The Convent Bel, Preparing for the Races, l and Ballydonoghue WW1 Event

The King of all Birds

Photo: Chris Grayson

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It's That Time of Year

It's THAT time of year.
The Kerry flags are out for the All Ireland Final. The children are back in school and Moriarty's are putting up the lights for the Harvest Festival. And it's still only August.

The Convent Bell

The old bell from The Presentation Convent has been installed at St. Mary's Church.

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"At the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them"

We remembered them; soldiers of WW1 on Saturday August  24 2019 in Ballydonoghue, Co. Kerry.

In a moving ceremony organised by Ballydonoghue Parish Magazine Committee, their descendants and friends remembered the young men from the parish who soldiered in that "war to end all wars".

Many of those who served in the British Army came home to a very changed North Kerry, where the upsurge in republican feelings meant that they dare not speak of their ordeals in the trenches and where their heroism and sacrifice were never celebrated.

When I arrived in Lisselton, preparations were in full swing. The National flag was at half mast and local people and participants in the pageant were arriving. Stevie Donegal was setting up the sound system, David Kissane was setting up his ladder in order to get a good vantage point to record the event for posterity, Noelle and Kate were preparing grub in the catering tent, Colette was making sure everyone had their lines.

Jim Halpin's list of soldiers had pride of place. Many stopped to read the names and to talk about men they remembered. It was strangely reminiscent of pictures we are used to seeing of people in towns in England scanning the lists of the fallen that used to be displayed publicly after battles.

On Saturday August 24th 2019 children from local schools read out the names of the fallen and then, one by one descendants and relatives of some of the Ballydonoghue soldiers told us of their exploits in foreign fields. As well as the British Army, many fought in the US army or with the Australian army.

Some of the soldiers were remembered in great detail. Some memories were more sketchy as people struggled to remember relatives who rarely spoke about this part of their lives. We also remembered those who didn't make it back to North Kerry and those who have no relatives left here to remember them. The day was spiced and made more poignant with songs and poems.

Then it was time to lower the flags  and play The Last Post.  Tom Dillon, our MC, told us that the Last Post is played at close of day to signal that the soldier's work is over, he has done his duty.

A wreath was laid, the flags were lowered, we observed a minute's silence, the piper played Reveille  the national flag was raised, we sang the national anthem and the colour party was led by the lone piper back down the lane from whence they came. It was a very moving ceremony and a credit to all the organisers and participants.

A Bike, Carriage Arches, "Consumption" in 1913 and Ballydonoghue grotto

Bike as advertising vehicle in Washington Street, Cork

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Bibiana Foran, Women's National Health Association

This article from The Kerry Sentinel of March 12 1913 describes some of Bibiana Foran's work for the promotion of women's health in her role as Lady Guardian.

Mrs B Foran, P.L.G, Listowel, and Hon Secretary of the Listowel branch of the Women’s National Health Association, and official lecturer under that association, continues the able lectures which she commenced some months ago with much ability and success. 

The lecturer who, perhaps, is one of the most popular and, at the same time, practical exponent of the ideas of noble Association with which she is and has been associated from its establishment, has met with hearty greetings wherever she visited in the perseverance of her noble work. The subjects with which she so easily and lucidly deals with, are the cause and the remedy of tuberculosis. 

Last week she visited districts within a few miles of Listowel, her headquarters, such as Coilbee, Lixnaw, Finuge and Irremore, where she lectured with very considerable effect, and where she was, as the Lady Guardian,’ very enthusiastically received by her rural admirers. In all cases and in all places the lectures were- highly appreciated, as enlightening the people how to successfully cope with the preventable, and, in many cases, curable disease of what is ordinarily known as consumption.

As a rule the eloquent lecturer starts off with : ” What is Consumption,” and ” How to Avoid the Contagion,” What to do with people so afflicted, and, as a member of the County Kerry Insurance Committee, she generally asks her audience to let her know whenever there is any suspicion of the disease apparent in any of their families in order that she might be prepared to be in a position to render her best assistance with a view to the prevention of the dread malady. But what the interesting lecturer lays special stress and emphasis on is the absolute necessity of people being sent for treatment the moment even the “suggestion of the disease evidences itself, for in cases where the evil had to any extent developed the chances of recovery were always against the patient. 

Everywhere the lecturer has appeared, it is needless to say, she has been received with a hospitality which is only considered consummate with the great and humane efforts which an able and philanthropic personage deserves at the hands of a grateful but stricken humanity.

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Carriage Arches

Because of Listowel's veritable warren of back lanes many of the old carriage arches have been left intact in order to allow access to the back ways.

The Square

This one is in Church Street. You can see what remains of the jostle stone at the right of your picture.

This carriage arch is in The Square next to Danny Hannon's. Its two jostle stones are still intact.

Carriage arch with fanlight at Listowel Arms Hotel

This is beside the AIB bank. This tall narrow doorway allowed a horse to get to there stables at the back of this building.

In Church Street

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Ballydonoghue Grotto

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Listowel, The Town that Keeps on Winning 

One hundred towns in Ireland have  made the long list for the prestigious Retail Excellence Awards, seven are in Kerry and five of those are in Listowel.

Listowel Garden Centre, John R’s, Lizzy’s Little Kitchen, McKenna’s, and Coco Boutique, all from Listowel, have been listed in this year’s Top100 stores.

According to Radio Kerry   "The Top30 stores will be announced on September 22nd, and that will be whittled down to the Top 3 finalists and winners in sectoral categories.

An awards ceremony will then be held on November 9th in the Great Southern Hotel, Killarney."

Ballydonoghue, A Doctor in Spite of Himself twice, Doran's Then and Now

The Cross at Lisselton in glorious June sunshine in 2018

Photo; Ballydonoghue Parish Magazine

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A Doctor in Spite of Himself X2

Remember I told you about this open air performance of Moliére's play in Listowel Town Square during an early Writers' Week. Mike Moriarty who is  in the white coat on the left of the stage remembered that they were all delighted when their performance made The Irish Times. David O'Sullivan did a bit of delving for us and here is what he found.

The above is an extract from the 1978 programme. What a feast of drama they had!
Two other performances aroused my interest. They are  The Life of O"Reilly with Brendan O'Reilly. Was this the late great high jumper and later sports commentator?
And what was The Ball on the Hop by Eamon Keane?

I'll have to go back to the oracle.

 I hope you can enlarge this to read it. It reminds me of accounts of early performances of Shakespeare and miracle plays in courtyards of inns and town squares when people would drop by to see a play on their way home with the shopping and maybe shy a tomato or two at the villain.

Seems like the evergreen Mickey McConnell was the highlight of the ballad competition. No surprise there then.

This is the 1991 production. Mike Moriarty is on the right, playing the part he first played in 1978. Danny Hannon, who founded the Lartigue Players was also involved in the acquiring and refurbishing of St. John's decided to reprise a successful play for the opening performance.

The "smallest theatre in Ireland and England" had been closed down for 9 years when the lease ran out. Gerard Lynch, who owned the building, had given the Lartigue the use of the theatre rent free for ten years.  Now drama had found a new home in St. John's and the Lartigue company was just one of the many local drama groups who used it as their home for many years and some still do today.

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Then and Now on a Corner of Church St.

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Evening Stroll by The Feale