Tell us a wee bit about yourself?
A wus born local til yerselves, oot the back road in Lisnafiffy, an' wus brung up in whit ye might call a traditional Ulster Scots spakin' hoosehaul. After a brief an' largely unsuccessful education ah bought messel an online dacturate like the Rev Dr Big Ian Paisley an' set aboot establishin' messel within the wurld o' Ulster Scots academia. At present ah wurk at the Ballymena School o' Ulster Scots Dancin', as Professor of Rhythmic Lambeg Interpretation as well as bein' Heid Yin o' 1690 an all thon - the social nat wurkin' site fur those professionals an' academics wi an interest in the hamely tongue. Oor site examines issues o' importance til the Ulster Scot - like histerical an cultural matters, the weather, palitics an' sausage rolls.
There are a couple of local places of interest to those entrigued by Ulster Scots academia. Can you tell us a bit about those?
The Banbridge district is a hot bed o' Ulster Scots things, wi a flourishin' academic community. Fur example it was a taem o' Archaeologits frae Dromara International Fife an' Drum Theraputic Music Centre who discovered the wurld famous stain circle ootside Annaclone now nain as Sammy Wilson's Ring . Likewise ma ain townland o' Lisnafiffy is hame til the Ulster-Huguenot School o' Alledged Climatic Changin' Events, whit ye might call a think tank oan all things enviromentalist.
The website aims to spread the word of the Ulster Scots language. How is that campaign coming along?
Well judgin' by the fack that youse are interviewin' me its goin' right an' well. Ah hiv til admit thit we hivnae always bin successful. Oor attempt fur til get Ballyhalbert crowned UK City o' Culture met with some sympathy with the heid yins o' that carry on but they said that it wus tae wee til be considered. Likewise ah hid nae luk wi' ma attempts til force Google intae creatin' an Ulster Scots translation tool. Ah'm still rippin' aboot thy'on fur they do translate intil Free State an' sae far as I am concerned this breaks the Guid Friday Agreement's stipulations oan parity o' steam.
The site has turned a bit political at the minute thanks to the General Election coming up. What are your own thoughts on it?
As a cultural hub thing it is important fur oorselves til advise the Ulster Scots electorate on such matters. Ah noticed that nain o' the parties hid buthered their arses providin' manifestos an' the like in the hamely tongue. Thus a tuk it upon messel fur til provide Ulster Scots subtitles fur the election broadcasts o' the Shinners an' the DUPers. Wi'oot ma translations, how else is an Ulster Scot supposed til choose betwain them twa parties? Interestinly oor broadcasts are mair papular on Youse Tube than the real yins, provin' the point that in ignorin' oorselves, the parties are missin' oot on potential voters. Neither party his replied til ma e-screeds demandin' translations, sae ah micht waste ma vote on the Greens this time jist til show them up.
If you were Prime Minister for the day what would you do?
Make Ulster Scots the official language o' Ulster, even the bits in the Free State. Ah might invade France tae.
On the website there are details of a few computer games brought out for Ulster Scots users. What can you tell us about those?
The boys at Carrickfergus games developers Micrasaft spotted a gap in the market fur Ulster Scots themed TV games, an' put taegither a couple o' yins fur the Nintendo Wee. "Flute Hero" is a big seller in the Rathcoole area, allowin' the gamer til use the Wee's control system fur til play all manner o' papular Loyalist anthems. Personally ah prefer "Lambeg idol", wi' its unique "Cane controller attachment" sae ye can batter oot a few tunes fur til try til impress an on-line Simon Caul.
There have been a few comments on your website about women being the cause of global warming. How have you come to this conclusion?
Aye, thy'on came aboot as a result o' the controversy surroundin' the remarks o' Minister Wilson. A climatic changin' conference was helt in Magherally Young Farmer's club an' the distinguished Japanese academic Yoko McElvey effectively proved that Global Warmin' isnae man made, it's doon til weemen. Although thunk ootrageous at the time Prof McElvey hid graphs an' everythin' thit showed a direct correlation between the nummer o' pairs o' shoes thit women hiv an' the amount o' carbon in the atmosphere. Now ah'm nae enviromentalism expert messel, but there were graphs, sae it must be true.
Finally, with the marching season already underway are there any parades you are particularly looking forward to?
Ah hiv a particular fondness fur Rathfriland messel, fur its grand crack watching the Drumnavaddy boys struggle up thy'on hill wi' their Lambegs. Drumcree his lost some o' its lustre in racent years, nae tractors blackin' roads oor the like but in the heels o' the hunt Scarva is hard til bate. Ah fur yin hiv a substantial collection o' expelled shotgun shells frae the 1970s, gathered up roun' the feet o' the Sham Fightin' boyos. Must putt them on ebay some time, make a few shillins.
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