Badminton at the Kelly Hall

April 17, 2024April 18, 2024 David MartinLeave a comment

“Members of the Holy Trinity Badminton Club, Portrush, pictured with trophies won in a very successful season.”

The Kelly Hall was used too for bowling and the Church Lads Brigade and other activities under the auspices of Holy Trinity church, Of the Holy Trinity Badminton Club, Cyril Davison started it up in about 1970, and I started playing there when I was still primary school age. It met first in Dunluce St hall – I guess that site became the Gold Rush arcade. The club was amazingly popular, so much so that Cyril had to arrange us in pairs, lined up either side of the hall, hitting the shuttlecock across to each other – as he said, it was the only way to ensure that everyone got a chance to play and practice.

The club then moved to the Kelly Hall when it was refurbished. The club developed really well and there were a few of the teams at various levels in local leagues, with awards like in the photograph above.

League match nights, and regular club nights – and some mucking about nights. One evening we were warming up before a game, knocking the shuttle around. One comes over and I swish at it. Unfortunately my partner Kathleen Diamond reaches to catch it, to start serving to start the match. But both her hand and my badminton racquet suffered in the collision. But at least me delivering the ‘Tele meant that I had pocket money to buy the replacement.

*Jonny Dobbin & Cyril Davison, 1991; Cyril & Margaret Davison, 30 June 2022*

Cyril & Margaret Davison were really marvellous, set up badminton at Portrush when I was a kid, working to get the Kelly Hall refurbished and courts marked up to play there, and got the badminton club up and running and doing rather well in the area leagues. Jonny Dobbin says about the 1991 photo, “That was the year that I won the most improved player in the Ballymoney and District league. Cyril coached me – and he was the reason that me and others from the club achieved local, district and country honours.”

I look for photographs of the badminton club but do you remember the 1970s, the days before mobile phones and not a million photographs of everything? I had only found the one photograph of the club, and then Clive Shorter produced a few more, of 1977. But David Downs says, “If only we had camera phones back then, knock knees Martin wouldn’t want any images around a badminton court even if he was OK at it.”

That photo, below right, of me practicing in our house, about 1974. My knock knees pose must have been good enough to earn those little medals and prizes, encouragement for improvement over the year.

My regular playing group was that under-16 team shown on the left (and all the lads were golfing buddies too – though I have no idea why Andy H has a shuttlecock on his nose). It was great tragedies that Sandra C and Janette K, school classmates, were taken away too early from us.

George Shorter remembers Cyril’s great humour. “I always remember Cyril walking into the Kelly Hall and asking ‘Can anyone ride a bike?’ If you replied Yes enthusiastically, he replied, ‘Well come and help me get this stuff out of the car.’

About 1977, and into the dizzy heights of the Minor C league, and photos include Tom Hentry, George Harkness, Tommy Peters, Eva O’Neill, Sandra and Heather Crawford, Thelma, and Cyril & Margaret, Sammy & Sadie and ‘the splendid array of trophies’
(all badminton newspaper cuttings courtesy Clive Shorter. But oh dear I can’t remember all the names, let me know of any blanks !!

A story from me? It is Easter holidays from school. One afternoon, me and Kyle and George and Mark McC get the Kelly Hall door key to go in to play for a few hours. Oh, nuisance! the bowling mats are spread out. We push them over to one side and set up the badminton net so that we can play.

Later, the caretaker tells us: she had spent hours doing the laying out the mats and vacuuming them, to perfecto bowling green flatness for the match that evening. And we had just pushed them over to one side against the wall, and then pulled them back after our games. She had to do the preparation all over again. And we got the rollicking.

Ken Mcallister: “We used to watch the caretaker lock up after setting up the net for the evening, and Denny Mcaleese and I watched him putting the key under the mat. Two hours playing badminton – pure luxury.”

About 1977: Sammy & Sadie Kane, Clive Shorter, Cyril & Margaret, Tommy Peters, Thelma, Elaine Adjey, and oh dear but I can’t remember all the names – well it is 45 years ago !!

As well as at the Kelly Hall, Cyril also did badminton coaching at the primary school, including to Jonny Dobbin in the mid-80s. The badminton strip and the football strip are surprisingly similar! (“Those horrible sports strips for all sports. Absolute nipple wreckers!” , says Jonny.)

Photos, 1986. Sports strip, similar between badminton and football teams?
Cyril also taught badminton at the primary school, teaching Jonny in the mid-80s. Badminton. Starting back row left. Jonny Dobbin, Miss Steele, Richard Hassan. Front row from left. Shane McDonald, Richard Kettyle, Peter Smyth, Stephen Mckenzie
Football. Starting back row left. Richard Hassan, Jonny Dobbin, Edwin Burgess, Rowland Robinson, Nigel Smyth, Miss Boyd. Front row from left. Peter Elliott, Shane McDonald, Peter Smyth, Jason Quigley, Richard (Archie) Kettyle, Stephen Mckenzie, James Allen

Cyril was heading towards retirement in the late 1990s, with some months back and forth to Spain, continuing to coach badminton to kids in Spain. Jonny Dobbin, back in Portrush after uni, stepped up to take the club forward in the late 1990s.

Raymond Mcneill: “Well done Cyril & Margaret! An account of badminton days gone by. When the Saturday night at the was brilliant, ending with fish & chips and Match of the Day! it!!”
David: yup, agreed! Battered sausage and chips at the Dolphin, on the way home!

On the left: winners of the Ballymena & District League & Cup, 1999: Clive Shorter, Jonny Dobbin, Cyril Davison, Steven Hastings; front: Sharon Kennedy, Margaret Davison, Margaret Weir
Right, back row: ladies Sharon Kennedy, Margaret Davison, Margaret, Pamela Smyth
Front row: William Snelling, Stephen Hastings, Clive Shorter, Jonny Dobbin, Tommy McCarroll

Left: the junior members who represented Ballymoney and District at the Jack Wilson Trophy (all Ulster under-17 years old badminton districts) – Andrew Harte, Johnny Dobbin, Anne Hopkins, William Snelling, Aslan Bucukoglu
Anne Hopkins. “Yes me in centre. I was only around 13 at the time and don’t remember much about it but I remember going to Donegal and playing badminton in the tournament.”
Right: the Junior badminton club in 1991. Back row left to right: Alan Stewart, Steven McMinn, Jonny Dobbin, Cyril Davison, William Snelling, Chris Graham, Richard Weir. Front row: Rosemary Payne, Katherine Snelling, Claire Mclain, Anne Hopkins, Andrea Weir

Jonny records, “Cyril & Margaret were so awesome, they coached at the badminton club from about 1970, and they taught me at primary school sports as well, in the mid 80s. So appreciative of Cyril’s coaching, and that Cyril was the reason that me and others from the club achieved local, district and country honours.”

Aslan Bucukoglu: “Thanks for this article. I play 3 times a week during the season in Edinburgh and I remember Cyril every time I step on the court.”

Karen McQuilkin: “I have so many wonderful memories of playing badminton at Trinity Hall. Cyril was the heartbeat of the club, and I am very grateful to have been coached by him. “

Geoffrey McKillop: “Cyril was a real gentleman, a unique character, someone I knew very well back in the late 70s early 80’s … A great badminton player in these times, very involved in Holy Trinity in Portrush at that time along with Margaret his lovely wife. Both of them were very giving of their time & gave so much back to their community..… “

When I played in the 1970s, badminton club nights were Wednesdays and Saturdays. The Church Lads Brigade, CLB, with folks like buddy Kyle Miller, met in the hall as well, on Fridays. And George Shorter in Hamilton Place says he was in those two organisations and also in the Bowling club – he was in the Kelly Hall every evening of the week. At least as important as badminton skills, I’m sure that tact and diplomacy are important parts of any town or church activity, like with the Kelly Hall where so many different groups and users were vying for the hall. But I think Cyril and Margaret, and Sammy and Sadie Kane, were really great at just ensuring everything went smoothly. I think it was Sammy that pulled together a few bowling evenings, where the badminton folks would play the bowling club. As you would expect the bowling club won, but at least my rink managed one draw, our best result. I remember at that evening that Sammy spoke about the value of church togetherness and of the younger and older folks being together. Sammy was also a leader in the CLBs as well and the lads appreciated his leadership, with courtesy and respect.

And the example of contribution to the community too: sometimes with Cyril’s coaching would be interrupted as he heard the fire station siren and dashed off to serve the community. And the club played variously in Coleraine and Ballymoney and Ballymena district leagues. Jonny says of lots of late nights through the week and lots of inter-district events at the weekends, and really appreciated that senior members gave up a lot of their time to ship the younger players around the church halls of Ulster and then up to Belfast for the ‘majors’ games.

Steve McMinn: “Great article David. I played for Cyril and Holy Trinity for years and extremely honored to have been mentioned in the article. Since then I have played badminton all round the world. I recently moved home, where I still play and set up the local kids club at UUC, now called ‘Smashers’. I’m pleased to know that Cyril had recently found out that I was coaching the kids club and I was hoping to re-connect. I hope that gave him great satisfaction, as it would not have been possible without him. Thank you for sharing his story as I talk about him all the time, and I am glad he gets that recognition for all his work. With thanks, Steve.”

So, years of playing and coaching badminton at the Kelly Hall in Portrush and of supporting the Coleraine and Ballymoney and other leagues and clubs in the area, and their work and service in the community. So much respect for Cyril and Margaret Davison, for the parts they played in training up youngsters in badminton skills with others following on in coaching in various places based on their example, and all with the life lessons from their example too.
———
Newspaper cuttings & photos, courtesy Clive Shorter, Jonny Dobbin, Andy Herron, David Martin

There were especial tributes to Cyril Davison, is this version:
https://portrushstories.wordpress.com/2022/11/05/cyril-davison-a-tribute/

Link to Index of ‘Portrush Tales’ topics, you will find stuff of interest, I am sure!
https://portrushstories.wordpress.com/2023/09/14/index/

Barrys · Dunluce school · Family · Portrush - Great Institutions · Primary school · School days · Shows · Sports · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

‘Portrush Tales’ by David Martin – Index of topics

September 14, 2023December 10, 2023 David Martin4 Comments

15th September 2023: now, milestone of 100,000 views, 115 episodes, 62,000 viewers in 95 countries – thank you, and thank you for your contributions to this enjoyable social history story of Portrush people !

Portrush Tales – me & my family’s & your stories ; the history of the town and the peninsula, going back to the year dot – Vikings, Normans, Strongbow, Dunluce castle and the two Portrush castles, the O’Cahans, the McQuillans, the MacDonnells ; the ‘Great Institutions’ like the lifeboat, Barry’s, CSSM, the Northern Counties, the Metropole, the Girona, … ; the music scene, from ballrooms to the Kiln-an-oge to the Arcadia ; growing up, & school days at Portrush and Dunluce ; golf, badminton, tennis ; cinemas and Portrush Panto ; Jimmy Molloy and the Harbour Bar; ……. Enjoy!

New!
Three sweet shops:
(1) Ross, the Rock Shop
(2) LV Ross, Lower Main St.
(3) Stockmans, the Seaside Supply Store The summer of ’79 / Best years of our lives

(I) Benvarden: into the Lion’s den
(II) Causeway Coast Safari Park

Portrush, Ramore Head – Siganl Station, WWII

from Croc-na-mac neighbours, the Edgars:
Postcards from Portrush: Donkeys on the East Strand
Postcards from Portrush: Donkeys (II) on the *West* Strand

Sgt. Fulton – last of RIC, first and last of RUC
Empire builders, Organ grinders, Spanish ladies – it’s Portrush Carnival!

Postcards from Portrush: Landsdowne, the ‘Counties, & The White House

Portrush fishing fleet
@ Portandhu –
(I) ‘No Man’s Land’ at Portandhu – – early years
(II) ‘Nobody’s Child’ at Portandhu – bringing it up to date

@ the harbour –
(3): “Fifty trawlers a week” at Portrush Harbour
(4) “Portrush as new fishing port: History is repeating”
(5) Portrush: HQ for Fishing fleet? Good times, bad times
(6) The Portrush fishing fleet

The Carnalridge sagas:
(I) the Bankhead years – based on Trish Gray stories, 1960s
(II) Bankhead, Revisited – based on Reba Jackson stories, 1950s, and earlier
(III) the McIlgorm years – based on Ian McIlgorm stories
(IV) the Millar Years – David Millar, head 1980 – 2010

The White House Tales, by Gerald McQuilken:
(IV) Socialising, by Gerald
(III) Styling, by Gerald
(II) Skiving, by Gerald
(I) Starting, by Gerald

Blog: “Leadership at The White House“

Development of Croc-na-mac & Rodney Squares, & Hamilton Place
1946 – the Year of the Prefab –
Croc-na-mac: Tin Huts to Steel Pre-fabs to Brick Homes

Portrush Tales: The Two Sheilas – Sheila Kane & Sheila Brown

“Postcards from Portrush” based on the postcard collection from Sheila Brown
(I) The story of Eglinton St.
(II) the West Strand & Harbour
(III) Harbour Tales
(IV) the Recreation Grounds, renewed
(v) Landsdowne, the ‘Counties, & The White House
(VI) Diving at the Blue Pool
(VII) Portraits of Portrush: Patton of the harbour
(viii) Donkeys on the East Strand & the Causeway
(ix) McNaughten & the Causeway

4th July 2023 ( 2 1/2 years): 106 posts, over 91,000 views, 56,000 visitors, 88 countries 🙂
21 Dec 22 (2 years): 84 posts, 71,000 views, 44,000 visitors, in 75 countries !!
25 May22 (1 1/2 years) 53,000 views, 32,500 visitors
04 Dec 21 (1 year): 40,000 views, 62 posts

Cyril Davison – a Tribute
Her Majesty the Queen – Silver Jubilee visit, 1977

The Strand Ballroom in Portstewart:
– Part I – the Ballroom of Romance
– Part II – from Helen Shapiro to Engelbert Humperdinck to Eric Clapton

“Portrush Tales” from Michael White now living in New Zealand – great set of Inst friends, teenagers in Portrush around 1960 – great fun and friendships!
– Part I – from The Other Side of the World – Michael White
– Part II – to The Farthest Shore – Michael White

Readership – almost 100 countries with Portrush connections / interest !

