POLITICAL POLICIES ARE usually fairly run of the mill affairs.

Some election candidates are better than others at coming up with original ones, however.

Bernard ‘Bernie’ Murphy was one such man. The Independent caused a major upset when he won a seat on the then Cork Corporation in 1985 with a huge first preference vote.

In an election leaflet for the 1987 General Election race, his approach was straightforward and, if nothing else, honest.

It stated: ”Will Bernie solve all the country’s problems when he gets to the Dáil? Hardly.”

He did have one objective that seemed particularly unusual, namely:

Dublin should not be allowed to play All-Ireland semi-finals in Croke Park.

Irish Election Literature Irish Election Literature

The leaflet failed to do the trick however and Murphy exited politics in the early 1990s.

The well-known Corkonian was once a sandwich board man on Patrick Street in the city. He passed away in 2007, at the age of 72. 

Check out this short video of Charlie Haughey telling us ‘we’re living way beyond our means’

‘Plain … but not horsefaced’ – the ideal 1960s female Garda