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Unesco Probing Star Wars Filming In Ireland

Posted by timothy on from the but-midichlorians-are-totally-safe dept.

First time accepted submitter wijnands (874114) writes Star Wars crews have started filming on the small Irish Island of Skellig Michael. This island, listed as a Unesco world heritage site, features the remains of a 6th century monastery as well as breeding populations of puffins, manx shearwaters, storm petrels, guillemots and kittiwakes. Currently the Irish navy has deployed one vessel to maintain a two-mile exclusion zone around the island. Unesco is now concerned about what is going on the island, which is only visited 13 times a year by tourist groups, and has asked the Irish government for an explanation.

19 of 181 comments (clear)

  1. Today I Learnt that... by balajeerc · · Score: 2, Funny

    "... puffins, manx shearwaters, storm petrels, guillemots and kittiwakes" are NOT from a Harry Potter novel but real world animals. I am going to have a lot of fun looking them up.

    1. Re:Today I Learnt that... by just_another_sean · · Score: 4, Funny

      Seems to me that they have a nice cache of Star Wars alien/animal names all provided free of charge by the nice folks in Ireland...

      A herd of guillemots sure sounds scarier to me than a herd of nerfs. And I'm sure it's a total pain when your inside an asteroid and a bunch of filthy kittiwakes start chewing on your power system. And of course storm troopers riding around on storm petrels is too obvious to pass up!

      --
      Creationist Textbook Stickers Declared Unconstitutional by CowboyNeal
    2. Re:Today I Learnt that... by itsdapead · · Score: 4, Funny

      Many puffins died to bring us this information...

      --
      In a survey of 100 programmers, 111111 thought that duck-typing was a good idea.
  2. Good... by chinton · · Score: 5, Funny

    Keep an eye on them so they don't do something stupid... Like Jar Jar. Or Hayden Christensen.

    1. Re:Good... by NotDrWho · · Score: 3, Funny

      Disney's past their peak awfulness of the late 1990s and early 2000s

      Weak-minded fool! They've used the Jedi mind trick on you!

      --
      SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
    2. Re:Good... by Nimey · · Score: 4, Funny

      Leia is a Disney princess now.

      --
      Hail Eris, full of mischief...

      E pluribus sanguinem
  3. Quote from the article by timrod · · Score: 4, Funny

    "We can't tell what the filming of Star Wars on the site will do to the wildlife."

    I can see a whole lot of lawsuits from all of the puffins, manx shearwaters, storm petrels, guillemots, and kittiwakes who don't want to appear in a modern Star Wars film. Can't say I blame them, not after Episodes 1 through 3.

    1. Re: Quote from the article by Talderas · · Score: 3, Funny

      We have discovered an abnormally high number of dead wildlife surrounding the sites where the filming occurred. The bodies were discovered with wounds across their abdomens and a few animals were beheaded. After questioning the film crew we realized they were entirely unaware of the scenes that surround their scene. Upon reinvestigation of the sites where dead animals were found we further discovered branches that had been gnaws and scraped into crude sharp edge upon which traces of blood were discovered.

      Based upon this evidence we have reached the concluse that the wildlife had committed ritual suicide after witnessing the horrible creation brought about by Disney. Since the culpability of Disney is unquestionable, we will be fining them $50,000.

      --
      "Lack of speed can be overcome. In the worst case by patience." --Znork
    2. Re:Quote from the article by Muros · · Score: 3, Funny

      Nature is not so fragile that a film crew will destroy an ecosystem just by walking around and filming a few scenes. They're under restrictions on what they can do (i.e. they're not going to be blowing up the island)

      No point in watching this in the cinema then.

  4. Re:Not filming in America anymore? by PvtVoid · · Score: 5, Funny

    Thanks Obama!!!

    Obama is also responsible for why you can't get a date.

  5. These are not the filmmakers you are looking for. by Registered+Coward+v2 · · Score: 4, Funny

    They can go about their business. Move along...

    --
    I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
  6. worlds largest greenscreen by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Of course they're filming in Ireland, its the worlds largest green screen.

  7. Episode VII by Foundling · · Score: 3, Funny

    What I get from this is that Episode VII is basically going to be a documentary about puffins.

  8. Puffins attacked the craft services tent, allright by RevWaldo · · Score: 5, Funny

    ~ They ate all the lobster salad and the chocolate chip power bars. Look at the feathers and tracks. It's just I never heard of them hitting anything this big before.

    ~ They didn't. But we are meant to think they did. These tracks are side by side. Puffins always march single file to hide their numbers.

    .

    --
    Prisencolinensinainciusol. Ol Rait!
  9. Re:It is more visited than 13 times per year... by bluefoxlucid · · Score: 1, Funny

    Get out of here with your opinions.

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    Support my political activism on Patreon.
  10. What you should have learnt by frovingslosh · · Score: 1, Funny

    What you should have learnt is that Starwars is now part of Disney, and Disney does whatever the hell Disney wants. They have already clearly stated that Article 1 Section 8 of the United States Constitution does not apply to them, they clearly are not going to be inconvenienced by a Unesco world heritage site and the laws of a land of potato eaters.

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
    1. Re:What you should have learnt by oldmac31310 · · Score: 1, Funny

      I take umbrage at you slur on my people, douchebag.

      --
      http://www.acetonestudio.com
  11. not clear who I insulted by frovingslosh · · Score: 3, Funny

    I'm not clear on who your people are. Are they the ones who boil food until it is completely bland and tasteless, or are they the ones who buy politicians every time one comes up on the market? I hope that you do understand that the reference to not being bound by the laws of a land of potato eaters was intended to reflect the view taken by the corporation that feels it can do anything it wants.

    --
    I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
  12. Re:It is more visited than 13 times per year... by Muros · · Score: 3, Funny

    There are 13 tour companies one can take to visit the island. The tours run each day during the summer but only once per day. So there are 13 boats of visitors per day for 5 months out of the year, not 13 visits per year total.

    In a really good year here, we get about 10 days of summer.