‘Portrush Tales‘ read mostly in UK of course, but almost 99 other countries – United States, Ireland, Canada, Australia, Germany, New Zealand, Spain, France, Netherlands, Italy, South Africa, Sweden, Portugal, Belgium, Denmark, Austria, Greece, Jersey, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, Mexico, Poland, Singapore, Switzerland, Cyprus, Qatar, Norway, Guernsey, Tunisia, Isle of Man, Hong Kong SAR China, Kuwait, Finland, Thailand, Malaysia,Bulgaria, India, Philippines, Czechia, Slovenia, Indonesia, Ecuador, Cambodia, Vietnam, South Korea, Luxembourg, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Japan, Zambia, Nigeria, Puerto Rico, Sri Lanka, Romania, Uganda, Dominican Republic, American Samoa, Taiwan, Gibraltar, Somalia, European Union, Brazil, Moldova, Côte d’Ivoire, Colombia, Croatia, Argentina, St. Lucia, Hungary, Maldives, Kenya, Malta, French Polynesia, Ukraine, Algeria, Cayman Islands, Bahrain, Mauritius, Fiji, Angola, Barbados, British Virgin Islands, Seychelles, Panama, Israel, Cook Islands, Serbia, Albania, Andorra, Lithuania, Saint Maarten, Iceland, ……

100 years of Badminton at the Kelly Hall

Our Mum: Maud Martin 1926-2022

Rollerskating at Portrush – into the Guinness Book of Records

Dana / The Brown Sisters series:
(I) Dana -Coming to Portrush
– Dana (Rosemary Brown) arrives to the delights of Portrush
(II) Dana – Summer job at Minihan’s, Portrush
– as young teenager, Dana works at Minihan’s shop, signs at Fawcett’s & then the Palladium
(III) The Brown Sisters at the Portrush Palladium !!
– 1964, summer season in the Edwin Heath show – her break into the big time!
(IV): from Portrush Palladium to Eurovision and beyond
– after the Palladium season: school, Eurovision – but with continuing connection with Portrush

Podcasts – Dana / Rosemary & Susan Brown
Dana – Part 1 – Coming to Portrush
Dana – Part II – Summer jobs at Minihan’s
Dana – Part III – the Brown family
Susan – Part I – from the Palladium to Decca Records and 5-year contract
Susan – Part II – Fun at Portrush
Susan – Part III – Music & The Big Nights in Derry

(IIa) Ramore St. development, 1960s
– from Ramore St, Garden Ct, Quarry Ct, ….. to the maisonettes
(IIIa) Portrush Ballrooms: the Palladium & Arcadia
– you know the Arcadia, but do you know the Palladium?

Leander House – “The Leander Girls”
– that house that was next to the Blue Pool – so rich in Portrush history
The Metropole – Ministry of Finance – Portrush’s biggest employer
– the most-read blog!
Portrush cinema (III) the forgotten Film Festival
– 1994, with Stephen Frears – but oh no-one went to it, no-one remembers it!
Portrush floods – August 1960
– the big floods around Dhu Varren
The photographer of Portrush (3) Destruction, 1976
– that dreadful night in Portrush, August 1976

Great institutions
Jimmy Molloy and the Harbour Bar
Portrush – the Harbour – amazing history of the harbour
Gregg’s dinghy pool, Portandhu lido – and my summer work with the Council
Leadership at The White House
The Night the ‘Counties Died – the Northern Counties – on the site of the ancient abbey
The Metropole Hotel – Decline and Fall
Landmarks of Portrush: Castle Erin
‘Teas and Ices’ cafe and the Great Train Robbery
Hamilton Place and the Charge of the Light Brigade – rather surprising discovery, with great history of the place!
the Recreation grounds – 100 years
Portrush CSSM – Summer is here!
Kelly Hall: Badminton, Burning, Bullets, Bayonets
“The Croc-na-mac boulevard!” – the development of the best street in town 🙂

My Dad: Sergeant Martin – ten years after his passing, in 2010
My Mum: Maud Martin (in Madelayne Court in Portstewart, celebrated her 95th in October)

The Photographer of Portrush
(1) L’Atelier studio – the studio on Main St, described by Trish Gray (nee Patricia Lee)
(2) Lee family album, 100 years – 1880s to 1980s, story richly illustrated with your photographs
(3) Destruction, 1976 – that dreadful night in Portrush, August 1976

School days
I. Portrush schools – growing pains – the development of schools in Portrush
II. Portrush Primary School – Infants, downstairs
III. Portrush Primary School – Seniors, upstairs
IV. Portrush Primary School and the West Germany football team
V. Portrush Primary School – P7 and the School Trip

PODCASTs (in a silly voice though): Episode 1, Episode II, Episode III

Sunday School Excursion to Portrush – coming to Portrush, excursion in 1950s

On the bus to Dunluce School – school days, teachers, activities, badminton successes, sports, ….
Dunluce School plays Billy Liar, 1980 – hilarious stories from Sheila K in Sixth Form !

The 1960s & 70s
the Belfast Telegraph: Portrush and the sizzling ’70s – news through the decade
Portrush floods – August 1960 – the big floods around Dhu Varren
Portrush, 1960s – the Swinging Sixties! – news through the decade
Portrush, 1960s – On the beach! – my toddler years, bliss!

That’s entertainment – Music, Cinema, Theatre, Barry’s
Portrush music: Showbands to Stranglers, ’60s and ’70s – Kelly’s, the Arcadia, Kiln-an-oge, ……

Barry’s –
Portrush, Easter – My Day in Barry’s
“It is the cacophony of noise and the flashing of neon lights and the smells of sickly popcorn and of grease that hits you when you walk in the front door of Barry’s. And the electric sparking of the Speedway. And the excitement. It is Easter Saturday, the opening day of the season…”
Barry’s and the Wall of Death
Barry’s and the Helter Skelter

Portrush cinema –
(I) 125 years – Pavilion, Palace, Picture, Playhouse – the story of cinemas in Portrush
(II) The Playhouse, year 2000 – awesome write-up of the years working at the cinema and cinema-going
(III) the forgotten Film Festival – 1994, with Stephen Frears – but oh noone remembers it!

Portrush Town Hall, theatre, pantomime, musicals, Waterworld –
Act I: Dramas at the Town Hall, 1870 to 1970 – Town Hall, start and first 100 years
Act II: Portrush Panto, 1970s and ’80s – the next 25 years until the demise of the Town Hall
Act III: Pantos – Waterworld 1990s, and at Town Hall 2010s
Act IV: Waterworld – The Musicals – late 1990s
(Act V – Performances at the Riverside – well the gap is there, but you will have to write it !)

Causeway Coast
“You must see the Giant’s Causeway” – Portrush development was strongly based on the GC
The Causeway Tram: “It was only a tram”
The Girona: Robert Stenuit in “The Dive” – finding the Spanish Armada galleas, Girona
Dhu Varren – The town between the ports
Coast path – Tides, Typhoid and Tornado – the walk to Morelli’s and through the stories of the coast path
West Strand and the Boxing Day curse – family stories and mishaps….
Mishaps on the East Strand – family stories and mishaps….

Golf
the Sandhills and the Triangle – the start of Portrush golf
1100s: Did the Vikings play golf? with The Open, 2019

The development of Portrush
1850s – The Steam Train Cometh – & the railway station, quarrying, train line and bridge to the harbour
Portrush – Living on an Island – wow so interesting look at the geography of Portrush!
PODCAST – Living on an island
The 1800s: of Trains, Tram and Tourists – boom times for Portrush and the Empire
The 1700s: of Trials, Tears, and Transport – Portrush impoverished, & big migrations
1600s – a Century of Trouble – the plantation of Ulster, Bushmills whiskey, MacDonnells & Dunluce wealth, civil war, destruction of Portrush castles, the Girona wreck
1100 – 1600: the Normans are here! – Norman invaders, Strongbow cider, Dunluce castle, Portrush abbey
1100s: Did the Vikings play golf ? – the Viking era, & war hollow, & the Open Golf, 2019 !

Mayday! Mayday! Portrush lifeboat
(1) Prepare to launch       – 1840s and leading up to the start of Portrush lifeboat; and films of launch, 1960s
(2) Tragedy and Awards, 1889-91 – fatal lifeboat call-out, rewards for quiet herosim
(3) Saving lives, 1900-1980 – rescues and heroism
(4) from A to B: Argo to Bergen   – the BIG call-outs, 1960 & 1965
(5)“What’s It All About?” – other news, buildings, training, developments, rescues

Lifeboat: the Bergen Incident    – the 1965 incident, recounted by Fred Williams
PODCAST (listen): The recording of Robert McMullan’s voice, of his view of the Bergen incident, is here.

With best wishes,
David Martin November 2022
================

Primary school · School days · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

Carnalridge Primary School (III) the McIlgorm years

February 19, 2023March 14, 2023 David Martin2 Comments

My teenage years playing badminton at the Kelly Hally, Ian McIlgorm was in one of the other teams around the area and we met up occasionally at matches and tournaments, and I think we met at youth club events at Ballywillan church or at the Manse there. Now on the topic of Carnalridge school, I ask Ian if he went there and he replies……

Ian McIlgorm: “My father Donald McIlgorm was headteacher from September 1966, taking over from Mr Bankhead, until 1975/76 when he went to Killowen Primary. During those years we lived in the school residence, the house two up from Ballywillan church drive on the main road. It has since been extended but I think still has the ancient glasshouse in the back garden. It probably now has some sort of central heating, which certainly didn’t exist in the late 70s. Whistling draughts and coal fires are my abiding memories of that house. That, and knocking golf balls from the garden out into the fields by Ballywillan, a great lesson in watching carefully to be able to find them amongst the tufts and cowpats.

The previous blogs on the school –
Carnalridge Primary School (I) the Bankhead years
Carnalridge Primary School (II) Bankhead, Revisited

“Don had been head of a small primary in Castlederg before coming to Portrush, where he took over from James Bankhead. My older siblings Valerie and Alistair started in Carnalridge in late 1966, and I started in 1967. Not to date people unnecessarily but Willie Gregg was a pupil at that time (as he reminds me on my pilgrimages to the harbour).

Ian: “School photo, 1967 I reckon. I remember this being taken in the school hall as I was not yet at school. Valerie would have been P7, Alistair P5 and I was pre-school. I remember Mrs Freeman and maybe Miss Rennie watching this pic being taken and making me smile!
On the right, me , 1970 – I look about P4 age (roughly).” Photos: courtesy McIlgorm family

“The school building itself had the hall at the end of the main corridor. The kitchen had a serving hatch. I can see in my mind’s eye the cooks, lovely ladies, but I can’t pull a name from memory.”

Emma D: “Dinner ladies had Mrs Longman in charge and my mum Linda Sutcliffe was there too. I can picture the others but I can’t remember their names.” And Jackie M: “My mum Mary Millen was also a dinner lady.”

Later, 1980s – Mrs Longman’s retirement, and photo includes “Mrs Greer, caretaker, the Rev J Fraser and a very young David Millar!!”

“P1/P2 were in the classroom with windows onto the field and Ballywillan. My teacher was Frida Davidson, who was married to Reggie, from Portstewart. Reggie and my Dad played golf together, before the Davison’s moved to Cookstown. Frida contacted me a few years ago, completely out of the blue, a lovely surprise.

Valerie McIntyre/McIlgorm: “Staff, 1966 /7. “A very young Frida Davidson is centre back – the other two may have been student teachers for a term? Front, Miss Rennie, Mr McIlgorm and Mrs Moore. “Mrs ‘Biddy’ Moore took P4 in the Church Hall, awaiting a new classroom – she taught us P6 & P7 girls how to knit mitts and scarves.“

“Other teachers at that time were P1, Mrs Freeman, P3 was Mrs Hamilton (I want to say Yvonne?) and of course P4 was Miss Rennie. Who didn’t love Miss Rennie? What a great teacher she was, even now gives me a warm glow to think of that P4 classroom.

Bobby Ann: “A wonderful school. Both my children went there, the 1970s, and great teachers. Both my children loved Mrs Baker Mrs Patton & Miss Rennie, Mr McIlgorm was there for 3 years of my daughters time & one year of my sons time. Both had Mr Murdock & son had Mr Millar.”

“My Dad taught in the classroom in the old part of the building closest to the front door. P5/6/7 were all in together. There was a storeroom at the far end – I can still smell the stationary/pens/paints which were kept in there.

Headmasters at school are a bit scary: for me, Mr Logan at Portrush PS certainly was! Ian writes, “Opposite that classroom was the Staff room, not somewhere you wanted to be summoned to! Suffice to say I was disciplined like any other pupil and felt the cane a few times. Sometimes I even deserved it. Maybe. Others were regular visitors. It wouldn’t happen today and that is a very good thing.”

And Adrian H writes: “My sisters had left Carnalridge a few years before, and I was now moving up into the combined P5/6/7 class of Mr McIlgorm. I was a bit wary of him and so not looking forward to that September day.
“We always had meals cooked at school, and when the Headmaster asked for a show of hands for lunch, up popped my hand. Then he said “And how many for school dinners?”. An instant dilemma! Fearing I would miss out on being fed, up popped my hand again. Short gap…then he says “Did anyone put their hand up twice?” I admitted my error and when asked why, explained. Thankfully no punishment ensued, but it was a scary start to term.“

Someone’s memory is, “How a child is treated by a teacher /teachers really makes an impact.. My son is in his 2nd year of teacher training and I always tell him, Please please always look out for poor little children.”

Ian continues, “One year was the experiment with the clocks not changing. We were issued with reflective armbands as Daylight Saving (or not) meant it was still dark when walking to school. Always, lots of children walked to school, from every direction.”

About that Daylight Saving trial, RosPA, the prevention of accidents people tells us that clocks moved forward in March 1968 and for three years there was permanent British Summer Time (BST). Road casualty figures were collected during the morning (7-10am) and in the afternoon (4-7pm) for the two winters before and then during the trial. The data showed 2,500 fewer people were killed or seriously injured during those first two years of the trials – an 11.7% reduction. But the tragedy of a lad killed during the trial got such media attention that the potential for lives saved were over-ruled. The trial was dropped, and we reverted to turning the clocks back to GMT in October 1971..
David Martin: “Yup I remember that!! ..wearing elasicated armbands, bright orange with a grey reflective stripe.”

“Trying to be unbiased but my father was a great teacher, funny, unpredictable in a good way, a teaser who tried to bring out the best in his pupils, especially those who he felt were borderline candidates in the 11-plus. We were coached (clandestinely). I am sure contemporaries would remember the Brown and Spotty books of non-verbal reasoning tests which we were to hide if anyone unknown came in to school.

“He was particularly fond of geography, which I am sure instilled a curiosity and wanderlust in more than just me. We listened to a weekly radio education broadcast, details escape me, but certainly music was partly from that big wooden box with the circular grill in the middle.

Ian continues, “Break time (10.50 – 11am) was milk time. Those little 1/3 pint glass bottles were great. They must have stopped when “Thatcher, milk-snatcher” became Education Sec in 1971, stopping free milk for over 7s. I remember taking the crates to P1/P2.

Trish Gray: “Every morning a couple of P6/7 children would go outside to bring the milk crates in, and deliver them to the classrooms. The attached photo reminded me of what they used to look like in the winter – frozen solid! And in the summer, very tepid.”

Jackie M’: “Loved reading this. Definitely my era. I remember being in the same classroom as Ian as a P7.
I think the music programme on radio was “Sing together” with accompanying pamphlets to sing from.”

Sharon C: “My whole family went to Carnalridge, from 1963 to early 1970s…. Miss Rennie, Mrs Patton, Mrs Baker – three wonderful women…..and Mr McIlgorm, Mrs Freeman, and I can remember a Miss /Mrs Boyd…. Many happy memories. …Unfortunately I have no photos but will find out from other family members…Mr McIlgorm was a nice man, strict enough but fair..Miss Rennie was my Absolute Favourite. Mrs Patton was lovely as was Mrs Baker..”

