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TOWARDS THE END of The Queen of Ireland, there is a scene where Panti Bliss is standing in the sitting room of her parents’ Ballinrobe home.
Towering above them in high-heels and a tight-fitting multicoloured dress as they zip up their raincoats, Panti is about to perform a ‘homecoming’ show in the Mayo town.
It’s a week after the marriage equality referendum was passed and a marquee has been erected on the forecourt of the local tyre business for the occasion.
A surreal visual, it almost sums up the journey Rory O’Neill has taken from an out-of-place teenager in the town to become the face of one the greatest feel-good moments of recent Irish history.
That journey is now told in the Conor Horgan-directed documentary about Panti, released this week. It’s a film that the pair started shooting five years ago, never knowing that Panti was soon to go global as a spokesperson against homophobia.
About 25 years after Panti was born in Tokyo as part of the drag double-act Candi Panti, the performance element is perhaps lesser known to an Irish mainstream audience than Panti the campaigner.
It’s something O’Neill himself has spoken about, being a lewd stage performer when most people know you as a campaigner and often refer to you as a ‘national treasure’.
“For me, I always think of myself as an entertainer and that’s what I’ve been doing all these years,” he says.
So it’s slightly odd for me to think of a mainstream audience thinking of me as an activist first, that you’re going to be serious all the time. In some places we might have more people coming along because they want to see activist Panti, but you know in other places it might be the usual queer crowd coming in for a laugh.”
The film tries to tell both stories and, even though their fortunate fluke of circumstances in the Abbey and RTÉ could never have been predicted, Horgan says that the story of Panti was always going to be told alongside the story of the LGBT rights struggle in Ireland.
I’ve known Rory for quite a long time and worked with Panti for quite a long time, so I knew that as well as the entertainment value of Panti as a character, there was always going to be an activist element as well. Because Rory’s always been involved in pushing equality in this country. So we knew that was always going to be a part of the film, we just didn’t know it was going to be as big a part of the film as it turned out.
The film takes viewers from Ballinrobe to Tokyo and Dublin Castle via Dublin’s underground gay scene and is visually striking, managing to show the vibrancy of gay culture alongside the darkness of the years of criminalisation.
Interviews with O’Neill’s parents, long-time friends, collaborators and tonnes of archive footage all punctuate a story that flies along in about 90 minutes.
It never slows, but the point where O’Neill talks about his HIV diagnosis certainly brings viewers down to earth. But even this subject is joked about and witty one-liners are never far away.
The film ultimately builds towards that “perfect day for a yes” when Ireland passed the marriage equality referendum.
On that day, Panti strolled in sunshine from her bar on Capel Street to Dublin Castle where she was greeted like a head of state.
In fact, amongst the hugging and the photos on that day, the film shows a European reporter intent on asking Panti question after question, seemingly uninterested in speaking to the Tánaiste standing right in front of them.
It demonstrated how the referendum was won by people – not politics – and how gay people across the country were forced to put themselves out there and ask for equality.
O’Neill says during the film that he couldn’t not be involved in the campaign, but did he resent having to open his personal life for scrutiny?
“I slightly resented it, but not on my own as a person, but because of all gay people, on behalf of all people,” he says.
I think that all gay people had to step up during that campaign and tell their own personal stories because that’s what won the campaign. It was personal stories and people who didn’t want to vote against their sister or their cousin or whatever. Knocking on a door asking people, “please can you vote Yes so I can get married”.
“It’s a weird position to be in but I also see that as, ‘that’s just the way it is, we’ll get on with it’.”
It’s a journey that certainly ends with an emotional punch and has you leaving the cinema with a smile, both from pride and from the several laugh-out-loud moments peppered throughout the film.
If you like your movies uplifting, and if that sunny day in May struck a chord with you, then it’s well worth your while bending your knee to the Queen of Ireland.
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This guy still has a gun , I’m sure he is allowed under the 2nd amendment but don’t you think he would of got rid of it after the trouble it caused the first time around FFS ..
The NRA raised money online to buy him a new gun because he didn’t get his old one back after the trial. Keeping America safe.:-P
And this is the country that is leading the rest of the world around by the nose…..what does that say a out us??????
“There may have been some pushing and touching” but it’s ok because a it’s a divorce case?
No it’s not. If either party laid a hand on the other, that’s assault. I wasn’t there but somehow with all his priors I would lay money George was to blame. He really needs to be taken out of society, the guys a nutter
If either party laid a hand on the other…..what’s the other thing the yanks say???? Oh aye ” your I fading my personal space”…..the whole place is full of ejits……the American experiment has failed…..all great empires fall from within……the rest of the world are watching as the place implodes…..
He smashed an iPad for gods sake the mans a nutta
If that ipad was white he’d be in jail by now.
Its hard to believe who is right or wrong when a marraige breaks down. Both sides are known to exaggerate the truth.
America is great if you are non-black. You can shoot dead a black teenager after being told by the police to stay away & walk free. Then you can assult your wife’s father and still the cops do nothing.
But dare a black person drive at 31 in a 30 zone & they call out the SWAT team.
It doesn’t sound like the father-in-law pressed any charges against Zimmerman either. Given that both of the alleged injured parties in this incident have declined to make formal complaints, what do you want the police to arrest Zimmerman for?
Carcu. The Police did not tell him “to walk away and not follow”. What the dispatcher said (who is not a Police Officer but a civilian operator) was “that it was not necessary to follow”. Bit of a difference.
As most conservatives, few liberals, and no low information voters know, Florida’s stand-your-ground laws has disproportionately benefitted blacks. The fury being pushed by the Democrat-media complex is pure sham, intended to distract from the embarrassment caused by the pursuit of George Zimmerman when there was no case.
