James Bond Club Ireland founder dies

Image from the James Bond Club Ireland on Facebook

The founder of James Bond Club Ireland has died, the club announced on Facebook.

“It grieves us to report that the founder of James Bond Club Ireland and our dear friend Seán Ó’Leannain (John Lennon) passed away early this morning (30th May),” according to the announcement.

Lennon, who was born in 1977, founded the club in 2020. The club began having events in 2021. According to the announcement, the most recent gathering was a 45th-anniversary screening of Moonraker in Dublin on April 27.

There were social media tributes to Lennon from Warren Ringham of Q the Music, David Zaritsky of the Bond Experience YouTube channel, and Ajay Chowdhury, co-author of Some Kind of Hero.

Q the Music is hanging it up

Q the Music, which does live performances of James Bond music and songs, will shut down permanently in 2022 after a farewell tour, Warren Ringham, the group’s director, announced on social media.

Ringham cited how Brexit and COVID-19 how changed conditions for the group.

“Whilst we have fought on for as long as possible, I myself as the director must now think about how my decisions will impact my own health and that of my family around me,” he wrote.

I never had the opportunity of witnessing a live performance by Q the Music. But those who have rave about the experience.

Below is a video Q the Music posted to YouTube about one of its performances. It runs almost two hours.

Q the Music raising funds to make up for canceled shows

Q the Music logo

Q the Music, a British group that performs James Bond songs, is conducting a fund-raising effort to make up for canceled shows.

The group, led by Warren Ringham, has been affected by the coronavirus as public events get canceled in an effort to contain the virus.

Here’s an explanation.

Today, I (Warren Ringham) am asking for your help for the musicians of Q The Music. We have had all our work, contracts, theatre shows, ticket sales, everything cancelled for 3 months (minimum). For the musicians, crew & comperes of the show, this amounts to £30,000 of lost earnings for them collectively.

As it stands today, the government have again failed to offer any assistance to either a business like mine (save for loans on top of loans I already have), or more importantly right now for the self-employed musicians in the band.

Please note, I know, and we know, we are not alone in this plight. Many many people are experiencing these problems around the country and around the world…but I have to campaign on our behalf as I know so many of you have got enjoyment from seeing us over the years.

(snip)

Some important notes:

*musicians aren’t “employees” of the show, they are “sub-contracted”. There is no statutory sick pay for the band members.

*theatres cancel the shows, they don’t pay us anything.

*if you haven’t had your tickets refunded yet, by donating them to the theatre (also a worthy cause), that money does NOT come through to the band.

We desperately need your help, please….

To view an entry at the Just Giving website, CLICK HERE.

As this is being written, 4,381 British pounds (of a 10,000-pound target) have been raised.