“Great days were the ones where the bell did not go after lunch and we played in the field. There was a version of Cowboys and Indians, re-imagined as Town v Country. Those who lived inside the 30mph sign were pitched against those of us from Islandflacky, Islandmore, Craigahulliar and all town lands in between.

“Football too, was a favourite, but more so if Mr McIlgorm came out to referee. There was no team as such, just ad hoc chaos. I remember a tree in the corner of the field, an evergreen which we played around.”

Staff, about 1973. Back row, flowery blouse is Mrs Patton, blue jumper is Mrs J Baker, orange jumper is Yvonne Hamilton.
Front, Miss Rennie, Mr Don McIlgorm, Mrs Madge Smith

Nicola T: “I was taught by Mrs Patton, Miss Rennie and Mrs Baker.”
Stanley Elder: “Love it – that’s just how I remember Mary Rennie “
Carolyn M: “I have very fond memories of Carnalridge from the Mr Bankhead and Mr McIlgorm years – but sadly no photos. I loved the photos shared recently.”
Deborah S: “Miss Rennie, Mrs Baker and Mrs Patton three fantastic teachers. They made such a difference to my childhood memories of school.”
Alisha B: “I loved Mrs Smyth, she was my favourite.. She used to always give me sweets from her tin when everyone else wasn’t looking lol “

The newspaper above, March 1972, announces Mr. McIlgorm’s appointment as VP of the teachers’ union, then to be President in April 1973. Ian writes, “Don’s work with the UTU stuff was voluntary, after work. He made regular trips to Belfast including meetings of the ‘Executive’ maybe once a month. He would leave before the end of school, about 2pm, often setting the class art work to be getting on with.

“I think, looking back from 50 years later, I was aware that travelling to Belfast in 1973 and ’74 was not risk-free. My 10 year-old self accepted that as “normal” but not much was normal in those years – there were power strikes and demonstrations and roadblocks. He enjoyed though the characters involved in the Union business, and Don and Ruby – my mother, herself a teacher in Dundooan at the time – would go to the UTU conference every Easter in the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle. More nerve-wracking, as President he was invited to address the NUT conference in Scarborough in 1973.

Back to the school, “As someone else has mentioned, the toilet block was outside – freezing in winter. Shiny loo paper too!! Awful. It did form a natural split in the playground so older children would tend to play in the part closest to the road. Chain tag games would involve the whole school, or at least those who had got to school early.

“I don’t remember if we queued to come in but I do remember the little sinks and metal coat pegs (yellow?) which were opposite Miss Rennie’s classroom.”

Thank you so much, Julie Shortt for this, the One and Only photograph from a pupil over the years 1966 to 1980, the McIlgorm And Murdock years. Julie writes, “Hi David, I was a pupil at Carnalridge PS when Mr McIlgorm and then Mr Murdock were the heads. I attach a photo of our school trip (P6 and 7) in 1978 to The Ulster American Folk park. I think the teacher is Mrs Murdock, wife of the Head.
“Names include, back row Emma S, Jonathan M and Gillian C. Front row includes John S, me (Julie Palmer), Gillian McM, Alan W, Deborah D and David B. That’s not everyone as I can’t make out all the faces!”

Jennifer Baxter: “I went to Carnalridge from 1972-78. I absolutely loved it and have very fond memories. I also have a photo (somewhere) of my class holding up our cycling proficiency certificates! Mr McIlgorm was the headmaster until Mr Murdock took over when I was in P6/7. I’d moved to Portstewart by then and he used to drive me in each day along with his own children. I have plenty more memories of the school that I could share!
After Mr McIlgorm, Mr Murdock, taught me for 2 years in P6 & 7. I smiled when I read about Miss Rennie. She was there for decades! She taught me in P5 and was really lovely. She also had an impressive knack of standing in front of you and reading your book upside down without any hesitation. I remember being very impressed by that “

“A very strong memory was an outing to The Giant’s Causeway. I think my dad was appalled at how many children had never been and organised a coach. We had lots of lessons around that outing, including a maths lesson on how to measure the cliff height by recording the angle of view from two positions. Isn’t it strange what detail the brain retains!?”

To close off the McIlgorm years episode, Ian writes, “After the highlights of being President of the UTU, my Dad felt the need of a career progression to move to a bigger school, and he moved over to Killowen in Coleraine – the photograph is of him there, in 1978. In all honesty the change to being a non-teaching Head was not straightforward and I think he really missed the level of contact of a classroom teacher.”

Debbie D: “I remember him as principal of Killowen primary school in the late 70’s early 80’s – always liked him…”

During his time there at Killown, there was a young up – and – coming teacher, a former pupil at Carnalridge, named David Millar. Don was very supportive, a great mentor, and said how much he enjoyed being there, and encouraged David to apply for Principal at Carnalridge…

======================
Photographs courtesy McIlgorm family, Julia Shortt, Trish Gray, newspaper cuttings from David Millar scrapbook & https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/

Family · Portrush - Great Institutions · Primary school · School days · Sports · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

Carnalridge Primary School (I) the Bankhead years

February 5, 2023February 21, 2023 David MartinLeave a comment

Trish Gray writes, “You were asking about Carnalridge school photos. A few years ago, Bryan Caldwell, front row, far right, arranged a copy of this photograph for Miss Rennie and also a copy for me.

“It is of the whole school, Carnalridge Primary School, about 1963. The teachers are Miss Moore, Miss Rennie on the left, and Mr Bankhead the headteacher and Miss Cochrane on the right. I sort of vaguely remember it being taken. I’m sort of in the middle. Look at the front row, a wee boy 5 in from the right with a patterned jumper on, then go up a couple of rows, and you can just see my head, I’m wearing a dark jumper. My brother Martin is on the back row, 4^th from right.

“I don’t remember any other whole school photo, so maybe this was for some sort of anniversary? Miss Rennie reminded me that it said 1875 outside one of the classrooms, so it wasn’t an anniversary of that. Maybe it was related to some publicity around the new classroom /hall /canteen development? Who knows?

“As you went to the very modern, new build Portrush Primary, you probably had inside toilets! Even today, 60 years on, I can remember how cold those outside toilets were on a winter’s day! Also you had things like a football team, with matching kit. Nothing like that at Carnalridge!

Photographs, non- uniform day, Actually no school uniforms at all in those days! Photos, 1963 & 1964, of Trish Gray, alias Patricia Lee, & her brother Martin. The precious envelope of precious phoographs in his handwriting says, “..for Granda, Auntie Isobel & Family, Anna and Auntie Lottie”

“But we all felt loved, safe, nurtured etc. A very simple but special atmosphere. On the extremely rare instance that Mr Bankhead’s cane was produced, you were totally shamed, just because he felt he needed to bring the cane out of the cupboard where it lived 99% of the time. He used it to make a point, definitely didn’t need it to keep control, and you felt you had let him down by him having to use it!

“Far more punishment than a single touch on your palm from the cane!”

Trish, school days living over on Dhu Varren, continues,”Pupils at Carnalridge came from the top end of Portrush, and from surrounding farms and from Islandmore, Craigahulliar, Magherabouy and surrounding towns. We had composite classes – P1/2, P2/3, P4/5, and P6/7. Many of us jumped a year somewhere, P2 I think. At morning assembly before the Assembly hall was built, us ‘tinies’ were assembled along the wall of the P4/5 classroom, where Mr Bankhead conducted Assembly from a door between the P4/5 classroom and the P6/7 room.

“In P6/7 the highlight was listening to a nature study programme on the radio, on a Wednesday afternoon! School trips certainly didn’t exist in my time (1960-1966) but the nearest we came to it was an afternoon off when Gregg’s pool opened in Lansdowne, in 1966. P6/7 had a free afternoon there – thank you Mr Gregg!!! (Willie & Kerry’s Dad) I suspect it was good publicity though I seem to remember asking for extra pocket money throughout that summer to pay for the dinghies!

Trish mentions of Mr. Bankhead guiding the school children across the road to the buses. A dangerous, fast, dark road I think. I read of two tragedies in the 1930s, including one with Mr Bankhead himself and a friend when out walking along the road.

Trish says, “The original school was two classes, with a third class built in the 1950, and the Assembly Hall. There were about 90 children when I started, three classes. The school photo was taken just before the new houses at Glenmanus – I remember watching them being built – and the school expanded and a fourth class added, so four classes about 30 kids in each. The photo shows 113 children.”

“Then when it was bus time, Mr Bankhead would walk the children across the road to the bus stop, and waited till the bus came and made sure we all got on the bus. No pelican crossing then! And we knew who all the bus drivers and conductors were by name. Mr X, Mr Y… Not only that, they all knew who we were, which school, where we got off, and often our parents. There was zero bad behaviour!! As for travelling on the bus, as everyone will remember, children did not get a seat – Stand up, if an adult needed a seat!!

======================
RELATED BLOGS –

Dunluce school · Family · Portrush - Great Institutions · Primary school · School days · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

Portrush Tales: The Two Sheilas

January 8, 2023January 19, 2023 David Martin4 Comments

In writing and researching and gathering material for the blogs, thank you if you added in a Comments and your own story, I really appreciated that! In particular I especially wanted to thank ‘Team Sheila’ – for their support, all the way through the series of blogs. Sheila Kane was great – I think she read and gave encouraging feedback on every one of my blogs – at times I felt that she was the only one reading them. And we had some hilarious conversations about some of the events – she has great humour I discovered, not the serious straight-laced Head Girl that I remembered. And she did great write-ups and contributions herself, especially on the primary school, on Dunluce School, the Girona and Ramore Head blogs. So, thank you so much Sheila Kane, and here is your Crackerjack pencil.

Sheila K: Aw David! This is so lovely of you to do! I feel like I’m back at school and having the teacher write a report about ME!

(Sheila Kane’s great write-up of her first days as a teacher at Portrush Primary School are in this blog:
II. Portrush Primary School – Infants, downstairs.

Other folks have been great throughout too, adding in to a number of Portrush Tales blogs too – so my thanks to Alan, Alan, Alastair, Alistair, Allison, Allyson, Beatricia, Christopher, Columba, …….and other people all the way through to Victoriana, Whilharmonica, Xanthum, Yulysses and Zechariah. Thank you!

Me as a kid, morning duty was to go round to Blair’s shop, round the corner on Croc na mac, and get the newspapers from Sheila Brown there. I guess everyone in the area passed through that shop and Sheila Brown knows everyone and everything that was going on. She always said how well-brought up and polite I was, so I guess I was on my best behaviour there. Sheila has great memory and with great photos, she has made great contributions to episodes of Portrsuh Tales, particularly to the blogs on the floods of Portrush, on Croc na mac, the L’Atelier studio, the coast walk to Portstewart, and these days especially the Portcards of Portrush series is based on her Collection. So, a Blue Peter badge for Sheila Brown.

With her great memory, Sheila Brown (nee Blair)’s has written up her life experience of Portrush. As well as being her own story, to me it also tells a social history, of the development of Portrush, of being hard-working, of taking opportunities, of community, of care for others. And being Portrush Tales, the memory must be validated by facts – newspapers, documents to support the story.

Sheila is nervous that you may not find it interesting – I am pretty sure that you will, and that you will really enjoy it.

Blair family photos, courtesy Sheila Brown. All early 1960s: Left, “My dad and me at Magilligan beach”
Right, “My mum painting at the Tides house”

“Hi David, a few notes for your blog: my mum and dad had a farm on the outskirts of Belfast. My mum did the farming, my father did a country run of deliveries with his van. He wanted a change, and when my dad saw the property now known as The Tides up for sale, he came to the town and bought it at the auction. They sold the farm and moved to the port, my brothers and me, arriving in Portrush in 1943. I was 11 years old.

“The family, a the Tides house. From left to right: Robin, Sheila, Tom, my little sister Molly, and my dad and mum, James & Sarah Blair.
And, do you see the picture there above the fireplace, of a red setter dog and a cat, amde with wool? All my life I loved making things with my hands, and I made that picture.”

“The house and shop had been McLaughlin Stores, and became J. Blair & Sons. I worked in the shop, I discovered that I really enjoyed it, it became my passion. Shop-keeping was not easy in those days though, with rationing and coupons for everything. Our parents were good to us though – no frills, but lots of good home-made food. Another passion for me was looking after the family; my little sister Molly was born a few years later, and I loved doing things with her or making things for her.

Left, photo captioned, ‘McLaughlin Stores, Ballyreagh near Portrush’
Right, that house, with the shanty town around, before those were cleared for the caravan park.

“All around the house and shop were huts and caravans, rented out during the summer months. My brother Tom started in the caravan trade, becoming a letting agent for the caravans, and me and mum prepared the caravans for the next visitor. The bus driver would call out the stop as the ‘S-town’, the Shanty town – my mum hated it being called that. There was an outbreak of typhoid in 1959, from one of the other shop-keepers, that led to the site clearances and the development of Glenmanus homes as better accomodation.

“The family business was J. Blair & Sons. As well as the Tides shop, we had a shop in Bushmills and we did a country run with a big mobile shop. My brothers all worked in it – there was lots of work to do. I helped out there too – they say Variety is the Spice of Life.

“We bought another small shop in Croc-na-mac Street in Portrush, so small, really just the front room of a small house, and I worked there.

Sheila’s Wheels: my first car, in 1964. No driving test in those day, I just bought a licence, it cost 5 shillings, just because my friend had got one, and I am still driving.

“Later I met a friend of a friend, Harold Brown, who was visiting Portrush with his family from Magherafelt; a holiday romance, and we married in 1964. I wanted to stay in Portrush and I renovated the apartment above the shop and initially we lived there. The Croc-na-mac area was still the post-war prefabs – they were replaced by the brick houses we moved into one, in Croc-na-mac Square.

Helena Alcorn Espie: “Mrs. Davies, one of my Primary School teachers, was very partial to McVities Chocolate Digestive biscuits, and I was often sent to Blair’s shop to get them for her.”

*Portrush postcard, sent back to Harold’s parents in Magherafelt*

“We renovated the shop and extended it to be a supermarket, and my brothers took it over.”

The renovated, extended Croc-na-mac Street shop – Sheila, Harold (Brown), and Tom and my father James Blair

Ray McConaghy: “I have very fond memories of working with Harold Brown on the “delicatessen” counter in the shop after school and during school holidays – a wonderful kind man. Sometimes I would go over to Sheila and Harold’s house in Croc-na-mac Square and help Harold to drill holes for electric cables in glass bottles. which Sheila decorated beautifully with shells and transformed into lamps.”

Helena Alcorn Elspie: “Way back when, we would have used the telephone in the shop, as few people had phones in their homes. I remember going after a job interview, the boss phoning Blair’s shop to tell me I’d got the job. Always someone would have come to the house to tell you thee was a call for you.
“My best friend Sylvia worked in the shop. She lived across the road, so did Sheila and Harold. He was big burly sort of man with gingery hair, always chatty and cheerful. No supermarkets then, it was a busy shop, also over in Rodney Street was Hamill’s shop, and both shops did well.”

