Domingo, Marco Calvani, Kerri Kenney Silver, Tina Fey, Will Forte & Erika Henningsen return for a second season of the Netflix comedy drama series The Four Seasons.

Barry Sloane plays the main villain in Tony Schumacher's BBC1 crime drama The Cage but is his character as confident as his swagger suggests?

Adjusting to the loss of a major character from Season One of The Four Seasons, how do Tina Fey, Kerri Kenney Silver and Colman Domingo's Kate, Anne and Danny fare?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

PADAM MADAM: Given all the #celebrity documentaries of recent years, there's an inevitably to #Netflix hosting a three part #KylieMinogue docuseries. But how does Michael Harte's #Kylie docuseries compare?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/pada... #danniiminogue #jasondonovan #MichaelHutchence

Michael Harte's Kylie sees the Australian singer reflect on a career and a personal life that's had big highs and lows. But how does the three part Netflix documentary compare to other celebrity portraits of recent times?

Netflix's Kylie charts the career of Kylie Minogue from child star to soap star to pop star to gay icon.

Kylie Minogue opens up to Irish filmmaker Michael Harte about her relationship with INXS frontman Michael Hutchence and his pivotal role in her life.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

CUSTOMS MADE: #Guilt & #TheGold writer #NeilForsyth has landed his first #Netflox show #Legends. But does his tale of #undercover #customs officers trying to thwart a major #drugs importation into #Britain impress?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/cust... #stevecoogan #tomburke #hayleysquires

In Netflix's Legends, Steve Coogan plays a former undercover cop tasked with guiding undercover Customs officers in an operation to infiltrate criminal gangs in London and Liverpool.

Tom Burke's Guy teams up with Gerald Kyd's Mylonas in Neil Forsyth's Legends in a bid to break a Turkish gang in London importing heroin.

Tom Hughes' Carter and Johnny Harris' Eddie are wily Liverpudlian gangsters targeted by the customs operation in Legends.

Hayley Squires' Kate and Aml Ameen's Bailey gather intelligence on the streets of Liverpool in Netflix's Legends

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

QUESTION TIME: #TheAssrmblyUK & #TheAssemblyIreland have hit TV screens on both sides of the Irish Sea during 2026. So how do the two versions of the show with #autistic, other #neurodivergent & #learningdisabled interviewers compare?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/ques...

The second series of ITV's The Assembly UK sees Stephen Fry facing a grilling from autistic, other neurodivergent and learning disabled interviewers.

Irish Prime Minister/Taoiseach Micheal Martin takes the hot seat as the first guest on the Assembly Ireland on Virgin Media One.

Among the topics Motherland and Line of Duty star Anna Maxwell Martin discusses on the Assembly UK are coping with grief and finding love after the unexpected death of her husband.

US comic actor Rosie O'Donnell who has relocated to Dublin discusses her uneasy relationship with President Donald Trump on The Assembly Ireland.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

MEET THE FECKERS: #OscarIsaac #CareyMulligan & #CalleeSpaeny add star power to Season 2 of the #anthology series #Beef on #Netflix. But does it outdo its predecessor?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/meet... #california #charlesmelton #YounYuhJung #SongKangho #SeoyeonJane #matthewkim

Netflix has brought Beef back for a second season with a new story and new characters but is it worth it?

Oscar Isaac and Carey Mulligan add acting heft to proceedings with Beef as a corrupt middle class couple with a wobbly marriage dealing with blackmail over misguided accusations of domestic violence.

Charles Melton and Callee Spaeny are a twentysomething couple struggling to pay bills who go down the route of blackmail and lose their way.

Youn Yuh Jung and Song Kang-ho play South Korean billionaires who end up having to deal with the warring couples.

