Music vid sees Begrudgers' normal service resume

The musical climax of the last episode of The Begrudgers may not have been what either the viewers or the makers had anticipated - but it is still a fitting conclusion nonetheless, and deserving of our votes. A ridiculously funny rock opera now stands as The Begrudgers' entry for episode 4 of RTE's Storyland competition and offers a musical echo as to how the sitcom had concluded... before it was banned. In a soft rock section of the six minute epic a heartbroken Nobby laments the loss of Snout and how "being a prick no longer feels right", meanwhile Snout takes on a drink-addled Tom Waits persona to sing how his drinking buddy should be, well, drinking with him. Will Govan arguably steals the show thanks to his character, George, taking on a prepostrous Ali G-esque makeover. It all builds to a memorable crescendo that demands to be watched. Log onto - http://www.rte.ie/drama/featured/storyland/begrudgers.html to bear witness. The music video had originially been filmed as a promo for the grand finale but then had to become the main event after Bus Eireann used theircontractual veto to prevent The Begrudgers from showing their official episode 4. A lonely Nobby decides to abandon Cavan for the allure of Thailand - and the risque mag he reads on the bus doesn't leave much to the imagination as to which attractions he was tempted by. He jumps on a bus bound for the airport. Presumably, Bus Eireann was afraid that potential customers might think that on a typical journey to Dublin, bus drivers would continue to drive despite being pestered by a drunk while a car races alongside it on the wrong side of the road - driven by a blind man - as a Begrudger hangs out the car window declaring his affections for his grumpy pal. Bus Eireann arguably missed a trick, though, as the thought that friendships could be healed with a trip on the 109A may actually encourage some lonely folk to invest in a day return to the capital. The original episode 4 may now go down in the annals of local legend and have the mystique of a lost Velvet Underground album... well, until someone bungs up a pirate copy on a blog. Check out this week's Celt for a Q&A with director and screenwriter Philip Doherty, who created Nobby, Snout and the gang. Meanwhile, here's some behind-the-scenes fun the cast and crew had over the last six months: