Glen Hansard Raise A Flag Video Lights Up 'Now We’re Talking' Mental Health Campaign

Here at Hot Press, we are proud to unveil a new Glen Hansard song – and a stunning video to match. The video for 'Raise A Flag' is being launched today as part of the ‘Now We’re Talking’ campaign, for which Hot Press has partnered with Lyons Tea and Pieta House.

‘Raise A Flag' has been performed by Glen Hansard live, as part of the Footsbarn Travelling Theatre’s current tour. As viewers will see from the video, Footsbarn’s mission is to take theatre out of the limits which are imposed by established buildings, and to bring it closer to the local population – to farms, beaches, streets and village squares. The Footsbarn tour is in Dingle tonight, for the final night of its run in the legendary Kerry town. On their current run, the Come On Up To The House shows have pitched up in Cootehill, at Electric Picnic, in Ballintubber House, at the Clonakilty Guitar Festival and in Dingle.

The video for 'Raise A Flag' is directed by Myles O’Reilly, the Irish director, who has been behind some of the finest Irish music videos of the past decade. The performance features Glen, supported by Sam Kavanagh and the ‘Come On Up To The House’ Choir.

Other artists to feature in the video series include Wyvern Lingo, whose video of ‘Dark Cloud’ has already been released and can be viewed on hotpress.com; Stephanie Rainey; and Keywest, among others.

The current issue of Hot Press is a Mental Health special and it features a supplement, 100 Voices for Mental Health, published in partnership with Lyons Tea and Pieta House.

“The response to the Mental Health special has been amazing,” Hot Press editor Niall Stokes said. “Clearly it has struck a deep chord with people all over Ireland. And I have a feeling that the emotional content of 'Raise A Flag' – which is such a beautiful song – will add further momentum to that. Mental Health is such an important issue right now, and the point of the Now We’re Talking campaign is to help to remove any lingering taint of stigma once and for all, in relation to mental health issues – and to empower people to have the conversations which can make all the difference if and when people are feeling isolated, depressed or in doubt about their place in the world.”

Now We’re Talking: The Town Hall Gathering – with Lisa Hannigan, Emmet Kirwan, Stephanie Rainey and Wyvern Lingo among the featured artists – takes place in the Banquet Hall, Smock Alley Theatre on Wednesday October 10 (World Mental Health Day).