From top: Howard Marks on the Late Late Show in 1997 when he was called ‘Mr Evil’ by Mary Harney; Meeting  Aodhan O’Riordan (right) with Hot Press journalist Olaf Tyaransen (centre) last November.

Backstage [at the Metropolis Festival at the RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4] I spot Drugs Minister Aodhán Ó Ríordáin and invite him to come over and say hello.

The last time Howard met an Irish minister was on The Late Late Show in 1997 (I was also present). Mary Harney wasn’t impressed, telling Gay Byrne that she considered him to be “Mr Evil.”

Ó Ríordáin is far more pleasant and open-minded, later tweeting a picture of us all together along with the comment that it was “Great chatting.” What a difference 18 years can make…

Olaf Tyrannsen, Hot Press, November 2015

Minister Aodhan O’Riordan meets Howard Marks At Metropolis (Hot Press)

Howard Marks obituary: Britain’s Most Charming Drug Smuggler (The Guardian)