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

That was as good as we could possibly have given but in the end you can't deny what the league table says. Spurs deserved to cling on to safety. We paid a price for a particularly poor first half of the season. Championship football here we come. #COYI.. www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

West Ham 3-0 Leeds - Hammers relegated despite final-day win

West Ham's 14-year stay in the Premier League comes to an end as they are relegated to the Championship on the final day of the season despite beating Leeds at London Stadium.

bbc.co.uk

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 2mo ago

TOO LATE FOR GOODBYES: #StephenColbert and #TheLateShow finally signed off on Thursday after its axing by the #Paramount #Skydance owned #CBS. But was it a strong enough send off? Pomona gives its thoughts.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/too-... #PaulMcCartney #RobertdeNiro #BillyCrystal

Thursday was the final night for Stephen Colbert's talk show stint and also for CBS's The Late Show. So how did the final episode fare?

Paul McCartney was back at the Ed Sullivan Theatre for the final edition of 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'.

There was one more outing for 'Strike Force Five' in the final episode of 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert'.

The axing of America's top rated late night talk show 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' was finally completed on Thursday but will US TV ever be the same again?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 3mo ago

THE WRITE STUFF: #SteveCarrell is back on the small screen with a #HBO college campus #sitcom #Rooster but does it hit its comic marks? And what does Pomona make of the return of the #BBC sitcom #Amandaland?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/the-... #DanielleDeadwyler #LucyPunch #PhilippaDunne

Steve Carrell and Charly Clive play father and daughter in HBO's campus sitcom Rooster.

Lucy Punch is back as the wannabe influencer Amanda in series two of the BBC sitcom Amandaland.

Danielle Deadwyler adds acting heft to HBO's university sitcom Rooster but does the first series of the show make a strong case for a second?

Harriet Webb is a new addition to the cast of Amandaland but does the second series get the show back on track after a disappointing Christmas episode?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 3mo ago

MEAN STREEP: 20 years after the original, #TheDevilWearsPrada gang are back with another foray into the world of #fashion #journalism. But does it live up to the hype? Find out Pomona's thoughts on this and the #Oscars contender #IfIHadLegsIdKickYou.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/mean...

Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Stanley Tucci have reunited for The Devil Wears Prada 2 which lands in cinemas 20 years after the original. While it is already a big hit, does David Frankel's fashion journalism movie stand up to scrutiny?

Rose Byrne earned a Best Actress Oscar nomination as a stressed out mother and psychotherapist in Mary Bronstein's drama If I Had Legs I'd Kick You. But does it satisfy?

Justin Theroux is a new addition to The Devil Wears Prada world, playing a tech billionaire in the sequel but does he contribute much to the movie?

Conan O'Brien plays Rose Byrne's therapist in the intense psychological drama If I Had Legs I'd Kick You but how enjoyable is the film?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 3mo ago

LEE WAY: #Jock is back with #Conor in the fifth series of the #Cork #sitcom #TheYoungOffenders but does it mark a return to form?.. loveitinpomona.blogspot.com/2026/05/lee-... #ChrisWalley #AlexMurphy #HillaryRose #ShaneCasey #DemiIsaacOviawe #JenniferBarry #PJGallagher #DominicMcHale

After a spell in a Colombian jail, Chris Walley's Jock is back on the streets of Cork with his brother from another mother, Alex Murphy's Conor in BBC and RTE's The Young Offenders. But is the magic still there?

The love of Conor's life, Demi Isaac Oviawe's Linda Walsh finds herself at the altar in the fifth series of The Young Offenders but will she marry his nemesis, Danny Power's Gavin Madigan?

Fionnula Flanagan appears as Conor's free spirited grandma and the mum of Hillary Rose's Mairead but how does she fare?

Shane Casey's psycho with a soft heart Billy Murphy is back in The Young Offenders but has the BBC and RTE sitcom run its course?

Dan McGinn @danmc2.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Sorry to read this. A really good character actor who some will know from The Guard, The Banshees of Inisherin and War Horse.. www.irishtimes.com/culture/film... #irishfilm #cinema #tv #garylydon

Gary Lydon: Actor best known for Banshees of Inisherin role dies

The actor, who also had roles in The Clinic and Love/Hate, was born in London to Irish parents and returned to Wexford as a child

irishtimes.com