Mairead Farrell On the Panel

tbh

Anyone else pissed off with this black hole of humour on the panel? Surely she can only be on the show because RTE insist on having one woman on every show. Is it just me? When a woman can talk about being naked, and I'd rather be watching commercials - or God help us, Fiona Loony, there must be something wrong somewhere?

godtabh

She's meant to be the eye kind but all she does its rot my eyes!

I dont like here much. I think she finds it hard getting in before the lads and seems abit rushed then

aidan_walsh

You'd rather hear Fiona Looney talk about being naked?

klong

tbh wrote:

Anyone else pissed off with this black hole of humour on the panel? Surely she can only be on the show because RTE insist on having one woman on every show. Is it just me? When a woman can talk about being naked, and I'd rather be watching commercials - or God help us, Fiona Loony, there must be something wrong somewhere?

Not just you. Shes like a rabbit caught in headlights at a major intersection. Not funny, and as you point out, seems to be nothing more than a token :eek:

tbh

it's a sad state of affairs, I know, but damnit it's true.

Nalz

This was the one last night off Ray Darcys show yeah?

She's nice looking, and the best female thats been on that show in a while. I think it would be a bit odd now at this stage if there wasnt a woman on it...on the oul rare occasion, something funny can come out from them being serious or just reading off there funnies! Cannon fodder for Neil,Ed and the likes

BaZmO*

I think it's a little bit unfair to pick on her after last night's show which I thought was possibly the worst one I've seen. I think the show really lacks something when not hosted by Dara O'Briain. He seems to be able to let the run at decent enough pace and knows when to run with a joke and more importantly when stop flogging a dead horse.

The other problem when they have any female panelists on is that they find it very difficult to get a word in. And if they do say something funny it tends to just lack something in the delivery and that's when one of the guys takes what they have said and slightly twists it and then delivers it in more of a "stand up" type way making it look like it was their idea in the first place.

tbh

I agree with you that it's weaker when DOB isn't in the chair, but I have to say, I've been annoyed with MF for a while, last night was just the final straw.

monkeyfudge

I saw a bit of this actually.

It looked like she was reading her not so funny anecdote from some notes in front of her.

hallelujah

It is not her fault.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2054940733&referrerid=&highlight=

simu

BaZmO* wrote:

The other problem when they have any female panelists on is that they find it very difficult to get a word in. And if they do say something funny it tends to just lack something in the delivery and that's when one of the guys takes what they have said and slightly twists it and then delivers it in more of a "stand up" type way making it look like it was their idea in the first place.

True. If they're going to have women on it, they should make the men aware of this and have them give some breathing space to the women. Atm, it reminds me of guys showing off in class in secondary school "to impress the girls" - very off-putting and cringeworthy to watch.

Hrududu

God it was awful last night. Anytime I've seen it where DOB wasnt presenting its been a train wreck. Mairead is terrible, she does read off all the "funny" things she's thought up. At one point I turned over to see them all guffawing over a girl who couldnt go on a ride at Funderland because she was too heavy. Seriously, they went on and on about it. They were behaving exactly like the people The Panel usually makes fun of.

lostexpectation

simu wrote:

True. If they're going to have women on it, they should make the men aware of this and have them give some breathing space to the women. Atm, it reminds me of guys showing off in class in secondary school "to impress the girls" - very off-putting and cringeworthy to watch.

no women would need breathing space if she was a professional comedian

sprinkles

They have yet to find a funny woman to put on it. It's horrendus watching the women (and they have all done it) read out their hillarious anecdotes fromt heir piece of paper which they cleary wrote earlier that day to be greated with the sound of silence. The naked rant she went on with last night was only made funny by Jason butting in and slagging her about Ray. Albeit it may have flattened the joke but in fairness it wasn't a joke to begin with, it wasn't even interesting.

I'm going to say this and I fully expect a backlash from it but women just aren't funny. I could count the number of genuinely funny women on one hand (in a stand up setting ala the panel)...... and now I sit back and await the abuse from the dungaree wearing bald feminist

EDIT: Just read the thread linked above..... I agree totally!

