They’re qualified to have a blast

Some of the funniest people I’ve met have come from Northern Ireland.

It’s to do with having lived through the Troubles and realising that humour keeps you sane.

So it was no surprise after Belfast’s Primark store suffered a terrible fire to see the city take it in its stride.

This was a typical response from the Sunflower Pub: “If anyone involved in fighting the blaze would like a drink, pints are on us” they tweeted above a picture of the pub boasting a sign that says: “No topless bathing, Ulster has suffered enough”.

Back in the days when smoke regularly rose from Belfast buildings I saw the funniest TV street interview ever, as That’s Life! tried to make locals look thick by asking if they knew how many letters were in the alphabet.

One old fella saw right through them and answered “Twenty-four”, only to be told by a smug BBC presenter with a clipped accent that there were 26.

“Yeah, there used to be. But C&A’s just been blown up,” he said before walking off, leaving the smart-ass looking like the patronising posh boy he was.

I need to go to The Sunflower some time soon.