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Van Morrison was considered for a role in The Commitments but lost out after he asked for a burger. The bizarre claim is made in a new documentary about the making of the 1991 Bafta-winning Irish film, directed by Alan Parker. The producers also hoped to include Rory Gallagher in the cast, only to discover he was too unwell.
The Irish guitar hero died a number of years later in 1995. The BBC Radio 4 programme Reunion brought writer Roddy Doyle back together with members of the cast, including Derry actress Bronagh Gallagher. The documentary heard from casting director Ros Hubbard, who said Morrison was “quite businesslike and interested” after she approached him about taking a role in the film about a Dublin-based soul band.
The cast of The Commitments It has been reported that producers were thinking about Morrison for the part of trumpet player Joey ‘the Lips’ Fagan, who in end was played by Irish actor Johnny Murphy. Hubbard said Morrison’s encounter with Parker, which the singer attended with an associate, “wasn’t a meeting of minds”. She explained: “I had a feeling that the wrong man went into the room with Van and got the wrong side of Alan immediately.
” Adopting a Belfast accent, she told how Van’s associate said that the singer “would like a hamburger”. Hubbard said Parker knew then he wouldn’t be able to work with Morrison because he needed to be able to communicate one-to-one with his actors. She added: “It has to be that way, and that wasn’t going to happen with Van.
” Bronagh Gallagher (left) with Angeline Ball and Maria Doyle Kennedy in The Commitments Doyle, who had been to a lot of Morrison gigs, said the singer would not have been the right person for the role. He continued: “He’s a brilliant musician, but the bits in between the songs, like the banter, didn’t exist. “He’s a bit like Bob Dylan.
he’s not going to say ‘Hello Dublin, delighted to be here’.” Gallagher, who played backing singer Bernie McLaughlin, described Parker as a master filmmaker and thanked him for giving her the confidence to blossom as an 18-year-old. She said she believed the success of the movie opened the gates for the Irish TV and film industry.
Comedian and Late Late Show host Patrick Kielty told the documentary The Commitments had shown Irish people they didn’t have to leave the country to make movies. The documentary also heard that Gallagher holds the joint record with Goodfellas star Joe Pesci for the highest number of F-words in a film. Asked by presenter Kirsty Wark if he thought there would ever be a sequel to The Commitments, Doyle replied: “That would be a terrible idea.
” He also disclosed he had not watched the film since its premiere at Dublin’s Savoy Cinema in September 1991..
