Warning: this programme contains strong language! No, really: very bad language! And cursing! And swearing! And effing! And blinding! And some VERY rude words… but also a whole lot of wit and wisdom to explain why we love to f***ing swear.
In Holy F***, actor and comedian Ardal O’Hanlon explores the reasons behind Irish people’s colourful vocabulary. Is swearing a sign of intelligence? Do Irish people swear more than other nationalities? What is happening in our brains when we swear? And how does our history, our religion and our culture continue to shape the words we use?
To answer some of these questions, Ardal deep-dives into the psyches of a range of prominent foul-mouthed experts … or rather experts in foul-mouthiness?
Comedian Tommy Tiernan relays how swearing is used on the stage. Activist and musician Bob Geldof re-lives the moment he dropped the f-bomb on national television during Live Aid in 1985.
Lord Mayor of Dublin Hazel Chu talks about her cross-cultural experience of swearing and when verbal abuse goes beyond the acceptable. Author Lisa McInerney explains the importance of a well-placed curse in her writing. While GAA referee Pat McEnaney makes a case for being the most abused man in Ireland.
Linguist and writer Frankie Gaffney details the development of cursing in the Dublin slang from Elizabethan times to the works of Roddy Doyle. Journalist Frank McNally talks censorship and the Irish Times’ attitude to rude words. Dr Emma Byrne outlines the science of swearing, believing that it might actually be good for you.
A master of the Irish language, Manchán Magan draws the connections between old Gaelic curses and our current fondness for foulness, while ecclesiastical scholar Professor Salvador Ryan takes us into the world of minced oaths – Jeepers! – and the power that religion holds over the words we choose.
With humorous archive interspersing these unique perspectives, this is the definitive take on our use of bad language. So tune in to Holy F*** on Sunday 9th May for a true education in verbal communication.
Produced by leading indie Loosehorse, this is a companion piece to Guess Who’s Dead – where Ardal explored the Irish fascination with death notices. Directed by Gerry Hoban, maker of Jesus: Countdown to Calvary, A Fanatic Heart: Bob Geldof on WB Yeats, My Astonishing Self: Gabriel Byrne on George Bernard Shaw.