Actor Sean Penn spoke exclusively to Newstalk Breakfast's Chris Donoghue about his shock at the impact of the recession on the country but how it had greatly improved since then.
The actor was in Dublin to present a Front Line Defenders International Human Rights Award to the Pakistani women's group Sawera at a ceremony this morning.
Penn has spent a lot of time in Dublin over the past 30 years and said he had "previously seen the life of the city on more than one or two nights a week."
However the actor and activist, who filmed This Must Be The Place in Dublin during 2010, said he was surprised by how the atmosphere had changed following the recession, "When I came back this last time, it was dark and quiet most of the time and the pubs were empty. It really, really struck me."
Upon his return today, the actor says he is glad to see that things have turned around, “This is my first time back since then and I understand that things have improved significantly and I’m looking forward to sharing in the improvement this evening with my one night in Dublin.”
Asked where he’ll be visiting in Dublin during his stay, Penn replied, “I’m going to follow my leaders on that one.”
