PUL

The Bigger Picture

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2014-06-18 WelcomeTigersBay+

Community and anti-bullying board at the junction of Hallidays Road and the Limestone Road welcoming people to Tiger’s Bay. You can see two images of the boards in progress on the Dean Clarke Foundation’s Fb page. The foundation is also involved in the community garden which can be seen in a previous post on a H&W workers mural and which sits across from the b&w Belfast Blitz mural.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Rebuilding Confidence

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2014-06-18 TBayFirstFlute+

Mural celebrating the old Tiger’s Bay First Flute marching band, established 1983. The mural is in the style of the UDA’s insignia; of late a UDA power-struggle has been taking place in the area – see Split.

In the background is a board showing the Union flag, the Ulster banner, and St. Andrew’s saltire (the latter pair are also featured in the lower corners of the mural), which in June replaced a ‘Mother – Daughter – Sister’ board celebrating women and designed by children from the local Mountcollyer Youth Club.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01981 X01980 north belfast tiger’s bay protestant boys hand painted mural was inspired, conceived and produced 2008-2009 renewing communities rebuilding confidence reviving hope restoring pride

Inspiring Belfast

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2014-06-10 EastSideHat+

The waste-ground at the corner of Templemore Avenue and Newtownards Road (where the flyers featured in Harland & Why were posted) was given a face-lift with images of east Belfast heroes Van Morrison and George Best and the words “East Side – Inspiring Belfast”. The red-white-and-blue is supplied by the phone-boxes and the passer-by.

2014-06-10 EastSide+

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Copyright © 2013 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Mr Saturday Night

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2014-05-29 MrSaturdayNight1b+

“There’s a nice wee place in Belfast, they call it Sandy Row. On a Saturday night, that’s where we used to go. A bucket on the stove, boiling all the whites, the big tin bath on Saturday nights.”

Here are two boards at the blind end of Blythe Street which together illustrate a short poem about Sandy Row in days gone by. The first, above, shows dancing and bingo (which took place in the Sandy Row Orange Lodge? – The Row You Know: Memories Of Old Sandy Row (ISBN 0953053504) by Donna McCann and published by Nicholson & Bass contains an image with the caption “Saturday night dance at the Orange Hall – Hector McMillan about to break into song”.)

The second, below, shows scenes from home: clothes in front of the fire, a child in a tin bath, a wireless radio, and a grandmother dandling a child.

Sponsored by the Sandy Row Women’s Group.

Two more boards are shown in Those Days Are Gone. A gallery of all of the pieces on the wall can been seen in a 2007 entry.

2014-05-29 MrSaturdayNight2b+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Fortune Favours The Brave

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2014-05-29 WeaversWinners+

“Weavers To Winners” – Linfield Football And Athletic Club was founded in 1886 by workers at the Ulster Spinning Company’s Linfield mill and they became Irish League champions in the 1890-1891 season. The names of the players in the photograph are given in the shot of the information plaque, below. The work was designed by Ross Wilson.

2014-05-29 WeaversInfo+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X03004 X03005 Audaces fortuna juvat 50 league titles trevor whip whittley 7-7-1960 24.2.2011 missed by all his friends in sandy row william gordon tom gordon n. mckeown dr. dunn robert gibson esq (president) bob milne rab torrans william arnott david foy treasurer billy dalton george gaffikin robert hill sam torrans john pedan john torrans secretary john rab and sam torrans were three brothers who shared a dream they were ulster weavers who with others practiced their football skills on the meadow and linen field within the local mill in 1886 their dreams became a reality and the first linfield team was born within four short years they had become irish league and cup champions and had now woven themselves into history 125 years later players still dream and press on towards the goal they still make the hearts and mind of fans everywhere beat louder when they take to the field still sharing the aspirations of the brothers and countless others who have worn the true blue colours today we must still encourage the dreams of young people within sandy row and other communities to help awaken inspire and engage young minds and hearts in the reality of every day life to help create new and better goals to move forward in the hope of great things to come field of dreams

Those Days Are Gone

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2014-05-29 MrSaturdayNight3+

“To put bread on the table, those days are gone, when we all had to to Willie Allen’s pawn.

We met and we married along time ago; we worked for long hours when wages were low.”

Above and below are boards 3 and 4 of the ‘Sandy Row memories’ at the end of Blythe Street, showing Murray’s Tobacco Factory (in Linfield Road/Sandy Row, which closed in 2005 before being refurbished and opening in 2012 as Murray’s Exchange) and the old Belfast & Ulster Brewing building (unchanged image here), home to the south Belfast Ulster Volunteers (Sandy Row History) and most recently (until 2007) the home of Gilpin’s Furniture.

Two other boards can be seen in Mr. Saturday Night. A gallery of all of the pieces on the wall can been seen in a 2007 entry.

2014-05-29 MrSaturdayNight4+

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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The Row You Know

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2014-05-27 SandyRowHeritage+

“Today is yesterday’s tomorrow”. Vintage images of Sandy Row, including the Ulster Spinning Company and the Royal Bar, make up this “Heritage – Culture – Identity” board on Donegall Road. The central image is part of this photo montage.

Featured previously: Hope – Future – Change – Now

Hour-long video of Sandy Row memories

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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Culture Before Cash

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2014-05-14 CultureBeforeCash2+

Materials intended for an Eleventh Night bonfire in Rathcoole were set alight early on Tuesday morning (0200 May 13th, 2014, according to Proud To Be A Protestant – Banter) and still smoldered in the morning. Nolan’s radio show last week had a segment on this bonfire, following up on an Irish News report (article behind a paywall) that the bonfire might be moved or covered for the Giro d’Italia. “Culture before cash” means that locals would prefer bonfires to the funds available (here is the Belfast City Council ‘Bonfire Management’ page; Rathcoole is in Newtownabbey) to put on a street party with a willow-wood beacon in its place. According to this Irish News report, in 2013 45 Loyalist and 12 Republican bonfires part of the scheme. Here is the DOE’s Bonfire Report (pdf).

Previously: Bonfire Flags (images of (nearly) finished bonfires) | Everyone Has The Right To Participate (pallets in the lower Shankill estate)

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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