So Ireland has rejected the EU’s Lisbon Treaty. EU Treaties aren’t normally the inspiration for flights of poetry, but can you write a killer Limerick to sum up the moment? Is this a deserved slap in the face for Eurocrats who just don’t listen? Or is it Ireland – which has enjoyed a massive economic boom since joining the EU – that’s just given Europe an undeserved kick in the teeth?
We don’t want to cramp your style, but keep it broadcastable, and here are a couple of lines to kick you off:
“An Irish chap in a booth…”
“They said they could never vote ‘No’…”
“A suited official from Brussels…”
Or, if you really like a challenge — try finding a rhyme for these:
“There was a young country called Ireland…”
“There once was an EU official…”
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BBC World Have Your Say 
There was a small tavern called ‘Eire’,
Bought out by the blokes OVER THERE.
‘No problem,’ said Reilly,
‘We’ll show em who’s wiley;
‘I’ve still got the doorkeeper’s spare.’
I would love to write my own “limerick” but i don’t have the time.
It is sad that they rejected it but…they figured out it has some problems with it.
Dennis
Onondaga Community College
Syracuse, New York
United States of America
Now that should have been ‘wily’, shouldn’t it? Who else was it couldn’t spell things? Shakspeare, was it? Couldn’t spell his own name?
Dennis: If your limerick was rejected, write another one, but leave out all the words that actually belong in good limericks.
I’m an American living and working as an English and history teacher in Europe. Everyone likes to make fun of the American Constitution these days but you Europeans just don’t get what it takes to run a big poliitical/economic bloc (like the US), and the rule requiring unanimous approval for all laws in the EU is absurd and unworkable.
NEVER! NEVER!NEVER!NEVER!
for all there luck an pots o gold
there treasur’d four leaf clover
when put to d test to measure it’s truth
a simple vote was better!
Dat is the power of democracy at work. Keep it up!
There once were some voters in Dublin
Who found the EU very troublin’
They don’t play the goat
So they cast a no vote
And now all of Europe’s a bubblin’
Oh we can’t really say ‘why’ or ‘when’
We might trouble to do it again
But it’s not too much bother
One way or another
To simply say ‘no’ now and then.
There once was a island called Ireland.
Soon it was quite the dire land.
Then the time came to be,
They declared yesiree,
Our Ms. Lisbon needs a new darlin’.
The President of Europe did roam
and called every country his home
then he tried to sing
and become their king
but he couldn’t, and had to go home
In Lisbon they found a solution
To replace their doomed constitution
But the Irish said “no”,
This too has to go
Forget union, let’s have devolution!
With apologies to my WHYS friends here is my second limerick ( I seem to be getting carried away this morning )
The fair folk of Ireland have said
‘ We want to be locally led.
‘Tis fine to be free
And have lots for tea
But this treaty just makes us see red’.
I’m feeling inspired so I’ll risk another…
The Treaty of Lisbon it’s said
Is the Eurocrats best way ahead
But the Irish said wait
Europe isn’t one state
The gravy train’s better off dead!
Their once was a treaty that read
Upon all your people we’ll tread
So they said in one voice
We’ll take our choice
And leave that treaty for dead
There once were some people in Eire
Who of the EU they did tire
When Lisbon came up
They most voted ‘nup”
And now all of Europe’s on fire
In Brussels there is no debate
They just want an Empire State
But when Erin spoke
It wasn’t a joke
And now they will just have to wait
An Irish fiddler called Paddy, went to vote Yes with his caddy.
It rained on the way, they both went a-stray.
And said yes to a Guiness with the Caddies Daddy.
A young lady in Dublin called Molly,
voted yes in the booth with her Brolly.
The Paddy in charge said”That cross is to large” She then made a quick tick, with a tooth pick, the paddy went sick, so they pushed him away on a trolley.
John in Germany.
There Was a young country called Ireland,
that voted no! to the music of a callie band.
The bosses abroad said”Thank the Lord”
Now the matter wont get out of hand.
John in Germany.
sorry just one more.
There once was a EU official called Frank.
who controlled the Irish vote with a tank.
He was taken as a foe by those that said no,
and that made him feel a real plank.
