This shoot took me Reddish where I arranged to interview a former close friend and teammate Chris.
Around eight years ago, Keano disappeared. Only to be seen occasionally where others would report having seen him and made small talk. Being one of his closest friends I was annoyed at him for going off the radar. Wondering why he chose to do this.
Anyways, fast forward a few years and and some of the lads got together to play in a charity football match to raise money for a former teammate who passed away as a result of an overdose.
After a few beers he decided to open up about his struggles. Having listened to his story I was shocked at how someone who I always assumed to streetwise, resolute and intelligent, had suffered a break down as a result of a difficult relationship which ended with him not being able to see his children.
Keano is a mental health professional and makes key decisions on NHS patients working closely with psychiatrists and other agencies such as the police. He is extremely bright and has a lot of responsibility. As long as I’ve known him which is around twenty years, he excels at most things.
Born in Manchester but holds an Irish passport, he is proud of his heritage and part of a large family with its foundations based around the Catholic Church. Although he could offer an insight and talk for hours about the pitfalls of religious ideologies, he is loyal to his family. A loving Son and a archetype big brother.
When I went to meet him, I found him living in shared accommodation, he didn’t talk too much about his housemates only stating that they are a few Irish lads from other families in the local Irish community. They look after each other and have a type of shared community living arrangement.
Having listened back to the interview It was clear to me that this process was as much about sharing my experiences as opposed to me interviewing Chris. Reflecting on this, it may be evident of a collaborative process or possibly an ill disciplined interview.
As stated in my previous post about Jooney Woodward. I ensured that I took a photograph before engaging in the interview. I felt that this had a detrimental effect on the interview as initially Chris raised suspicions about why I was taking this approach. Having explained to him my rational, he understood why I took a photograph without explanation but the dynamic of the exchange was changed as a result of this.
Drew Findlay 