“Welcome to the homeland of Tiger’s Bay Loyal flute band. “He is our God, and we are the people.”” Tiger’s Bay Loyal [Fb] is a new flute band, formed in 2025.
Ten local streets are named around the central tiger: Robina Street, Edlingham Street, Mervue Street, Upper Mervue Street, Hallidays Road, Mackey Street, Cosgrave Heights, North Queen Street, Canning Street, Hogarth Street.
For Remembrance Sunday, rows of hand-painted wooden medallions were attached to the railings at West Kirk Presbyterian to pay homage to the dead of the British armed forces.
“She hasn’t a sword and she hasn’t a gun. But she’s doing her duty now fighting’s begun.” This entry updates the 2016 entry with details from the board – now almost a decade old – dedicated “To all the women of the Shankill” and highlighting the roles played by women during WWI as nurses and welders and in the Land Army.
The troops in the upper-middle part of the board are shown gathered outside the West Belfast Orange Hall, on the Shankill at Brookmount Street.
outside the Ulster Rangers Supporters Club (Fb) on the Shankill Road
The 1st Ranger Battalion was formed in 1942 as the United States Army’s equivalent to the British Army’s Commandos and – after training at a camp in Carrickfergus – it saw action in France (at Dieppe (SOF History), resulting in the first US casualties of the war – WP), Algeria, Tunisia, and Italy. (There are four information panels at the Sunnylands shops about the formation and training of the unit.)
The insignia shown – which is here placed on top of the beret patch – is the insignia of the modern (75th Regiment) Rangers, with the lightning-bolt indicating the unit’s quick-strike abilities (SOF History); these are also alluded to by the motto “sua sponte”, meaning “of its/their own accord”.
This new art is by Dan Kitchener (web) in Victoria Parade, Carrickfergus, just outside the train station, produced in co-operation with Wonder Arts, the Communities In Transition programme from the Executive Office (web) and Carrickfergus Alternatives’ Peace Impact Programme (Fb).
It has been criticized by street-artist Wee Nuls (web) as glorifying conflict (ig), a charge the artist rejects, saying that it was produced in co-operation with locals and has been well received by them (MSN). (See also the reactions on the Let’s Talk Loyalism Fb page.)
The tank might be the M4 Sherman “Fury”. The tank appeared in the 2014 film of the same name (Bovington Tank Museum) used by the 66th Armor Regiment under the command of Brad Pitt; the film is perhaps the inspiration for the image (e.g. the scene in which the town of Kirchohsen is captured – youtube).
“Great love hath no man than this: to lay down his life for his friends – John 15:13”
This pair of hand-painted (and stencilled) boards is next to the Mount Inn on North Queen Street. Tiger’s Bay is loyal to the memory of “1690” and the service of the 36th Division in WWI in 1916.
“25 years from home. In proud and loving memory of Inky & Candy. Gone but not forgotten.”
October 2000 was a violent month in Tiger’s Bay, north Belfast, as the UDA and UVF feuded. David “Candy” Annesley (commonly known as David Greer – BelTel) was shot in Mountcollyer Street on October 28th by the UVF. On the 31st, Bertie Rice, veteran UVF member and canvasser for the PUP, was killed by the UDA at his Canning Street house. Later the same day, Tommy “Inky” English – UDA commander in north Belfast who had previously lived in Tiger’s Bay – was shot death by the UVF at his Ballyduff home. Mark Quail of the UVF was shot in Rathcoole on November 1st. (BBC | BBC | WP) There were fears that the feud would end (An Phoblacht) but it was formally ended on December 15th, with a joint statement by both groups (RTÉ).
This twenty-fifth anniversary tarp is on the multi-use pitch on North Queen Street at Upper Canning Street.
Stop The Boats has been painted out below the large “Loyalist Tiger’s Bay” and the entire wall painted in solid blue and book-ended by UDA and UFF boards showing silhouetted gunmen in active poses.
The side-wall, home to painted Orange Order symbols since 2017, has been painted black and a board (above) added to E company from Tiger’s Bay. (It’s possible “North Belfast brigade” and “3rd battalion” are the same thing.)
This is a new tarp on Dee Street, east Belfast, in which a child asks a sleeping lion to “wake up”. Both are wrapped in the Union Flag. The (probable) context for the image is the idea that foreigners – and in particular, non-white, non-Christian, foreigners – have been moving to the UK and that over time their numbers have increased, without much notice, to such a level that English (or more broadly, the UK) people need to rouse themselves in order to notice and counter this.
We have a working principle that the level of investment in a piece’s production is an indicator of the extent to which the producer(s) believes it will be accepted (or at least countenanced) by the community in which it appears. This printed tarp is, as far as we know, the most sophisticated expression of anti-immigrant feeling so far (or at least, the most expensive to produce). Prior to this, there have been placards (One Big Clean-Up | Not A Dumping Ground | If Necessary We Must Shed Blood), a simple stencil (I Was A Stranger), a short-lived printed paste-up (Multiculturalism Is Genocide), and various appearances of “locals only” graffiti (2025 | 2024 | 2014 | 2014). According to a 2023 study from KCL, 32% of UK residents think the “Great Replacement” conspiracy theory is “definitely” or “probably” true, while 22% of Irish people (in 2024) think so (Gript/Electoral Commission).
Work on the “New Life” (New Life City church – Fb) concrete relief on the Cupar Way “peace” line (war wall) at the North Howard Street gates has been completed – with brightly coloured paints and a pair of plaques below the cross that read “The first 3D cement peace fresco on a Belfast dividing wall. Created by local artist Debbie Hutchings ‘Irish Angel’. The for the amazing help of ECC Builders. Created on behalf of New Life City Church. Dedicated by Pastor Johnny McKee with young people & others from New Life City Church from both sides of the wall. Thursday 14th August 2025. ‘He is our peace who has destroyed the dividing wall between us’ Eph. 2.14.”
The creator is Debbie Hutchings, a member of the New Life City church (Fb) (Belfast Media); the piece is on top of the ‘repent’ version of the New Life mural, and it contains scriptural quotations from John 3:16: “For God so loved the world He gave His only begotton [begotten] son so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” and John 3:8: “The wind blows as it chooses, you can hear it’s [its] sound but you do not know where it came from or where it is going; so it is with the hearts of those born of the spirit”. There is video of Hutchings at work in this Irish News video on Fb and at the BelTel.
Work began at the beginning of April; there are in-progress images below from July 1st and May 1st.
Extramural Activity 