Belfast east

The Six Counties

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Of some interest in this Mersey Street NI Centenary board is the use of St Patrick’s saltire (in the background). The saltire is an anglo symbol of Ireland and was included in the Union Flag when the union was between Britain and Ireland and thus – like the word “Ulster” – has been reduced to meaning Northern Ireland after partition.

There is also an anti-Irish Sea border board on the next house along – see An Act Of Betrayal. This features the Union Flag together with flags representing the “home countries”: the Welsh dragon, the English St George’s Cross, the Scots St Andrew’s Saltire, and the Northern Irish Ulster Banner.

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Children In Crossfire

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Michael Blakstad’s Children In Crossfire is a justly famous documentary portraying the lives of children in Creggan (Derry) and various areas of Belfast, such as Ballymurphy & Springmartin, Divis, and the area around Gawn St in east Belfast. The documentary is on youtube and an image from it (c. 28m 13s) is depicted in this mural (Connswater Chronicle) at the foot of the Dee Street overpass into what is now the “Titanic Quarter”.

The panel to the right shows the original Armitage Street; the area has been redeveloped and the street was built over with a cluster of houses named Armitage Close.

By Dee Craig with support from the Housing Executive, City Council, and Connswater Homes.

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Multicultural East Belfast

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Topical commentary from East Belfast graffitist Hallion: Above, “к черту Путина”, in the blue-and-yellow of Ukraine, is Russian for “To hell with Putin” (or something a bit stronger); below, “Thran rights nai” – “thran” is an Ulster-Scots word meaning “stubborn” or “contrary” (entry for thra – the related verb – at Hamely Tongue) but perhaps here standing for Ulster-Scots in general and commenting on the tortured history of what is now (as of May 2022) the ‘Identity & Language’ bill (BBC) covering Irish/Gaeilge and Ulster-Scots/Ulstèr-Scotch in Northern Ireland. “Hallion” is itself is a Scots/north England word, meaning a scoundrel or rapscallion (MW | etymonline).

Previous Covid pandemic commentary from Hallion:
2020: Wash Your Hawnds | It Hasn’t Gone Away
2021: Wear A Mask Or The Easter Bunny Gets It

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Eat To The Beat

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This signal box on the Holywood Road, Belfast, has been repainted by FGB (ig) to look like a Drumstick – not the musician’s tool or the chicken leg but the chewy lolly. The Drumstick dates back to 1957 (swizzels.com). Swizzels makes not just Drumsticks but also Refreshers, Double Lollies, Love Hearts, Double Dips, Lipsticks, and Whistles.

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Lisnabreeny American Military Cemetery

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The 148 US servicemen who were buried at Lisnabreeny, in the Castlereagh hills, died in Northern Ireland, and about 40 of them in air accidents, including the ten who died on June 1st, 1944, when a B-17 travelling from Newfoundland crashed into Cave Hill, killing all ten men on board (Wartime NI). The names of all 148 are listed on three sides of the memorial stone; their remains were repatriated or moved to the cemetery in Cambridge, England in 1948.

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Iconostases

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This is a small memorial to the fallen British soldiers tucked away in Ogilvie Street, Belfast, that serves to remind the locals always to keep the sacrifice of the 36th Division always in mind. Below is the board next to it, originally seen in 2013.

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Fryday

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It’s been a long time since workers walked en masse from east Belfast to the shipyard, but fish and chips remain popular, though the number of chippies has fallen from about 35,000 in 1920 to 10,500 today (BBC | Dockside). This mural is on the side of the ‘Chipyard’ in Strandtown.

See also in the Woodvale: The Chipyard.

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Dee St 2nd Batt

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Perhaps because of the Covid pandemic, this mural of UDA volunteers on parade reflected in the sunglasses of one of their comrades took months to complete (it was started in late 2020 and was still unfinished last summer). It replaces the previous “UFF Formed 1973” mural – see Northern Island.

The photograph reproduced is from the 1974 Ulster Workers’ Strike; it appeared on the cover of Don Anderson’s Fourteen May Days (CAIN).

Avoniel Road, east Belfast

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Hidden Door With Grass

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That’s the official title of this piece by DECOY (ig) in Bethany Street, Ballyhackamore, though the only doors seem to be on the electrical boxes!

With support from Seedhead Arts (web | ig).

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Maradona Good, Pelé Better, George Best

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From the age of two-and-a-half George Best lived in Cregagh and played football on the pitch at the centre of the estate, where Cregagh Boys played their home games. After playing for Lisnasharragh Secondary he went to Manchester United at age fifteen – in 1961 – and from there to international stardom. When he died in 2005, he was remembered in the estate by a mural (that replaced a UFF mural). It stood for about ten years and now been updated with the mural shown in today’s images, along with the family home that has been returned to a 1960’s appearance – complete with George Best memorabilia – and is available to rent on AirBnb. The home and playing fields are also the starting part of the George Best Trail.

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