Seosamh Mac Coille Collection

CentenNIal Parade

2022-04-162026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

An Orange parade to celebrate the centennial of Northern Ireland – postponed last year on account of the pandemic – will take place today, with roughly 130 bands marching from Stormont to Belfast city centre (Belfast Live). There is not much indication of the parade in posters or murals, perhaps because the anniversary itself has passed. If we read the community’s concerns from the displays in the window of this Shankill Road shop (just above the old Beresford St and the Mussen Cortège mural), they include the NI centenary and the murder of Lee Rigby (WP) (image above), PTSD (second image), the upcoming platinum jubilee of Queen Elizabeth (third) – we will have more jubilee photos over the coming week, and the centenary of the Ulster Tower WWI memorial (see e.g. Our Heritage In Your Hands).

You can get all your centenary gear and Shankill Protestant Boys merch on-line at Northern Culture.

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Lucky Fives

2022-04-162026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

The slot machine last year came up with a 55 Scottish league title for Rangers and Rangers fans across Belfast celebrated with stickers and flags (Let Us Shout Joyfully | Order Restored | 55 | F*ck Your Ten In A Row | Blues Brothers | We’re Back | Legends Never Die) and also the stencilled electricity box from Berlin Street, west Belfast (above) and the furniture and barrel (below) from Sandy Row, south Belfast. This year is not looking so good, as they are six points down with three games to go (SkySports).

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Had Enough?

2022-04-162026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

The NI Assembly election is on Thursday May 5th. Here is another gallery of electoral posters. Where last week’s selection included a Noah Donahoe placard in electoral style, this weeks’ includes one for New Life City Church (ig), again in the style of an electoral candidate: “He’s not after your vote, he’s after your heart.” Also shown are: (above) TUV’s ‘don’t hope; vote’; Sinn Féin’s “Time for real change” on top of a “spoil your vote” stencil; the PUP’s “country before party” with anti-woke independent Tony Mallon’s “We the people”; and last, Neil Moore of the Socialist Party “We can’t afford this system” (namely, capitalism).

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Stronger Together

2022-04-162026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

Here’s a complete set of the lettering on all the shutters of the Spectrum Centre without any cars on either the Shankill Road or Tennent Street!

There might be a connection to Stronger Together NI (Fb) – get in touch if you can confirm.

Art probably by CAP (Fb) and/or Vault (Fb).

More street art on the Spectrum Centre: Not Today, Satan. Not Today | White Dove | Blue Tit | Half Human

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SNP Out

2022-04-142026-08-24Extramural Activity1 Comment

The SNP [Scottish National Party] became the largest party in the Scottish parliament in 2007 and went from 6 Westminster seats in 2010 to a completely dominant 56 (of 59) in 2015. It spearheaded a referendum in 2014, which was defeated 55% to 47% (WP). Scottish independence is again included in the manifesto of the SNP – though it has not committed to a specific date on account of the Covid pandemic – and as such the SNP remains a threat to the integrity of the UK that Northern Ireland unionists espouse. Hence this sticker on the Shankill Road, even though the SNP does not stand any candidates in NI elections.

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Ireland Supports The People Of Donetsk

2022-04-102026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

“Ireland supporrs [sic] the people of Donetsk”. “Donetsk” is the name of both the oblast and its captial city, as is “Luhansk”. In 2014, pro-Russian separatists in both capitals stormed government buildings, and each held a referendum (not recognised by any regime, including Russia) and declared independence from Ukraine (WP). As a prelude to the 2022 invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Vladimir Putin recognised the two independent republics and sent Russian troops into the two regions on a so-called “peace-keeping mission” (CNN), which subsequently became an invasion of Ukraine generally, with the Russians “demilitarising” various Ukrainian cities and suburbs – including towns in Donetsk and Lunhansk (e.g. in Donestsk | in Luhansk) by destroying them (Battle Of Bến Tre). Russian forces were forced to retreat from around Kyiv (roughly March 25th onward) and some have been put in place around Izyum and along the eastern Russia-Ukraine border in preparation for a battle for Donetsk and Luhansk; however, it is not clear that it will take place on the Russian’s terms (ISW), and instead that Ukrainian forces will eventually attempt to regain the separatist-controlled areas.

This graffiti is next to Victory To The Workers/Victory To The NHS.

What Did You Do In The Election?

2022-04-102026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

Registration for voting in the May 5th Assembly election is coming to a close. You can register on-line at gov.uk. Currently, 1.4 million people are registered in Northern Ireland (BBC). As today’s images make clear, the poles of Belfast are already cluttered with placards for the various candidates, as well as the salient issues, such as the “sea border” and the death of Noah Donohoe.

And There’s More

2022-04-062026-08-24Extramural ActivityLeave a comment

Three Jimmys by Glen Molloy (ig): comedian James Young (WP), actor James Nesbitt (IMDb), and comedian Jimmy Cricket (web | tw) with “sadly no room for Jimmy ‘Rock’n’roll’ Symmington”.

This is the second “3 Jimmy’s” mural; the first was in Exchange Place in 2017.

Fryday

2022-04-022026-08-24Extramural Activity1 Comment

It’s been a long time since workers walked en masse from east Belfast to the shipyard, but fish and chips remain popular, though the number of chippies has fallen from about 35,000 in 1920 to 10,500 today (BBC | Dockside). This mural is on the side of the ‘Chipyard’ in Strandtown.