No hope for Mr Reggae as Late Late Show pulls plug
By Mary Dennehy
A SEASONED karaoke singer from Tallaght isn’t jamming this week after it is believed he was pulled from a live competition on The Late Late Show this Friday.
Philip Murphy, aka Mr Reggae, was one of 60 singers to enter a karaoke challenge in Morton’s Pub on the Firhouse Road which, hosted by DJ Electric Eddie, was part of a nationwide search by The Late Late Show for a star to represent Ireland in the Karaoke World Championship in Helsinki later this year.
For the past four weeks, 60 hopefuls sang their hearts out in Morton’s Pub, with 15 performers shortlisted for the heated final last Saturday – during which 72-year-old Philip Murphy and Elaine Cudden were crowned the two winners.
However, on Monday, Philip, who had sang Eddie Grant’s number Gimmie Hope Joanna and Bob Marley’s Buffalo Soldier, was told he would not be performing on the live show – which he believed he would be competing in after his win.
Sue Byrne has been running the karaoke in Morton’s for the past five years and she told The Echo: “It’s disgraceful the way Phil has been treated, we’re all gutted for him.
“He was ecstatic last Saturday when his name was called out and was celebrating with his family.
“Then, two days later he gets a phone call that he didn’t get through.
“Philip is a fantastic singer and we all call him Mr Reggae because he loves to sing a bit of Bob Marley.
“When he starts singing people sometimes think he’s miming, they’re not expecting a 72-year-old to be knocking out some reggae tunes.”
She added: “I don’t understand how this can happen, Phil won fair and square in an open competition with its own judges.
“We’re going to fight this for Phil and campaign for answers.
“We were approached to run this competition and were told there would be two winners who would sing live on The Late Late Show.
“As a pub we feel very let down by all of this.
“We ran that competition successfully and profes-sionally and now we’re left trying to explain to customers what happened.”
On Wednesday, Philip’s story was shared on Live Line alongside a similar situation experienced by 19-year-old Leah Corcoran, who was put through by judges during the final in the Red Cow Hotel.
However, Leah claimed that she too has been told since her win that she will not perform on Friday’s live show.
When contacted by The Echo, a spokesman for The Late Late Show said: “Appearances on The Late Late Show are, as always, within the editorial control of the show’s production team.
“Following a review of clips filmed during the karaoke competitions, the singers chosen by the team to take part in Friday night’s show were made on the basis of their suitability for a live performance on The Late Late Show, quality of performance as well as choice of song.
“Neither age nor gender were factors in choosing the performers taking part.”
