Conor Blaney is a 33 year old musician living on the Lisburn Road who hosts gigs all over the South Belfast area with a guitar he built from scratch. As one third of the band, The Real Shindig, Conor has a passion for playing traditional Irish to modern contemporary music. As a youngster he wanted to join the circus, however things turned out quite differently….
I was born in The Royal Hospital
I grew up in Andersonstown
I now live on the Lisburn Road
I was educated at St Marys CBGS and UUC
My earliest memory is Doing ‘laps’ of the kitchen and living room in our house in my walkie-pen
When I was a child I wanted to join the circus
I actually became a musician
Worst job I’ve ever had was a dishwasher in my brother’s restaurant
Best job I’ve ever had was either playing music, or I worked as Frankenstein on a ghost train in New Jersey one summer for a couple of nights, I had to hide in a dark corner, then jump out and frighten kids. My ribs were sore from laughing at the end of every shift
The bravest thing I've ever done I drank beer from a keg that was four years out of date once
The stupidest thing I've ever done, see above...
The biggest thing I've yet to do is travel around Ireland/Europe in my green VW Campervan
The people who inspired me most are my parents
The most important thing in the world is sunshine
I'm very bad at remembering people’s names
I'm very good at remembering people’s faces
I'm most proud of the guitar I built from scratch, and am now gigging with (the one in the picture)
My best friend would say I don’t walk him enough
I like to relax by going for a pint, playing pool, listening to live music or if possible, a combination of those
My favourite saying/quote is... I saw this quote by George Bernard Shaw on the wall of Dublin Airport when I returned after living in America for a couple of years and thought it was great: “When I went to those great cities, I saw wonders I had never seen in Ireland, but when I came back to Ireland I found all the wonders there waiting for me”
The last book I read was Dawn of the Dumb: Dispatches from the Idiotic Frontline by Charlie Brooker
My favourite movie is Dead Poets Society or American History X
The actor that would play me in a movie of my life would be Denzel Washington
The song that makes me dance is Ryan’s Polka or Superstition by Stevie Wonder
The song I would have played at my funeral would be “If you don’t know me by now” by Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes
The best place I've ever been is Brazil
The place I have to visit before I die is New Zealand
The last person I talked to on the phone was my Dad
The last text message I received was from my friend Niamh
If I was a politician I would change the licensing laws so that there were staggered closing times, so that people could socialise to whatever time they wanted, and there wouldn’t be the mad drunken scramble for taxis at 2am we have at the minute
If I won the lottery I would buy a big yacht and sail round the world (after sorting out friends and family and a couple of charities etc..)
If I could describe myself in five words they would be cynical, sociable, lazy, hirsute and shy (on the inside)
If I could invite five people (living or dead) to a dinner party they would be Bill Hicks, Christopher Hitchens, Shane McGowan, Scarlett Johanssen and Laetitia Casta
If I could change one thing about South Belfast it would be introduce proper cycle lanes
My favourite thing about South Belfast is Mex Burrito Bar