Ghost Train

I didn't notice her being a black hole of humour as you put it, I think with one one woman and four men it's always going to make it harder for the girl to fit in with the some of the stupid type imature schoolboy humour if you know what i mean

I thought Ed Byrne on the christmas special was the worst ever performance by any panelist it was just bad.

I like the panel format compared to the topical quiz type format you get on bbc, sometimes it's not as consistant but other times it just works much better and is far more imprivised and funny

kevthecelt

Remember when pauline mcglynn was on a few weeks ago? jesus h christ she was atrocious, so unbelievably unfunny it seemed like when she made a joke all the other lads had to morph into something that was funny, *cringe*

Dont be at yourself

Women arent funny, that is a scientifically verified fact.

The best Panel line-up is clearly Dara, Neil Delamere, Andrew Maxwell, Jason Byrne and Colin Murphy.

homerjk

I'll agree she wasn't great and Pauline mc Glynn was brutal considering she supposed to be a comedian (of sorts) but the worst was that chick that won the rose of tralee.
What the hell was that about? What did they think she could offer? She was awful! She just sat there with this big stupid grin on her face the whole time!

Robbo

kevthecelt wrote:

Remember when pauline mcglynn was on a few weeks ago? jesus h christ she was atrocious, so unbelievably unfunny it seemed like when she made a joke all the other lads had to morph into something that was funny, *cringe*

Was discussing this recently with my housemate, how patently unfunny Pauline McGlynn is. Did she not learn anything from hanging around with Dermot Morgan, Gerry Stembridge and others for years? All of her attempts at gags or anecdotes were so heavily signposted that she may as well have been using an autocue.

If you can't appear remotely spontaneous and off the cuff on a heavily edited panel show then perhaps panel shows are not for you.

Still, what are the alternatives for the token female berth? Maeve Higgins? Fiona Looney? Roisin Bungle? Pass me the hemlock please.

Utopia Parkway

homerjk wrote:

I'll agree she wasn't great and Pauline mc Glynn was brutal considering she supposed to be a comedian (of sorts) but the worst was that chick that won the rose of tralee.
What the hell was that about? What did they think she could offer? She was awful! She just sat there with this big stupid grin on her face the whole time!

Yeah the Rose of Tralee one wasn't great but at least she was quite easy on the eye.

They might as well drop the token female panellist as none of them have much to contribute.

Goodshape

Do they ever have a Panel without a female panalist?

For what it's worth, I didn't think Mairead Farrell was the downfall of last nights show - the whole thing was pretty weak. First time I've seen it without Dara and it's definitily lacking something there. Colin Murphy's usually a good source of laughs on the show but his style just doesn't suit the big seat imo.

Do they rotate the hosts now or is it Colin from here-on-in? I think Neil Delamere might do a better job.

And I personally think Pauline McGlynn's one of the better females they have on. Doesn't say much I suppose.

mikedragon32

homerjk wrote:

I'll agree she wasn't great and Pauline mc Glynn was brutal considering she supposed to be a comedian (of sorts)

She's a comedy actress, and as such performs and delivers lines in a manner prescribed by a writer and director.

The Panel is more like improv comedy and even Deirdre O'Kane flopped in the "female seat".

Jason Byrne was great on it last night for just one thing: The Irish Porn segment! He was very good as a guest a few weeks ago, but he doesn't really work as a Panelist.

Hrududu

NekkidBibleMan wrote:

The best Panel line-up is clearly Dara, Neil Delamere, Andrew Maxwell, Jason Byrne and Colin Murphy.

I cannot stand Andrew Maxwell, he holds up the show every time he is on it to go off on some tangent filled with pauses and embarassment. But I do agree that they should just lose the token female. The show has been on a long time and they have never found one comedienne that was any good. And I speak as a gur-tle.

The best panel for me would be Dara, Neil Delamare, Colin Murphy...God I cant think of anymore. I wouldnt put Ed Byrne or Andrew Maxwell on it but I genuinely cant think of any more that were on the actual panel and were funny.

