Bono and co putting Sheen on great work
CONCERN Worldwide has been lucky throughout its 50-year history to count on well-known celebs like Bono and Martin Sheen as friends.
The aid agency has benefited greatly from its links with influential people who have helped promote its life-saving work.
One notable effort in 1982 came from actor Sheen, who donated his earnings of €88,000 from the film Gandhi to the organisation.
Bono travelled to Ethiopia in 1985 with the late Fr Jack Finucane, one of the leading figures of Concern, to witness the devastating famine and credited Jack with having a huge influence on his thinking regarding international development.
Another memorable partnership between Concern and celebrities happened that same year at Windmill Lane Recording Studios in Dublin.
A long forgotten charity supergroup, made up of 40 Irish musicians and wellknown broadcasters, was formed called The Concerned in aid of famine relief work in Ethiopia.
They recorded a song and a video to go with it called Show Some Concern, which was written by Paul Cleary from The Blades and produced by awardwinning composer Bill Whelan.
The fundraising effort was the brainchild of the late Gerry Ryan and Paul Cleary’s then manager Mark Venner who got friends from the showbiz world including Pat Kenny to feature.
The song stayed in the Irish charts for eight weeks earning three consecutive No1 positions, until it was topped by the worldwide hit charity single We Are The World by the Michael Jackson and Lionel Richieled supergroup USA For Africa. This followed the incredible success earlier that year with Bob Geldof and Midge Ure’s Band Aid single Do They Know It’s Christmas? which led to the unforgettable Live Aid concert.
Concern had another run-in with the pop business in 2010 after the Haiti earthquake disaster when a cover of I Put A Spell On You was recorded to raise funds by Shane Macgowan, Nick Cave, Johnny Depp, Paloma Faith, Bobby Gillespie, Glen Matlock, Chrissie Hynde and Eliza Doolittle. Other well-known personalities who have supported Concern include musicians Bob Geldof and Andrea Corr, actors Toni Collette and Mike Farrell, former presidents Mary Mcaleese and Mary Robinson and Michael D Higgins.
Concern even has a royal connection with its US ambassador, Alexi Lubomirski, a renowned photographer, who was the official wedding snapper for Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
Alexi is also himself a member of Polish royalty with his official title being his Serene Highness Prince Alexi Lubomirski of Poland.
The charity’s John O’loughlin Kennedy, who co-founded Concern Worldwide with his late wife Kay in 1968, said: “We owe a great gratitude to the media but also to many highprofile figures who used their celebrity for the benefit of people suffering from hunger and poverty.
“Getting publicity for good work is often hard but throughout Concern’s history many musicians and wellknown personalities certainly made a huge effort to raise awareness and they deserve great thanks.” Christy Moore Pat Kenny