THE LIFE and work of Independent TD Tony Gregory is to be celebrated in a film screening by the Irish Film Institute (IFI).
Two documentaries featuring Gregory and preserved by the IFI’s Film Archive will be screened on April 15th to commemorate the Dublin Central TD’s political life.
The two films, Alive, Alive O – A Requiem for Dublin (2001), and Looking On (1982), were both made by documentary filmmaker Sé Merry Doyle and give unique insight into moments of social struggle and change in Dublin City.
Alive, Alive O looks at Dublin street traders, north and south of the city, a group for whom Gregory notably spent time in jail, while Looking On is a documentary about the festival of the same name that was held in the north inner city of Dublin.
It features Gregory decrying social vandalism amid the rubble of half-demolished houses.
The documentaries were filmed in 1982 and 1999, according to Kasandra O’Connell of the IFI Film Archive.
“As they were both filmed in different decades, the documentaries give people a chance to see how much Dublin has changed over the years, as well as acting as a celebration of Mr Gregory’s life,” she added. “The documentaries were filmed on tape in 1982 and 1999, so both have kept well.”
Gregory rose to national prominence in the early 1980s when, as a newly-elected Independent TD, he struck a deal with Charles Haughey to return Fianna Fáil to government.
He passed away on January 2nd of this year after a long battle with cancer.
Tickets for the event can be booked through the IFI Box Office at 01-6793477 or at www.ifi.ie