''Bertie'' is a four-part
miniseries
A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US term which is sometimes used interchangeably. , the popularity of miniseries format h ...
documenting the life of former
Taoiseach
The Taoiseach is the head of government, or prime minister, of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The office is appointed by the president of Ireland upon the nomination of Dáil Éireann (the lower house of the Oireachtas, Ireland's national legisl ...
Bertie Ahern
Bartholomew Patrick "Bertie" Ahern (born 12 September 1951) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach from 1997 to 2008, Leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2008, Leader of the Opposition from 1994 to 1997, Tánaiste a ...
, which began airing on
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
television channel
RTÉ One
RTÉ One ( ga, RTÉ a hAon) is an Irish free-to-air flagship television channel owned and operated by Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann (RTÉ). It is the most-popular and most-watched television channel in the country and was launched as ''TelefÃs à ...
on 3 November 2008. Featuring interviews interwoven with archive footage, the series examined how he led the country and what drove him through his political career.
Synopsis
The series featured contributions from more than 70 people directly linked with Ahern, including family members, schoolfriends and national and international politicians. A central aspect of the programme was a "marathon" interview with Ahern. This interview was conducted shortly after he resigned as Taoiseach and leader of the
Fianna Fáil
Fianna Fáil (, ; meaning 'Soldiers of Destiny' or 'Warriors of Fál'), officially Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party ( ga, audio=ga-Fianna Fáil.ogg, Fianna Fáil – An Páirtà Poblachtánach), is a conservative and Christian- ...
political party in May 2008.
An interview with
Tony Blair
Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He previously served as Leader of th ...
and contributions from former Cabinet colleagues
Charlie McCreevy and
Mary O'Rourke
Mary O'Rourke (; born 31 May 1937) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Leader of the Seanad and Leader of Fianna Fáil in the Seanad from 2002 to 2007, Deputy leader of Fianna Fáil from 1994 to 2002, Minister for Public ...
were included. His former wife
Miriam Ahern
Miriam Ahern (born Miriam Kelly, March 1954) is an Irish charity patron, the former spouse of Irish Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and mother of author Cecelia Ahern.
Charity work
Ahern is a patron of CARI, a child therapy and counselling organisati ...
and their daughters,
Cecelia Cecelia is a variation of the given name Cecilia. People with the name include:
* Cecelia Adkins (1923–2007, African-American publisher
* Cecelia Ager (1902–1981), American film critic and reporter
* Cecelia Ahern (born 1981) is an Irish noveli ...
and
Georgina Georgina may refer to:
Names
*Georgina (name), a feminine given name
Places
Australia
* Georgina, Queensland, a locality in the Shire of Boulia, Queensland
* Georgina Basin, a large sedimentary basin in Australia
* Georgina River, a river ...
were interviewed. Amongst those declining an interview were Ahern's former partner
Celia Larkin
Celia Larkin, also known as Cecilia Larkin, is a former Irish civil servant and was the partner of the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. Since 2020 she has worked for Limerick City and County Council as Limerick City Centre Revitalisation Manager.
Relat ...
. Other Cabinet ministers and junior ministers interviewed included
Dermot Ahern
Dermot Christopher Ahern (born 20 April 1955) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as Minister for Justice and Law Reform from 2008 to 2011, Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2004 to 2008, Minister for Communications, Marine a ...
,
Willie O'Dea
Willie O'Dea ( ; born 1 November 1952) is an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who has been a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Limerick City constituency since 2011, and previously from 1982 to 2011 for the Limerick East constituency. He has served as Min ...
,
Brian Lenihan,
Martin Cullen,
Mary Harney
Mary Harney (born 11 March 1953) is an Irish former politician and the current Chancellor of the University of Limerick.
She was leader of the Progressive Democrats party between 1993 and 2006 and again from 2007 to 2008, resuming the role aft ...
,
Conor Lenihan
Conor Lenihan (born 3 March 1963) is an Irish former Fianna Fáil politician who served as a Minister of State from 2004 to 2011. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) for the Dublin South-West constituency from 1997 to 2011.
He was from 2011 to ...
and
Noel Ahern. Among the other figures interviewed were Des Richardson,
Joe Burke, Barry English, David McKenna,
Chris Wall
Christopher Joseph Wall (23 December 1942 – 28 December 2021) was an associate of former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern. He served as Ahern's election agent at the 2007 general election, and after the election he was nominated by the Taoiseach to ser ...
,
Paddy Duffy
Paddy Duffy (November 12, 1864 – July 10, 1890) was an American boxer of Irish-American, Irish descent. He was considered the first world welterweight champion of boxing's gloved era.
Boxing career highlights
Paddy Duffy was born on November ...
and
Royston Brady
Royston Mathew Brady (born 24 August 1972) is an Irish businessman and former politician, who was Lord Mayor of Dublin, Ireland between 2003 and 2004. Once considered a protege of Bertie Ahern, Brady fell foul of the Fianna Fáil party in the m ...
.
Ahern's successor as Taoiseach,
Brian Cowen
Brian Bernard Cowen (born 10 January 1960) is an Irish former politician who served as Taoiseach and Leader of Fianna Fáil from 2008 to 2011.
Cowen was elected to Dáil Éireann in 1984, for the constituency of Laois–Offaly and served in a ...