Maureen Kane: “Oh so long ago! I only remember as a very small child going into buy sweets with my thruppence when Sheila’s mum was behind the counter, and I had to stretch up to put the money on the counter. The door was inside a porch and when opened the counter was near the door – jars on the shelves behind the counter which was a big high counter – I was very small then. I always have the impression of Sheila’s mum as a tall woman, very friendly with a lovely smile. Then Sheila worked in the shop, I don’t remember much except like her mum she was always very friendly. I remember Harold in a white coat, working in the shop. He had lovely blonde hair.”

Caravans & Transport – the Blair family moved to Tides in 1943, and Tom started in caravan business. A small beginning, I see an advert for sale of a singe caravan in 1945; then in ads in 1947 are to let out a handful of caravans on the Ballyreagh site, around Tides. That caravan business continued with sales as shown in the 1978 advert, on the right.

David: Sheila mentions the mobile van in Bushmills. Me, I guess I was pre-school age, about 4, but I remember the Saturday morning visit by ‘James the Baker’, in his Inglis van. We got white bread from him, with a black burnt crust that I always cut off my sandwiches, and maybe my treat from him was a coconut-y snowball bun. His half-red and half-white van had big long pull-out wooden “drawers.” He had chocolate-covered ginger biscuits, 1/2d, my brother Trevor’s favourite. The upgrading of shops like Sheila’s round the corner, and as car ownership expanded, that buying from mobile vans became unnecessary. I remember my mum feeling obliged to continue to buy bread from James, felt too bad to tell him not to come any more. I see the Blair’s advert in 1968, above centre, selling their two mobile shop vans – I guess that era of the mobile van calling came to an end.

Margaret Mullings: “Love this story, thank you. Memories of shopping for my mum in Blair’s Shop. We lived in Parker Avenue, nine children. A lot to feed but we are all still here. Great memories to last a lifetime.“

“I went down into the town and took over a small shop, the Shell Cove, which is now a gallery on Main St., near the cinema, it was really a poky, footery wee place. I gathered bags of shells from Magilligan, Portbalintrae and Donegal beaches, and in a room out the back of the shop I made all kinds of ornaments to sell in the tourist trade.

“Later I was able to get the larger property next door, across the little lane, and over the years the work expanded so that I had cottage workers making flowerpots covered with shells, and letter racks with the clam shells.

“There was a clam factory in Glenarm and I went there. My husband Harold was very helpful to drive, and our son Trevor too. We went further afield too: we went on holiday to Tarbot in Scotland to gather Queenie shells - a type of small clam - and we came home laden with them. They cost nothing to collect and were lovely when varnished. I also bought a lot of tropical shell goods from a big shell factory in Bude in Cornwall, where they made shell stuffI. I enjoyed the trips over. It was great to go to Holiday Blackpool, a massive show, a world-wide wholesale for fancy goods. It was held in the Winter Gardens there – later it moved to Birmingham – I loved it, shops were my passion.

*Craft fairs, and getting stocked up for the season!*

“Later my mum moved from Tides to live in a house on Causeway Street, next to the old Post Office. I moved my business to the shop next door, into what was known as the Bonne Bouche. I did fancy goods, I made a lot of my stock – silk flowers, sea shells – there was plenty of work.

Bonne Bouche location, Causeway St.
Left postcard, from Sheila Brown’s collection. On the far left is the old Post Office (now the library); the building with the bay window will become Sheila’s antique shop; Bonne Bouche, the shop with the large street frontage

“Shops were always my passion – I loved being behind the counter, I loved making things to sell, I loved the products, I loved meeting people. I especially loved antiques – and later when the Bonne Bouche property was sold I moved next door, into a little shop that I called the Victorian Room, and focused on antiques.

Fiona N: “I remember The Victorian Room, on Causeway Street, in Portrush – it is where I got my engagement ring, 28 years ago. It was a really lovely shop and Mrs Brown was always so kind. She knew what I liked in jewellery and was the one who showed me the ring which I have now worn for nearly 28 years.”

“My very first purchase of an antique, years and years ago, was of a brass clock set. It must have been 75 years ago. A neighbour had given me a bag of shells that he had collected; I made some products and sold them, and had a few pounds from the sales. There was a man at Ballyreagh selling some old things – my mum had green fingers, she loved flowerpots and she bought flower pots, stands, anything to do with plants – she had green fingers, I have them too. She said, You should buy a few antiques with your money. The clock set was for sale for £10, that was quite a lot but that was the going price. I loved looking at and handling such old things.

”Those candlesticks are the oldest thing I have – they are my dad’s handiwork, he made them over 100 years ago, in the Sorocco works in Belfast.

**Bonne Bouche**: 1927, a cafe ; 1975, put up for for sale by Blair family

“I was there in that Antiques shops for the next 25 years, until it was demolished to be replaced by apartments in about 2002.”

End of an Era – closure of the Antiques shop on Causeway St.

Sheila Kane: “Oh I have so loved Sheila Brown’s account … She has such a great memory and always interesting recollections. I have a beautiful rose-gold bracelet and ruby and diamond ring that I bought from her antique shop in Causeway Street – it was like an upmarket Auntie Wainwright’s shop from Last of the Summer Wine … absolutely mesmerising to browse in. I loved her Shell Cove too. I used to have a big conch shell that had been converted to a lamp, and I bought many bags of shells for different little teenager art projects that I’d have been doing at home.”

Sheila you showed me your great collection of Portrush postcards. How did that come about? “Well David, after I retired from the Antiques shop, I was given an old postcard album and I started collecting old postcards of Portrush, about 20 years ago. A man from Belfast started doing Antique Fairs and he had a shop where Troggs is now. He had a partner who sold postcards in the shop and I got most of the collection from him. I visited the shop quite often and he would keep me local cards. They cost 50p upwards – rare ones at £5 or more below – it all added up but I got a lot of pleasure with them. You can see, they go back in time to early dates of Portrush, like a time machine, and the writing on the back is interesting.

I ask Sheila B, do you remember Sheila Kane /Chambers – was she a trouble-maker? “Hi David”, she replied, “I knew Sheila’s mum, Jean Walker, when in Crocnamac shop. She married Harry Chambers. He was a great radio man. My Harold was always interested in Short Wave radio stuff and he loved Harry’s aerials. I knew Sheila to speak to, a lovely person I think, so many juicy stories t say about her!!” **

“We were in Vancouver four times, including going to my son Trevor’s wedding. Harold is wearing the hat. We saw lots of Craft and Antiques and got stocked up – they were great holidays! The first time we went to Canada though we had 12 different flights, what between breakdowns and going on a holiday as well to San Diego.”

** it case of any uncertainty, I should say that I just made that last bit up.

“Over the years I did talks on Shells & Antiques to all the Women’s Institutes and women’s gatherings untill I retired. I had a very enjoyable life meeting people and making my stock. I loved making things and now 90 years old and I am still crocheting – good for the mind. I made rugs, tapestries, loved baking, shopkeeping, and my pride and joy was making things for my little sister.”

*David with Sheila, June 2022; receiving card from the Queen, 2022; & Christmas, 2020*

“I have had a wonderful life. I moved eight times all in Portrush – I can’t believe it myself !!! I live now at Dhu Varren in a flat, with still a number of my precious things from over the years. If you are passing by, feel free to pop in and say Hello.

“This is only a few snippets out of my life David, I hope it is of interest to people – delete if no interest, Sheila.”

Sheila Brown: “Hi Sheila Kane, well if we were out of the picture David has brought us to light. He is a lovely man and just loves writing about Portrush. I think the book will be closed now but it was great, all the blogs, they keep us young, and we will not be forgotten.
Hope you keep well and look forward to seeing you soon “
David S: “Sheila Brown (‘the Model’) as Harold called her – a beautiful human being, who has a wonderful account of local history..“
Davy McA: “Two diamonds in the rough of Portrush”
Heather W: “You provide a fantastic platform for Portrush people to share memories and photos, David Martin! So lovely to read about the “good old days”! I’m a blow in and as I walk round Portrush I smile remembering the people and places mentioned.”
Bobby Ann: “Two great ladies..”
Lorna G: “Two lovely smiling faces ”
Sheila Kane: “Sheila, David certainly has put an awful lot of hard work into his meticulous research, into encouraging people to send him facts and memories, and he has pulled everything together in a way that his articles always make interesting reading … and let’s not forget the way he punctuates all with his wit and humour “
David B: “Sheila I loved reading your article Aunty, brings back many memories of the summers I spent in Portrush”
Melody B: “Wow! You still have an amazing memory Mum! Great you are able to share all this.”
Sharon C: “Sheila, absolutely loved reading this….so many memories “
Christine H: “Thank you for sharing this!”
Margaret M: “Love this story, thank you. Memories of shopping for my mum in Blair’s Shop. We lived in Parker Avenue, nine children, a lot to feed we are all still here. Great memories to last a lifetime. Always love to hear stories about Portrush, keep them coming”.
Karen L: “Love this! thank you for sharing.”
Reba J: “Great stories down Memory Lane / thank you both x“
Noleen K: “This is lovely.”
Sindy S: “Another great read bringing back great memories David Martin. My grandparents William & Kathleen McFetridge lived straight across from Blair’s on Croc-na-Mac. We were allowed to cross the road to spend our pocket money think it was only 2 1/2p but it went a long way, bubbly, black jacks & rainbow drops. I loved the shop and Mrs Brown, she knew all us kids. I would then play shop in Grannies kitchen using the cabinet with the drop down top as my counter. Happy days. Thanks for the memories David and the two Sheila’s ”
Sheila K: “When we lived in Rodney St, Mr and Mrs McFetridge allowed our next door neighbour, John Bacon, and I to play in their back garden as we only had back yards and they had a long, grassy, open stretch at their back. Great fun in what became the Wild West for us with John being the cowboy and me the Red Indian … I can still remember the smell from the cap gun and my rubber-tipped arrows We even had cowboy teas … sausages and beans … on wonderful tin plates from a toy teaset I had (food always looked good on tin plates in the westerns) I remember Sindy too as she would have played with us when at her grandparents’. Also Catherine and Suzanne Quinn from further up Croc na Mac St. All this before Croc na Mac Sq and Rodney Sq were built!”
Sheila Brown: “The stories from Croc na mac are good. I took almost all the kids round those streets to Sunday school in a Bedford van, me and the driver, they rolled about great fun. I certainly know a few generations. “
Elizabeth B: “So fascinating to read all this. My Dad is Sheila’s brother who lives in Vancouver Canada, we had many memories of visits to Portrush when we were children. We heard stories about all of this too. We loved Aunt Sheila and her shops. Thanks for putting this together.”
Lesley McB (nee Blair): “I’m one of Auntie Sheila’s Canadian nieces! Wonderful account of life’s story in Portrush. On our visits over to Ireland I remember our baggage got lost and My Granny Blair took us to Logan’s and bought us new outfits for Sunday, Granny Blair was exceptionally kind and left a legacy of kindness. Auntie Sheila was the same and I love her dearly, she took my two sisters and I and my cousin Kathryn to the Safari Park and we had our photo taken holding the lion cubs. I remember my Dad taking about doing deliveries for the Bushmill’s shop. What Auntie Sheila has said about her life in Portrush and all the lovely comments tells a true picture, she is a wonderful woman! I am now living in Armagh and seen her last on her birthday in May, I will hopefully get up soon again for a visit!!” Beth L: “Thank you for this! I am truly amazed (and jealous) of such a keen memory! It helps me remember my childhood and my wonderful hometown so much better.”

Janetha I: “David Martin I loved reading this and was delighted to spot myself and my classmates in the featured photo of Mrs Chambers’ (now Sheila Kane) P3 class. I loved Portrush Primary school even though I had a few tears most mornings when my mum dropped me off. Mrs Brown and then Miss Chambers always welcomed me with open arms and cuddles until I felt ready to face the day.
I wonder where everyone from my class has ended up.”

<=== oh Janetha, that story sounds so interesting…… Might you be interested in doing a write-up. “My First Day At School” ?

Portrush - Great Institutions · Primary school · Sports · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

Cyril Davison – a Tribute

November 5, 2022November 19, 2022 David Martin2 Comments

30th June 2022: David Martin, Sheila Brown, and Cyril & Margaret Davison

In the summer it was a pleasure to meet Cyril & Margaret Davison again. They were really marvellous, set up badminton at Portrush when I was a kid, working to get the Kelly Hall refurbished and courts marked up to play there, and got the badminton club up and running and doing rather well in the area leagues. Jonny Dobbin says about the 1991 photo below, “That was the year that I won the most improved player in the Ballymoney and District league. Cyril coached me – and he was the reason that me and others from the club achieved local, district and country honours.”

“Members of the Holy Trinity Badminton Club, Portrush,
pictured with trophies won in a very successful season.”

Audrey Macbeth: So sorry to hear the news. Remember him as a great friend from my early badminton years. Deepest sympathy to Margaret and family Audrey Macbeth (Donegal)

Katy Diamond: Cyril was a great coach David as you know. I used to dread being his mixed doubles partner lol as you were afraid of making a mistake. He will be sorely missed.
Sharon Kennedy: “Katy, I loved being his doubles partner , I just served then darent have moved a foot back from the net and Cyril had the whole court covered making it look effortless

I look for photographs of the badminton club but do you remember the 1970s, the days before mobile phones and not a million photographs of everything? I had only found the one photograph of the club, above, and then Clive Shorter produced a few more, of 1977. But David Downs says, “If only we had camera phones back then, knock knees Martin wouldn’t want any images around a badminton court even if he was OK at it.”

Anthony Chambers: What a great and enthusiastic man. Loved playing badminton at the Kelly.

That photo, below right, of me practicing in our house, about 1974. My knock knees pose must have been good enough to earn those little medals and prizes, encouragement for improvement over the year
My regular playing group was that under-16 team shown on the left (and all the lads were golfing buddies too – though I have no idea why Andy H has a shuttlecock on his nose). It was great tragedies that Sandra C and Janette K, school classmates, were taken away too early from us.

Rosie Oates: So sorry to hear this news. Cyril was such a great coach, and the badminton club at the Kelly Hall was such a huge part of growing up – I still hear his coaching tips even now! He made such a difference to so many. My deepest condolences to Margaret and family.

Heather Kennard: “What a character he was Margaret, so sorry to hear this.”
Jonny Dobbin: “Very shocked and saddened to hear this news.”
Sheila Brown: “Lovely tribute to Cyril real sportsman sad loss to everyone remember Margaret ”
Carol Mcfarland: “Such a gentleman. So sorry to hear this. Love to Margaret and family x”

George Stewart: “Cyril was also a brilliant footballer, he played with me in winning the Works league with Monsanto. Condolences to the family.”

About 1977: Sammy & Sadie Kane, Clive Shorter, Cyril & Margaret, Tommy Peters, Thelma, Elaine Adjey, and oh dear but I can’t remember all the names – well it is 45 years ago !!

Aslan Bucukoglu: “Thanks for this article. I play 3 times a week during the season in Edinburgh and I remember him every time I step on the court. Deepest condolences.”

