Well holy God, still no homework done

Well holy God, the homework’s still not done


A personal Reflection
Anton McNulty

FOR a certain generation of schoolchildren the opening strains of Glenroe on Sunday evening were an ominous tone that meant trouble was ahead. Firstly it meant that the weekend was coming to an end with school in the morning but much more worryingly was the fact that no homework had been done.
For hours on a Sunday you would keep putting off some homework until the last minute. I’ll do it after dinner, I’ll do it after the news and before you knew it ‘Where in the World’ was over and time was running out fast.
The opening credits of Glenroe signalled panic and a realisation that you still had sums to do before school in the morning. It should have sent a message to the brain to get up and do your homework. Alas it didn’t and instead you sat down to see how Miley, Biddy, Dinny and the rest in Glenroe were getting on.
Long before the introduction of the English channels and Sky into people’s homes along the west coast, we were stuck with RTE 1 and Network Two and we didn’t know any different. Before the days of the internet and mobile phones we got our entertainment from RTÉ and while it might sound boring now, sitting around the television on a Sunday evening watching Glenroe was one of the highlights of the weekend. It was not that we were alone, everyone watched it and talked about it.
With his trademark saying, ‘Well Holy God!’ and his ever present donkey jacket, the affable but bumbling Miley Byrne was a household name throughout the 1980s and 90s. He was a figure of fun but he was a much loved character whose simple outlook on life made him a favourite of the thousands of viewers who tuned in to see Glenroe every week.
Glenroe and Miley along with other characters like Dinny, Biddy, Blackie Connors and Teasy, was an institution, especially in rural Ireland. True, some of the story lines were a bit daft but who will ever forget Miley and Fidelma’s frolics in the hay or Dr O’Hanlon (Mr GiftGrub) decking poor aul Miley when he found out. Classic television.
While they were nothing like each other, for thousands of people of a certain generation, Mick Lally was Miley Byrne and forever will be. It is testimony to Lally’s acting ability that he was able to portray Miley so naturally even if getting ‘Well Holy God’ shouted at him while walking down the street was probably not appreciated.
In my teenage years, Glenroe lost its appeal and there were better things to do and watch on Sunday evening. For me it will always be remembered for the sense of dread of having to go to school with no homework done and praying to God that you will have time in the morning to cog a few sums. Thanks for the memories Mick, even if my sums did suffer as a consequence.