WORDS Deirdre Molumby
As many know, the Troubles is the name given to the period of political conflict in Northern Ireland characterised by riots and sporadic violence throughout the later half of the 20th Century. It is hard to believe that in all the upheaval, a Belfast record label and store that aimed to introduce punk bands from Northern Ireland to the UK (and ended up introducing them to the world) could emerge in that environment. Yet that was just Terri Hooley’s intention when he set up Good Vibrations in the early 1970s. Responsible for starting off many groups’ careers including The Outcasts and The Tearjerkers, Hooley’s greatest discovery was probably Derry band The Undertones, whose hit single Teenage Kicks (I defy you to not sing along to “I wanna hold you, wanna hold you tight, get teenage kicks right through the night”) remains an anthem for young people everywhere.
Directors Lisa Barros D’Sa and Glenn Leyburn have brought the character’s story to the big screen with the film Good Vibrations. It will be the couple’s second feature film, their first being Cherrybomb (2009) which starred Rupert Grint and Robert Sheehan, and it has already received international acclaim and won Best Screenplay at the Dinard British Film Festival, Best Irish Feature Film at the Galway Film Feadh last year, and received four nominations (winning for Best Costume) at the recent IFTAs.
“[Hooley] definitely effected change on those around him,” co-director Glenn Leyburn has said about the iconic figure. “He was about self-expression, he always trod his own idiosyncratic path, and that’s what makes him such a great subject for a film.” Leyburn explains that the movie he and Barros D’Sa (his directing partner and also his wife) have made aims to tell “A story about the irrepressible spirit of youth and the power of music even in the toughest of places and times. Belfast needed punk, the stuff that punk bands across the world were singing about, the punks in Northern Ireland lived through . . . it changed how people thought and how they went on to live their lives. And a whole new generation of local bands and musicians cite Terri and Good Vibrations as an inspiration, so it still resonates decades later.”
HOOLEY DEFINITELY EFFECTED CHANGE ON THOSE AROUND HIM. HE WAS ABOUT SELF EXPRESSION, HE ALWAYS TROD HIS OWN IDIOSYNCRATIC PATH, AND THAT’S WHAT MAKES HIM SUCH A GREAT SUBJECT FOR A FILM
Hooley himself was involved in the film from an early stage of production. He once said, “If there was anywhere in the world that needed punk, it was Belfast. Punk and Belfast was a united force. It was the first time in the Troubles that Protestant and Catholic kids could come together in a venue in the city centre and mix.” Glenn Leyburn and co-writer Colin Barberry based their script on conversations with Hooley, choosing key events to base the story on, such as when he opens the shop, when he signs the bands, and when Good Vibrations reaches its peak. As the film focuses on these events, it is not about the Troubles per se. Rather than engaging with politics or taking a side in the conflict, “Terri’s story transcends those boundaries and that’s what captivated us,” says Barros D’Sa. “Terri and Good Vibrations created an alternative to the Troubles. Terri didn’t plan a mission or set out to turn himself into some kind of counter-culture hero. He improvised as the world shifted around him and created some magic – as well as a certain amount of trouble and chaos for himself. That’s why it’s such an engaging story.”
Good Vibrations promises to be about the power of music to overcome differences, looking at the world through different eyes (or eye, as Terri Hooley is known for having only one eye since childhood), and freedom of expression. Barros D’Sa hopes all will enjoy the film as it is “about the power of youth and creativity to shine through the bleakest of times, themes we believe will have resonance for audiences anywhere in the world. It’s a universal story, told as it is through the particular prism of Terri’s fascinating, often chaotic life.”
