Darndale to feature in TV documentary

A DOCUMENTARY about one of the Northside’s most disadvantaged areas will be broadcast on TV3 next week.

‘Darndale: The Edge of Town’ is a new three-part fly-on-the-wall series in which local residents share their stories.

The ambitious, observational documentary series shows residents living out their everyday lives, coping with the harsh reality of life’s twists and turns, moments of triumph and despair, yet looking beyond the boundaries of the estate and seeking a brighter future.

On a walk around Darndale, local Stephen Clinch (Clinchy) explains how the estate has changed over the years and how a once prize winning social housing plan failed so spectacularly.

An ex-offender, Clinchy, is in confessional mode as he talks about his own criminal past. Over his lifetime he has spent the guts of 20 years in prison for a range of offences but is trying to turn his life around.

Clinchy loves acting and recently had a very small part (non-speaking) in Love Hate.

Single mum Gemma (19) is finding finances a struggle as she copes with Alfie, her three-week-old baby boy.

Getting Alfie’s birth cert is now a major priority for Gemma, as without this piece of paper she is not able to claim additional entitlements for them both.

“I am only on a

?¬100 a week and that’s nothing when you have a baby,

? she says.

“I don’t want to be on lone parents for the rest of my life. I’d love to work. It’s not worth going over to the post office for that amount of cash. By the time you come back it’s gone.

?

Christmas is coming and single mother Angelique Louthe is planning to splash out and make it a festive season to remember.

Like many other families in Darndale, Angelique depends on a loan service to fund big-ticket items.

“By the time I pay the loans, pay the gas, pay the ESB, pay the rent, I

‘m not left with much,

? she says.

“By Thursday I would be smashed. There would have been a couple of times when I went hungry, but once the kids can eat I am happy.

?

Noel Darby is in the throes of drug addiction and is anxiously waiting for a place on a drug treatment programme, and with long waiting lists he is keen to get sorted.

Noel wants to get clean for the sake of his two-year-old twin girls and his infant daughter.

However, he admits he has been down this road before and his family and ex-partner have lost faith with his promises.

?¢The first episode of

‘Darndale: The Edge of Town’ will air on TV3 on Monday, September 22 at 9pm.