Citizens of Boomtown: The Story of The Boomtown Rats
The story of The Boomtown Rats who fought a conservative Ireland, broke through the UK punk scene, scored global No 1 hits, and with Bob Geldof’s Live Aid, revolutionised the world.
With guests including Bono, Sinead O’Connor, Dave Stewart, Jools Holland, David Mallet and Sting, as well as music writers, photographers and historians, this film explores the musical and social legacy of Ireland’s first rock superstars The Boomtown Rats, who changed their own lives, helped to change Ireland and, with Bob Geldof’s Live Aid, changed the world.
In this entertaining, dramatic and absorbing film, director Billy McGrath digs deep into the band’s history and remarkable songbook and highlights the key moments of its huge success and subsequent fall in 1985. And after over 30 years, why did the band regroup in 2013?
Last on
Music Played
Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes
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00:05The Boomtown Rats
D.U.N. L.O.A.G.H.A.I.R.E
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00:06The Boomtown Rats
Close As You'll Ever Be
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00:10Woody Guthrie
All You Fascists
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00:13Bob Geldof, The Boomtown Rats
Shes Gonna Do You In
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00:13Sex Pistols
Anarchy In The U.K.
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00:14The Boomtown Rats
Joey's On The Street Again
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00:14The Boomtown Rats
Neon Heart
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00:15The Boomtown Rats
My Blues Away
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00:16The Boomtown Rats
Lookin' After No. 1
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00:23The Boomtown Rats
Kicks
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00:25The Boomtown Rats
Mary of The 4Th Form (From The Boomtown Rats [1977])
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00:26The Boomtown Rats
She's So Modern
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00:26The Boomtown Rats
Me And Howard Hughes
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00:27The Boomtown Rats
Like Clockwork
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00:28The Boomtown Rats
Rat Trap
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00:34The Boomtown Rats
Having My Picture Taken
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00:37The Boomtown Rats
Don't Believe What You Read
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00:38City of Prague Philharmonic: Paul Bateman
Taxi Driver Main Theme
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00:44The Boomtown Rats
A Second Time
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00:47The Boomtown Rats
I Don't Like Mondays
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00:49The Boomtown Rats
Nice N Neat
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00:50The Boomtown Rats
Someone's Looking At You
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00:50The Boomtown Rats
Nothing Happened Today
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00:51The Boomtown Rats
Whitehall 1212
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00:54The Boomtown Rats
Banana Republic
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00:59Visage
Fade To Grey
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01:01Visage
Fade To Grey
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01:01The Boomtown Rats
Elephant's Graveyard
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01:02Dan Cassady
Into Thin Air
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01:03The Boomtown Rats
Never In A Million Years (V Deep [1982])
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01:03The Boomtown Rats
Tonight
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01:04The Boomtown Rats
Talking in Code
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01:04Pink Floyd
Another Brick In The Wall, Part 2 (Live)
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01:05Pink Floyd
Another Brick In The Wall, Part 2
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01:06The Boomtown Rats
A Hold of Me
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01:11Band Aid
Do They Know It's Christmas?
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01:08The Boomtown Rats
Fall Down
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01:12USA for Africa
We Are The World
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01:25Bob Geldof
Pale White Girl
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01:28The Boomtown Rats
The Boomtown Rats
Credits
| Role | Contributor |
|---|---|
| Interviewed Guest | Bob Geldof |
| Interviewed Guest | Sting |
| Interviewed Guest | Sinéad O’Connor |
| Interviewed Guest | Bono |
| Interviewed Guest | Jools Holland |
| Interviewed Guest | David Mallet |
| Interviewed Guest | Paul Gambaccini |
| Interviewed Guest | Bob Gruen |
| Interviewed Guest | David Fricke |
| Interviewed Guest | Neil McCormick |
| Interviewed Guest | Dave Stewart |
| Interviewed Guest | Charles Shaar Murray |
| Interviewed Guest | Pete Briquette |
| Interviewed Guest | Simon Crowe |
| Interviewed Guest | Garry Roberts |
| Interviewed Guest | Gerry Cott |
| Director | Billy McGrath |
| Producer | Billy McGrath |
| Editor | Michael O'Sullivan |
| Production Manager | Pamela Lee |
| Animator | Anna K Wright |
| Composer | Pete Briquette |
Broadcasts
Sat 23 May 2020 21:20- Fri 19 Mar 2021 22:00
- Fri 8 Oct 2021 21:00
- Sat 9 Oct 2021 02:10
- Mon 31 Oct 2022 22:00
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