Welcome to the weekend, courtesy of JOE.ie. Whether you’re staying in or going out, we’ve got it covered. It’s time to leave the working week behind.
GOING OUT
Gigs
It was a poor week for fans of live music last weekend, but things are finally looking up.
Toots and the Maytals have been going for nearly 50 years and are one of the best-known acts in the world of ska and reggae. The Jamaican act has managed to stay at the top of the heap due in large part to their electric live shows. They may be seniors on the music scene, but don’t expect to spend your evening seated.
Toots and the Maytals hit Tripod in Dublin this Saturday with the action set to kick off at 7.30pm. You might want to get a move on though, tickets for this one won’t last.
Toots and the Maytals give a master class in how to stimulate crowd participation:
Dublin band The Cast of Cheers will be taking to the stage in Whelan’s this weekend. Expect a high-energy post-punk, post-rock Foals-type experience among a Whelan’s crowd that will be very much plugged into their sound. Gigs gets underway at 8pm.
For more information on the above gigs click here.
Film
Movie makers have been digging around in the Hollywood boneyard lately. They’ve managed to dig up Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Dolph Lundgren and various other elderly gents who they then threw together in this weekend’s preview release, The Expendables. If you’re excited by the prospect of juiced-up old men saying ‘I’m too old for this stuff man,’ then this one may well be for you.
Throw your eye over JOE’s Trailer Park for a quick preview of the movie.
Events
The big one this weekend is of course the GAA Hurling All Ireland Championship Semi Final between Tipperary and Waterford, set to throw in at 3.30pm in Croker. Make your way to HQ and see who will be going up against the mighty Killkenny for the All-Ireland crown.
Pop along a bit earlier, prior to 1.30pm to be precise, and you’ll also get to watch the GAA Hurling All Ireland Minor Championship 2010 between Clare and Dublin.
Click here for ticketing information.
If rugger is more your thing, you might be interested in the pre-season friendly between Connacht and Harlequins. Although not much is at stake, expect a well-contested clash between these two teams. Game takes place in the Galway Sports Ground at 6.30pm tonight (Friday 13 August).
Click here for tickets.
Getaway
God evidently thinks it’s funny to urinate all over his servants on this his greenest isle during summer time, but you don’t have to stand for it. You could convert to Buddhism or alternatively make a break for it – check out the hottest late, late travel deals featured in the newest edition of the Last Minute JOE.
STAYING IN
Sport on TV
The Premier League and SPL finally return this weekend, so there is a number of reasons for any football fan to shut the blinds and stay indoors all weekend. In the Premier League, the biggest ties are between last year’s fourth-place challengers Tottenham Hotspur and Man City, while a revitalised Liverpool take on an already-crocked Arsenal. ESPN also have the first match of Chelsea’s title challenge against the constantly-promoted West Brom.
For GAA fans, Sunday’s Hurling All Ireland Senior Championship Semi Final between Tipperary and Waterford should be an interesting encounter, though it’s difficult to believe either can mount a serious challenge to finalists Kilkenny. Finally, we at JOE aren’t too prone to recommending pre-season friendlies, but Friday’s mouth-watering encounter between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid is worth staying in for.
Can Roy Hodgson’s Liverpool defeat an injury-plagued Arsenal on opening weekend?
Friday 13 August
Pre-season friendly: Bayern Munich v Real Madrid (Setanta Ireland from 7:30pm)
Saturday 14 August
SPL: Inverness CT v Celtic (Sky Sports 4 from 12:00am)
Premier League: Tottenham v Man City (Sky Sports 3 from 12:00am)
Premier League: Chelsea v West Brown (ESPN from 4:45pm)
Sunday 15 August
SPL: Motherwell v Hibs (ESPN from 11:30am)
SHC Semi Finals: Waterford v Tipperary (RTE Two from 3:30pm)
Premier League: Liverpool v Arsenal (Sky Sports 1 from 3:30pm)
On the Box
The biggest must-see on the box this weekend is in our minds the proper return of Soccer Saturday (Sky Sports News, 12am). Sure it returned last week, but with the Premier League kicking into gear for its opening day, we can’t wait to see our favourite pundits shout, make horrendous live TV mistakes and cajole each other as the goals start flying in.
Jeff Stelling, often described by one JOE writer as the ‘best British TV host ever’ hosts proceedings, will be hopefully be joined by Liverpool fanatic Phil Thompson and the inimitable Chris ‘Kammie’ Kamara. You don’t even have to be a football fan to appreciate classic Soccer Saturday moments like this.
Give him back his son, dammit!
If you’ve had enough of sport and fancy a movie instead, Ron Howard’s tense thriller Ransom is on BBC1 Friday night, and is a tremendously enjoyable watch. Mel Gibson may have gone off the deep end in recent years, but he provides one of his most intense performances as an airline tycoon whose nine-year-old son has been abducted. A great cast is rounded out by Rene Russo, Delroy Lindo and Gary Sinise, but the indelible moment of Ransom is an irate Gibson yelling ‘Give me back my son!’ at his child’s abductor. Without doubt, this is a much-overlooked 90s classic.
DVD
Arriving on Blu-Ray this week is arguably one of the best box-sets on the market – Clint Eastwood: The Director’s Collection, comprising five discs of some of the Hollywood legends best directorial work, so no Space Cowboys included we’re afraid. Instead, the box-set features Gran Torino, Flags of our Fathers, Letters from Iwo Jima, Mystic River, and Unforgiven. Even if you weren’t two fond of Eastwood’s Pacific War double-bill, you’re still getting at least three undisputed modern classics as part of the deal. An essential Blu-Ray purchase we reckon.
Plus
Don’t forget to join JOE this weekend for our GAA live match-tracker, as we’ll be here Sunday from 2:30pm for our coverage of the Senior Hurling Semi Final between Waterford and Tipperary. Feel free to send your comments mid-game to shout@joe.ie.
