Robert Arkins

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Robert Arkins is an Irish musician and actor [1] who played the role of Jimmy Rabbitte in the 1991 film The Commitments .

Contents

Life and career

A native of Drumcondra, Dublin, [2] Arkins has been a professional musician from the age of 15. [3] He left school at 17 to front his band, Housebroken. [1] He is a vocalist, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, who counts piano, bass and trumpet in his repertoire. [1] Housebroken won the Sunday World Bandslam competition in 1988, after only having been established for three months. [2]

With no prior acting experience, Arkins heard of the filming of The Commitments from his sister. [1] Following seven auditions, Arkins was cast as "Deco Cuffe", the band's lead singer, but was replaced in that role after director Alan Parker discovered newcomer Andrew Strong. [4] Arkins was cast as Jimmy Rabbitte, the manager of the Commitments. Parker described the character of Rabbitte as "the glue that holds the whole film together". [5] Despite not featuring as a singer in the film, Arkins did provide lead vocals for two tracks – Treat Her Right and Slip Away – on the accompanying soundtrack album. [6]

Following the release of The Commitments Arkins moved back into music and signed a record deal with MCA Records in 1993, [7] although he did not finish recording the consequent album. [8] He has composed and produced work for a number of commercial clients, television projects, and for two short films. [9] He briefly returned to acting in 1998, in a short film entitled What Are You Looking At?, [4] and again in 2018 in the lead role of the film The Comeback . [10] In 2011, he joined fellow various cast members from The Commitments to perform a series of concerts across Ireland, to celebrate the film's 20th anniversary. [11] This was followed by three dates in the UK in 2012. [11] In 2026 he will front "Robert Arkins Commitments" [12] on a UK and Ireland Tour. [13]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Wolf, Matt (9 August 1991). "Irish Robert Arkins finds fame after making his debut in movie". Reading Eagle . p. A9.
  2. 1 2 Milton, Stephen (2 October 2016). "He said it once and said it loud… So what became of Jimmy Rabbitte?". Irish Independent . Retrieved 3 April 2018.
  3. ↑ Schoemer, Karen (18 August 1991). "A Film Pursues the Redemptive Power of Rock-and-Roll". The New York Times . Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  4. 1 2 Kendall, Paul (29 September 2013). "Whatever happened to The Commitments?". Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  5. ↑ "How We Made The Commitments". The Guardian . 20 September 2016.
  6. ↑ The Commitments (13 August 1991). Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (CD liner). Geffen Records.
  7. ↑ "Artist Profile: Robert Arkins". My Music Source. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  8. ↑ Martin, Paul (26 November 2001). "Soul searching 10 years on". The Mirror .
  9. ↑ "Whatever happened to the other stars of the Commitments?". Independent.ie. 3 February 2007. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  10. ↑ Steven (13 July 2018). "Shane Conaty, Co-Director of 'The Comeback'". Film Ireland . Retrieved 26 November 2020.
  11. 1 2 McHarrie, Emma (5 September 2011). "The Commitments Reunion Tour 2012". Click Liverpool. Archived from the original on 19 January 2014. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  12. ↑ Posted (15 December 2025). "Robert Arkins Commitments". Opium Dublin. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
  13. ↑ "Robert Arkins Commitments coming to Dublin for 35th anniversary show". 2 January 2026. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
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