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New Celtic Podcast by the Lost Bhoys: Help needed!
Chris McGuigan from the legendary Celtic Podcast Lost Bhoys has been in touch and is looking for help from the Celtic family worldwide. Over the next few weeks LostBhoys are working on a series of Podcasts documenting the History of Celtic. "It will be much in the same vein as the Belfast Celtic Podcasts released recently, says Chris. "Celtic from fans perspective. We will be releasing 10 shows over the summer cos, let’s face it, we all go stir crazy without any football, and we are recording them now."
The Lost Bhoy is encouraging Celtic fans everywhere to record a little audio bite of their favourite Celtic moment. This will be edited into the podcasts to give it a real “Fans” feel. "It can be your favourite player (and why), favourite goal, favourite season, favourite shirt or anything like that. It doesn’t have to be War and Peace, just 30 seconds to a minute will be perfect.", says Chris.
"Come on, don’t be shy, pick up your iphone and use that voice recorder app that you’ve never used before and talk into it. Then email your audio clip to the Lost Bhoys – couldn’t be easier. Don’t miss out on being a part of history, honestly, when you hear it on the show you’ll be dead chuffed with yourself.
So get out your smartphone, get out your microphone, Go on Skype or wherever and make it happen. If you want to use the Skype option we are of course on there as LostBhoys.
Record your friends, record your family, record the members of your CSC or whichever Club you travel on the bus with and send them in."
So there you go, Celtic Family Worldwide, here is your chance for Celtic immortality! Go for ir. You know you want to! And while you are it, get your Da's generation involved. They have their story too! |
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Stunning archive film discoveries of Belfast Celtic Park
Two stunning pieces of film from the 1920’s, showing events at Belfast Celtic Park on the Donegall Road, have been discovered by the Belfast Celtic Society. Recent searches on the British Pathe website have unearthed footage of a pony trotting race at Celtic Park during the Truce in the Tan War in July 1921.
At this time, Belfast Celtic had withdrawn from football due to political violence and pony trotting would have been a welcome sporting release for people in west Belfast at a time of high tension. A second, five minute long piece of archive, from the ITN Source website, shows the amazing sight of the 1925 Celtic Carnival winding its way from the city centre through west Belfast to Celtic Park.
Organised to provide funds for Belfast Celtic’s return to football after the conflict of the early 20’s, the carnival drew tens of thousands of participants and spectators to Celtic Park, where revelers enjoyed a funfair. The money raised from this event was used to build the Willowbank Stand, which loomed over the Iveagh district until the ground’s demolition in the early 1980’s. You can read the rest of this original article and see the films referred to here. |
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Lost Bhoys on the Belfast Celtic Trail
Chris McGuigan from the Lost Bhoys returns to his Belfast home stomping grounds to meet up with the Society and take the Belfast Celtic Trail. The result is an excellent two part podcast. "Never a better time to walk around the Falls Road than Easter Monday eh?" says Chris. "This is a history of not only Belfast Celtic and the close links it had with it’s Glasgow cousins but a history of West Belfast itself."
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We tell the story of Belfast Celtic from its formation in 1891 up to it’s sad demise in 1949. As the story unfolds, we pay homage to some of its greatest players and personalities.This is the first time, LostBhoys have linked up Hail Hail Media, The Belfast Celtic Society, The Celtic Graves society, The Celtic Wiki and the Celtic Underground to bring a real joint effort from all the teams." You can listen to Part One here and Part Two here. |
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Ulster Television News Report
Ulster Televison News recently visited the Belfast Celtic museum for a news report on Ireland's only football museum. The report is available on the UTV player which unfortunately is not available to people living abroad. You can however view the news report on the Belfast Celtic website at www.belfastceltic.org. The report includes an lnterview with Society representatives Padraig Coyle and Charlie Tully Junior. The file may take some time to load and is slightly out of sync. Enjoy! Click on the UTV logo to the right or here. |
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Former Celt McGeady sends gift to Belfast Celtic Museum!
