JAILHOUSE ROCK

THE WHEATFIELD Feile mightn't have generated quite the same hype as its Thurles counterpart but that doesn't mean it wasn't lapped up with any less enthusiasm but it's, er, select audience.

What's more, there wasn't even a hint of the drunken rock 'n' roll excesses which left self-appointed moral guardians foaming at the mouth after the last 'Trip To Tipp'.

This may have something to do with the fact that the venue in question is a high security prison on Dublin's northside populated by 300 inmates who are doing time for crimes ranging from joyriding to murder.

"Some people don't agree with us organising these special events," says 'promoter' and prison officer Maurice, "but you ask any of the lads what the real punishment is and they'll tell you it's being locked away from their friends and family. It's not as if we're running a holiday camp - this only happens once a year and the goodwill it creates between the staff and inmates is immeasurable."

So how does it work - are prisoners threatened with having to watch The Golden Horde if they misbehave?

"No," he laughs. "60 or 70% of the inmates here are under-25, so bands like the Horde and The Revenants and Blink are geared towards them. For the older prisoners, we've got Stockton's Wing, Brendan O'Carroll and various cover groups, so everyone's catered for."

From what I can ascertain, Simon Carmody nearly caused a riot when he started waxing lyrical about the virtues of personal freedom; The Revenants spent half their set dodging rogue tomatoes and Blink went down a proverbial storm.

"I've got to admit," reveals Blink's Dermot Lambert, "that we were a bit nervous beforehand about doing the gig but it actually went really well and we enjoyed ourselves. In fact, they were a damn sight better behaved than a lot of crowds I can think of."

All the groups and prison officers involved in arranging the Feile donated their services free of charge and as Maurice joked, "They may be a captive audience - in the truest sense of the term - but they loved it."