Karen McQuilkin: “I was so sorry to hear of Cyril’s passing. I have so many wonderful memories of playing badminton at Trinity Hall. Cyril was the heartbeat of the club, and I am very grateful to have been coached by him. Sending love to Margaret and family. x”

Nicola Taylor: “Cyril taught my brother and me at the Kelly Hall as well. Condolences to his family and friends.”

Steven McMinn: “I am still playing today and coaching the kids in the local area. It would not have been possible without him. Thank you Cyril, for everything.”
Geoffrey Niblock: “Cyril did a massive amount of work for the badminton clubs in the area.”
Carl Kennedy: “So sorry to hear. I bumped into Cyril and Margaret on the West Strand prom for a chat a couple of weeks ago. I am so glad thatI did now. I’ll always remember the end of season celebration parties at our house fondly. Condolences to Margaret and family from Sharon and I.”

Sheila Brown: Margaret I am so sorry that my friend Cyril your lovely husband and soul mate passed away yesterday He was such a kind helpful person and will be sadly missed by you and family circle.
My prayers and thoughts are with you at this sad loss.

Cyril Davison, 3rd November 2022.
———
Newspaper cuttings & photos, courtesy Clive Shorter, Jonny Dobbin, David Martin

Dunluce school · Portrush - Great Institutions · Primary school · School days · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

Her Majesty the Queen – Silver Jubilee visit, 1977

September 9, 2022September 22, 2022 David Martin2 Comments

The passing of our Queen, 8th September 2022. She has been there for all of our lives, a constancy, a bedrock. We all have memories of seeing her, of being in the crowd as she went past, of being outside at Buckingham Palace or wherever, or of being at an event where she and the royal family were, and it gladdened our hearts. Whatever event – ours was the invitation to the Party in the Park, her celebration in 2002 at the Palace – the photo, the selfie, the invitation, her warmth and smile – treasured memories.

Queen, Coleraine 2014 – photos copyright Maureen Kane

The Queen’s Silver Jubilee, 1977. A week of celebration for the Silver Jubilee, with Monday 6th June, beacons lit all around the kingdom, including at Dunluce Castle. Classmates in the Dunluce School choir sang there, that evening. But the weather was foul, cold and wet, and Zoe A remembers the choir huddled under the chimney stacks in the outer part of the castle during the worst of the weather. Sheila K “remembers the lighting of a beacon-bonfire in the field at Dunluce Castle – it was enormous, and that the scorched ground was there for a long time after. There were street parties all over the town, and a special Jubilee medal-coin given out to us.” Allison C remembers that “there was a huge street party for the kids on Ramore St. though with the weather it was held in Fawcetts Hotel, and they got silver pendants presented to mark the Jubilee. Even though I was young, still at primary school, I remember this time so well.”

A few months later and the royal family came to visit Northern Ireland, on Wednesday 10th and Thursday 11th August 1977. The Royal yacht Britannia sailed into Belfast Lough on Wednesday morning, and the Queen helicopter’ed to events around Hillsborough. The yacht sailed north overnight, passing the Causeway about 1am and a bonfire was lit on Ramore Head to welcome the Queen. The yacht came past the Skerries, escorted by HMS Fife and minesweepers and guided by Portrush lifeboat, and anchored off Ramore Head for the day.

Sheila K, “I remember the day the royal yacht arrived. My dad, mum, sister and I went up Ballynacrea Rd before 6am to watch it sailing past the Skerries.” And Zoe A, “We watched the Royal Yacht from the White Rocks as it sailed in front of the Skerries. We couldn’t get to Ramore Head as it was packed so we sat below the car pack on the East Strand. The beach was off limits and we saw helicopters take off and land.”

Allison C: “I remember it well and the crowds gathered on Ramore Head to see the Royal yacht Britannia. I remember seeing the Queen in the royal red helicopter flying close to the edge of Ramore Head so that we could see her. Of course we waved like mad with our flags lol. I was always convinced we saw the Queen waving at us but that might be my childhood dream lol.”

Gerald McQ writes: “We were having an early picnic at the green area beside the old harbour bridge. Suddenly a crowd of people came charging down the harbour hill shouting, ‘The Queen is coming!!! The Queen is coming!!!’ We all rushed towards the quay – the old bridge groaned with the weight of so many people. Sadly she didn’t come to the harbour – even though it had been freshly painted and bunting a-plenty!! – but her helicopter took her directly to the University.

“Later we took a boat trip around the Royal Yacht, me wearing my new outfit for the occasion – brown flares and purple tank top… say no more!!! I was only 11 but I will never that wonderful day, of the sight of the Royal Yacht Brittania sailing past Ramore Head, the bonfire. A wonderful day.”

Wow, that she came came to N. Ireland in the 70s, the bad years. My English and Scottish cousins sensibly stayed away that decade. I think it says a lot for the Queen, her bravery, her sense of duty, her wish to see and meet and connect with all the peoples of her kingdom and Commonwealth, that she came as a duty of love in her jubilee year. And we all turned out to welcome her. But remember, the Portrush bombing inferno was only the year earlier, and as an indicator of the risk there were 4,000 police officers on duty, who gathered at Coleraine football pitch to start their duties and deployment. And for safety her overnights were on Britannia, traveling by helicopter to her venues, avoiding roads.

My Dad, Sgt Martin – as an aside, he was actually born the day before the Queen, in 1926 – was in the team responsible for her safety and security during the visit. Of course preparations in advance were hush hush – we didn’t know what dad was doing, just his long long hours out. He said later about driving back from one of the NUU meets to Portrush at 2 or 3am: an army patrol helicopter sees a suspicious car and shines its searchlight on him. Dad says it was night turned to daylight.

Strict security was everywhere. Caroline D says her Dad had his two big oil tanks down at the harbour, and was asked to either empty them or fill them completely, to prevent their misuse… And Nina W: “I remember it well as it was near the end of my school days. We lived near the NUU at that time and the army was out on foot patrol around the housing estate.” At the NUU a small bomb did go off somewhere around the university – she bravely over-ruled her advisors and went ahead witht he visit. Thankfully the events all went off peacefully and really successfully.

Photo above, arriving at the NUU, just after 11am. And right, Lynda D: “A photo from the Queen’s visit to the University of Ulster in 1977. My late dad Robin McAfee is in the top left corner in the glasses x”

Courtesy Allyson H: “David this is the invitation we got for the choir to sing at Dunluce Castle and at NUU, we all got one.”

My classmates in the Dunluce school choir were there at the NUU, as part of a Youth Festival, to greet her. Allyson H remembers “We as a choir from Dunluce school sang for them, I remember it well – I have a scrap book which I made all those years ago. I believe we sang Londonderry Air – ah the pipes the pipes are calling… The Queen, Prince Philip and Andrew did come over and speak to us… I recall Prince Philip asking us, Were we the choir that sang at Dunluce Castle? and we all excitedly said Yes! His kind reply was that it was such a foul night – and it really was! It had rained all day long! At the uni though, the sun shone all day and we had a ball…

“I remember as well that some of the guests – Mrs Mercer being one – got sick, food poisoning from the sandwiches which were provided that day. Some of the children ended up in hospital I think. Strange what you can remember!”

Rosemary P: “Yes I was in the choir along with Allyson, Marie, Jill, Jayne, Sharon, Andrea…… probably half of the class but I can’t remember who else lol! I remember being there, sun shining, standing in line and seeing Prince Andrew, who was actually very handsome at the time.

“So much respect for the Queen. Over a lifetime, my wee Mum just loved watching anything Royal.

“We also stayed a few years ago at Balmoral, at the invitation of brother in law who was the Queen’s personal piper. The Queen was in residence and we saw her out walking around with her dogs…. though from a distance xox”

Sharon R: “Hi David, Bob and I were just talking about the Silver Jubilee last night and how we had meet the Queen. We were so very excited to be singing for Her Majesty! After the bad weather at Dunluce, the day the Queen came to the university was really hot and sunny. The Queen and Prince Philip took time to speak to us and thanked us for singing that night at the bonfire, on such an awful night. There was a lot of excitement too as Prince Andrew was there – a handsome young Prince. We wouldn’t be so excited now to see him!!

“I don’t think we realised the significance of it at the time. I wish I could remember more now!”

Linda K: My father worked at the NUU and so along with families of other staff, my mum, my sister and I were up on the podium while my father was waiting inside the entrance. I gave Her Majesty a posy of roses and she spoke to me and then HRH Duke of Edinburgh also stopped to speak to us. My father was invited to the Garden Party that afternoon.

Back at Portrush, Pete D: “I was working in Barry’s in 1977, and remember well the Britannia out on the bay as I gazed from the big Dodgems & Cyclone windows. It was a scorcher of a summer. Mum and Dad were at the garden party at NUU as it then was.” And Caroline D says that they had a great view of the yacht out in the bay, from their house on the Portstewart Rd, but their guest house was so packed with visitors that they didn’t have much time to look!

People flocked to witness the occasion. During that day, boats took sight-seers for trips around the yacht – but kept back at a suitable distance. Fred W, “I remember going out into the bay, in a boat that I had built, to see the Royal Yacht but got turned back by the security services as we were getting too close.” Fred was fortunate, as Stephen H says, “Out in my Dad’s boat watching it all and nearly got run over by the Royal Navy as we got too close!” And Mike S says “me and my dad sailed around Brittania in his sailing dinghy, RN patrol boat very quick to warn us off when we ventured just inside the half mile exclusion zone!” And Sean S, “was lucky to go out on the Press Boat which was i think an ex-RN minesweeper. Anyway, it was allowed inside the exclusion zone and i saw the Queen on deck …. A wonderful memory!”

Kerry G writes, “In the summer months we ran a boat hire business, using our wooden jetty along from the Teas and Ices. That day, me and my brother William decked out dad’s salmon coble with flags and bunting. Most people had never seen the Queen or anything to do with her and they were hungry for a look. The Maritime authorities had granted us temporary licences to do the runs, limited to 12 passengers at a time. It was a lovely calm day, and we ran trips out to the royal yacht all day long. It was a really great day.”

Left: launches & tenders sailed from the jetty at the lifeboathouse; Right: Gregg’s boat (photo courtesy Kerry Gregg)

Later in the afternoon, tenders collected invited guests from Portrush harbour jetty next to the lifeboathouse, and transferred them to a royal reception on board the yacht. (Shane E says that “When the tenders came into Portrush harbour someone (unnamed) ‘borrowed’ a royal boathook and forgot to give it back. It used to hang above the bar in the Lobster Pot.”)

Sheila K says, “Our neighbour John Hurst was chief librarian at NUU and during the day he gave the Queen a guided tour of the libraries – including that wonderful modern tool, the microfiche machine.

“In the evening I baby-sat their two children while John and his wife Teresa attended a reception for local dignitaries, on board the yacht.” As with so much of our affection for the Queen, “Thereafter a lovely photo of John and the Queen took pride of place in their home.”

Many people have memories of being with or seeing members of the royal family. Beth L remembers that year: “I was Head Girl in 6th form at Coleraine High School. Along with the head boy of Coleraine Inst. and my art teacher, Miss Abernathy, we were flown by some civic group or other to London to celebrate the Silver Jubilee. We attended the luncheon at the Guild hall with the Mayor of London – but what I remember most is that it was my first ever flight, and of being mortified of being with a boy that I did not know (and still can’t remember his name, even now!).

“Three years later as a rebellious university student, I wanted no part of going to Buckingham Palace with my parents and sister when my Dad was honoured as a Commander of the British Empire (CBE).

“I regret that to this day.”

Left, meeting new PM, Liz Truss, only a few days ago;
Centre, Queen, 60th birthday portraint, 1986,, from National Portraint Gallery image courtesy Beth;
right, Coleraine 2014 – photo copyright Maureen Kane

Me, well I am not one to boast but here’s a photo of me, below left, 1987, my first job after graduation, looking down the microscope at a silcon chip wafer. That’s my buddy King Charles there, well, Prince as he was then, opening Plessey’s shiny new facility at Plymouth. (But he moaned about the design of the building, that it clashed with the nearby Dartmoor national park scenery.)

Later, 2002, by pick of the draw my daughter Ailsa and I got invitations to Party in the Park, 2002 – her 50th anniversary. We got to walk on Millennium bridge – it wasn’t as wobbly as it had been – and on the red carpet at Buckingham Palace. Our seats in row ZZ – the very back row – and the royal family were those dots away over there. Still, being right at the back meant we could look over behind to see Bryan May doing his guitar of the national anthem on the roof of the palace. (Actually it was my wife Lesley’s name which was drawn, but she stayed with our youngest Euan in Hyde Park and took him for a McDonalds burger, while me and Ailsa ate from our Fortnum and Mason’s lunch basket in the Palace. I really don’t know what she complains about.)

My cousin has pride in her invitation to a palace garden party in 2014 and writes, “I remember this day like it was yesterday and the cheeky wink that I got from the Queen.” And Maureen says, “25th June 2014, I stood for hours at Coleraine Town Hall to see her and took loads of pics. The parade was amazing – it must have been Royal Guards but don’t quote me on that as I’m not sure.

Maureen writes, “They were laying a wreath and ladies from a WI were dressed in period dresses. Oh yes it was WWI centenary. My grandfather had been in WW1 and I wanted to be there.”

Linda K /below right photo): “Special canapes and buffet, served in the Town Hall. I am on the left, wearing a loaned mauve original servants uniform.”

Maureen continues, “Then later, I forget the year [it was 2016], I went to Bushmills, stood on the road near the Diamond and saw their car passing on their way to Royal Portrush. Then I came back home as the Queen and Philip were reportedly to drive past Crocknamack Road – and they did, on their way to the Railway Station in Coleraine! Lovely to know that she passed us, on our own road, so closely.”

Five visits by the Queen to the area, but her Silver Jubilee visit: I was there. Maureen K asks, “That day in 1977, do you remember it? There was a helicopter outside the Police Station – I have a bad photo of it. And Sandra and I – like everyone else in the area – went to Ramore Head to watch Britannia. I remember a man there, sitting wth a hanky tied with four corners, to protect his head from the sun – like you see in postcards – Sandra and I giggled at that!”

After my day’s summer job working in the White House, in the evening I went with my brothers to see. Ramore Head was just a seething crowd of happy people! The photo about is courtesy Lucy S and she asks, “Does anyone else remember ‘I am Sailing’ by Rod Stewart being played over the tannoy or was it just my memory playing tricks on me?”

I see Portrush lifeboat there in the photo, accompanying the royal yacht to its moorings. Trish G reckons her dad Billy Lee was cox’n.

After the events at the NUU and then the reception on board the royal yacht, the Queen gazing out from the yacht at the end of the day, at the black mass on Ramore Head and wonders, I didn’t think that any trees could grow in such an exposed headland? Those are your people, your Majesty.

Hillsborough Castle, NUU, garden parties, receptions. The whole trip: amazing, wonderful.

Then, her duties done and fulfilled so wonderfully, on Thursday the 11th August 1977 – and again, 45 years later, on Thursday the 8th September 2022 – her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth slipped away from us, quietly and peacefully and gracefully.