Okay all if I pushed you in the nose what would that be? Common assault, regardless if you press charges or not, it was still an assault.
Now how come nobody made a comment about my “31 in a 30 zone”, statement? Would that be because it’s true?
Whether you press charges or not is entirely relevant, since without a complaint from an injured party the police can’t prosecute in a case like this. Perhaps no one’s commented on the rest of your post because none of us are black Americans.
So Sandbag “You’ll know not what you say”.
I was a first hand witness of the “31 in the 30 zone”, when getting a lift home from a co-worker who was black and I can tell you it was scary. Never happened to me while I was driving alone I can tell you.
What do you want me to say? I’ve never experienced or witnessed it so anything I’ve got to say on the matter is of little relevence.
I hope the security footage shows him waving a gun around so he can be put behind bars with or without his ex’s testimony. This guy is a loose cannon.
Annette. What did the Police say? “We found No firearm nor did he have any indication of carrying one”. Then the wife dropped all charges and changed her story.
I think I’d have changed my story too… He murdered one man and got away with it and still has a gun?? Btw it is very easy to hide a gun and a LOT of abused/scared spouses decline to press charges or change their stories. Wait and see what the footage shows.
Again Annette there were no injuries visible to either the paramedics or the police nor was there any Firearm found nor any indication of him carrying one. The only evidence of any dispute was a broken I.Pad and no evidence as to who broke it. And as for your accusation of Murder. You will find he was cleared of All charges by a Jury of his peers. Why? Because the State Prosecutor persued the case for political reasons after the local Police and Prosecutor refused to indict because of lack of evidence against Zimmerman.
Why would you change your story if it would have gotten him arrested? If either his wife or his father-in-law had made a complaint, Zimmerman would have been taken away & they could have looked for a restraining order against him in the event he got bail. And as easy as you seem to think it is to hide a firearm in a car, the police in the US are as experienced in searching for them so I’d believe them when they say there wasn’t one present.
Seriously who gives a toss. American news reporting is dreadful I bet they added spin to make this look worse than it is.
All media adds spin and uses certain phrases and buzz words to keep the listener interested rte is no different.
A ‘domestic incident’ and there are at least seven cop cars at the scene? You’d be lucky to get one Garda on a bicycle here.
“Not pressing charges” isn’t even a real legal term. Either a victim can cooperate with a police investigation or not. It may be harder to prove a crime and move forward with a case without victim cooperation but it doesn’t prevent it. Whenever I see that term I translate it to: police don’t care enough/are too lazy to investigate further.
Tell us how Florida law will allow the authorities to prosecute Zimmerman in the absence of a formal complaint from either his wife or his father-in-law.
Damn right michelle I bet there’s semen somewhere on the crime scene that they could get tested
Rian why would there be semen? She did not claim he raped her or made any sexual advance to her.
@Michael Jordan, you need to watch CSI more often,there is always semen at a crime scene :-)
Not a fan if Superbad so
Happy to, Sandbag. The crime would have technically been committed against the State of Florida. The state passes laws that people abide by or break. Evidence of a crime is collected by the police. Evidence can be physical evidence, pictures/video, statements from the police officers who responded to the scene, statements from witnesses, statements from the victim, recordings of the 911 call, etc. All of this evidence can then be forwarded to the prosecutor to decide whether or not they can prove a crime has been committed. If the victim refuses to make a statement to the police it can make it difficult to prove a crime has been committed, but not impossible. In this particular case, the 911 call and any statements made by the victim to police who responded to the scene would be solid evidence to prove a crime has been committed.
Yet Michele in this case. There were no visible injuries on any of the parties involved there was also no gun found or even any evidence that he has a gun on his person. Both complainants changed their stories and withdrew the complaint. Could it be that the original complaint was false and under advisement withdrew the complaint to avoid themselves being charged with wasting police time.
The crime was not committed against the State of Florida; it may have been committed against two people on private property. If the two people in question don’t give statements, don’t give consent for access to medical records and don’t co-operate then all you’ve got is the 911 call, and good luck getting a charge past the grand jury with that. It is nearly impossible to get a conviction against someone where the injured party is the principal witness and they decide not to co-operate.
Not true. In domestic violence related cases about half of cases handled by prosecutors have “hostile” (uncooperative) victims. Many prosecutors feel it is in the interest of public safety to pursue these cases so while they do take into consideration the wishes of the victim, it isn’t the deciding factor. I know this from years of work in the American justice system–specifically assisting victims (both willing and unwilling). I have mixed feelings about how well this serves the best interests of victims so I’m not one to argue for or against it, but it is how the system works.
Believe it or not, George, isn’t at home, please leave a mes-saaage at the beep. I must be out or I’d pick up the pho-one. Where could I be? Believe it or not, I’m not hooome
If I could, I’d like this comment one hundred times :-)
They sound as bad as each other.
Although State Senator Barack Obama could boast of few legislative accomplishments, one thing he did do was co-sponsor a bill strengthening the Illionois stand-your-ground law. Hypocrite
Do we still think he’s innocent? Or should we ignore it because she’s s woman, that seems to be what happened with Trayvon because he was black, this man should be in prison for a long time.
Daddy what evidence was there to say he is guilty of what she claimed? No Gun. No injuries. She came back to the house with her Father knowing he was inside. Its as if she went expecting or wanting to cause an argument. They are going through divorce proceedings this could (and I am making a presumption here) part of a ploy by her to say that “on this date I had to call the Police”.
Imagine having the contract to make all the badges that our American chums like to wear on their uniforms.
Think she needs to press for gym membership
26 years old!!! Jezzz she looks like in her late 30′s….
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