Art Exhibition Continues, Listowel Badminton Club in 1924 and Coolard Memories

 Photo of Ballybunion on a March night in 2016 is by Jason of Ballybunion Prints

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Exhibition Continues

The Red Door Gallery is located in The Square Newcastlewest. It is a beautiful Arts space. The current exhibition is the varied and intriguing Colourful Spirits show. Below are a few last photos I took at the official opening on March 3 2016. It is well worth a visit.

 Billy Keane with some of the pictures.

 Two Billy Keanes: the younger Billy ( on the right) is a talented singer.

This fascinating artwork started life as a photograph.

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Listowel Badminton Club in 1924

(Junior Griffin)

In its early years Listowel Badminton Club was a mens club only and Eddie Faley, Mortimer Galvin, J. Farrell and others were members at that time.  Ladies applied to be admitted but to no avail.  It is said that Eddie Faley considered the females to be “A bloody nuisance”.

However he was prevailed upon to admit the ladies and grudgingly condescended,  and in his first ever mixed doubles game his partner was one Aileen Cronin, and lo and behold, she became his life partner for many years to follow.

Indeed, it leads one to ponder on the seemingly unending number of romances that have blossomed through Badminton, and one feels that that the figure of Cupid should be depicted with a racquet and shuttlecock and not with the customary bow and arrow.

Listowel is very fortunate that yet another dance ticket  was found in an old Library Book giving details of yet another dance ball but more importantly for the benefit of historians, the officers and committee of that time was listed.

This dance, known as a wireless ball coupled with a fancy dress parade, was held also in the Gymnasium on Saturday March 1^st 1924 .

The committee listed are as follows;

President; Mr Seamus Wilmot;

Hon Sec; Mr. P.V. Fahey;

Hon. Treas; Mr. R.I. Cuthbertson

Committee; Messer’s C.Tackberry, M.Hannon, T.Moore, J.Farrell, M.Naylor, J.O’Sullivan, J.Medell, J.Walsh and T.P. Cotter.

It is interesting to note the data on this card such as the admission price where the men had to pay an old shilling more than the ladies, 8/6 pence compared to 7/6 pence.

There is  nice line stating that “Mr. Dunne’s Orchestra is personally conducted”

The back page gives information on the Wireless Concert. (To the young people of today a wireless is now known as a Radio).

It states that “Subscribers will be entertained to a programme Broadcasted from the following stations; London; Paris; Bournemouth; Manchester and Glasgow.

Detailed Programme can be seen in the Irish Independent of Saturday March 1^st.

The set is fitted with the latest and most up-to-date-Loud Speaker”

With the IT technology that is available today the world has certainly come a long

way since those updated loud speakers of 1924.

It is interesting to note that whilst Listowel had a wireless on March 1st, some days later, on March 6^th, 1924, that Pope Pius XI had a wireless installed in Rome for the first time.

One wonders did he have some contact in Listowel who told him about this new form of communication, and did he, per chance, purchase it from McKenna’s of Listowel?

Who Knows?

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The Old Order Changeth Yielding Place to the New

March 4 2016

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Maurice O'Mahony, Principal of Coolard Primary School

Maurice O'Mahony launched his memoir and history of the school where he has been principal since 1973. When he took to the stage in St. John's on March 5 2016 the tale he had to tell was an extraordinary one.

Maurice came to the school in 1973, aged 20 years. He must have been one of the youngest principals in the country at the time. When he came, Coolard had no running water, no electricity and no telephone. It must have felt more like 1873.
Maurice is still at the helm today and the school has all the modern trappings, internet, white boards, SNAs, a secretary etc., etc.

When the principal of his old school, Ballydonoghue rang him one day to ask him for the names of all the teachers who had taught in Coolard, he undertook a search and discovered that, while all the pupils names were recorded, some of the teachers' names were in danger of being forgotten. Thus began the long years of research to gather together as comprehensive a history of the school as possible. The culmination of that research is a magnificent magnum opus which will be treasured by local historians and everyone who has a link with the school.

The school has been through many trials and strifes and has seen much success, Thankfully we rarely hear about school boycotts nowadays but Coolard had one in its history and it lasted for 15 months. It is not as famous as the boycott in Drimoleague which is still not talked about to this day. It had at its heart though the same cause, i.e. the appointment of a principal.  You can read all about Coolard's strike in Maurice's book.

