Crisis Eile

This image appears in the current edition of Phoenix magazine. It is in the jollity section where the magazine takes the mickey bigtime. It has grafted Ireland's real Minister for Europe, Looselips Lucinda Creighton, onto a press conference by the fictional Irish EU Commissioner, Maeve Kelly Clarke (Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh), in the TG4 tv series Crisis Eile.

So far so good. But look at the EU flag on the lectern. It's upside down. How clever of Phoenix to add this little satirical touch. We all know flying the flag upside down indicates a crisis. Nice touch.

This is how it should be in real life. The top point in the five pointed star always points upwards. As someone who has had to deal with EU Commission demands for signage, and with protocol for distinguished visitors, it wasn't long before I realised that this, apparently vertically symmetrical, flag could actually be flown upside down, but that this had better not happen on my watch.

So, out of curiosity, I went and had a look at the original TG4 shot, and, lo and behold, it was the guys in TG4 who did the clever thing.

Well done guys (incl gals). I have already drawn attention on this blog to the upside down flying of the EU flag at the French and Hungarian embassies in Dublin and at the Dublin office of the EU Commission itself. Sinn Féin are probably also in the sin bin in this regard. So it's nice to see this little lapse put to constructive use for a change.

At least, I assume TG4 did it on purpose. Otherwise we will surely have a real crisis eile on our hands.

Hung out to dry

Readers of this blog will be familiar with my preoccupation with the upside-down flying of flags. A particular favourite is the EU flag, which most people do not realise can actually be flown in this manner - we are not talking stars of David here, after all.

I pointed out that the flag was being flown upside-down at the French Embassy in Dublin on the day of then EU President Sarkozy's visit in July 2008.

Two months later I noticed the same thing at the Hungarian embassy in Dublin (picture above). I did inform them by email and intercom but when I passed the way again a further two months later nothing had been done about it (picture below). In fact the flags at this embassy looked as though they were never lowered since they were first raised.

It was only after the full extent of the Hungarian Financial crisis became known that it struck me this might have actually been a cry for help. So I forgive them, I think.

However, if that had been the case you'd have thought the Hungarians would have flown their own flag upside-down, an option not available to the French.

The subtleties of all this are giving me a headache.


Update 13 Dec 2009

I passed the way again on Sunday and it was impossible to tell how the Euro flag was hanging. It was just plain twisted. But I suspect, on the basis of their previous reactions (see comments below) that the Hungarians had given up on me.



Protocol was being fully observed, however, a little further down the street at the Fitzwilliam Guest house, next door to where I was born (the yellow door). Here was a purely private entity flying the Euro flag correctly. What are we to learn from this?



Update 2 Jan 2010

I passed the way again today and, lo and behold, the flag was the right way up. I don't know whether this signals the end of the hostage crisis or whether Budapest has been persuaded to issue a right-way-up flag, or whether my many bell ringings and representations have finally borne fruit.

In any event, it portends a good New Year 2010.

Congratulations to the Embassy on finally toeing the protocol line.



THE END