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  Did the Dancing Man meet Arthur? The Diary, Irish Independent, September 25th, 2010. As more than 50 million people worldwide toasted Arthur Guinness at 17:59 last Thursday, The Diary raised its own glass to actor Joe McKinney, known to millions around the world as 'The Dancing Man' from the Guinness TV ad. It was in 1994 that Joe danced into our hearts as he waited for his pint to be pulled, a promo that turned the trained actor into a global superstar. No one-trick pony, Joe went on to play property developer Dan Reilly in RTE's Glenroe between 1998...

2010: YOU'VE GOT SOME NECK! The Diary - Irish Independent. October 30th, 2010 It's Halloween tomorrow night and The Diary hopes you won't run into this bad-tempered bloodsucker around Fairview way. Fairview, of course, was the old stomping ground of Irish writer Bram Stoker (1847-1912). This depiction of the Count is the work of Irish artist Jonathan Barry, something of an expert on all things Transylvanian. "I've been a huge Dracula fan since I was a child and once even visited Vlad Dracula's tomb in Lake Snagov, near Bucharest," Barry told The Diary. Bitten by the bug, or should we...

Brushing beauty. Artist's impression of Georgia 2012: SALPA IS PRETTY AS A PICTURE.  Irish Daily Mirror. 3rd January. 2012 Picture perfect Georgia Salpa has given a Dublin artist two thumbs up for her interpretation of her. The stunning model dropped into Balla Bán Art Gallery in Westbury Mall, Dublin, to see the watercolour portrait by artist Pervaneh Matthews before flying out to Dubai. Frank O'Dea, gallery owner, said: "Georgia told me that it was so strange to see a portrait of herself and really liked how the artist captured her. We wish her the best of luck in Celebrity Big...

Different strokes. The painting of Sinead and, left, the star now. 2011: SINEAD LOOKS A REAL PICTURE. Irish Daily Mirror. 24th August 2011. This portrait of Sinead O'Connor when she was a real oil painting is on display in the window of a Dublin art gallery - with a price tag of eur900. The watercolour by Dublin artist Pervaneh Matthews, which she painted two years ago, is in the Balla Bán Art Gallery in the Westbury Mall off Grafton Street. Owner Frank O'Dea said he has put it on display due to the current level of interest in Sinead, now...

2011: ARTIST PROFILE - FRANK O'DEA. NewsFour. April/May 2011. I'd like to recommend an artist called Frank O'Dea. You can check out some of his work on www.frankodea.net or at Balla Bán Art Gallery. I was impressed with his work and decided to get in touch with him.  Frank (right) was born in Dublin in 1966 and from an early age had an interest in caricatures and cartoon drawing. In recent years he has moved away from the caricature drawing and started painting in oils. His subject matter is based on his personal interests with musicians, cafe/bar scenes, fashion models...