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Belfast Telegraph
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Belfast Telegraph
Crowds from The Open stick around to watch Portrush parade: ‘It was a first-class night of culture'
Except it wasn't The Open pulling in the crowds in the seaside town on Saturday night. Instead, it was the Sons of Ulster Flute Band's annual parade. Rarely had the event garnered so much attention. The parade is a key part of the marching calendar stretching back three decades, and is usually held on the first Saturday after the Twelfth. This year, however, it found itself in the spotlight due to a clash with the third day's play of The Open, a mile or so down the road at Royal Portrush. It provided a unique cultural experience for many of those visiting the area from afar. 'Tourists watched the parade, with those I had spoken to saying they had never seen anything like it before' Moving off at 8.30pm, just as spectators were making their way home from the golf course, dozens of bands marched through the town. The official application to the Parades Commission said 83 bands were due to take part. Heading the parade was the Ballykeel Loyal Sons of Ulster Flute Band. For more than two hours, the parade wound its way through the town, finishing up at around 10.45pm. Crowds lined the streets to watch as the procession passed. Some tourists in the area for The Open decided to stick around after the golf ended to watch the marchers. Harn Huang, who's from South Africa and was with her mum and boyfriend, said: 'We don't have anything like this. I'm here to see both the golf and the parade. It's very cool.' Among those at the parade was TUV councillor Allister Kyle, who praised its success. 'I was proud to be in Portrush on Saturday night, seeing the vast crowds, many of whom were in golf attire, clearly having attended The Open during the day and staying to enjoy the incredible musical spectacle in the evening,' he said. Mr Kyle added that it had been 'one of the most successful nights Portrush has seen in years'. The organising band was offered around £20,000 to postpone their parade, which they refused. Explaining the reluctance to move it, Mr Kyle said: 'The calendar of annual parades remains largely unchanged so that events don't clash. 'Everyone wants to be close to the Twelfth without overlapping with other major parades. Portrush has successfully held the first Saturday after the Twelfth for many years. 'If they had cancelled or postponed, they could have lost their slot to another band or faced serious difficulties finding a new date.' DUP MP Carla Lockhart was also among the crowd. She said: 'The town was buzzing and the atmosphere was something else. 'The band have faced much opposition to their parade, but they persisted and it was a first-class night of culture.' Jonathan McAuley, another local TUV councillor, said it was an evening to remember. 'Tourists from all over the world watched the parade, with those I had spoken to saying they had never seen anything like it before and enjoyed every minute of the parade,' he said. Bands taking part came from all over Northern Ireland including Dungannon, Belfast, Londonderry and Coleraine.
Belfast Telegraph
19-07-2025
- Business
- Belfast Telegraph
Huge band parade underway in Portrush after Open timings moved to avoid clash
More than 80 bands are marching through the town this evening. The annual parade, organised by the local Sons of Ulster Flute Band, coincides with the third day of the tournament. Large crowds gathered in the seaside town to enjoy the parade as it moved off at 8.30pm. It was led by Ballykeel Loyal Sons of Ulster Flute Band. The route takes in Metropole Green, Sandhill Drive, Eglinton Street, Kerr Street, Upper Main Street, Main Street, Causeway Street, Victoria Street and Dunluce Avenue. According to the Parades Commission application, 83 bands are now expected to take part. Bands from as far away as Co Down are marching, with organisers saying more bands have joined due to recent publicity. That makes it bigger than any single Twelfth parade. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of sports fans are in the area for The Open at the nearby Royal Portrush Golf Club. The organising band was offered around £20,000 by organisers to postpone their parade — which they refused. Outside the Station Bar today, Jeff McCusker said the band was 'definitely right to not accept the money'. 'The parade is every year on this date and if the golf organisers wanted to they could have reached out long before they did to the band,' he said. Earlier this week, Mark Darbon, chief executive of the Royal & Ancient (R&A), said there would be "marginal adjustments" of about 15 minutes to the golf tee-times to try to ensure both events can take place in a "seamless" way. "We recognise that when we bring The Open Championship to town, we are a guest in the community in which we operate," he said. "On many occasions, there are concurrent events that take place around the action that we are very focused on here, within the walls of the venue. "So, recognising the events that are taking place on Saturday, we have worked really collaboratively with the organisers and across multi-agency groups to ensure, primarily, that both events can run as seamlessly as possible. "We are making a slight tweak to tee times to try and finish - it's not dramatic, maybe 15 minutes or so earlier.'