The local community has resisted any efforts to amalgamate their school with the other Primary school in the parish and under Maurice's stewardship it has gone from strength to strength.
I'd advise you to go out and buy yourself a copy of A History of Coolard School 1846 to 2016. It will soon be a collector's item. An interesting feature of the book is that it contains the name of every pupil who was ever on the roll there.

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Fuinneoga Gleoite

Listowel Florist

NCBI

Tae Lane Store

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Another successful performance

photo: Listowel Drama Group

Listowel Drama Group cast and crew with adjudicator at the North Cork Drama festival where high praise was given to their  stellar performance again last night.
Final run last night March 14 2016 in Hollycross in North Tipperary.

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Flying the Flag for the best of Irish Food

In London they celebrated St. Patrick's Day early, on Sunday March 13 2016. Chef John Relihan was there cooking up the best of Irish beef on the best of Irish turf.

Farran Wood and Art in Newcastlewest and an artist's sketch especially for Listowel Connection.

Art and Artists in Newcastlewest in Spring 2016

Billy Keane, who opened Colourful Spirits' art exhibition in Newcastlewest on March 3 2016 reminded us that North Kerry and West Limerick are really a close unit. We sound the same, we are equally creative and we have a mutual understanding. West Limerick people opened their doors to Kerry artists on March 3 2016 and they turned out in numbers to view what their neighbors had to show them.

This is one of the great pictures on display in The Red Door. It's called Human Nature. It was among my favorites on the night.

 Susan Hitching is one of the artists in Colourful Spirits. Her friend, Vincent O'Brien, was on hand to lend his support on opening night.

Jim Dunn can surely capture the rapture of a musician engrossed in his art.

 This picture was inspired by Liam Brennan's memories of being an altar boy in St. Mary's, Listowel.

Artists and friends listen to Billy Keane in The Red Door Gallery, The Square Newcastlewest .

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Casement

Roger Casement is a man who will be commemorated in Kerry as one of the biggest heroes of The 1916 Rising. Mike O'Donnell has written about and sketched Roger Casement for some time now. He sent me this super study of Casement which he sketched especially for Listowel Connection.

Muskerry Local History Society will hold the below lecture in Ballincollig Rugby Club on Monday March 21 2016

Monday, 21 March, Casement and the Aud

A talk given by Philip Johnston who has dived on the wreck of the Aud for the past 20 years. The talk will include Casement’s trip to Germany, the transport of 25,000 guns for rebellion and the arrest and scuttling of the Aud on its approach to Cork Harbour.

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Farran Wood

If you have ever gone to Cork through Macroom you will have passed a sign for Farran Wood. Farran is one of the woodland areas that Coillte have developed as a visitor attraction.

It's early in the season yet so the zip wire attraction which lets you swing like a monkey from tree to tree was not yet in operation for 2016.
A trip to Farran is a walk through woodland and by the lake and the river. It has a playground and picnic area and the place is alive with animal life and birdsong.

A walk in the woods

 Many of the attractions are made from recycled materials and wood.

 Hang in there, Róisín.

 Skimming pebbles

The picnic area

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At Listowel Races

Photo; Shannonside Annual

TV reception in Listowel in 1970, Listowel artists in Newcastlewest, a last concert in The Tinteán, Ballybunion and Coolard school memories

T.J. MacSweeney

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The Kerryman 1970

This TV critic wasn't afraid to tell it like it is… I think she was a Listowel viewer.

What's My Line is not having very auspicious beginnings on R.T.E. The
formula is old, tried and true and more than likely it's currently
doing the rounds of world television stations. The two men who devised
and copywrited the idea have probably  made a small fortune out of it.
All that has been proven, however, is that the formula can be a
success but, to bring it to life, it needs a panel brimming with
contrasting personalities and a chairman to match. 

