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06 Apr 2026
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06 Apr 2026
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A documentary about The Boomtown Rats will be screened in UCH
A SPECIAL screening of the documentary Citizens of Boomtown will reveal the highs and the lows of Irish band The Boomtown Rats.
The screening will take place at University Concert Hall, on November 20.
Citizens of Boomtown offers a very personal insight into the group, revealing the highs and the lows of the first Irish band ever to reach No1 in the UK charts – not once, with Rat Trap, but twice with the global top seller I Don’t Like Mondays.
Bob Geldof also revolutionised global music broadcasting with his hugely successful Live Aid concert in 1985.
The band broke up a year later in their native Dublin then reunited in 2013 to play a triumphant set at the legendary Isle of Wight Festival. The Boomtown Rats released their latest album, Citizens of Boomtown, in 2020.
Directed by Billy McGrath, Citizens of Boomtown features exclusive interviews with the four members of the re-grouped Boomtown Rats.
The documentary also includes compelling insights from special guests including Bono, Sting, Sinead O’Connor, Jools Holland, Dave Stewart, Joseph O'Connor and Eoin Devereux.
UCH Director Sinead Hope said: “We are delighted to work with professor Eoin Devereux and the Centre for the Study of Popular Music and Popular Culture at UL to bring the story of one of Ireland’s most iconic and influential musical acts to UCH, one of the highlights of our autumn/winter 2023 cinema season. In 2019, Bob Geldof was awarded with an Honorary Doctorate of Letters from the University of Limerick in UCH, and we look forward to seeing the story of Dr Geldof and his fellow Boomtown Rats on the big screen.”
Professor Eoin Devereux, who will introduce the documentary said: “The Boomtown Rats played a pivotal role in the development of the Irish music industry. Limerick featured in their early gigs, playing as they did, on the Falling Asunder Tour at the former Glentworth Hotel. Their vast contribution has been underplayed in many accounts of the Irish music industry, but this documentary sets the record straight.”
Tickets are available from uch.ie
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