Nightwish

I agree, as a female, that they should drop the female panellist (and Ed Byrne). I think it must be a scientific fact at this stage that women (and Ed Byrne) cannot be funny. I'd love it if it were Dara, Colin, Jason Byrne, Andrew Maxwell and Neil Delamere every week.

Pigman II

Andrew Maxwell = shít; Dara O'Briain = shít; Ed Byrne = uber-shít.

Mairead Farrell, even if she isn't funny at least she's watchable and easy on the eye . It's more than those 3 aforementioned goons have ever managed.

Delamare and Murphy should be on it every week. After that it's a pick-em for the other two pieces of dead-weight.

Milktrolley

Hrududu wrote:

I cannot stand Andrew Maxwell, he holds up the show every time he is on it to go off on some tangent filled with pauses and embarassment. But I do agree that they should just lose the token female. The show has been on a long time and they have never found one comedienne that was any good. And I speak as a gur-tle.

The best panel for me would be Dara, Neil Delamare, Colin Murphy...God I cant think of anymore. I wouldnt put Ed Byrne or Andrew Maxwell on it but I genuinely cant think of any more that were on the actual panel and were funny.

Agree completely. And what's with this whole adoration that Eanna ní Lámh or whatever her name is gets? She's not funny! I could just about tolerate her that one time she was on with Ray D'Arcy over the summer. That's all.

As for people who deserve a chance... Des Bishop, Dylan Moran and Ardal O'Hanlon spring to mind, especially the latter two. Although whether they'd want to do it or not is a different matter.

A year-long Leaving Cert is more fun than Pauline McLynn or Fiona Looney. Mairead is by far the best female they've had... but she's still not outrageously funny.

Dave!

Mairead Farrell is a hotty, but not in the least bit funny. I used my imagination when she was telling that undressing while on the phone joke, though.

Yum.

But no, there has never been a funny female panelist on the show. Which is strange since there's plenty of funny wimminz on the panel shows in the UK. Women in general apparantly DON'T lack the funny gene -- just Irish women do!

Steve01

Anyone else pissed off with this black hole of humour on the panel? Surely she can only be on the show because RTE insist on having one woman on every show. Is it just me? When a woman can talk about being naked, and I'd rather be watching commercials - or God help us, Fiona Loony, there must be something wrong somewhere?

On the contrary I think she's pretty decent and has a lot more input than, say, Kathryn Thomas or Grainne Seoige. I loved her comparison between Bono and a whining girlfriend in a long term relationship last week. So very true. Though yes I can see everyone elses point about 'the token female seat' and maybe it should be scrapped.
On a more general note, I thought the show was pretty average last night. Not having much of the new panellists
Dara O'Brian/Ed Byrne > Jason Byrne/ Karl Spain

Dave!

Dara O Briain = the best Irish comedian around
Ed Byrne = pants of the highest degree
Jason Byrne = alright, gets a bit too samey for my liking. not original or intelligent
Karl Spain = I thought he was quite funny last night, not too pushy, has good timing
Andrew Maxwell = comes out with some gems every so often, I have to say. he doesn't seem like a person who's company I'd enjoy, but I can begrudgingly say he writes some good stuff
Neil Delamere = pretty much a rock on the show. consistently makes good jokes throughout (and doesn't overdo it). don't know how good he'd be at stand-up, but it'd be interesting to see
Colin Murphy = I don't find him funny for the most part. he has some rare moments, but other than that he's generally quite poor. Dunno how he got his own show (which is appalling BTW)!

cailinoBAC

Hmm, I seem to be one of the few people that likes Ed Byrne. Last night suffered for the lack of Dara, Ed and Andrew because for me they are the best 3. As for Mairead, I didn´t think she was any worse than anybody else last night. As was said before, of all the females on the show, she has been the best (of a bad lot, and I´m saying that as a woman). I do cringe a lot of the time watching the women on the show, but I do think it´s sometimes good to get another angle of whatever they´re talking about. Somehow I think the whole thing would change without the ´token´female.
As for Dylan Moran on the Panel - he´s myh favourite stand up but I wouldn´t see him on this type of show ever!