Same age as at my mum’s passing a few months ago, aged 96. The rock, the stability, the constancy, always there. Someone writes, “I’m finding the whole thing very sad and overwhelming, an air of uncertainty after the loss of a nation’s lifetime constant … as if things weren’t tough enough in the world at the minute.” Grieving, still the baton is passed on to Charles, and from Boris to Liz Truss. The world moves on and we go forward, with anxiety, but perhaps some hope too.

Allyson looks at the Dunluce school choir in the Silver Jubilee photograph, flags waving, and says, “I remember exactly where we were, where that photo was taken: it was in the Ulster University grounds, just off the roundabout, where the halls of residence are now. We had been standing all day, in the sunshine, and then we sang – and she came over and chatted with us! and we had a ball.

“What do they say, about being in just the right place at just the right time? I pass that spot every day and I still think about that day – the day we met the Queen.”

—————–
With thanks to –
All contributors!
Photos courtesy & confidential: Maureen Kane, Kerry Gregg, David Martin, Linda Kapur, Lynda Doshi
Newspaper clippings, source: BritishNewspaperArchive.co.uk
BBC news reels
https://www.causewaycoastandglens.gov.uk/news/royal-visits-through-the-years

Family · Primary school · School days · Sports · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

“Portrush Tales” – to The Farthest Shore – Michael White (Part II)

July 13, 2022July 29, 2022 David Martin8 Comments

“I remember Pantomime performances by Rossi Duke and Rodney Byrne. One scene on the final night, the fairy called out for her magic wand, left behind unintentionally in the wings, and was instead handed a toilet seat by Rossi Duke – it was memorable.”

Michael White, now over 50 years in New Zealand, opens up his Pandora’s box of memories and of photographs and writes about his wonderful teenage years in Portrush.
Previously, Part I, Portrush Tales – from The Other Side of the World, describes his family arriving in Portrush and the friends that Michael forms. He continues the story in this episode…

February 1956. Age 13. Dad transfers from Belfast to the old Northern Bank in Portrush. Family moves to No. 2, Strandmore, Portrush…
March 1961. Age 18. Left Portrush for Surrey in England to join the Civil Service…
July 1970. Age 28. Boarded SS Australis at Southampton, bound for Auckland in New Zealand.

Michael writes, “I loved Portrush. The two very long beaches, the harbour, the summer, Dunluce Castle and the Giant’s Causeway in the distance, and time with my friends. Winter, with the wildness of the sea and the chill. And the contrast to the summer, the packed holiday atmosphere of the town, the Arcadia…..

Summer job at the Arcadia
On the outside of the Arcadia dancehall were several kiosks selling all sorts of summertime goodies. There were “American Ices” which served a sugary and creamy dollop, seaside funny hats, plastic toys and buckets and spades. Everyone was on holiday in the summer and the kiosks were all very busy! From 1958, when I was 16, I ran the popcorn and candy floss kiosks, and my friend Maureen McKillop ran the postcards one, next door.

Maureen McKillop from Bushmills who looked after the postcards kiosk at the Arcadia; Michael White at popcorn. 1960

Bert Blundell was the owner of the Arcadia and also of the amusement arcade on Main Street. He would stand on the steps of the Arcadia on summer days, wearing his grey suit and polaroid type glasses, with hand clasped around his very generous midriff, surveying his empire. His silver Rolls Royce car, number plate BB100, would be parked above the steps down to the Arcadia, sitting there no doubt as his symbol of commercial success. I think he was English, sometimes seeming distant and austere and not very approachable, yet affable enough when I got to know him.

Bert added an electric popcorn machine to his fleet of equipment and he offered me the chance to operate it and sell the popcorn. He told me to clean the machine with hot water at the end of the day and so on the first day, I filled the sink up with hot water and dumped it in, little realising the effect on the electrical parts! I did not get sacked but I learned a valuable lesson about water and electricity. Sam Bell, the Portrush electrician was called in to rewire it, and I was shown how to wash it properly and not give the electricals a bath!

Ladies’ Bathing place, on the left; the Arcadia , with my candy floss Kiosk at the top of the steps down to the beach, below the sign “Self Service Cafe”; Maureen McKillop’s postcard Kiosk was to the right of mine.

Pat Moynihan from Portumna in County Galway was the walkabout manager for the kiosks and a ‘bouncer’ for the dancehall in the evenings. He was not very tall, had a shock of curly red hair and always dressed in a checked sports jacket, cavalry twill trousers and what we called brothel creeper shoes. He was a lovely guy with a great Galway accent and when I was working in the popcorn kiosk, he used to call out to me from his position in the middle of the promenade, if he saw a pretty girl, “Michael, an opportunity for you is approaching from the port side.”

Rodney Byrne & Irwin Stewart, Mark Street 1960

I was making candy floss one day with a long queue of people at the window, when there was a bit of a fuss with someone pushing and shoving trying to get to the front, much to the irritation of others. I heard the noise and looked up from my machine to see my mother, elbowing and wrestling her way through the crowd. When she finally reached the front of the queue, she was angry, and I was instructed to get up to the house at once. I declined and carried on working and said I would come up when I was less busy, but she persisted until the people behind her told her in no uncertain terms to “Go away!” She said in front of everyone that she had found my collection of “dirty postcards” under my bed! The crowd roared with laughter, and there were a few cheers and comments from the people gathered around her. I remember being a bit embarrassed. She left when the laughter erupted. I did go up to the house about an hour later and under my bed she had found my postcards with colour cartoon drawings and printed below each drawing was a caption or saying which was usually rude, with some sort of innuendo. They were harmless in a way, and I had amassed a collection of the better ones which I wish I had now as they are worth some money.

Me on the East Strand in 2012, with my house indicated by the arrow over my left shoulder; and me on the steps of 2, Strandmore.

I went back to the candy floss, where the crowd had disappeared and told Maureen about it. She thought it very funny and offered to replace my ‘under the bed’ collection. I did not manage to rescue the postcards from my mother’s clutches though. As my parents spent all their spare and leisure moments at the Royal Portrush Golf Club where they were both good golfers, I suspect the postcards circulated there!

1950s British Railways posters, bringing the crowds to Portrush

CSSM, Sundays, & Church
Summers and the many visitors prompted the ardent preachers in Northern Ireland to come to Portrush. CSSM, Childrens’ Special Service Mission, was one of these, conducted by the large and corpulent Rev. Armstrong who preached his gospel on the East Strand, on the beach opposite our house. I joined for a while during the summer and enjoyed meeting others, helping build Armstong’s sand pulpit on the beach over which he would drape his sashes of ecclesiastical authority. Rev. Armstrong organised many sports activities which were a lot of fun.

We had to go to church on Sundays as it was expected of my father as a Bank official, and he could not take the Monday morning remarks at work about any non-attendance the previous day. Services at the Portrush Presbyterian Church were conducted by the Rev. Kyle Alexander, starting at 11am. After singing a few psalms and hymns and preaching the morning lesson to the under 5’s, they were ushered out to Sunday School. At 12:10pm, the Rev. Alexander would launch into his sermon. Occasionally my mother, much to my father’s gross embarrassment, would ‘slip out’ from the pew just before Rev. Alexander started, explaining that she had “forgotten to turn the oven on for the Sunday joint of meat”, nodding, smiling, and stopping briefly to whisper her excuse to people down the aisle on the way out. After a few Sundays she had to stop this as it was predictable every week, and I heard my father tell her that comments were coming back to him at the Bank.

I reminded my Dad of this many years later in Auckland, and he just nodded and smiled, saying that there were possibly others who wanted to do what she did, but did not have the courage! (Or the “brass neck”!)

Left: “This, I discovered tucked behind the lid of a cardboard box. The back of the photo says, ‘Brother Jeff and me, Arcadia promenade, 1959″. I was 17, Jeff was 12. It may be of interest or use. My brother might enjoy it if he sees the blog. Best, Michael”
Right, West Strand, 1960: Gerald Johnston, Brian Minihan, Brian Cunningham, Derwood Magill, Alan Rainey, Irwin Stewart, Rodney Byrne

One Sunday after church, when having been forbidden to go near the rocks and the beach before lunch, I jumped the rocks at Ladies’ Bay to beat the waves – but slipped and fell in, soaking my shoes and long trousers. I would have been 15. As a punishment when I got home, I was instructed to kneel on the floor and bend over my bed as my father gave me six strong whacks on my backside with a flat piece of wood, saying, “This is going to hurt me more than it’s going to hurt you.” I am not sure that it did, but I was not going to let him see me brought to tears. And he did not. I stood up and stared at him as I held back the tears of pain, but fair enough, I was told not to jump the rocks and I paid the price.

Hard winters in Portrush
In contrast to the summer months, the winter months between November and March were cold and stormy, with the Atlantic roaring in all its fury, whipped up by the strong northeast winds. From the house, which faced northeast and straight out to sea, the scene was often dramatic with huge surf, or ‘Atlantic Rollers’ as we called them, tumbling around as far out as we could see.

I remember sand which had been whipped by the wind being piled up in the little porch to our front door, and my mother sweeping this regularly. Our lounge windows were continually covered with salt from the sea spray carried on the wind, as the house faced into the teeth of any North Easterly gale. Going up the Main Street in winter was a challenge sometimes, as the wind could be fierce, and if you did meet someone coming the other way, it was heads down into the gale. The wind would chill your ears and nose until they were almost numb, and it blew very hard.

We watched television a lot during the dark evenings. ‘Sunday Night at the London Palladium’ with Bruce Forsyth, ‘Bonanza’, ‘The Cisco Kid’, ‘The Lone Ranger’, and rushing home from school to watch the cartoon show of Yogi Bear! In black and white of course – colour television did not become available until 1970, nine years after I left Northern Ireland.

In the yacht club down by the harbour we played snooker and billiards, and then would go to my friend Irwin Stewart’s house on Mark Street as his mother ran a three-storey boarding house which had a television in a large lounge. Many shops stayed open in the winter, however there were few people on the streets, and it was quiet. There were two cinemas on Main Street, one just up from Forte’s Cafe and the Majestic, further on up, and on the other side. I remember my father took us once around 1957 to see a war film, called ‘The Man Who Never Was’, recently remade into ‘Operation Mincemeat’.

Jack McConaghy at Boggs the Chemist, September 1951, with his new assistant, Sadie Douglas / Jefferson;
Tommy Kane, May 1960, with Ray McConaghy, along Croc-na-mac

Photography was a hobby that developed during those months. It fascinated me, I had read many books on it in the CAI Library, and I put my savings from the Arcadia summer job towards buying a Leica camera – still, the basic model was all I could afford in the shop in Coleraine. Whenever I was out with my friends and at school, the camera came too. It was my dearest possession.

Those days, no instant gratification of photos on your phone, instead I would take my black and white film to Bogg’s the Chemist on Main Street. A week later, the envelope of photographs opened with expectation and trepidation to see what I had produced…. Sometimes I was really pleased, but sometimes disappointment that “it didn’t come out.” Jack would review my photos with me, pointing out where I could have taken something into account, like the sun, shadow, light and contrast. As a young boy I liked Jack very much and appreciated his help and advice, friendship, and welcoming smile and banter when I came to the shop. An affable character, he was always good for a laugh, too! He became a great friend, and later years whenever I was home I popped into see him, as I did with Jean Ross in the confectionery shop across the street.

My interest spread to developing my own films and printing of the photographs. My parents allowed me to convert the “boxroom” at the top of our staircase into my darkroom. For advice, Jack told me where he sent my films and he put me in touch with Tommy Kane.

The Harbour, 1960. Photo taken by me with hand-held Leica camera, to capture the silhouettes with the sun going down over Moville and Donegal, on a summer’s evening. Film processed and printed by me at home in my darkroom.

Daytime, Tommy was on the buses with the Ulster Transport Authority; evenings, I could meet him at his family darkroom premises behind the hotel in Eglinton Street, near the old Catering College. He was a lovely man, with a long neck and a prominent Adam’s apple. Tommy was just as helpful in explaining the development side of photography, and what I needed, what to look out for, and suddenly I was into the world of development tanks, chemicals, enlargers needed to complete the printing process, and then buying the paper on which the film and each photograph was printed. I spent many evenings in the darkroom with Tommy, watching and learning, and like Jack, Tommy too was enormously patient and helpful. Many of my photos are included in this story.

Other technical hobbies, my friend Rodney’s elder brother, Gary, showed me how to build a “crystal set” which was a tiny, primitive radio receiver. I would shop around looking for the parts in Coleraine on the way home from school, and then solder bits and pieces together and connect the wires. It was successful and I listened through an old pair of earphones which I found in a second-hand shop, but the only station I could receive was Radio Luxembourg which broadcast in English from Luxembourg. It broadcast pop music and was supported by commercials, such as:
“The time by my H. Samuel Everite watch is now 10.15 p.m.—precisely!”
I used to listen to it in bed under the bedclothes.

Robinson Crusoe, pantomime, 1961: Alex Diamond and Tony Kane; Rodney Byrne

The streets were quiet in wintertime but local drama and music and other such groups were busy. The annual pantomime was put on by the local Church of Ireland drama group, in December and into the first week or so of the new year, and was a highlight of those winter months. I couldn’t take part as I was not a member of that church but enjoyed helping where I could. I did take a few photographs, and about a year ago posted a photo of three people whose names I couldn’t remember on to a Facebook page on Portrush and replies came from two people saying they were relatives who were amazed at seeing their uncles in panto costume, some 60 years later.

I remember performances by Rossi Duke and Rodney Byrne. One scene on the final night, the fairy called out for her magic wand, left behind unintentionally in the wings, and was instead handed a….. toilet seat, by Rossi Duke – it was memorable.

1960. summer, me at the west strand; right, Christmas

We celebrated a White family Christmas, 1960, at Portrush. My parents and brother Jeff are standing there in front of the tree, a Mr and Mrs. Green, their son Denis and a friend of Jeff’s, and a Matt Gilfillan in the left corner. Me, I had finished school in June 1960, and in limbo had some months helping out in classes at Inst before and after my interview in London for the Civil Service, in November.

In that interview, me with my Senior ‘A’ Levels in languages, I asked to be considered for the the Immigration department. And just before Christmas a very official OHMS envelope arrived, confirming that I was appointed as…. a trainee Tax Inspector with the Inland Revenue! I was 18, and this would be my last carefree family Christmas at home, before I would start work in Surrey, in March 1961.

Left, Geraldine, Irwin, Angela, Pat and Derek Watson in 1960, with “props” for the occasion!;
right, February 1961,

During those winter months as teenagers, we would gather in various homes listening to the new records. A few experimented with smoking cigarettes but it did not appeal to me and I never did. There was some beer, but I cannot remember any of us getting drunk and certainly any sort of drug had not been heard of. Some of us in our group of about 10, as we got a bit older, started pairing off into couples and it was good fun to find out that “She has dropped him and is now going out with ———-.” The photo above right is February 1961, the month before I went to England, me with Sandra Quigley at the Boathouse in Coleraine.