John in Germany
The Irish were predicted to dote
On the UN, when they cast their vote
But the Irish people did not act like sheeple
To keep the UN afloat.
John in Germany
Yours are really awful, you know? Worse even than mine. Metres, alliteration and stuff.
Good to laugh
In Ireland it twas votin’ day.
Erin heard what Lisbon would say.
It smelled a bit rotten,
to the polls she went trottin,
to put ye ole Lisbon away.
The arrogant beaurocrats from Brussels
Thought they would flex their big muscles
But the Irish said “no”
When it came to the polls
“We’re small but we’re tough in a tussle.”
There was an official from Brussels
Who dined on sweet Molly’s live mussels
‘The result of your folly
‘shall be,’ said sweet Molly,
‘a pain in your rear-end corpuscles.’
With apologies to Molly Malone in Dublin’s fair city.
The Irish are known to be tough
And not to be messed with too much
So when Brussels took over
And grabbed too much power
They told them to go and get (censored).
The leader of Erin did try
To laud the EU to the sky
But gone was his hope
When when the voters said nope,
The whole EU’s naught but a lie
@ DonovanRobert (and everyone else)
This is from BBC HAVE YOUR SAY proxy:
Question: How will Irish Lisbon Treaty No vote affect the EU?
if i was living in ireland, i would also voted NO on this item..
this is what was REJECTED….not the Limerick comments…
I could not a limerick, if it was the only thing for a good job.
Dennis
OCC
Syracuse, New York
@ Donovan Robert:
i was not able to made my point more clearly: i could not write a limerick for my life…
Dennis
OCC
Syracuse, New York
U.S.A.
Dennis, clearly you are not alone.
There once was a poet, a Yank
Whose poems the Irish said stank
He sent BBC
His best for no fee
But the cotton pickin’limericks were so lousy they didn’t even bother to print them and only gave in finally in hopes of shutting the guy up which they couldn’t do because the more they printed the more he sent so they sent him a letter saying that if he didn’t stop sending them these crummy limericks they were just going to ingore everything he would ever send in again so he agreed that he should stop sending them in and to this day he has not sent another one of his awful poems to BBC or any other radio station. I rest my case 🙂
Okay…I’m going to try and rise to the challenge of one of the suggested (difficult) first lines:
There once was an EU official
Who said Lisbon could be beneficial
The Irish stayed “stout”
and voted it out.
The damage was NOT superficial!
And, for luck, the other one the BBC set as a challenge!
There was a young country called Ireland
That thought the EU a liar and,
In votes they said “out”
Just leave us our stout
Ahern’s no political firebrand!
Bob, I don’t know if that would work. “Liar and” doesn’t really work for me. 😉
(P.S. — The current Taoiseach is Brian Cowen. Ahern left office last month.)
@Steve-B
Hello Steve, nice to read you. Thanks for the compliment, (not sarcastic).
Yours were ok, where’s the problem. A Limerick-make a point with a laugh.
Where are we going when even a Limerick becomes a grammatical study theme on the BEEB.
An Irish professor called Hugh,
Voted no cause he thought he knew.
To his surprise its the EU’S demise,
now he’s a porter on the station at Crew.
John in Germany
….but Ahern campaigned hard in favour of the referendum didn’t he? And the other Ahern (Dermot) was the official spokesperson in serveral of the news stories I read.
(and I admit the end of line 2 is a bit of a cheat, but at least it scans…sort of!)
Here’s one I just randomly thought up.
This week the Republic of Eire
raised the European Union’s ire
That old Lisbon Treaty
Was just a bit fishy
And now they’re in a quagmire.
I’m not too sure about lines 3-4. I suppose it rhymes though.
‘Bout a treaty there was some business,
the people of EIre said “What is this?!?
it’s our freedom you want,
but we’re on to your stunt.
What will it be next? Our Guiness?!?”
A recent election in Eire
Set Europe’s great pundits afire
But the rest of the earth
Reacted with mirth
Knowing neither post facto nor prior.
There was a young man called Ros,
who would have voted no, what a loss.
So he grabbed his mic,got on his bike,
was last seen on his way to Kin-Loss.
Now getting ready for the evening games.
Be good.
John in Germany.
I wish i would have a vote in this “””Democracy”””” All my love to the people who got the chance to vote and voted NO!