Dave!

yeah I don't think Dylan Moran would be great on the panel. He is quite good though.

cashback

Hrududu wrote:

At one point I turned over to see them all guffawing over a girl who couldnt go on a ride at Funderland because she was too heavy. Seriously, they went on and on about it. They were behaving exactly like the people The Panel usually makes fun of.

Yeah I thought this was pretty tasteless i have to say. Usually they would direct their ridicule at bizarre stuff in foreign countries or politicians maybe.
But there was a good chance that girl (only sixteen) was watching the show and so were a lot of her school mates I'd guess. It did seem a bit irresponsible and maybe not the kind of thing that Daire O'Briain would have raised, or at least, allowed to run for so long.

plonk

Jason byrne is one of the worst comedians around All he does is shout and talk in a dublin womans accent, He should be put down.

Dara o briain is a genius his dvd is the best stand up ive seen and he keeps the panal structured

mickd

Mairead Farrell has the potential to be funny, if she dropped the attitude and that "I am cool" shrank on her face

Heisenberg.

This post has been deleted.

tbh

The Scientist wrote:

I'd rather see an ugly woman sit there and say nothing than a hot one attempt to butt in and take away valuable delamere or maxwell joke time.

while I wouldn't call MF hot, I agree with that. Oh dear.

Beelzebub

Maeve Higgins - from naked camera, would be perfect for the show.
Did you see her on Tubridy Tonight?
She had everyone in stitches.

mickd

Don't agree The Panel is essentially a topical driven show. Higgins' meandering routine although funny at times would disrupt the momentum of the show

plugitplayit

I think Maeve Higgins would be best of a bad bunch.
Dara needs to host the show, Colin Murphy is very good with his drop in comments and off the back of other peoples comments. Dellamare for me saves the show week in week out. Has anybody been to see if live? I've been about 4 times this year and have to say it was much funnier live.

Andrew Maxwell seemingly very difficult to deal with. And for some reason the producer loves Ed Byrne. I would hazard a guess that Ed has been paid to appear on X amount of shows this year and while he is not funny that may have to have him on.

I was at one last year where there was a drunk dude in the audience and every time Fiona Looney said anything he booed her. Cruel, cringeworthy but very very funny.

I think Jason Byrne just isn't funny - stop shouting.

Hrududu

plugitplayit wrote:

Dellamare for me saves the show week in week out.

I totally agree. He has been consistantly funny any time I have seen him on it. There was one week where Maxwell and Ed Byrne were late for the show. So instead of putting Neil on the panel they brought him out as kind of a replacement until the other 2 got there. He stayed on when they did arrive, but the way he was brought on seemed to suggest that he was by no means their first choice and was only there because the other two couldnt be.

I didnt see enough of Karl Spain the other night to know if he would be a good regular. I'm not a fan of Jason Byrne though.

Dapos

I was at the panel in bray last Sunday night and i thought it was brilliant. Jason Byrne took over the show and had the audience in stitches for most of the episode. But then Rte edit it and u see mostly colin and more of Mairead than Jason when in fact jason contribuited a lot more to the 2 hours the live show ran. It was very funny in the start colin had to do the introduction 3 times as he kept feckin up.

plugitplayit

Yeah I was at that one out in Blanchardstown. Was pretty funny alright. He is just classic for the smart quip one liners. I saw him up in DCU a couple of years ago, he went there and he was hilarious. I've met him a few times and unlike most comedians he actually comes across as normal.

I think Maxwell is quite funny, he is from Donaghmede and plays the whole north Dub thing well. Very funny that week when the water in a lot of areas of North Dublin was gone except in Coolock and he said it is because God is from Coolock...

Those comedians on the Panel obviously pay attention to what is happening in the news etc and the research team basically pick out what they are going to talk about on the day. Then all the notes are given to the panellists who try and come up with funny material.

Steve01

Hmm, I seem to be one of the few people that likes Ed Byrne. Last night suffered for the lack of Dara, Ed and Andrew because for me they are the best 3.

