Belfast north

Hat Trick

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2014-09-06 BarnesDonnelly+

Rory Donnelly is a former Cliftonville player, from Belfast, currently signed to Welsh club Swansea and playing internationally (U-21) for Northern Ireland. As shown here, Donnelly’s hands (like the rest of him – he is 6′ 2″) are long and slender; the problem with the depiction is rather that it appears to show a thumb where his little finger should be – the photograph on which the mural is based (see the last image in this BBC gallery) shows that in fact he is holding down his little finger (with his thumb behind his palm), thus leaving three digits raised in celebration of a hat trick against Dungannon Swifts.

The Paddy Barnes mural to the left was featured previously in Oh! Paddy Boy.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
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The Highland

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2014-08-30 FusiliersFaces+

Highland Fusiliers John McCaig (17), Joseph McCaig (18), and Dougald McCaughey (23) were lured by the IRA from a city-centre pub to their deaths in Ligoniel in 1971 (WP). The memorial above is at the top of Ballysillan – a wide shot and close-up of the plaque are shown below. 

A smaller stone is at the White Brae/Squire’s Hill site – shown below along with a wide shot of the area. The stone is frequently vandalised (BelTel | BBC | STV | BBC).

Update: 2018 video of a ceremony at the Ballysillan site.

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2014-08-30 FusiliersStone+

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this memorial has been placed here by public subscription to honour the memory of three young scottish soldiers of the royal highland fusiliers who were murdered by republican terrorists on march 10th 1971 at white brae Ligoniel less than a mile from this place proudly remembered and never forgotten the souls of the righteous are in the hands of god there shall no evil happen to them they are in peace
“On March 10th 1971 at this place three young Scottish Soldiers of the Royal Highland Fusiliers were murdered by republican terrorists. Fusilier John McCaig aged 17, Fusilier Joseph McCaig aged 18, Fusilier Dougald McCaughey aged 22. Always in our hearts. Never forgotten.“

Growing Up Too Fast

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2014-06-03 ArdEoinPramFailte+

A young girl wearing an adult’s pushes a pram in the first of a dozen panels from the new ‘Fáılte go dtí Ard Eoın’ mural in Ardyone Avenue. The image is perhaps based on the (unattributed) photo, shown below the images of the mural.

2-3: The woman on the right is a spinner – her job is to ensure that the fibres of threads being wound together to make a strong thread do not break. The occupation of the man on the right is unknown. Please comment or send an e-mail if you recognize his occupation.

5-6: Two panels featuring boxers, possibly Freddie Gilroy and Eamonn Magee — leave a comment or e-mail if you can identify either.

8: Holy Cross church on the Crumlin Road.

9: A British soldier patrols the streets while a girl walks home from school and a boy plays hurley. This is one of the panels in the long mural at the shops on Ardoyne Avenue.

10-11: Two go-karters appear to be brandishing bottles as they ride while, to their left, two (rather stylish?) youths appear to be banging bin-lids.

“Is fearr Gaeılge brıste ná Bearla [Béarla] clıste” means “Broken Irish is better than clever English”.

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An Phalaıstín/Palestine

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2014-08-19 Ghearleanuint+

Pro-Palestine board outside the north Belfast Sınn Féın office on the Antrim Road showing a bloody hand-print and the face of a crying child: “Stad leıs an ghéarleanúınt – ag tacú le cearta na Palaıstíne” : “Stop the persecution – supporting Palestinian rights”. The close-up of the hand and face, below, is taken from an English-language version of the board in Beechmount Street. The third image is of the same board at the Glen Road/Andersonstown Road junction.

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2014-09-28 CeartaNaPalaistine+

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Stad An Slad/Stop The Slaughter

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2014-08-07 StadAnSlad+

This is a new board at the Crumlin end of Brompton Park – launched on August 6th by Gerry Kelly and members of the Cliftonville football team – in support of Palestine and Gaza, and in particular protesting the deaths of the four Bakr children on the beach at the port of Gaza on July 16th (see Child Killers). The image of the man carrying the boy is from Reuters. The wide shot, below, shows the “peace” line and union jacks flying at the camp at the Crumlin-Woodvale-Twaddell roundabout.

See also: a Where Is The World? mural on the International Wall.

Painted by Mickey Doherty and mounted in Brompton Park, Ardoyne, north Belfast.

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Building An Ireland Of Equals

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The aspect of Cave Hill commonly known as Napoleon’s Nose is shown sheltering the people of Newington, surrounded by heroes and emblems of the past – Bobby Sands, Wolfe Tone, and in the centre, Winifred Carney. This republican mural is both internally directed (at Newington and the New Lodge) and externally, being on the main Antrim Road (Oceanic avenue, on the side of the Sinn Féin office) which is a main artery between the city and points north.

“Ag aontú Caıtlıceach, Protastúnach agus Easaontóırí.” – “Uniting Catholic, Protestant, and Dissenter.” In An Argument On Behalf Of The Catholics Of Ireland (1791), Wolfe Tone of the United Irishmen wrote, “To subvert the tyranny of our execrable government, to break the connection with England, the never-failing source of all our political evils, and to assert the independence of my country, these were my objects. To unite the whole people of Ireland, to abolish the memory of past dissensions, and to substitute the common name of Irishman, in place of the denominations of Protestant, Catholic and Dissenter, these were my means.”

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Hey Mr DJ

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2014-06-25 DJ+

This mural is on the Ardoyne-Glenbryn “peace” wall, on the Alliance Avenue side, showing a DJ with two turntables and a crowd of local (cross-community?) youths: Beth, Mat(?), Jake, Brittany, Trevor, George, Alyssa, Jessica, Anna, Corbin, Maria, Julia, Mary, Rachel, Emily, El(?), Jennifer. If you have any information about this mural, please comment or send an e-mail.

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End The Genocide In Gaza

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2014-07-25 GazaGenocide+

Above is a banner on the scaffolding surrounding Teach Chú Chulaınn/Cuchulainn House/(formerly Churchill House) in the New Lodge, visible from the motorway, as can be seen in the wide shot, below, taken from Clifton Street bridge.

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Faces From The Past

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2014-06-11 NthQueenStFace+

Here is a final set of images of the New Lodge community mural, painted by Ed Reynolds. Above is a detail from one of the panels. Below are a wide shot of the whole, a picture of Ed repairing the vandalism which can be see towards the left of the wide shot, and finally one of the crew covering the piece in an anti-graffiti varnish.

More images of the work in progress can be seen at Ed’s web site, steadyhanded.com.

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Rebuilding Confidence

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2014-06-18 TBayFirstFlute+

Mural celebrating the old Tiger’s Bay First Flute marching band, established 1983. The mural is in the style of the UDA’s insignia; of late a UDA power-struggle has been taking place in the area – see Split.

In the background is a board showing the Union flag, the Ulster banner, and St. Andrew’s saltire (the latter pair are also featured in the lower corners of the mural), which in June replaced a ‘Mother – Daughter – Sister’ board celebrating women and designed by children from the local Mountcollyer Youth Club.

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Copyright © 2014 Seosamh Mac Coılle
X01981 X01980 north belfast tiger’s bay protestant boys hand painted mural was inspired, conceived and produced 2008-2009 renewing communities rebuilding confidence reviving hope restoring pride