, did not contribute to the programme.
Brian Lenihan described Ahern in the documentary as "a man who is utterly consumed by politics and by the exercise of power and he has devoted much of his life to that exercise".
Production
Producer
Steve Carson said: "It is a political biography of the Taoiseach while also covering Ireland's political history from 1992, where the ''Haughey'' series left off."
''Bertie'' was produced by
Mint Productions, who also produced the 2003 programme, ''Fine Gael: A Family at War'' and in 2005 ''
Haughey
Haughey ( ga, Ó hEochaidh) is an Irish surname of noble origins. Spelling variations include: Hoey, McCaughey and McKeogh, among others.
The Haugheys are descendants of the ancient Dál Fiatach dynasty, rulers of Ulaid. According to Irish ...
'' documentary series. also directed by Carson. The show was envisaged and production commenced before Ahern resigned from office.
List of episodes
Part one
The opening episode was broadcast on 3 November 2008 on RTÉ One. It traced Ahern's life up to the
Irish general election in 1989, detailing his years as an accounts clerk in the
Mater Hospital,
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
and his fledgling political career, during which he won a seat in
Dáil Éireann
Dáil Éireann ( , ; ) is the lower house, and principal chamber, of the Oireachtas (Irish legislature), which also includes the President of Ireland and Seanad Éireann (the upper house).Article 15.1.2º of the Constitution of Ireland read ...
in 1977 on his first campaign. The programme outlined the close bond he forged with his party leader at the time,
Charles Haughey
Charles James Haughey (; 16 September 1925 – 13 June 2006) was an Irish Fianna Fáil politician who served as Taoiseach on three occasions – 1979 to 1981, March to December 1982 and 1987 to 1992. He was also Minister for the Gaeltacht from ...
, whilst serving as Fianna Fáil chief whip.
Part two
The second episode was broadcast on 10 November 2008, commenced with the
1990 Irish presidential election, in which
Mary Robinson
Mary Therese Winifred Robinson ( ga, Máire Mhic RóibÃn; ; born 21 May 1944) is an Irish politician who was the 7th president of Ireland, serving from December 1990 to September 1997, the first woman to hold this office. Prior to her electi ...
became the country's
first female president, and follows Ahern's career up to his appointment as leader of the Fianna Fáil political party in 1994.
Part three
The third episode was broadcast on 17 November 2008, focused on the period from 1994, when Ahern very nearly formed a coalition Government with the
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
. There was also the issue of the briefcase full of cash delivered by Michael Wall to Ahern's constituency office in St Lukes, the previous weekend; the cash was passed on to Celia Larkin who lodged it in an
AIB account. From there the focus switched to the
1997 general election, when a minute increase in Fianna Fáil's share of the vote saw him elected Taoiseach for the first time in a coalition Government with the
Progressive Democrats
The Progressive Democrats ( ga, An Páirtà Daonlathach, literally "The Democratic Party" ), commonly referred to as the PDs, was a conservative-liberal political party in the Republic of Ireland.
Launched on 21 December 1985 by Desmond O'Mal ...
. Subsequently, the extensive negotiations in
Stormont, leading to the
Good Friday Agreement
The Good Friday Agreement (GFA), or Belfast Agreement ( ga, Comhaontú Aoine an Chéasta or ; Ulster-Scots: or ), is a pair of agreements signed on 10 April 1998 that ended most of the violence of The Troubles, a political conflict in No ...
.
Part four
The fourth episode was broadcast on 24 November 2008, focused on the period from early 1999 up to 2008. The
Planning Tribunal,
Mahon Tribunal
The Tribunal of Inquiry into Certain Planning Matters and Payments commonly known as the Mahon Tribunal after the name of its last chairman, was a public inquiry in Ireland established by Dáil Éireann in 1997 to investigate allegations of c ...
was set up in 1998 to "enquire urgently" into planning affairs in Dublin. Nearly a decade later it would focus on Ahern's missing bank accounts and a pattern of lodgements and withdrawals noticeably larger than his salary between 1993 and 1995. His subsequent attempts to explain this on the
RTÉ Six One News in September 2006 and the coining of the term "dig-out" entered Irish political folklore. His performance at the Tribunal and dichotomies in his evidence featured there.
Reception
601,000 watched the first episode, 594,000 watched the second episode and "in excess" of 500,000 were said to have watched the third episode. Ahern was not amongst the viewers, preferring to "listen to others' views on it at this stage" and watch it later when the series has completed broadcasting.
It won an
IFTA
Ifta is a former municipality in the Wartburgkreis district of Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 January 2019, it has been part of the town Treffurt
Treffurt () is a small town in the western region of the Wartburgkreis district which belongs to the f ...
at the
6th Annual Irish Film & Television Awards 2009.
References
External links
''Bertie''at
RTÉ.ie
RTÉ.ie is the brand name and home of Irish broadcaster Raidió TeilifÃs Éireann (RTÉ)'s online activities, located at the URL https://www.rte.ie/. The site began publishing on 26 May 1996. According to RTÉ, it operates on an entirely com ...
{{RTÉ Factual
2008 in Irish politics
2008 Irish television series debuts
2008 Irish television series endings
Bertie Ahern
Cultural depictions of Taoisigh
Irish documentary television series
Irish history television shows
RTÉ original programming