Agreed. Have you seen Ed Byrne's DVD? Couldn't stop laughing throughout. The Panel definitely isn't as good without Dara or Ed. Andrew Maxwell can come up with some funny stuff when it comes to reacting to the other guests, which compensates for the fact that he's not funny in stand-up. I'd love to see Dylan Moran on The Panel too and hope Jason Byrne doesn't return. Can't stand that guy

Milktrolley

plugitplayit wrote:

I was at one last year where there was a drunk dude in the audience and every time Fiona Looney said anything he booed her. Cruel, cringeworthy but very very funny.

Was that the famous one with Joe Duffy way back when the show used to be live? That was funny... I remember the look on Dara's face when the guy was about to be removed, which he referred to as "a small amount of surgery."

Anyway, where was I... Dylan Moran might not be good as a panellist but by all means if they can give Pauline McLynn a go then he's earned a try. Keep Dara, Neil and Colin, one of the others can take the week off. Derval O'Rourke, as has been mentioned elsewhere on Boards, was really good the week she was on. She's funny but not pushy. Of course she does have other commitments...

Jerichoholic

Hrududu wrote:

God it was awful last night. Anytime I've seen it where DOB wasnt presenting its been a train wreck. Mairead is terrible, she does read off all the "funny" things she's thought up. At one point I turned over to see them all guffawing over a girl who couldnt go on a ride at Funderland because she was too heavy. Seriously, they went on and on about it. They were behaving exactly like the people The Panel usually makes fun of.

I couldn't believe this! These alleged stand up comedians completely missing the connection between a pregnant woman going on a ride called "The Terminator". Instead they went for "LOL SHES FAT HER BOOBIES WOULD BE FLOPPING ALL OVER THE PLACE LOL"

Awful.

kevmy

Jerichoholic wrote:

I couldn't believe this! These alleged stand up comedians completely missing the connection between a pregnant woman going on a ride called "The Terminator". Instead they went for "LOL SHES FAT HER BOOBIES WOULD BE FLOPPING ALL OVER THE PLACE LOL"

Awful.

AFAIK she wasn't pregnant just too big.

BaZmO*

Jerichoholic wrote:

I couldn't believe this! These alleged stand up comedians completely missing the connection between a pregnant woman going on a ride called "The Terminator". Instead they went for "LOL SHES FAT HER BOOBIES WOULD BE FLOPPING ALL OVER THE PLACE LOL"

Awful.

Yeah, she wasn't pregnant she was just a salad dodger. And 16 too, so only a kid. Not that being 16 ever stopped anyone from getting pregnant.

sprinkles

Steve01 wrote:

Agreed. Have you seen Ed Byrne's DVD? Couldn't stop laughing throughout. The Panel definitely isn't as good without Dara or Ed. Andrew Maxwell can come up with some funny stuff when it comes to reacting to the other guests, which compensates for the fact that he's not funny in stand-up. I'd love to see Dylan Moran on The Panel too and hope Jason Byrne doesn't return. Can't stand that guy

Ed Byrne lost all his comic powers when he got his hair cut the first time. He's totally unfunny nowadays and is only good at starting a joke/topic attempting to make something funny out of it, failing but setting it up nicely for the rest of the guys to finish off.

Nalz

The best lineup is Dara O B, Neil Delamere, Andrew Maxwell, Colin Murphy and Mairead Farrell. She at times can crack a joke, she can say something stupid and get jumped on by fellow panelists...plus she aint that bad looking either. Best female we have, and the panel would just be weird without a lady me thinks. Someone to take the piss out of, to have a different point of view (cas lets face it all women have a different point of view to men whatever the case may be)

Deirdre Kane as said failed in the Panel set big time. That one off Naked Camera wouldnt fit in in my opinion. Her remarks about slitting rists and her sister on Turbidy were taky and just plain shít IMO. There are better comedians of a similar style on the panel already.

I dont really like Jason or Ed Byrne but recently they've been decent on the panel. Karl Spain doesnt fit in there, though he slightly improved from his first show the other night.

As for female comedians, we just dont have them. So lets stick to the pretty, outgoing, Ive been on radio/tv before chick...thats all we can do

Mossy Monk

i don't know. i watched it last night and thought it was funny. granted Mairead Farrell wasnt funny but excluding her it was a good show

UrbanFox

Should RTE and comedy ever appear in the same sentence ?