What we've got is a
chairman, Larry Gogan, who rushes the programme though like a man
trying to finish a pint in a minute to closing time; a  panel which
for the most part is  trying so hard to be bright that, it's painful;
and competitors with such way out occupations that one would have to
be a mind-reader to even get started on them. If everyone calmed

down, and stopped trying so hard, the programme might get off the
ground. 

sevent

By the way I've only just discovered, that viewers in Listowel
who use a Cork aerial, are blessed with a second, channel which is not
of their own choosing. This is caused, by the radio-telephone which
operates, between, the hospital and the ambulance. It, comes over loud
and clear on these sets and is so powerful that it actually cuts out
the programme completely. Not alone is the ambulance driver alerted
but the curate who is on duty in the presbytery also gets timely
warning of a possible sick-call. Nobody I have asked seemed to be able
to explain away this extraordinary happening but, happen it.
does.—I've seen, and heard it!

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Now and Then

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Art at The Red Door

Listowel was well represented among the artists and attendees at the Red Door Gallery in Newcastlewest on Thursday March 3 2016.

Billy Keane performed the official opening of Colourful Spirits'  Show and he took us on an impromptu tour of the pictures and sculptures.

Billy posed for me with his very artistic former William Street neighbour, Rebecca O'Carroll. He reminded those present that it was Rebecca's father who produced the first and best stage performance of Sive.

Liam Brennan, formerly of Listowel and his wife, Maura had some of their artwork on display.

Lisa Fingleton is not from Listowel but she spends a lot of her time here so we can claim her as our own.

Jim Dunn is the man among the ladies here. Jim's artwork will be familiar to followers of this blog as he is the artist responsible for Athea's  much admired murals. He is not from Listowel either but he is chair of the Art committee of Listowel Writers' Week so that makes him an honorary Listowel man.
On the far left is Maggie Donald of Duagh whose ceramics are selling like hot cakes in Craftshop na Méar.
Next to Jim is his wife, Elizabeth Dunn, chair of Listowel Writers' Week and, on the right, is my good friend, Helen Moylan of Listowel.

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Goodbye to The Tinteán

The magnificent Tinteán theatre in Ballybunion is closing at the end of the month and the furnishing and fittings are to be sold off.

photos from Facebook

This was the stage on Friday evening last, March 4 2016 as we gathered for a fundraising concert for Lisselton School. The concert was organized by Claire Keane Fennell, a past pupil of the school and she was joined on the night by past pupils Bryan Carr, Anna Connolly and the Foley Family. Her friends from John B.s, Mickey MacConnell and Paddy MacElligott also did a turn and Billy Keane was the very entertaining M.C.

Marc OSé made a special guest appearance and there was much banter about local star, Jason Foley taking his place on the Kerry team, a move that appeared to be popular with the local audience.

 Claire and Anna on stage

 Bryan Carr

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Coolard Memories

At the launch of Maurice O'Mahony's book on the history of Coolard National School, Joe Murphy, past pupil of Coolard and administrator of St. Johns for the past 26 years, relived for us some of his memories of his education there and in St. Michael's, Listowel

Cáit Baker, his former teacher, was in the audience with her husband Tomás and her friend, Sr. Margaret  to hear Joe tell us of her valiant efforts to teach him to sing "Kelly the Boy from Killane" despite his being a préachán.

Joe remembered the days bringing in the turf to the school and the hours spent 'weeding the grotto". This, he told us was a task you could stretch to a whole afternoon by the simple ruse of taking the handful of weeds across the road to the glasha and bringing them back again rather than throwing them in.

Only one other pupil from Coolard went on to St. Michael's with Joe and he described the secondary school in the 1960s as a very intimidating place for a country boy. When the results of the Christmas test were posted he gained in confidence as he saw that he was smarter than many of the townies who were so vocal in class.

Joe, like me and many more who were present on the night of the book launch, did his Primary Cert in Irish, English, Arithmetic and Mental Arithmetic. I was transported back to my old classroom in Kanturk and the daily mental arithmetic tests.

To much laughter, Joe reminisced about the man who went to town and spent half his money in one shop, a quarter of what he had left in another and he came home with 1/6. The question was how much did he have leaving home.
It was no laughing matter back then!

Four generations of the Murphy family have attended Coolard National School. Joe remembered the numbers and makes of the teachers' cars and he remembered the makes of all the various tractors he could see through the school window. Happy days!

One man present recorded Joe's speech;

Joe Murphy remembers his school days