Apart from the obvious world news, there were two big talking points this weekend, take your pick – the Northern Lights or Eurovision. I enjoyed both. A phone call just after midnight Saturday morning alerted to me to a visual phenomena so I jumped out of bed, got dressed and into my car. I headed north but, although the moon was a ‘waxing crescent’ and visible, the sky was completely blank. North, south, east and west – a big nothing. Got home and my son had left a message to say take a photo even if you think there is nothing to photograph. So I did so, from the bedroom window and low and behold I captured the Aurora Borealis. And that’s why I was prancing around in the back garden at 1.30 a.m last night for more of the same. Zilch – overcast.
What A Night
The Eurovision experience was quite entertaining although partially clad girls surrounded by half dressed young men is not my style. Ireland with Bambie Thug, the “goth gremlin goblin witch”. I thought was very unmusical, the French and Latvian tenors suited me much better. The UK entry presented a very strange staging which distracted from the song itself. However, what do I know.
The audience intrigued me, rows and rows of middle aged, and older, men over excited and frantically waving their little flags.
It’s come a long way since the night Riverdance burst upon the interval audience in Dublin can you believe 30 years ago. I have a friend who was there that night, a man steeped in theatre and not usually amazed by anything on stage. “It was absolutely stunning, it was a shock as no one had a clue what was coming. It was on another level, staging, music and the energy of the dancers it was something special. Last night the presentation upstaged the music and the singing and that’s not the way it should be.”
Michael Flatley was on Paddy Kielty’s RTE show on Friday night and it was so interesting to hear his story of how his vision of Irish dance had developed. On the same show were the winners of that Eurovision in 1994 Paul Harrington and Charlie McGettigan.
They sang Brendan Graham’s Rock and Roll Kids and wowed the voters. Charlie told me that he felt no one would remember them having been overshadowed by the amazing Riverdance. he needn’t have worried – The Rock and Roll Kids have never gone away and Paul and Charlie are constantly in the public eye and ear, indeed the Irish representative to give the voting figures last night was none other than Paul Harrington!
One thing is for sure, last night was a slick and fast moving programme with amazing effects., pity so many songs just melted into each other with few standouts. `Hey, what’s another year anyway.
So 573 songs later and of the 25 artists competing, the worthy winner was Switzerland and the very pleasant young man called Nemo and his song The Code and the message contained.
A GRAND OLD LADY OF STYLE
“Hug the teapot” was Gerard’s advice. How right he was, on a cold and blustery day what better way to warm yourself inside and out. Beside me a family from Italy are enjoying themselves in the Tavern Cafe, even on a bleak day Belfast Castle offers a warm welcome; no wonder with its impressive architecture and tall turrets, it’s been called a Disneyesk fairytale castle, you can just imagine Rapunzel letting down her hair from the visitors centre above to the manicured garden below. 90 years ago the Donegall family gifted the 700 acre estate and the sandstone building, reflecting Balmoral Castle in Scotland, to the city of Belfast. Today it’s one of the jewels in the Belfast City Council crown and the love of operations manager Cathryn McOscar and her small team.
Although she has been working at Belfast Castle for 27 years this must surely be a special year and certainly a hectic one.
She’s overseeing a jigsaw at the moment with multiple plans coming together for birthday celebrations. As we talked the floor was being laid in the Cellar Restaurant ready for the recent opening and introducing CRG, the new caterers, outside scarlet tulips and rich red and cream rhododendrons filled the air with scent.
A Place Of Memories
Thousands of visitors each year love to talk of their own personal history, remembering a mum and dad who danced in the ballroom in the 1960, relations who had family billeted in the castle when it was a navel base during the war and who knows what the two cannons the front door stand for. A major venue for weddings and social events, it’s where I launched my book, a car park on the slopes of the wooded Cave Hill was a choice place, when a young man could borrow his father’s car, he took his girl friend there for some alone time! I even had a proposal of marriage when I was 22 but it meant moving to Australia so I graciously declined.
Stretching from the castle grounds down to the Antrim Road it must have been spectacular in its day, walks through the woodland, colourful beds even a large vegetable garden. Cathryn is working on the idea of planting a special tree on the anniversary of the day the castle was handed it over. Although there is no more room at the moment there has been an lovely tradition where people could plant a tree in memory of a loved one. Two ladies had a sapling planted some time ago and arranged a second one more recently. They were sure of what they wanted as Cathryn said: “The trees had to be close enough so that the roots would eventually intertwine in the belief that they would talk to each other.”
It’s always been a place of intrigue and romance, couples who danced together in the 1950s are invited to a 90th birthday tea dance in October, sooner than that, in May there will be Music in the Park, also a dawn chorus dander and on Sunday evening 19th of May a visit from international renowned Little Amal, a 12 foot puppet of a ten year old Syrian child.
Something For Everyone
It’s a spectacular diary of events over the next few months.
“In June we have the Big 90th lunch, bring a picnic or join the barbecue and it will be a lot of fun. We have yoga in the gardens and young racers will enjoy the Cannon Run Supercars at noon on Thursday 18 July and for historians there’s a talk about the American bomber plane that crashed on the Cavehill during World War Two.” Arts, heritage, music, so much during the summer all to attract people from around the world to make memories at the Castle.
The building is fully accessible for wheel chairs, for brail users and those with autism. Restaurant is open seven days a week from 12 noon to 7 p.m and on Saturday and Friday last orders at 8 pm. Coffee shop 10 a.m until 5 p.m everyday.
The restaurant seats about 50 diners and on a good day the doors open to the lawns and diners can sit at tables outside in the sun, Inside the castle rooms are constantly busy with functions – with the ballroom charge £128 per hour with a two hour minimum booking with special rates for charities. The smaller Ben Madigan room is £46 per hour accommodating 60 people again with a minimum of 2 hours.
All roads will lead to the sweeping driveway fringed with massive trees and flowering bushes during a summer of excitement. May the rain gods be kind.