Word is spreading about the Belfast Celtic Museum at the Park Centre and special visitors recently made the trip all the way from Bonnie Scotland to visit. Family relations of former Celtic star Aiden McGeady stopped off at the museum, spending time checking out the 250 exhibits and soaking up the history of Belfast’s Grand Old Team.
In town on a family trip, the McGeady’s made the museum their first port of call and brought with them some gifts, including an Ireland international jersey signed by Aiden himself! Aiden’s ‘geansai’ was handed over by his dad John and uncle Pat, who also brought another gift, a handwritten letter by Belfast Celt Jimmy McAlinden, detailing his career, along with his portrait picture, taken while at Belfast Celtic.
Both of these will soon be on display at the Park Centre, the former home of Belfast Celtic Park.
Speaking after the visit, Belfast Celtic Society Chairman Padraig Coyle said; “It was a real treat to welcome the McGeady family to our museum and even more thrilling when they presented us with Aiden’s jersey. It was a total surprise and the message inscribed on it is personal to the museum, giving us best wishes – we can’t wait to get it on display."
"The McGeady’s are, of course, regular visitors to Ireland and have strong Donegal links, hence Aiden’s choice to play his international football for Ireland. Our guide was very surprised at the amount of information the whole family already knew about Belfast Celtic and it was great to be able to detail the many links between the two ‘Celtics’."
“Aiden is now at Spartak Moscow, but we feel his jersey is another little connection between the two clubs, as like us all, he remains a Celtic fan. John McGeady, Aidan’s Dad, is an accomplished footballer himself, who played for Sheffield United, where his team mate was Celtic’s Jimmy Johnstone and he started his career at Third Lanark in Glasgow, another club to slip into history as they left football in 1967. But their story doesn’t stop there as Aiden’s uncle Pat has helped revive the Third Lanark’s name as a junior team in Scotland, so the family really are steeped in football. On behalf of all the members of the Belfast Celtic Society, I’d like to thank the McGeady’s for visiting the Belfast Celtic Museum and for the wonderful gift from Aiden himself!”
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| Former Celtic star Aiden McGeady’s father John (right) and uncle Pat donate Aiden’s personally signed Ireland international jersey to the Belfast Celtic Museum. The player’s inscription reads ‘To the Belfast Celtic Museum, best wishes, Aiden McGeady - 7”. |
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Malcolm Brodie Friend of Belfast Celtic Passes Away
It was with great sadness that news filtered through on Wednesday, January 30, 2012, that legendary sports journalist Malcolm Brodie had passed away. A great friend of Belfast Celtic, Malcolm was heavily involved in the huge reunion events in 1989 and 1991 which marked the leaving of football and the centenary of the Grand Old Club.
Born in Scotland and, despite being a fan of rivals Linfield, Malcolm kept a special place in his heart for Belfast Celtic and, as a cub reporter at the Belfast Telegraph, struck up a close relationship with Belfast Celtic manager Elisha Scott.
As sports editor of the Belfast Telegraph, Malcolm seemed to transcend time itself, attending many Olympic Games and World Cup finals over six decades. Indeed, his attendance at 14 World Cup Finals (his last in 2006) brought recognition from FIFA and the miniature World Cup they presented him with was treasured as his most prized piece of football memorabilia. Malcolm was also awarded an honorary doctorate for his services to sport from the University of Ulster.
Latterly, he had been involved in moves to create a Northern Ireland Museum of Sport and worked with the Belfast Celtic Society in preparatory and awareness raising activities aimed at making this a reality
| Malcolm Brodie welcomes Society President to the Hall of Fame |
It was a great honour for the Belfast Celtic Society when Malcolm accepted our invitation to be key speaker at the graveside of Elisha Scott, when the refurbished grave was unveiled in 2009. Personal, touching and honest, his speech that day was typical of the man and it was always a great relief when Malcolm told you that you'd struck the right chord in terms of activity - he was a very hard taskmaster!
