Paul Kimmage appeared on Sean O'Rourke's show on RTE radio this morning to discuss the sports books of the year alongside Frank McNally of the Irish Times and GAA journalist Orla Bannon.
During the discussion, he was inevitably asked about the book he was, at one stage, involved in ghosting, namely Brian O'Driscoll's autobiography.
Kimmage said he didn't read the final product as he transcribed 600,000 words for it, and thus doesn't need to. He said he simply 'scanned it for structure'.
I had transcribed 600,000 words of this, so I don’t need to read it. I just know the bits that were left out and the bits that were left out were very interesting.
Probably a bit more interesting than the bits that were left in.
Kimmage said that the row which led to him departing the project came just as he was about to present the first 20,000 words of the product.
He said what he produced was 'very different to what he did with Alan (English). Very, very different.'
O'Driscoll has never read those 20,000 words, according to Kimmage. The journalist clarified again the nature of the row which led to him leaving and Alan English taking over as ghostwriter.
It was over a very silly little interview he gave. I had asked him to give an interview for the Sunday Independent, I had just got a job back. I had been unemployed for 18 months.
I asked him could you just hold off on that and give it to me, it would make my life an awful lot easier. He couldn't do that for his own reasons, which I respect totally.
We would have had some serious arguments (had they continued), as you do with every project you take on.
The book was reasonably well received and won the 'Irish Sports Book Of The Year', which was decided by public vote. Kimmage paid tribute to English for taking over the job in difficult circumstances, saying he delivered the book O'Driscoll wanted. Frank McNally said he 'would hesitate to call it bland' but said he felt the book was too perfect.
Kimmage did report that when he broached the 2005 spear tackle in discussions, O'Driscoll groaned and said 'Oh, not this again'. Kimmage responded by saying 'Yes Brian, we have to'.
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You can listen to it here.
