The Dundonald Liberation Army

Product Information

There have been so many personal and professional highs that have peppered with these devastating lows, which take time to process and recover from. But the writing and seeing the shows has been great. And I've needed that, personally. It keeps you going.”

Birthed in the outraged aftermath of Lisburn City Council's rude 2015 power grab from long-time caretaker Castlereagh Borough Council, the DLA take a pair of crossed SuperSoaker waterguns as its crest and have a list of 'demands' that include "a public declaration by Lisburn City Council that it is the right of all the people of Dundonald to decide the future of Dundonald" and "compulsory under-age drinking to re-commence in the Moat Park, effective immediately". Talking to the Vote DLA gang in an otherwise empty studio space at the Grand Opera House, it’s clear they are having fun with the climactic show. They even put up Vote DLA posters round town in the run-up to the recent council elections, maybe confusing some voters in the process. You mean when people pretend it’s the last one, but go on as it’s good marketing?” jokes Gerard. Large agrees: “They’ve gone as far as they can go. There’s a kind of happy ending, with a sting in the tail.” Then Jo Donnelly and Matthew McElhinney stepped up to the mark with a love scene between Davy and posh Norma. He confided shyly, maybe after a manly bevvy or two, that his mum had always said she didn’t know who his father was. Jo Donnelly adds that this plays particularly badly during the cost of living crisis: “We feel they’re getting a pay cheque while we don’t know what to do about money.”

How Our Prices Work

Davy, reputed top man of the Dundonald Liberation Army, realises his dream of an independent republic of Dundonald cannot be achieved without a political strategy. And so, The People’s Independence Party (PIP) is born.

As for the plot of their latest DLA outing, Large says that it's "my take on the pandemic – but moreso". I've moved round different areas but I haven't managed to get out yet. But I haven't had any problems – everyone sees it for what it is and no-one is taking it too seriously. I take the p*** out of a lot of working class things, but it's all stuff that I have experienced – I used to take my PE kit to school in a plastic carrier bag. The pair bounced incredibly off each other and were not afraid to make themselves look the fool in the name of comedy and it paid off. But although it gained audience applause, I’m not sure the Tina Turner Simply the Best sequence, with beautiful tribute photo and dates of the late great singer, entirely worked. It's bittersweet, really, because these people were some of my biggest cheerleaders in so many respects and they're not here to see some of what's happening.

Offers

Actors Matthew McIhinney and Matt Forsythe return to the roles they originated in 2019's hit Dog DLA Afternoon – in which the DLA's attempt to stage a bank heist went farcically wrong – and the online 2020 Christmas-themed sequel Jingle All The DLA, which found Davy (McElhinney) and Horse (Forsythe) connecting via Zoom to share their experiences of the Covid pandemic. Finally, we discuss the significant moment when warriors in the armed struggle turn to the democratic process and enter politics. Do the Vote DLA team think there’s a nostalgia for the excitement of the battle? Davy aka Matthew McElhinney has this one: “Yes, although you can get a lot done via democracy, there’s a lot of misty-eyedness. They never want to give up the DLA and the struggle.” The ambition is huge and if Stormont isn’t functioning so cannot be stormed at the moment, there’s always the Lisburn and Castlereagh Council chamber. The DLA’s style—bling, fake tan, ostentatious facial hair—is unmistakably that of loyalist criminal godfathers. Their performances have attracted working-class Protestant men who might not normally be theatre-goers. Yet at times the dotty rhetoric is reminiscent of Irish nationalism. Stephen Large, creator of both the DLA and “Three’s a Shroud”, insists he is an “equal-opportunity offender”, who tries to show proper disrespect for all sides.

Film credits include: Ups and Downs (BBC); U Looking At Me (Channel 4); Betrayal of trust and Father Father (BBC NI). For Stephen, along with that sense of accomplishment will be the memory of three young men who lost their lives in the last few years. In honour of them, he has teamed up with the suicide prevention charity PIPS to offer billboard advertising throughout the promotional campaign for Vote DLA, as well as pledging to make a donation at the end of the run. Vote DLA posters appeared on lamp posts during the recent council elections, perhaps giving voters a tantalising glimpse of alternative political leadership... After navigating their way through a global pandemic, Davy and Horse realise their dream of an independent republic of Dundonald will only be achieved with a political strategy. On 1st April 2015, Lisburn City Council annexed the sleepy civil parish of Dundonald and ended Castlereagh’s long established sovereignty. There was no referendum, no polls or any consultation of public opinion. It was an arranged marriage and one that was to enjoy no honeymoon period whatsoever. The Dundonald populace felt intimidated and resistless but just when it seemed like their hopes had been demolished, a group of renegade mercenaries rose like a phoenix from the rubble. They called themselves the Dundonald Liberation Army.

Cast

Arguably Dundonald's most successful export since journalist and presenter Colin Murray (or former Miss Great Britain Gemma Garrett at the very least), to date Large has self-published two hit DLA books, including the 2016 Kindle comedy chart-topper Dundonald Liberation Army and its Top 10 follow-up novel A Dog DLA Afternoon from 2017, the latter subsequently adapted for the stage. Following a recent sell-out run at the MAC, the fictional cross-community paramilitary group will present their final saga 'Vote DLA' in June 2023. I try to take everything that crops up and look at it from both points of view through these characters. It is a lot of fun because you wouldn't get away with saying some of the things that these guys say in real life. Matthew has also had success in television, with appearances in BBC’s The Fall, Come Home, My Mother and Other Strangers, The Woman in White , Line of Duty and recently the BBC’s new crime drama, Blue Lights . He was also cast as a lead in a special film version of The Pardoners Tale.