Frank Mitchell

June 2022

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Roll on Donegal, I say, as my first foreign holiday was first of many disappointments

I must be the only person not longing for a foreign holiday. With the pandemic hopefully behind us everyone seems to be heading to the sun. There is so much excitement not even a five-hour delay at the airport or the very real possibility of the flight being cancelled dampens the spirits of those longing to get away.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Each morning I was one page ahead of the nine year olds... no wonder I quickly traded teaching for broadcasting

There was plenty of chat this week on the radio surrounding the great metric versus imperial debate. The Brexit brigade are keen to shimmy away as far as possible from any of those European influences and encourage the imperial approach.

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May 2022

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Frank Mitchell Opinion There’s an impressive photo of Her Majesty at Windsor Park, but an even bigger one at Croke Park

When I was growing up we didn’t have pictures of The Queen on display. We did have a snazzy golden frame around The Sacred Heart and a small green marble bust of Pope Paul VI. I had brought it home from a school trip to Rome. My mother was so impressed when she heard I had gone beyond the Vatican to receive tea in the Pope’s private garden.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Pandemic has harmed nightclubs… I hope those who refuse to pile into the party game don’t live to regret it

It’s wonderful to see lots of young people out again on the party scene with many of them making up for the lost time of lockdown. I am however slightly concerned for one section of the entertainment industry. While house parties, beer gardens and concerts all seem to be booming the nightclub scene is apparently lacking the vibrancy it once had.

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April 2022

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Love him or loathe him, Piers Morgan makes a goal scoring Ronaldo look like a nervous wreck

I ‘ve been watching an exponent of supreme confidence on TV this week. I’m not talking about the confidence that most of us as broadcasters display when doing a day’s work. I’m referring to that sense of self belief when there is no doubting one’s ability and no listening to those who criticise. Love him or loathe him, Piers Morgan makes a goal scoring Ronaldo look like a nervous wreck.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion E-bike life: Saddling up, I biked back to the past and the wonders that Northern Ireland has to offer

It’s hard to beat the view you get from the saddle on a bicycle. I’m now four months into the challenge set by e-bike king Phillip McCallen. He’s convinced me I have the stamina to use an e-bike most days on the nine-mile journey to work.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Gorse fires: I remember the excitement of being 10 years old and having the opportunity to burn all in front of me and then the guilt for thinking it might be fun

I love Easter weekend. It’s a time that conjures up vivid childhood memories. Most of them are laden with joy, but one held a lesson for life. Holy Thursday, Good Friday and then Easter Sunday — it was one church ceremony after another. If I wasn’t carrying a cross or a large candle, I was ringing the golden bell.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Lisa McGee’s genius has seen her pour comedic scorn on churches, politicians – almost everyone who made NI complicated in the 90s

The Catholic Church is much too big an organisation to worry about the return of Derry Girls. At least that is what some in power might think. If they’ve been watching they’ll probably dismiss it as the work of a disgruntled woman who doesn’t appreciate the good Catholic education that made her a skilled writer in the first place. I don’t know if Lisa McGee is disgruntled. I’ve never met her. I do know however that she is an outstanding comedy writer. Ulster’s John Sullivan.

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March 2022

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I’ve told listeners to go see Belfast… I’ve yet to watch it myself, but I will – promise

I blame Maureen Coleman and Petra Ellis. One is the queen of showbiz and the other is the power behind Pamela’s throne on UTV Life. When a leading journalist and a top TV producer tell you something you can be forgiven for believing them. “It’s excellent”. That is what they both said about the Oscar nominated multi award-winning Sir Kenneth Branagh film Belfast.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Some listeners just cannot accept the radio host agreeing with a politician... to them that is a bridge too far

As the host on the U105 radio phone-in I take great pride in never having expressed a party political preference. To be honest it’s easy for me as I don’t have one. Unbiased, middle of the road, balance at all cost, splinters in the backside from sitting on the fence those are the ingredients for success. It’s doesn’t mean however that you can’t have an opinion on an issue in the public sphere.

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February 2022

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Frank Mitchell Opinion When it comes to movies, I’m a shinner or a banger – I’m not talking about politics or sausages though

It has been a long time since I saw a shinner or a banger and trust me I’m not talking about politicians or sausages.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Donaghadee or nothing… the tourist board must be overjoyed with success of Hope Street

I was both pleasantly surprised and slightly shocked last week when I received a call from friends in England who wanted advice on the best place to stay in Donaghadee.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Jim Wells is entitled to hold his heartfelt opinions, but some will see him as yesterday’s man

Jim Wells MLA has been a guest on my U105 phone-in show many times. On Monday following the announcement that his political career was being shunted into the sidings he came on air to express his disappointment and obvious frustration at how he was being treated by the DUP.

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January 2022

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I didn’t know Sue Gray, who may pull the chain on the PM, but she made The Cove into a fine pub

I grew up in a parish with no pub. There was one very close to us but it wasn’t in Burren. It was in Derrylecka which begins a few fields away.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion It’s time for people with a voice to do all in their power to call out anti-female bias in all its forms

I’ve only been asked once to say the rosary in public. It was about three years ago and I was sitting on a bus going to the west of Ireland when I heard the call. It came from a wonderful woman much loved in our parish. She was in her late eighties and shouted, “Hi Frank, you’re good on the microphone, get up to the front of the bus and call out the rosary, we’re almost here.”

