James Willis’s Reviews > Round Ireland with a Fridge > Status Update

So good to pick this up again. Working for the NHS during the Covid pandemic has meant I haven’t nearly set aside enough time to sit down and enjoy a good read. So nice to have some sunshine and be taken away to Ireland of the late 1990’s and Tony Hawks’ preposterous adventures circumnavigating the Emerald Isle.

Tony turns down the opportunity for a free reflexology session to watch the FA cup final in a crowded Sligo pub, which is largely ruined by arriving late, missing the opening goal, and the machinations of a drunk belting out deranged renditions of Bob Geldof’s work. Tony concludes the Sligo chapter of his adventure by heading for the Ballina road, to hitch once more.

Tony departs Tory island and the idyllic Bunbeg to be interviewed by RTE in the midst of bandit territory, before arriving in Sligo to soak up the local culture. Which largely consists of ‘baby-Guinness’ (a shot of tia Maria and Baileys), taking philosophy lessons from the local pub’s resident Buddhist (with a questionable lager habit), and achieving the impossible - surfing a fridge in the Atlantic Ocean.

With a little help from RTE FM’s Gerry Ryan, Tony and his fridge have become national celebrities. Due to this, on their arrival in Bunbeg with the aim of reaching the elusive Tory Island, the whole local community rallies round in typical fashion to try to find a way across the troublesome tide. This results in an absurd chain of events, culminating in an ambitious phone call direct to the head of the Irish MOD!