What on earth was Gay Byrne doing in the witness-box of the Flood tribunal yesterday morning? Apart from providing publicity for his imminent return to the nation's television screens later this month, it was hard to see the point of bringing the broadcaster out for an 18-minute performance in Dublin Castle.
As Pat Hanratty SC, for the tribunal, admitted before he started questioning the witness, his involvement in the Century Radio controversy was quite peripheral. Mr Byrne's brief evidence cast little new light on the affair, nor could it have.
The witness's good standing with the tribunal was evident from his arrival, when he walked through the Castle Yard in the company of members of the tribunal legal team, a sight not seen before during this inquiry.
Mr Byrne's involvement with Century arises from his friendship with Mr Oliver Barry, a former member of the RTE Authority who decided to bid for the franchise for a new national commercial radio station. Mr Byrne was to be the linchpin of Century's application and was involved in some of the early preparatory discussions.
What comes as a surprise is the length of time over which these discussions took place, up to 15 months before Century was awarded the licence in January 1989, according to Mr Byrne's evidence.
Mr Barry and his co-promoters were quick off the blocks, having begun planning in 1987, long before the minister for communications, Mr Burke, brought forward the necessary legislation the following year.
Mr Byrne recalled attending a meeting in the Shelbourne Hotel with Mr Barry, Mr James Stafford ("He was acting like the managing director"), Mr Enda Marren, legal adviser to the venture, Mr John Mulhern and Mr Laurence Crowley. Mr Mulhern, the son-in-law of Charles Haughey, was a secret investor whose involvement in Century came to light only this year.
It is of interest, therefore, that Mr Byrne, when asked what Mr Mulhern's role was, said he assumed he was a shareholder or investor. If Mr Byrne knew about Mr Mulhern's involvement, then surely others did, too. Is it not possible, for example, that at least some members of the Independent Radio and Television Commission might have heard rumours of his involvement in the project?
Mr Crowley's attendance at the meeting is also of interest, as it seems to indicate that he was involved in the project somewhat earlier than was thought until now. And was Mr Crowley, who later became chairman, also aware of Mr Mulhern's function in the company?
Mr Barry's attempts to woo Mr Byrne, culminating in an offer of a £1 million bank draft, made for colourful evidence, but all this was known at the time. So was his advice to the promoters to go for a Dublin or Cork licence instead of a national one, because this would involve "far less money, far less hassle and fewer people".
This advice, sensible with hindsight, was rejected "because they were imbued with a fervour for a national licence and they dismissed my arguments out of hand".
Mr Byrne's stated reasons for not joining Century were entirely plausible. He was comfortable where he was in RTE; he doubted the viability of the proposal; and, most of all, he could see all the blame would come down on his shoulders - "muggins" behind the microphone - if the venture failed.
The real meat of yesterday's session lay in the evidence given by the succeeding witnesses, both managers with the Bank of Ireland who handled Century's accounts.
These were the men invited to an extraordinary meeting with Mr Burke in December 1989, at which the minister gave assurances that he would shortly move to cap RTE's advertising revenue. The diverted funds would flow to the commercial sector, thereby benefiting Century, which at the time was on the brink of receivership.
Mr Patrick O'Donoghue, while unable to recall many of the details of his involvement with Century, said the minister had committed himself to helping Century "as much as possible".
But there were so many strings attached to the promise to cap RTE's revenue that the commitment had no major influence, he claimed. He declined to speculate on what would have happened to the ailing station had Mr Burke not made the commitment.
Mr Joe Maguire, once the head of banking in the Dublin area, also played down the importance of the minister's commitment. Neither man expressed particular surprise at being called in to see a government minister alone (no civil servants were present), though for both it was a unique experience in their careers.
Mr Maguire said he knew nothing of any further meeting between bank officials and Mr Burke, as Mr Stafford has claimed in evidence.
Uncertainty surrounds the appearance of the former Fianna Fail TD, Mr Liam Lawlor, next week. Mr Lawlor, who has been summoned to appear on Tuesday, has told The Irish Times he has "no intention" of appearing, but planned to let his lawyers deal with the matter.
"We don't know what will happen" on Tuesday, Mr Justice Flood remarked.
pcullen@irish-times.ie