And they are *still* arguing over Effie…

Following this article, the Daily Fail has more speculation on offer.

Did legal battle block premiere of Emma Thompson’s period drama Effie Gray?

In 2005, Damian O’Hare played John Everett Millais in “The Countess”, so while have no idea who ripped off whom here, I seize the opportunity to post a “Countess” picture.

Alison Pargeter and Damian O’Hare in “The Countess”

 

“I love the immediacy of theatre,” he [Damian] enthuses. “Hearing the gasp of the audience and really feeling the language is simply amazing. The writing is a million times better than most television dramas.”

Well there’s no doubt this Belfast actor will be hearing several gasps from the audience in London’s Criterion Theatre where he’ll be making history all over again.”

(Snippet from an interview for  the “Irish Abroad” newsletter by Grainne McLoughlin, 2005)

The Revenger’s Tragedy – Gallery

Remember how we jokingly discussed the possible reasons why we only got to see the back of Damian O’Hare in the promo shots for “The Revenger’s Tragedy”? Now we know, the grim truth was probably deemed too harsh for our sensitive minds…

Just click the picture and you’ll get to the online gallery of photographer Jonthan Keenan who did the promo shots for this production at the Royal Exchange in Manchester back in 2008. There are a couple of pictures of Damian O’Hare, plus one seriously alien looking ones of Stephen Tompkinson.

Happy Birthday to us! Party with us and help School Kids getting a decent Breakfast!

On 12 August 2012, it will be five years that we provide the world with information on Irish actor Damian O’Hare’s work. Which just goes to show that ideas conceived at 3am after a pub crawl don’t necessarily have to be bad (though we’re glad we didn’t go for calling the site “D’Oh!”)

Running such a website is only fun if the fans to go with it don’t take things seriously, and luckily, that’s the case with ambarussa.net. Thanks a lot to all of you who contributed to the website, for mailing news, making screencaps and all the silly discussions.
(I still think “Dr. Burnett carrying kittens in a basket to safety from a burning house while single-handedly rescuing  30 girlscouts/nuns/vicars from a bus stuck in a ditch” would have made an awesome episode for “The Royal”!)

Thanks also to Damian O’Hare; we’d never made it to five years if he’d decided to drop acting and become a plumber. The people who “discovered” him in the Pirates of the Caribbean movies continued to follow his work all through the years, from The Royal to Taking the Flak to Hatfields & McCoys. If you manage to get and keep such a loyal fanbase, you know you’re good at what you’re doing.

So – party! We won’t share the cake, but we want to share the food: to celebrate five years of ambarussa.net, we’ve set up a fundraising site over at justgiving.com for “Magic Breakfast”, a charity which provides a decent breakfast for some of those 700,000 children who arrive at school too hungry to learn every day. All you have to do is click the button below, get more information and, if you feel like and can afford it, share a quid or two.  Your donation will make the wee ones happy, it will make the charity happy and it will make us happy. And happy Webgnomes are a very good thing!

 

 

Thanks so much for your generosity, and to the next five years!

Your friendly neighbourhood Webgnome xx

PS: As usual, the person responsible for this charity drive is the Webgnome; Damian O’Hare is not involved with this in any way, form or shape. Have complaints? Then mail us.

Back Issue: Damian O’Hare in Ibsen’s “Ghosts”

This is the first picture I’ve ever seen from the 2003 production of Henrik Ibsens’s “Ghosts” at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast. Directed by Conall Morrison, the play starred Damian O’Hare as Oswald Irving (orginal: Osvald Alving – the names were changed to adjust to the play’s setting in Northern Ireland) and Stella McCusker as his mother.

And here’s a review of “Ghosts”; I don’t think I’ve posted it before.

While Damian O’Hare played a quiet first half, before rising magnificently to the awful tragic ending ‘Give me the sun, mother, give me the sun’.