Belfast Telegraph
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Belfast Telegraph
PSNI reviewing footage of loyalist band singing The Sash outside Sinn Fein MLA office
Videos appear to show members of the Rathcoole Protestant Boys breaking into a rousing rendition of song just yards from the Sinn Féin MLA's office on the Antrim Road in Glengormley. The band was among 40 that took part in Saturday's parade with the incident taking place on the return leg which ended at Cloughfern Protestant Hall. 'Police in Newtownabbey are currently reviewing a parade which took place on the Antrim Road on Saturday, 12th July, in respect of a potential breach of a Parades Commission determination,' a PSNI spokesperson confirmed. The event was marked as 'sensitive" by the Parades Commission which imposed restrictions on the march. A respectful 12th in Glengormley? This parade should never have been allowed and should never be allowed in future. They have no understanding of respect for this community or any other. The PSNI and Parades Commission have a lot to answer for. Shameful. — Cllr Michael Goodman SF (@macgiolla) July 12, 2025 The determination prohibited undue stoppages or delays and ordered bands to 'refrain from using words or behaviour which could reasonably be perceived as intentionally sectarian'. "The Commission reaffirms the importance of respectful behaviour, namely that there should be no singing, chanting or loud drumming and that marching would be dignified,' the ruling stated. 'All participants and supporters of this parade must behave with due regard for the rights, traditions and feelings of others in the vicinity.' Local residents from the Tober Glen and Colinbridge areas close to Mr Kelly's office had made representations ahead of the march. They cited concerns over about disruption and access for emergency services. But organisers of the parade argued that marshalling would be in place and said efforts had been made to prevent the consumption of alcohol. The Parades Commission was impressed by the "extensive planning" undertaken by organisers including "detailed discussions with a range of statutory agencies" and their "awareness-raising and engagement with the community". One video of the band stopping just yards from Mr Kelly's office appears to show members dancing while The Sash is played. Some members and a number of spectators changed the lyrics from "It was worn in Derry" to "It was worn in Londonderry" as they loudly belted out the words. So the breaking story here is that a band played 'The Sash' near an empty office in North Belfast 🤦♀️ Has the reporter checked that the office feels ok? — Peter Martin (@petermartindup) July 12, 2025 Nationalist residents have expressed anger following the incident with one saying "I thought they're not allowed to stop." Sinn Fein councillor Michael Goodman branded the incident as 'shameful'. "A respectful 12th in Glengormley? This parade should never have been allowed and should never be allowed in future,' he wrote on X. 'They have no understanding of respect for this community or any other. "The PSNI and Parades Commission have a lot to answer for. Shameful.' However a number of unionist MLAs have dismissed concerns about the incident. North Down DUP representative Peter Martin and North Antrim DUP MLA Paul Frew joked about media reports of the incident. "So the breaking story here is that a band played The Sash near an empty office in North Belfast," he wrote on X. 'Has the reporter checked that the office feels ok?" It prompted a reply from South Antrim MLA and former UUP leader Steve Aiken who also downplayed concerns. 'It was, I checked, wasn't demonstrating any signs of stress or concern…it did look a little desolate though…it seemed mollified by a few shouting 'oh, ah, etc' but that was probably for my benefit.' Meanhwile Mr Frew wrote: "In a further development, we have identified a disgruntled square metre of tarmac that was willing to speak to us, he said that he was sick and tired of people walking all over him.'
RTÉ News
13-07-2025
- Politics
- RTÉ News
Orange Parade passes through Ardoyne interface without incident
An Orange Order parade has passed the interface Ardoyne shops area in north Belfast without incident. The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) mounted a security operation after the Parades Commission granted permission for the homeward part of the Twelfth parade to take place this morning. The area had been the location for violent confrontations linked to Orange marches in the past. However, a deal was reached in 2016 which instigated a moratorium on return parades while engagement over future agreement between the Orange Order and a nationalist residents' group was sought. The return parade this morning - applied for under the name "The Ligoneil Combine" - involved one band and 50 members, with only hymn music permitted on its way past through the area. There was no protest staged by residents as the march passed through. Fr Gary Donegan, director of the Passionist Peace and Reconciliation Office, said there had been "trepidation" in the Ardoyne community about the parade. He said: "We had eight years of an agreement which facilitated morning parades with no return. "Things started to break down in that agreement two years ago. "Ultimately, yesterday passed by peacefully with no issues, but the return was always the issue. "When it was determined this would actually happen there was a lot of sense of trepidation within the community, a lot of sense of tension. "People were just hoping it would pass by, which it did. "Now we can get on with the Sunday Masses and services as normal." Fr Donegan said there had been a "conscious decision" by the community not to hold a physical protest against the march. He said: "Because of the sense of the tension in the lead-up to this, the less attention drawn to it the better. "It passed through there, it is over and now we can start to go back to normality again." Fr Donegan said future return Orange parades through the area are now in the "hands of the Parades Commission". The parade followed traditional Twelfth of July celebrations yesterday which brought tens of thousands of people onto the streets across Northern Ireland. The festivities marked the 334th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne, when the Protestant King William of Orange triumphed over the Catholic King James II. Meanwhile, the traditional 13 July events organised by the Royal Black Preceptory in the village of Scarva, Co Armagh, will take place tomorrow. The event includes a parade as well as a sham fight between actors playing rival monarchs William and James. The Twelfth celebrations came after the burning of bonfires at an estimated 300 locations in loyalist neighbourhoods across Northern Ireland on Thursday and Friday nights.
BBC News
13-07-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Orange Order parade held at north Belfast interface
An Orange Order parade at an interface in north Belfast has passed off without members and one band marched past the Ardoyne shops on Sunday area has been a flashpoint for parading tensions which have led to violent confrontations in previous Parades Commission had granted permission for the march to go ahead but with some restrictions. It assembled at Woodvale Parade at about 08:30 BST before moving along Woodvale Road and Crumlin Road towards Ligoniel Orange had said the march represented the "homeward" part of their Twelfth of July commission barred evening return parades from passing the Ardoyne shops on permitted the Sunday plans, but with conditions such as only hymn music being played past the shops and no accompanying supporters on that part of the commission said it had received some objections to the morning parade which warned it would "harm community relations".A few people observed the march but there were no formal protests organised. There was a policing presence in the area as the parade took Gary Donegan, who observed the march, said there had been a "certain anxiousness" in the he added: "It seems actually what the community has done is ignore it and if it passes by then we can just get on to Sunday."Encouraging dialogue on parading disputes, he added: "The more people talk, the less likelihood there's going to be adverse responses."The area of the Crumlin Road is an interface between mainly unionist and nationalist the past it was one of Northern Ireland's most contentious parading routes, with years of protests, violence and disorder.A deal was stuck in 2016 which sees a number of morning parades held each the agreement broke down in 2024, raising concerns of further tensions.
