Tidy Towns Video / Audio Library
Working To Win
The Working to Win film was Commissioned by Bord Fáilte circa 1980 to show the fantastic work done by TidyTowns entrants throughout the country. At the time Bord Fáilte officials traveled the length and breadth of the country showing this film in local cinemas and town halls to demonstrate the effectiveness of participating in TidyTowns. Now well over 20 years old, we're sure it will bring back valuable memories to many of today's TidyTowns participants.
TV Advert 2000
The "All Together Now" TV ad, filmed mainly in Aughrim, Co Wicklow. was commissioned by SuperValu and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government as part of the millennium re-branding of the national TidyTowns competition in 2000. The idea behind the ad was to demonstrate that TidyTowns needs the whole community pulling together for it to work at its best. It ran for nearly six years before being replaced and for many it is the definitive TidyTowns ad.
TV Advert 2006
The "Get Out and Get Into It" TV ad, filmed mainly in Duleek, Co Meath. was commissioned by SuperValu and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government and first aired in 2006 to coincide with the restructuring of the initiative that year. The main idea behind the ad was to reflect the fact that taking part in TidyTowns need not be too onerous if a lot of people give a little time supporting their local committee and that there are benefits in participating even if the area doesn't win a prize, not least getting to know your neighbours. It aired until 2008. Please note the free phone number listed has since been replaced with a lo-call number 1890 25 27 43.
Rebellion of the Elements
To mark the 50th anniversary of TidyTowns and honour the contribution of TidyTowns volunteers to their local St Patrick Day parades for over half a century, a number of groups got together to enter the national festival in Dublin on 17th March 2008. The pageant 'Rebellion of the Elements' directed by Tarot Couzyn of TDC projects and involving volunteers from Ballymun, Donegal Town, Ennis, Tralee and Westport were successfully chosen to enter the parade and won third place in the pageant contest on the day. SuperValu and the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government commissioned this short film to record the event.
Celebration Day, 2007
Every year the holder of the title "Ireland's Tidiest Town" hosts a celebration day to thank their community and unveil the winning TidyTowns plaque. For many years the President of Ireland has kindly agreed to attend the event and meet the winning community. On 21 April 2007, Westport were celebrating their second overall win in TidyTowns and this short film was commissioned to capture the excitement as President McAleese and her husband Dr Martin McAleese visited the town.
Our TidyTowns
In 1979 TidyTowns was celebrating its 21st anniversary, and to mark the occasion Bord Fáilte commissioned this film to highlight the situation facing the country at the time. With the potential loss of so much of Ireland's heritage through neglect and thoughtless development, Bord Fáilte were highlighting the value of our historical landscape and how TidyTowns could help stop the slide before it was too late. The film shows many successful TidyTowns projects and how they could serve as a model throughout Ireland and its subject matter is as important today as it was in 1979.
The Tidiest of Towns, Highlights
In 2007, TidyTowns' sponsors SuperValu, with the support of the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, commissioned production company Screentime Shinawill to make a documentary to highlight the great work done by TidyTowns groups throughout Ireland and showcase the many individuals leading the cause in their communities. The series was broadcast in four episodes in November 2007 on RTE 1 television. This short video gives a flavour of what the film makers found.
Ballymun's Journey To TidyTowns
Global Action Plan (GAP) were engaged by Ballymun Regeneration Ltd and Dublin City Council to run environmental programmes at community level in Ballymun, Dublin as part of the ongoing urban renewal of the whole area. GAP is similarly engaged by other local authorities in urban areas throughout Ireland, working on the ground with residents and local businesses to encourage and empower them to tackle local issues. This film shows the story of how GAP has adopted the TidyTowns competition to bring these programmes together under a unified banner in Ballymun. GAP's application of the development programme aspects of TidyTowns is a model that can be transferred to any area in Ireland and is a clear demonstration of how TidyTowns can assist in delivering community renewal objectives on the ground in a very real way.
Observations from the build-up to the Tidy Towns Awards
In Europe its called "cinéma vérité", in America "direct cinema" and this documentary adopts this approach in showing the build up to the national awards ceremony held in Dublin Castle in 2007. Without voiceover or direction, the documentary captures "behind the scenes" moments as the Tidy Towns Unit personnel get everything ready for the event to come, television and radio crews get into place and Tidy Towns participants arrive from all over Ireland in anticipation of the announcement of the year's TidyTowns awards. The fim captures the excitement and atmosphere of the day right up to to opening of the ceremony. To watch the actual results being announced, see the external links page of this section and follow the link to RTE's Nationwide programme on the event.