Members of the Belfast Celtic Society were on hand when Malcolm received his Lifetime Achievement Award at the Chartered Institute of Press and Public Relations gala in 2008, and he accepted his award with typical humour and toned down, gruff grace.
Belfast Celtic Society Chairman Padraig Coyle said on Malcolm's passing; "It was an honour to know him and the Belfast Celtic story could not have been told without his insights. He was such a helpful man who gave much of his time to encourage others along their own particular paths. His thick Scottish brogue never wavered, in spite of him being sent to live in Portadown during the early years of the second World War.
While he started his journalistic career in County Armagh, it is for his stint at the Belfast Telegraph, lasting almost 50 years, that he will be most fondly remembered. In recent years, his weekly Down Memory Lane column regularly recalled the tragedies and triumphs of Belfast Celtic and its characters, like Mickey Hamill, Charlie Tully and Elisha Scott. Malcolm had many scoops during his career, but perhaps among the first would have been his exclusive interview with Jimmy Jones days after the Boxing Day riot of 1948 at Windsor Park. |
"Just before Christmas, he had participated in filming for an up-coming documentary on Elisha Scott, which will soon feature on Liverpool TV. It is sad that both he and Billy Scott, son of the great Elisha, who also participated in the documentary, have passed on within weeks of each other. Of the Park Centre, the site of Celtic Park, where our museum is based, Malcolm once said; "The ghosts of Belfast Celtic now parade there". Malcolm will have joined them in spirit now! Our island as a whole and our sports community in particular is much the poorer for Malcolm's passing. To his family, friends and colleagues, on behalf of the entire membership of the Belfast Celtic Society, I say, rest in peace Malcolm."
To watch Malcolm Brodie in Return to Paradise - the Belfast Celtic Story, please click here |
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Belfast Celtic Shop with Brand New Merchandise
The Belfast Celtic Online Shop now has a range of t-shirts, fleeces, polo shirts, jackets and badges for sale. You can visit the shop here The same items are also available through the Museum.
Feel free to drop us a line if you need more details.
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Charlie Tully lights up the Hampden stage again!
Celtic star Charlie Tully will return to one of his most famous haunts later this month, in the guise of Belfast actor Gerard Jordan.
Hampden Park in Glasgow is the venue for a performance of I Left My Heart, a special short drama production featuring the inimitable Tully, written by Belfast Celtic Society Chairman, Padraig Coyle.
And a special free preview performance will take place at the Belfast Celtic Museum at the Park Centre on Thursday, November 22, in advance of the Hampden event.
Inspired by work carried out by Glasgow Caledonia University and Alzheimers Scotland, the play is intended to spark memories and conversations among dementia sufferers.
Part of a two-day Memories FC Community Conference, hosted by the Scottish Football Museum at Hampden Park, the performance by Belfast actor Jordan will see him reprise the role of footballer Tully, who he first played at the Paradise production at the Lyric Theatre in 2004.
Broadcaster and journalist Padraig Coyle explains:
"The advanced research into alzheimers and dementia in Scotland threw up surprising results. One result was that, particularly among older men, Charlie Tully was a huge figure in their memories – and not just those of Celtic supporters! Tully was a larger than life character and his fame has carried across Scottish football to this day, as his name is still sung regularly on football terraces. His ‘cheeky’ persona embedded him in football folklore and because this was matched by his prowess on the field, he remains one of the greatest players of the twentieth century.”
The 15 minute dramatic performance is intended to rekindle those special memories and forms part of a two-day programme looking at the issue of reminiscence, memory loss and recovery for the elderly.
Other highlights include a demonstration of an interactive prototype digital 'Memory Cube',designed by a team from Northumbria University as well as a special Knowledge Exchange Café.
