Luck of the draw for kebab-seller who hadn't heard of U2



The doodles are expected to fetch between € 2-3,000 at auction.


The series of sketches, drawn at a takeaway, is called 'Bono Hanging With the Five Lamp Boys'.

By Ken Sweeney


Friday April 16 2010

DOODLES drawn by U2 singer Bono in a Dublin kebab shop are expected to fetch from €2,000-€3,000 at auction later this month.

The three sketches, done on an A4 notepad the take-away used to write down orders and including a self-portrait of Bono, are expected to attract bids from as far away as US, Japan and Australia.

According to the auction list, the series 'Bono Hanging with the Five Lamp Boys' dates back to 1989 when U2, then one of the biggest selling bands on the planet, entered a kebab house in Dublin's North Strand.

"A friend of Bono's owned the kebab shop and U2 were such regular visitors, Bono was allowed behind the counter to make his own kebabs. What happened that night was there was a new member of staff on who failed to recognise U2.

"When Bono tried to get behind the counter, this guy thought he was trying to rob the place," Ian Whyte, managing director of Whyte's and Sons Auctioneers, told the Irish Independent.

Incredibly the man, in his thirties, told the group he had "never heard of U2".

This fact so amazed Bono that he began drawing on a nearby notepad which he then gave to the kebab seller.

"The guy really hadn't heard of U2 and was more of an Elvis fan," added Mr Whyte.

The drawings, which include a greeting to the man's wife's: "Kathleen is swell, Bono is well 89", have been in the possession of the man -- who wished to remain anonymous -- ever since, until earlier this year when he looked into having them auctioned off.

'Bono Hanging with the Five Lamp Boys' will be part of Whyte's next auction taking place in Molesworth Street on Friday April 23.

- Ken Sweeney

Irish Independent

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