This Castlemara, Carrickfergus, board is not remarkable so much for what it depicts — the new prince and princess of Wales, “baron & baroness of [sic] Carrickfergus” — but for what it replaces, namely, the Carrickfergus Eddie, which had been in place since (at least) 2000 — see Show No Mercy.
This means that there are no large murals of Eddie remaining; there are only some smaller versions of Eddie of boards or tarps. Eddie has his own Visual History page.
This is the second (at least) iteration of an installation along Taylor’s Avenue, Carrickfergus, showcasing the Ulster-Scots heritage of Carrickfergus and its later contributions to the United Kingdom.
The wall is 60 metres/200 feet in length and can be divided into about ten distinct panels – notes on the different panels are given below, following the order of presentation of images, which show the entire wall moving from left to right.
The original, as seen on Street View, included boards showing the Pretani Isles/British Isles, QEII, and Tom Moore. As seen here, there are now boards to King Charles III, a vintage postage stamp, ‘The Siege Of Carrickfergus’ in 1689, and ‘The Barn Mills Fallen’ of WWI.
James Orr, the ‘Bard Of Ballycarry’, was a contemporary of Robert Burns and a United Irishman. It does not appear that he wrote a poem with the line “I wish I was in Carrickfergus”.
Daniel Cambridge won his VC for service in the Crimean War (WP) and James Crichton for service in WWI (WP).
CarrickfergusHistory includes “the oldest know map of Carrickfergus” from 1560, employing the spelling “Kragfargus”.
The 2/6 postage stamp featuring Carrickfergus Castle was one of four in a “Castle series” in 1955 (WP).
This Castlemara, Carrickfergus, board is notable for its background, which follows that of old coronation and jubilee portraits. These would show the royal couple (and sometimes immediate family) in plush surroundings and standing in front of chairs. This style of composition has been seen in murals of George V’s jubilee in 1935 and George VI’s coronation in 1937 — see Visual History 01. In this board, however, Philip and Elizabeth are portrayed in old age and are not in coronation gear; the chairs shown are from the Throne Room in Buckingham Palace.
Also notable is that the board replaces a UDA mural – see Joint Manoeuvres. The other UDA mural in the estate — Carrickfergus Eddie — has also been replaced.
For the UVF/YCV gunmen in the background of the wide shot, see Out Of The Trenches.
Castlemara residents’ various emotions are on display at the entrace to the estates: celebrating the jubilee of Elizabeth II, the coronation of Charles III, the creation of Northern Ireland in 1921, and Rangers’ 55th league title; saluting Tom Moore; commemorating Prince Philip, 1921-2021; and remembering with gratitude the “100th anniversary of the Battle Of The Somme”: “We must not forget what they gave so we may live. Let not their deaths be in vain. Lest we forget.”
Here is Carrickfergus castle by Dan Kitcherner (ig), painted on a wall in the town centre that had a piece of “RIP GFA protocol” graffiti on it (Street View). The mural is based on the actual scene, though the shopfront marked “castle” is actually Mayur Indian restaurant.
Funded by the International Fund for Ireland’s Peace Impact Programme (BelTel).
About 100 people came out to Marine Gardens for the live broadcast of the coronation of Charles III on May 6th (Mid & East Antrim youtube), one of about nine such live-streams across Norther Ireland (Bel Tel).
The UVF 1st East Antrim Battalion is “Still ready & willing to defend the people of Ulster against all foes” including the British government that – even as Northern Ireland marks its centenary – has “deserted” it over the NI Protocol that involves checks on goods moving between Britain and Ireland (whether north or south) but no (new) checks on goods moving between north and south (gov.uk). The “still” goes all the way back to 1912, when the British government of the day proposed (for a third time) “Home Rule” for Ireland and the Ulster Volunteers were formed – though the original “deserted” postcard and previous murals show the date as 1914.
The young people of Sunnylands (Carrickfergus) are encouraged to “follow your dreams”. On the left, a young man dreams of being a film-maker; on the right, a young woman dreams of being a cosmetician. There is also a lot of soccer: Leeds United, The Northern Ireland team, Glasgow Rangers (“55“), and Carrickfergus Rangers are all included. Follow the example of Scooby Doo, who “don’t doo drugs” and celebrate the centenary of Northern Ireland by “chill”ing in your Orange Order sash on the bonfire (seen previously in Stop Sign).
“Loyalist Sunnylands & Woodburn celebrates 100th anniversary Northern Ireland”, and the silver jubilee/25th anniversary of the Ulster Grenadiers flute band (Fb), 1996-2021, and salute Captain Sir Tom Moore, hero fundraiser during the Covid lockdown. The Maintain The Union wall in Woodburn was featured previously; added here are close-ups from the fence and also the same boards in Sunnylands.
The fourth condition (‘Good Relations’) for funding for bonfires under Mid and East Antrim council’s ‘Cultural Celebrations’ grant scheme asks organisers to discourage “the flying of flags or emblems or the burning of election posters at [the] bonfire site” (MidAndEastAntrim.gov.uk). The Sunylands/Woodburn (Carrickfergus) bonfire shown in today’s post – the images are from July 11th – lacked either funding or sufficient discouragement, as there are six Tricolours flying and ten Sinn Féin and SDLP election placards. The Council notice on the lamp-post, below the red hand – see the final image – is more direct, simply stating “No fly tipping, by order”.
Extramural Activity 