BBC fought legal challenge against the airing of their new TV documentary "The Year that Rocked Irish Dancing". Getty Images
The BBC had to fight off a legal challenge against the airing of "The Year that Rocked Irish Dancing,” which documents the allegations of cheating in Irish dancing competitions.
The three-part series, which is available on BBC iPlayer as of Monday evening, followed talented young dancers from Northern Ireland and the United States as they trained to take the stage at the 2022 World Irish Dancing Championships in Belfast.
According to the Irish Independent, an injunction attempt was made by some of the individuals involved in the documentary to stop some of the material in the three-part series Irish dance from being broadcast.
“There was an unsuccessful attempt to injunct the BBC from publishing some material included in the series. We opposed these applications because the series is clearly in the public interest – something the judge agreed with,” a spokeswoman for the BBC said.
The first two episodes are focussed on dancers’ stories and everything that training and world-class competitions demand of them.
Episode three takes a completely different turn and reflects the reaction to emerging allegations of cheating in some Irish dancing competitions.
Journalists involved in breaking the story about the scandal, after they were alerted by anonymous emails that contained shocking texts, reveal in the program how they were left stunned that what was generally thought of as "a child's hobby" was being "run like the Mafia" at the top of the sport.
Featured in the documentary is IrishCentral's Editor Kerry O'Shea who reported on the scandal as it broke.
O'Shea reflected on the messages she received in her inbox, saying the judges and teachers were "basically using young competitors as pawns in seeking your own gratification - it just seemed wild to me."
I contributed to this Irish dance documentary that premieres tonight https://t.co/fxU7Csjert
— Kerry O'Shea (@kerry_oshea) October 16, 2023
Last October, Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG), the oldest and largest competitive Irish dance organization in the world, confirmed that it had launched an investigation after a complaint implicated at least 12 Irish dance teachers and or adjudicators in asking for certain placements and favors before Irish dance competitions even began. Some of the favors requested were sexual in nature.
An independent investigation later recommended that 44 cases be moved to "full disciplinary hearings." In May, books of evidence were given and hearings began in August.
It is understood a number of people have been cleared of alleged feis-fixing, including several of the 12 at the center of the original allegations.
It is also understood some people are now considering further legal action against the CLRG to compensate them for what they believe was the damage caused to them over the course of the last year.
A spokesman for the CLRG had said: “CLRG confirms the first disciplinary hearings commenced in late August. We will provide a statement once all hearings have been completed. We will not be providing a running commentary while hearings are ongoing.”
"The Year That Rocked Irish Dancing" is available to watch on BBC iPlayer.