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I want to ride my bicycle… but not everyone’s in favour of me on the road

I remember the day my parents bought me my first bike. It was long after the era when all bicycles were black and well before the time every child wanted a Chopper. Mine was a Royal Enfield. It was navy blue with chrome mud guards and a cream trim on the inside of the tyres. It had rubber grips on the handlebars and a bell that could have wakened the dead.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Sitting in the car at the GP’s should be retained long after we’ve shown Covid the door

I’ve had something of a bumpy take-off to 2022. I managed to fall foul of the dreaded O2MLMP, the far from scientific term for one too many leftover mince pies. It knocked me for six but in the end allowed me to discover what our NHS has to offer.

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December 2021

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I’m determined to fill my head with positive memories to spark a bright 2022

So it’s finally here, 2022. Have you noticed how this year’s number tallies with possibly you and your neighbour? It depends on your home address but it’s rare for next door neighbours to both be included in the number of the year. I presume that last time was 1921 and that was the other side of the street.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I should have known better than to think it was okay to let Simon in on the Santa secret

I was slightly concerned this week when I heard two seven-year-olds discussing whether or not Santa existed. I thought they were slightly too young for that discussion. It was a bit like the night Fr Dougal asked Ted if he believed in heaven and hell. It’s a relevant debate but you don’t expect it between two priests in the parochial house bedroom.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Those who complain about showing a Covid passport on a phone to a door supervisor don’t know what real inconvenience is

We’re slowly getting used to it. Check after check as we weave our way through the Christmas market and festive attractions. Many people feel it’s too much of a restriction on civil liberty to have to show proof of vaccination before buying a drink but most are happy to make every effort to keep us all as safe as possible.

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November 2021

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Act of kindness highlights our unnamed heroes

There are occasional days when you meet a very special person. Monday of this week was for me such a day. The morning was crisp, cold and bright. The radio programme was live from the Christmas Market at City Hall and the air was ringing with festive cheer.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I can still hear 30 tiny Santas and couple of reindeer laughing at me

Today is a big day for me. I’m gingerly stepping back into the limelight after 18 months away from being on stage compering a show. I’ve only been out socially twice recently and apart from one lunchtime appointment where I named the winners in the Road Safety Awards, this is my first time facing an audience and being with people, lots of people.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion All the world’s a stage… and with a wealth of actors in Northern Ireland we’re used to it more than most

I recently stumbled across Showtrial on BBC1. It’s excellent. As I was ten minutes late joining the first episode I might have switched over but I was captured by the presence of Kerr Logan.

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October 2021

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Frank Mitchell Opinion We should have listened to eco champion Rodney Trotter (and the real experts)

This weekend we’ll be thinking about the environmentalists. Sir David Attenborough, Greta Thunberg and Rodney Trotter. Lanky youthful Rodney gave a voice to green issues in the 1980s when few others took it under their notice. It was all thanks to John Sullivan who wrote Only Fools and Horses. He allowed Rodney to be an eco-champion. Sullivan may have been inspired by the writers of The Good Life but his gags were better and the environmental discussion between the younger Trotter brother and the gormless Trigger delivered some classic lines.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I’m confident people from Northern Ireland aren’t ready for public nudity

If you ever find yourself living beside a naturist it’s advisable not to tell anyone. Shortly after I was married I came to Belfast to work for the BBC. We lived in an attic flat on a busy road between Ballyhackamore and Stormont.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity of a dander through Dublin with Sylvester Stallone

I finally made it back to a restaurant this week and found it to be a pleasure. Excellent service deserving of a healthy tip. I thought I’d been generous enough until I saw a high roller put on a show of how to do it in a very public way.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion A walk in the present brought me back to my past

To see a place properly you have to walk through it. I discovered that on Monday. The car needed a welding repair or it would fail the MOT. The man recommended for the job works in the shadow of Divis Tower close to the Westlink. I drove into his small busy yard and as I jumped out another chunk of rust fell onto the street.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion I laughed when I was asked to front campaign to promote high street voucher, my old primary school teacher would have been so proud

I had to laugh this week when I was asked to front a campaign to promote the new one hundred pound prepaid spend local card.

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September 2021

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Frank Mitchell Opinion How government-issue reflective arm band left me looking like a badger and put a biker in a river

You hear it quite often: “There’s a quare drop in the even’s.” You don’t have to be fluent in Ulster Scots to know it’s getting dark at about twenty past eight.

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Frank Mitchell Opinion Young women coming into these team games owe a debt of gratitude to those who wore the jerseys in the past

The BBC has taken ownership of the coverage of women’s football and it has given it the Super League, Match of the Day treatment it so richly deserves. The corporation has come a long way since its treatment of the game on Not the Nine O’Clock News. In the 1980s Mel Smith and Griff Rhys Jones appeared as two bored supporters who complained about the quality of women’s football but wouldn’t leave the stadium until the game was over as they wanted to watch the players swap jerseys. The clip ended with a group of topless women waving to the crowd as they made their way off the pitch. To the eternal shame of BBC comedy it’s for all to see on YouTube.