Mr Coyle is very enthusiastic about the Memory FC Community Conference, saying; “I believe we are seeing the beginning of harnessing the potential of football focussed reminiscence to help improve the lives of people with dementia.
“Together, we can creatively explore how to fuse cultural heritage, scientific insights, design and performing arts to help those with dementia and those who are caring for them.”
The free preview performance of I Left My Heart will take place at the Belfast Celtic Museum at the Park Centre in Belfast on Thursday, November 22. The Museum will be open from 7.00pm for visitors and the performance will be held at 8.00pm.
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Belfast actor Gerard Jordan, in the role of Charlie Tully, packs his memory case, ready to travel to Hampden Park in Glasgow. |
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Anna Reid: the Lady who said Goodbye to Football
In a quiet cul de sac on the outskirts of south Belfast lives Anna Reid – the woman who said goodbye to football on the death of Belfast Celtic. A former season ticket holder at Paradise, Anna recently donated her ladies' season ticket from the 1945-6 season to the Belfast Celtic Museum.
As well as this, she has also passed a wonderful 1927 City Cup medal, belonging to stalwart Eddie Inch, along with youth international caps from her brother, George McLarnon, who once starred with north Belfast rivals Cliftonville.
Anna’s father Joseph, from Hillman Street in north Belfast, was a Celtic fanatic. A butcher by trade, he owned shops in Cromac Square and the Ormeau Road and was a great friend of Elisha Scott, who gifted him Inch’s cup medal, now residing in the museum.
Both men were members of the National Club in Berry Street and Joseph, and later Anna herself, became very friendly with many of Belfast Celtic’s great players, including Jackie Vernon and Tommy Breen.
You can read the rest of this original article here. |
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Graffitti on the Wall for Grandad's Heroes
Gateshead in the 1980’s was a lifetime away from Belfast in the 1940’s – so why, as a young Geordie lad, did Mark Shepherd feel moved to leave a visual imprint of the Grand Old Team on a local gable wall?
‘What the bloody hell has Belfast Celtic got to do with a lad from the North-East of England?’
So asks Mark Shepherd, thirty years on since he neatly drew the words ‘Belfast Celtic’ in four foot letters on a gable wall on a side street of Sunderland Road in Gateshead.
It was the early 1980’s, he’d just started school when a new kid with a strange, exotic accent walked into his classroom.
Natural curiosity took over and the children gathered round the new boy, whose not-so-dulcet tones were recognisable from the nightly news bulletins reporting the place with all the soldiers and explosions.
Mark was even more interested, as his relatives, like newboy John Miskimming, were Irish.
Young John fitted in well and was soon friends with the whole class, his accent less and less out of place as time passed by.
When groups of eight year old boys gather together in the soccer daft hotbed of the ‘great north east’, football will never be far from the conversation and so, naturally, one day, chat turned to teams and titles.
Probably the most important question a young lad will be asked is simply ‘What team do you support?’, because as everyone knows, once you’ve picked a team, it’s yours for life.
Wives, houses, cars, jobs – all these can change – but it’s a total heresy to change your football side once you’ve made the cardinal choice. You can read the rest of this original article here. |
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Belfast Celtic Trail Marked on the Falls Road
A special tour bus wound its way along the Falls Road on Saturday, August 4th 2012, to launch the new Belfast Celtic Trail. Families of former players as well as Celtic fans traced the steps of the club across its west Belfast heartland, as part of Feile an Phobail, the largest community festival in Ireland.
Beginning at the former site of the Centre Half Bar on the Falls Road, owned by Mickey Hamill, the trail marks 15 points of interest which includes former pitches, players homes and businesses and the graves of key figures in the club’s history. And to cap off the day, the Belfast Celtic Museum was re-opened at the Park Centre, the site of the club’s home, Celtic Park.
(Picture to the right) Members of the Hamill and McAlinden family at the site of Belfast Celtic star Mickey Hamill’s Centre Half bar, which once sat on the corner of Falls Road and Panton Street.
You can read more here |
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