<commercialbreak> The Lyric is currently showing “The Importance of Being Ernest” by Oscar Wilde, by the way. </commercialbreak>

Video/Theatre: “East” by Stuart Wilson, feat. Avin Shah and Damian O’Hare

An Easter egg of the different kind: Stuart Wilsonhas has put his play “East” up on youtube. “East” is about the “trials and tribulations of partnering an Indian restaurant in 1990’s Manchester”. The play was performed in London’s Soho Theatre on Friday 5th December 2003, by actors Avin Shah (The Bill) and Damian O’Hare. Enjoy!

Look who was in the Mail…

… Damian O’Hare as John Everett Millais in “The Countess”. The article, dated 24 April 2011, is about “The day I sat in Emma Thompson’s kitchen and accused her of stealing my movie”. Not going to touch that, but I’m fascinated by the rumour that Orlando Bloom might be cast as Millais. Stroke of genius, they could be twins!

😉

And the winner is…

Thanks to everybody who participated in the “Double Feature” contest. The correct answer was, of course, “Miller”.

And we have a winner! One copy of “Double Feature” vol. 1 (Edgar & Annabel / The Swan) will find a new hope in the city of Gulfport/USA with

LaTisha!

Congratulations! A mail has been sent to you asking for your full address; as soon as I receive your reply, the book will wing its way to you, LaTisha.

Win one “Double Feature” (Edgar & Annabel / The Swan)

Good news for all those who didn’t get to see the “Double Feature” plays at the NT Paintframe and would like to read Damian O’Hare’s lines as Miller in “Edgar & Annabel”: There Is A Book! Or rather, there are two.

Vol. 1 contains Sam Holcroft’s “Edgar & Annabel” and D.C. Moore’s “The Swan”; vol. 2 Prasanna Puwanarajah’s “Nightwatchman” and Tom Basden’s “There Is A War”.

Just click on the pictures below to enter the shop of the National Theatre where you can read the synopses and buy each book for £ 9.90.

  

There Is A Contest – you can win one copy of vol. 1, “Edgar & Annabel” / “The Swan”, which, without a doubt, will give you interesting ideas on how to spruce up your next karaoke party (don’t ask).

All you have to do to win the book is answering the following question:

What was the name of the character Damian O’Hare played in “Edgar & Annabel”?

A) Miller

B) Foster

C) Carlsberg

Ah, life is full of difficult decisions… just drop me a line on

webgnome    @     ambarussa.net

with the correct answer. Deadline is 21st September at noon GMT, the contest is open worldwide,  the winner will be drawn and no correspondence will be held over the run or outcome of the contest.

Good luck!

Damian O’Hare: Various Updates

While the holiday-laundry is gently doing its spins in the washing machine, I have time for a quick update:

I’ve updated the list of reviews for Double Feature. The shows saw their last performances on Saturday, so there won’t be any further updates to that entry.

I’ve added a small gallery for Double Feature.

Now that Double Feature is over – would you like the benches as a souvenir? Or maybe the bar from The Swan?

Not quite finished with Double Feature yet – there will be a contest later this week in connection with the plays.

The Scottish Movie Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides has been released on DVD and Blu-ray. Coming to your local  DVD-by-Mail-Service very soon.

In completely different news, Kitaky has sent in fanart: “The Royal meets My Little Pony”. Looks like Dr. Burnett was really deciding his departure on a hoof…!

Review: Double Feature 1 and 2 (Edgar & Annabel / The Swan, Nightwatchman / There Is A War)

Reviewed performances: Saturday, 13 August 2011
(Four hours on the Paintframe’s “cushioned benches” – I sure suffered for art!)

The Paintframe at the National Theatre is the place where the set decorations are made, but it’s now home to “Double Feature” while it lasts. Pots of paint, ladders and tools are everywhere, reminders of the creative spirits that are usually at work in the hangar. With “Double Feature”, creativity has moved into creativity, and Soutra Gilmour’s amazing set designs have turned The Paintframe into a Russian nesting doll of art.