I left Portrush in March 1961 and went to England to join the Civil Service, visiting back to see family and friends in the summer, and then for Christmas.”

David writes: The BBC has recently been celebrating with Sadie Jefferson on her 71 years, since 1951, of working at the same chemist location on Main St. in Portrush. Looking for photos of her at the chemist for the BBC articles, Jack McConaghy’s son Ray has just found this previously-unseen photo in Jack’s photo albums. Sadie of course on the right; in the centre is the pharmacist, Jack McConaghy.

The young man on the left was unknown to us.

Last week, I received the memorabilia from a Michael White, celebrating his 80th birthday in New Zealand, and writing up his teenage Portrush story. He mentions doing some photography at Bogg’s the Chemist.

Ray looks again at Jack’s photo album. It is meticulously captioned, and says,
‘Dec 1961 [Jack McConaghy] with Sadie & ……..Michael White ‘.

It is amazing!!! Michael had visited the shop to see Jack when home for his first Christmas from England. The photo was taken with Jack’s box Brownie camera, by the then owner of Boggs Chemist, George McCann (‘I seem to remember a shortish baldheaded man, also in the shop’) and it was in Jack’s possession. Now, 61 years later, Michael is seeing this photo for the very first time, and is so delighted, it representing the years of friendship with Jack.

And Sadie remembers: “I so enjoyed reading the blog! Michael worked with us on his summer school holidays. He was a lovely young man. He went to Coleraine Inst. After he left us to go to university [well, Civil Service in England] I lost touch with him. I was amazed that he ended up in NZ !! I can’t believe he is 80 now. I knew his Dad, he was in the old Northern bank next door to the shop. He was a gentleman.”

Michael continues: “The next year, 1962, my Dad was transferred back to Belfast and I lost contact with N. Ireland and Portrush for some years. In England in the 1960s, I met Jacqui, my future wife, at a party in her Nurses’ Home at Kingston Hospital in 1966. Her parents had just emigrated to New Zealand and she was under stern orders to follow on completion of her training in 1968. Instead, we married in 1968 and she stayed while I completed my accountancy course at Night School.

Then, after 6 years with the Inland Revenue, after some consideration we set off in pursuit of a huge adventure and the challenge of a new life in a new country. We boarded the SS Australis at Southampton on 3rd July 1970.

Six weeks later, Jacqui and I sailed into Auckland in 1970. I was greeted with some reserve by my new parents in law, who were miffed that I had not asked them for their daughter’s hand in marriage!
Well, I replied, You weren’t there.

Michael White, today, and with six of my 12 grandchildren at “Hobbiton” from ‘Lord of the Rings’, in the northern half of the North Island, about under 2 hours drive south of Auckland; 80th birthday celebrations

There followed for me an interesting and successful career in finance and financial management. Our family grew, four children, until sadly my lovely Jacqui died in 2006 at the age of 59.

“This is “Takapuna Beach,” 5 minutes drive from where I live, 15 minutes drive from the city centre.”
Hmm…. which is better: New Zealand, or the East Strand?

I now look after myself in a very pleasant retirement village near the beach on Auckland’s North Shore.

It may be many years and miles away from Portrush but the ties are still there. I met a couple from Bangor and mentioned that a friend from Portrush, Liz Clarke, had moved to Bangor with her family. They knew her and told me that she was married and living in New Plymouth in New Zealand. We caught up and have been good friends with her and her husband John since about 1972.

I have returned to the ‘Port’ several times over the years from my New Zealand home. Having just celebrated my 80th birthday, I have really enjoyed gathering up my memories and my photographs of teenager years in one of the best places on Earth, one of the best phases of my life, and I hope that you have enjoyed them too.”

Part I – “Portrush Tales” – from The Other Side of the World – Michael White
Part II – “Portrush Tales” – to The Farthest Shore – Michael White

Links to related “Portrush Tales” blogs –
The Swingin’ Sixties!
Portrush, Easter – My Day in Barry’s, Barry’s and the Wall of Death
1600s – a Century of Trouble (about Dunluce castle)
“You must see the Giant’s Causeway”
Sunday School Excursion to Portrush (day trips to Portrush, 1950s)

With thanks to……
Michael refers to Rodney Byrne’s “Vintage Port” with superb descriptions of characters, events, and life in general in and around the Port in the 1950’s
Photographs courtesy Michael White, Ray McConaghy, Pauline Hunt, David Martin
Postcards from Sheila Brown
Archive photographs from History of Portrush Facebook group

Barrys · Dunluce school · Primary school · School days · Shows · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

“Portrush Tales” – from The Other Side of the World – Michael White (Part I)

July 8, 2022July 25, 2022 David Martin8 Comments

Portrush folks, as you know, are pretty canny. Be it loving the beauty of Portrush and not wanting to leave, or going off for education or work and coming back later, or going elsewhere and settling – whichever, never losing the connection with ‘Home’.
These ‘Portrush Tales’ are being read in 66 countries of the world – I guess where Portrush folks are now living or working or holidaying, but still wanting to keep in touch.

Countries (in red/pink) where folks are reading Portrush Tales (nobody in Greenland though, or Russia.)

Some Portrush people move away as far as Coleraine or Ballymoney or places like that. Me, the last handful of years I’ve been in Munich, about 1,200 miles from Portrush. More impressive is Michael White – in Auckland, New Zealand, the other side of the world – ten times further away, 12,000 miles distant. He just celebrated his 80th birthday; it is over 60 years since he left Portrush but he looks back to his teenage years there in the late 1950s, the formative years of his life, and remembers……

My 1956 letter to my aunts written at the age of 13 (Betsey was our Corgi dog, and Charley, having been dug out of the furniture van, was my tortoise !! )

“February 1956. I was 13. We moved from Belfast to No. 2, Strandmore, Portrush, as my father had been transferred to the branch of the Northern Bank in the town – then, next to Bogg’s the Chemist and opposite Forte’s ice cream parlour.

I clearly remember the journey by steam train, and the letter to my aunts talking about the trip up. Dad was waiting at the station for my mother, my brother Jeffrey, and me, and I remember our walk from the station to the house, which was in a terrace of semi-detached houses owned by a stern looking lady, Mrs. Stewart, always accompanied by her live-in friend, Miss Holbrook

The glorious view looked straight out over a low-walled front lawn to the East Strand and the Atlantic Ocean, stormy and brutal in winter, the Giant’s Causeway, with Scotland’s Mull of Kintyre and Campbeltown far away in the distance.

View of the East Strand from Strandmore, Christmas 1961

The house was accessed off Causeway Street and along Craigvara Terrace to the flight of steps leading down to the promenade. Halfway down the steps on the right is the entrance to Strandmore – a bit further and you came to the shop, a rather smelly confectionery shop run by a Miss Dick. She would remove the cat which slept on the chocolate bars. If I got my feet wet when jumping the rocks at Ladies’ Bay, she let me dry my socks in front of her electric fire before I went home! It did nothing for the chocolate!!

Our house was narrow, two storeys. Downstairs was the kitchen, a small separate dining room and the small separate “front room” or lounge, all with fireplaces. There was a small, enclosed back yard with the washing line, and coal house to store coal which was delivered in black sacks which the coalman would hoist on to his back from the back of the truck on the street, stagger down the alleyway from Causeway Street and back pathway to the yard, and with a swing off his back, would empty the sack. He might have had two or three sacks to deliver to us and then on to the next house. He was covered in coal dust, black from head to toe, and I distinctly remember that before lorries, a large Clydesdale horse would pull the coal cart along Causeway Street. One of my jobs was to chop sticks or kindling for the fire from old wooden orange boxes, and I would do this in the yard. To keep meat or other food fresh, the food was kept outside in the yard in a cabinet with a perforated door, and this was called the “meat safe.”

Our house was the first of the 2 storey semi detached; with my brother Jeff, taken in May this year

Upstairs there were three bedrooms – a double and single at the front and a single at the back. Next to the bathroom and toilet at the top of the staircase was a “box room” or storeroom, which in later years I used as a dark room for my photography hobby.

The house at Portrush in the mid 1950s had neither fridge nor freezer nor washing machine. My mother did all the washing by hand, then put the clothes through the mangle in the yard by inserting the clothes between two large wooden rollers mounted on an iron frame and turning a side handle to rotate the rollers, squeezing out the water. We changed clothes and had a bath once a week. Hot water for a bath came from a wetback behind the kitchen range which was an enclosed fire on which pot and pans could be heated, instead of the gas stove. If the fire in the stove wasn’t lit, we had no running hot water and my mother had to boil a kettle of water for my father to shave each morning. This would be left for him at the foot of the stairs. The fire was lit once a week, so that we could have our weekly bath! Showers? We had never heard of showers.

Left: early 1900s photo – Boggs the Chemist on the left, then the Northern Bank (before mergers and its re-location up Main St). Right: my Dad, Louis White, Cashier at the Northern Bank in Portrush, from 1956 to his transfer back to Belfast in October 1962 (photo 1970, visiting us in New Zealand).

School & good friends
The afternoon of the day that I arrived, I made friends with a boy of my age who lived next door, Gerald Johnston, and Rodney Byrne who lived in the last house in our terrace. They both went to Coleraine Inst and I was due to start there the day after we arrived in Portrush. My other close friends were Irwin Stewart and his future wife, Penny Trench, now living in Denver, Colorado, and Alan Rainey, who sadly died at far too young an age.

At one time, and I cannot remember the reason, Gerald and I fell out. He sometimes took a delight in practical jokes which often were not funny and seemed always to be to his advantage. Somehow, we had to sort out our disagreement, whatever it was, and Rodney and Irwin arranged that Gerald and I settle it in the flat area in the sand dunes off the East Strand, by fighting it out. We did so, I won the scrap, and friendship was reinstated.

Upper Sixth, Inst – Irwin Stewart, Alan Rainey, Michael White, Rodney Byrne

My long grey school trousers were made of a rough serge type material which was very itchy, and so uncomfortable that in the end I wore my long pyjama pants underneath to make it a bit easier. When we changed for PE (or “Gym” as it was known), some guys used to laugh that I wore my pyjamas to school, but a few others thought it was a good idea as they had the same problem of itchiness. Soon, several boys wore their “jammies” underneath their school trousers.

My school shirts for Coleraine Inst had separate detachable collars which were sent away to the laundry and came back starched. These collars were extremely stiff, uncomfortable to wear, and were attached to the shirt by a stud which went through a hole in the back of the collar and the shirt at the back of my neck. If a collar was a bit worn and starting to fray on the top edge, being starched so stiff it would chafe and rub my neck, hurting all week, as I had to wear the same one. I hated them.

I would borrow a lot of books from the library in the Town Hall but homework dominated the evenings during the week. , as I had work to do on at least five subjects, plus occasionally I had to learn a four or five verse poem by perhaps either Wordsworth or Keats, or a piece from one of Shakespeare’s plays, and be able to recite it in class the next day. Failure to do so, would incur a detention after school. I remember learning the item during the half hour journey on the bus to school in the mornings.

Summers at the Port
Portrush earned its business from visitors from Scotland and England and other parts of Ireland during the summer months of June to August. In the 1950s it was the mecca of the North of Ireland, and the population of the town would swell to such large numbers that the streets were crowded, families and kids with buckets and spades crammed the two beaches, the amusement arcades were packed, the bingo halls were busy, the boarding houses and hotels were full. The seas were calm, the sun shone, and we had all the fun of a popular seaside town in the 1950s.

Our house was built into the side of a hill, and down a long flight of steps to the seafront was the Arcadia Ballroom. There were dances every night in the summer between June and September from 8pm to midnight, to the music of Dave Glover and his Showband. Couples would waltz around under the mirrored rotating ball hanging from the ceiling, or jive to all the latest pop tunes of the 1950s. Sometimes summer afternoon dances were put on if it was wet, and I would sneak in and watch the drummer in the band with admiration. He was Ernie Hicks, known as “Ernie Hicks behind the Sticks,” and occasionally during the interval, or when the place was a bit quiet, he gave me lessons on the drums.

Frank Moore, from the local photographers, dressed in his white coat with “Grimason’s” written on the back in red and his cheesecutter cap, would pace up and down the East Strand promenade below our house with his Leica camera in its brown leather case hanging around his neck, mingling with crowds on the promenade and calling out very importantly, “Holiday snaps, get your holiday snaps, ready tomorrow at Grimason’s at the Blue Pool.”

The Blue Pool was a local attraction with a large inlet from the sea in the rocks, with mounted diving boards and spectator areas where perhaps once a week in the summer evenings, local teenagers would give public diving displays to the great enjoyment of the crowd. My friend Derwood Magill was a great performer and very good off the high board, and for a few years he was always introduced over the public address system as ’13-year-old Derwood Magill’. His speciality was a twist with a pike and a tuck, entering the water with barely a splash.

Rodney Byrne, Irwin Stewart and Michael White, Portrush 1961
Right, diving display at the Blue Pool

A permanent attraction in the town was Barry’s, the funfair run by the Trufelli family. I had a summer job on the dodgems when I was sixteen, collecting the money and freeing up ‘traffic jams’. Barry’s was full of attractions like the Waltzer, the Big Wheel, and the Wall of Death, where motor cyclists rode their machines round and around from the floor to the top of a very high circular wooden wall, going so fast around the walls that they maintained their position at the top by centrifugal force, almost at right angles to the floor.

Barry’s was packed in the summer and on entering the place, the noise of everything was incredible, together with the smell of electricity from the overhead electric contacts of the bumper cars. These contacts were on long poles attached to the back of the cars and would spark and fizzle with blue and white flashes of electricity from the metal ceiling when it was in full swing. The noise from all the machines was deafening.

West Strand, 1960, From left, Michael White, Gerald Johnston and Irwin Stewart

Summers were a lot of fun for us as we grew up to be teenagers and discovered music. Bill Haley and the Comets with ‘Rock around the Clock’ had just come on the scene around 1955, then followed Cliff Richard and the Shadows with ‘Living Doll’, Elvis Presley with ‘Heartbreak Hotel’, Buddy Holly with ‘Peggy Sue’ and ‘Rave On’, Roy Orbison with ‘Only the Lonely’, and Connie Francis, the Everly Brothers, Ricky Nelson, and many others. Barry’s had a myriad of slot machines and several juke boxes, and we would gather around, put a threepenny coin in the slot, the mechanism would come to life, select the 45 rpm record from the stack, drop it on to the turntable, and as teenagers we would have 2 minutes 30 seconds of listening to our favourite tune.

‘Skiffle’ was a popular form of music in the 1950s with Lonnie Donegan as the most popular English recording star of that genre. Five of us formed our own skiffle group in the 1959 summer, with my friend Derwood Magill (of Magill’s Grocery Shop just off Main Street at the northern end of the town) who was very good on the guitar and as vocalist, but we had to make some other instruments. We played on the promenade just below Rock Ryan, above Ladies’ Bay. I was on the double bass, which was an old large square plywood box called a ‘tea chest’ (in which tea was imported and the empty boxes were available from the grocer on Main Street). I drilled a hole in the top, inserted a long thin iron bar to which was attached some fishing line with the other end of the line pulled tight to a nail on the outside of the chest, and this was my double bass. We had another tea chest acting as the drum kit.

