johnnys balls

Every year I promise that I'll go and every year I forget. It wasn't going to happen this time around. Fishamble St has been the venue for the last number of years. An orchestra stuck on the back of a truck and a choir on the ground below. All there to give a rendition of Handel's Messiah. You know the one I'm on about. Everyone knows the Hallelujah chorus. The ensuing downpour of rain didn't even scare any of the crowd away. This lot are hardened gig goers by the looks of things, not like the whinging shites that turned up for the Barbara Streisand gig and complained because they got a bit wet. This lot of classical music lovers are not averse to some inclement weather. Unfortunately the same can't be said for my kids. They have the attention span of goldfish. So as I started to shoo them out from the crowd I turned around and lo and behold it's bleedin Johnny Ball behind me. Readers of a certain vintage will know who Johnny is but for those who don't, read on.

Johnny Ball used to be a stalwart of childrens television when I was a kid including Playaway and Think of a Number. He was one of the more entertaining personalities that they had back then. Others might know Johnny Ball's famous daughter, Zoe, who is married to Fatboy Housemartin, Norman Cook. Here's Johnny.