Derwood went on to become a very well-known singer and entertainer in the Sydney, Australia, nightclub scene and I did catch up with him in the 1980s in Sydney, though he died about 1990 when quite young.

West Strand, 1960, L-R: Gerald Johnston, Brian Minihan, Brian Cunningham, Derwood Magill, Alan Rainey, Irwin Stewart, Rodney Byrne

Another favourite summer pastime as late teenagers was to sit in the Lido Cafe on Main Street listening to the records played over the speakers by the owner, Mrs. Trufelli, who also owned Barry’s. She knew my father quite well and may have banked with the Northern Bank in the town. The cafe was the place to gather, and we drank Coke or coffee.

A major feature in the late summer was the Fireworks Display which was held on the tennis courts at the north end of the town. Captain “Tiny” Shutt was known to us all and he organised the display. The best vantage point was from Ramore Head above the courts, and we would go as a group of young teenage boys and girls. Sometimes with a bit of romancing, a girl would go with you to the ‘Fireworks’ as a special date! I remember one Fireworks night asking Jenny Hill of Hill’s in Coleraine if she would go out as a regular date, and joy of joys when she said, “Yes”!

The Harbour, 1960 (Photo taken by Michael with hand-held Leica camera. Film processed and printed by me at home in my darkroom.) Right: fireworks display advert, Portrush 1958, as organised by Capt Shutt

‘Portrush Rock’ was a big seller in the confectionery shops. This was a solid stick – it was not called ‘rock’ for nothing – of hard, sweet, pink, confectionery with a peppermint taste, about 300mm long and 50mm in diameter, wrapped in cellophane, but imprinted in the centre right through it in pink, were the words, ‘Portrush Rock’. It was a big souvenir to take home to grandparents, but who after trying to eat it had to book a trip to the dentist, it was so hard and solid. The only way to eat was to break it with a hammer and even munching the little bits of ‘rock’ was hazardous.

The East and West Strands were packed during those days. We enjoyed the summers: they were warm, we played soccer in the sand dunes or on the beach, and we would spend a while in the sea. We swam in the harbour, jumping or diving off the high diving board or sunbathing by the red changing boxes on the harbour wall. We went snorkelling and spearing plaice, we hired dinghies in the harbour, fished for mackerel in the harbour or from the rocks, and occasionally would land an Atlantic salmon. The water never seemed to be cold, there were no wetsuits, and we just accepted it for what it was.

In 2008, my old school friend Rodney Byrne gave me a copy of his excellent book on the history of Portrush, “Vintage Port”, and part of it does give a good flavour of life there in the 1950s. He writes about an incident when four of us – Rod, Irwin, Alan, and me – decided to take a dinghy outside the harbour, even though a storm was brewing, and we had to be rescued when the weather turned very ugly! It makes good reading, but we were so lucky that day.

Michael White and Irwin Stewart at Portrush 1960

We went to some large limestone caves in the White Rocks at the end of the East Strand, and would go on out to Dunluce Castle, which was in ruins but quite spooky in the dark evenings, and we have some parties there. Across the road from Dunluce was an old graveyard but the inscriptions on the tombstones had been beaten out by the weather, even in the 1950s.

Entrance fees to Dunluce Castle and the Giant’s Causeway and Carrick-a-Rede rope bridge were non-existent in our teenage days. The rope bridge was not a tourist attraction as it is today, it was for fishermen to get across the gorge between the mainland and a small island, and was functional and not built with much health and safety in mind. At that time, the floor of the bridge was a set of narrow width boards spaced about 300mm apart, some 30 metres above the sea, and these were looped through two holes either side of each board on to ropes underneath, the ends of which were tied to rusty iron hooks at either side of the gorge. There was a rope handrail either side of the bridge, but the ropes were only attached to a hook either side of the gorge and not to the bridge itself. It was good fun, especially when we started to make it swing! Health and Safety was not a requirement!

Summer at the Port, and hard winters too. I loved Portrush, the two very long beaches, the harbour, the summer, the packed holiday atmosphere of the town, the wildness of the sea and the chill in winter, the contrast in seasons, the Giant’s Causeway in the distance, Dunluce Castle, and my friends. I remember distinctly walking our corgi dog, Betsy, along the East Strand beach in front of our house, vowing that I would never leave Portrush.

But of course I did.

=============
END OF PART I .

Part I – “Portrush Tales” – from The Other Side of the World – Michael White
Part II – “Portrush Tales” – to The Farthest Shore – Michael White

Links to related “Portrush Tales” blogs –
The Swingin’ Sixties!
Portrush, Easter – My Day in Barry’s, Barry’s and the Wall of Death
1600s – a Century of Trouble (about Dunluce castle)
“You must see the Giant’s Causeway”
Sunday School Excursion to Portrush (day trips to Portrush, 1950s)

Portrush - Great Institutions · Primary school · Sports · The development of Portrush · The story of Portrush

100 years of Badminton at the Kelly Hall

July 3, 2022November 6, 2022 David Martin1 Comment

It was a huge delight to meet Cyril & Margaret Davison a few days ago. They were really marvellous, set up badminton at Portrush when I was a kid, working to get the Kelly Hall refurbished and courts marked up to play there, and got the badminton club up and running and doing rather well in the area leagues. Jonny Dobbin says about the 1991 photo below, “That was the year that I won the most improved player in the Ballymoney and District league. Cyril coached me – and he was the reason that me and others from the club achieved local, district and country honours.”

The Kelly Hall was used too for bowling and the Church Lads Brigade and other activities under the auspices of Holy Trinity church, and folks like May Graham tell me of going to school there before the primary school was built in the 1950s, and of their family being the builders of the hall back in the 1890s, and it was venue for making pantomime stage sets!

Of the Holy Trinity Badminton Club, Cyril Davison started it up in about 1970, and I started playing there when I was still primary school age. It met first in Dunluce St hall – I guess that site became the Gold Rush arcade. The club was amazingly popular, so much so that Cyril had to arrange us in pairs, lined up either side of the hall, hitting the shuttlecock across to each other – as he said, it was the only way to ensure that everyone got a chance to play and practice.

“Members of the Holy Trinity Badminton Club, Portrush, pctured with trophies won in a very successful season.”

I look for photographs of the badminton club but do you remember the 1970s, the days before mobile phones and not a million photographs of everything? I had only found the one photograph of the club, above, and then Clive Shorter produced a few more, of 1977. But David Downs says, “If only we had camera phones back then, knock knees Martin wouldn’t want any images wee small arse around a badminton court even if he was OK at it.”

Small arse? Knock knees”? I am shocked. That photo, below right, of me practicing in our house, about 1974. My knock knees pose must have been good enough to earn those little medals and prizes, encouragement for improvement over the year
My regular playing group was that under-16 team shown on the left (and all the lads were golfing buddies too – though I have no idea why Andy H has a shuttlecock on his nose). It was great tragedies that Sandra C and Janette K, school classmates, were taken away too early from us.

League matches meant traipsing around to badminton clubs at back-of-the-end-of-the-earth places – Hoescht social club, the Strand club in Portstewart, Aghadowey, …. One hall out in the country somewhere, so narrow there was just room for the badminton court, with about 1mm separation to the wall. And close matches often lasted until after midnight – not good when school the next morning, and my Mum and Dad didn’t like it. One match I was particularly late home, after 1am – mum and dad were still up waiting, oh err I am in trouble. But I was saved from a worse telling-off because my brother’s Hi-fi Shop in Belfast had been bombed earlier that evening and they were up, anxious for news that everyone was OK, not primarily because of my lateness. That was the first of two Hi-fi shop bombings.

About 1977, and into the dizzy heights of the Minor C league, and photos include Tom Hentry, George Harkness, Tommy Peters, Eva O’Neill, Sandra and Heather Crawford, Thelma, and Cyril & Margaret, Sammy & Sadie and ‘the splendid array of trophies’ (all badminton newspaper cuttings courtesy Clive Shorter) !! oh dear I can’t remember all the names, let me know of any blanks !!

An annual feature of the club was the 24 hour badminton marathon, for fund-raising. They were great fun, and especially the lovely cooked breakfast on the Saturday morning. We really appreciated the effort everyone put in to support the activities. Badminton marathon, early hours of the Saturday morning, I always remember, Mr Sam McGuinness come along, just sitting quietly watching, but just such as encouragement that he took the time to come out and support the event.
———–
I had thought that the club starting in 1970s was a first for Portrush, and that the marathon was a new and creative things to do – but who said, There is nothing new under the sun? I am gobsmacked to find a newspaper article of 1937, about an all-night tournament with prizes (wow when we did the 24-hour, one aimed to pace oneself to manage the duration – not a competitive tournament!).

And I see the description of the annual meeting of the Holy Trinity Church Badminton Club, in 1922, including familiar names like Alex Lee (photographer family), Lundy, and me.
And badminton matches were being played by the ‘Portrush Club’ at the Kelly Hall, in 1917 – wow newspapers are amazing, with that same edition reporting on battles at the Somme and of plots to murder the PM.

Even in 1914 the ‘Portrush Club’ was making donations to Belgian refugee fund.

Discovering that badminton was so ancient in the town, I look back at the story of the ‘Kelly Memorial Hall’, built in 1896. Who was Kelly anyway? Well, a Church of Ireland minister who supported schooling and education as key for the community and who pushed for the development of a school, but who tragically passed away before being able to complete it. The quotation for teacher’s residence and school, of 1894, below right, was to R J Martin Esq., from builders in Freddie Fleming’s family, and the school opened in 1896. It was the ‘outpost’ of Portrush, beyond was the sandhills of the Triangle golf course.

The CLB started originally soon after the Hall was built. Their activities for an exhibition in 1899 are described, with (pretty shocking) drills of shooting, bayonet drill, and stretcher drill!!! Maureen Kane shows me the CLB membership card in 1923 of her dad, our neighbour Mr Tommy Kane who worked at the primary school. With a knight in armour, it looks a bit militaristic for my liking, but I’ve lived in an era of largely no-war in Europe for 75 years – that is, until Ukraine.

Kelly Hall, CLB, 1966, and people have identified: Revs. Roycroft & Wilson; Rodney Magee, Jimmy Arnott, Norman Mckay, Eddie Clements, Michael McConnell, William Bacon, John Charlie, Geoffrey, Morris, Sammy Johnston & daughter Daphne (photo courtesy Rodney Magee)

Mr Kane’s CLB membership card is dated 30th November 1923. If there was some form of membership ceremony or parade, it is my guess that it didn’t happen at the Kelly Hall – as it had burned down in that summer.

1923, and a fire at the garage destroys about 30 vehicles and the Kelly Hall

That extensive fire at the local Stewarts garage destroyed two dozen charabangs and sedan cars, and the “most extensive fireworks ever seen in the district.” The Kelly Hall was destroyed.

The Kelly Memorial School was re-built and re-opened a year later. Sheila Stirrup’s research has found the class registration books in the PRONI archives, with the column on the left with the emotive, “On Roll when school was burned 19.7.23”. Ray McConaghy passed me the photo of the school class in 1928. “My dad’s class, Kelly school. He is 5th from the right on the back row.” His dad (Jack McConaghy) is the chemist with Sadie Jefferson in 1951.

And it being ‘Portrush Tales,’ a story from me? It is Easter holidays from school. One afternoon, me and Kyle and George and Mark McC get the Kelly Hall door key to go in to play for a few hours. Oh, nuisance! the bowling mats are spread out. We push them over to one side and set up the badminton net so that we can play.

About 1977: Sammy & Sadie Kane, Clive Shorter, Cyril & Margaret, Tommy Peters, Thelma, Elaine Adjey, and oh dear but I can’t remember all the names – well it is 45 years ago !!

Photos, 1986. Sports strip, similar between badminton and football teams?
Cyril also taught badminton at the primary school, teaching Jonny in the mid-80s. Badminton. Starting back row left. Jonny Dobbin, Miss Steele, Richard Hassan. Front row from left. Shane McDonald, Richard Kettyle, Peter Smyth, Stephen Mckenzie
Football. Starting back row left. Richard Hassan, Jonny Dobbin, Edwin Burgess, Rowland Robinson, Nigel Smyth, Miss Boyd. Front row from left. Peter Elliott, Shane McDonald, Peter Smyth, Jason Quigley, Richard (Archie) Kettyle, Stephen Mckenzie, James Allen

Cyril was heading towards retirement in the late 1990s, with some months back and forth to Spain, continue to coaching badminton to kids in Spain. Jonny Dobbin, back in Portrush after uni, stepped up to take the club forward in the late 1990s.

On the left: winners of the Ballymena & District League & Cup, 1999: Clive Shorter, Jonny Dobbin, Cyril Davison, Steven Hastings; front: Sharon Kennedy, Margaret Davison, Margaret Weir
Right, back row: ladies Sharon Kennedy, Margaret Davison, Margaret, Pamela Smyth
Front row: William Snelling, Stephen Hastings, Clive Shorter, Jonny Dobbin, Tommy McCarroll

Left: the junior members who represented Ballymoney and District at the Jack Wilson Trophy (all Ulster under-17 years old badminton districts) – Andrew Harte, Johnny Dobbin, Anne Hopkins, William Snelling, Aslan Bucukoglu
Anne Hopkins. “Yes me in centre. I was only around 13 at the time and don’t remember much about it but I remember going to Donegal and playing badminton in the tournament.”
Right: the Junior badminton club in 1991. Back row left to right: Alan Stewart, Steven McMinn, Jonny Dobbin, Cyril Davison, William Snelling, Chris Graham, Richard Weir. Front row: Rosemary Payne, Katherine Snelling, Claire Mclain, Anne Hopkins, Andrea Weir

The Kelly Hall was refurbished in 2005, and with increasing demands for the hall its uses were revised.

And at least as important as badminton skills, I’m sure that tact and diplomacy are important parts of any town or church activity, like with the Kelly Hall where a number of different groups and users vy for the hall. But I think Cyril and Margaret, and Sammy and Sadie Kane, were really great at just ensuring everything went smoothly. I think it was Sammy that pulled together a few bowling evenings, where the badminton folks would play the bowling club. As you would expect the bowling club won, but at least my rink managed one draw, our best result. I remember at that evening that Sammy spoke about the value of church togetherness and of the younger and older folks being together. Sammy was also a leader in the CLBs as well and the lads appreciated his leadership, with courtesy and respect.

30June2022: David Martin, Sheila Brown, and Cyril & Margaret Davison

So, 100 years of badminton at the Kelly Hall in Portrush, from early 1900s to early 2000s. So much respect for Cyril and Margaret Davison, and Sammy and Sadie Kane, and Jonny Dobbin, for the parts they played in training up youngsters in badminton skills, and in life lessons too.

———
Photos, courtesy Jonny Dobbin, Maureen Kane, Ray McConaghy, David Martin
Newspaper cuttings of badminton teams, courtesy Clive Shorter & Jonny
Newspaper archive: https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this: