BOSE CLOSURE REACTION

24/01/2015 by borderroamer

Bose factory, Carrickmacross Photo: © Michael Fisher

Super Junior Minister for Business and Enterprise Ged Nash TD issued the following response on behalf of the government to the news that the BOSE plant in Carrickmacross is to be shut down with the loss of 140 jobs.

“My thoughts are with the workers at Bose and their families following the regrettable announcement by the company that it will cease operations at its Carrickmacross facility in April.

All the supports of the State will be made available to all of the workers affected by this situation. Despite the much improved news on the job creation front in this country the situation faced by Bose is a reminder that the fight to sustain and win new jobs is a continuous one and the challenge to maintain our attractiveness for investment in an increasingly competitive market is a challenge we must take on each day.

I personally will be following up with our State Agencies including the IDA and Enterprise Ireland to pursue other job creation opportunities in the Carrickmacross area and across the North East region. The IDA is currently contacting their network of offices worldwide to try to find a suitable company to invest in the region and take on this highly skilled workforce.”

Carrickmacross Market House Photo: © Michael Fisher

Following the announcement the President of Carrickmacross Chamber of Commerce Jim Hand called on the government to find new jobs for the area.

Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan-Monaghan Brendan Smith expressed his serious disappointment following the announcement by BOSE. Mr Smith said “this is a terrible loss to the 140 employees, their families and indeed the local community. BOSE has been a significant employer in the town for almost 4 decades and the effects of the closure will be felt across the county. Many of the workers have been there for more than 30 years and have built up extensive skills and experience.”

Brendan Smith TD

“This Government repeatedly claims that jobs are its number one priority. However, the border region has been left out of the frame, with few investment opportunities emerging. In fact last year there were no IDA sponsored visits to sites in Monaghan; a further indication of the Government’s lack of interest in the county.”

“The Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton TD must step up to the mark and ensure that the Government’s dismal record on investment in Monaghan is reversed. I am urging him to intervene, along with the State’s Industrial Promotion Agencies to engage in immediate discussions with the BOSE Corporation and press strongly for the retention of these jobs in Carrickmacross.”

Bose factory, Carrickmacross Photo: © Michael Fisher

The statement issued by a Dublin PR company on behalf of BOSE is as follows:-

“Bose Corporation has announced it will be consolidating its wholly-owned manufacturing operations, closing its facilities in Columbia, South Carolina, and Carrickmacross, Ireland, to streamline the company’s global supply chain. Operations in South Carolina will continue until September 2015; operations in Ireland will continue until April 2015. During that time, both workforces will be reduced, and work will transfer to other Bose facilities around the world with duplicative capabilities.

The Columbia, South Carolina facility opened in 1996 and currently has approximately 300 Bose employees. It houses a North American distribution/repair center, and does sub- and final-assembly for some headsets, and some remanufacturing for the region. A final decision on a new location for distribution/repair has not yet been made; other operations will transfer to Bose facilities in Arizona and Mexico. All jobs at the Bose South Carolina campus will be eliminated.

The Carrickmacross, Ireland facility opened in 1978 and currently has approximately 140 Bose employees. It provides final assembly for select home theater systems and Wave® radios for the European market, and some remanufacturing for the region. Operations will transfer to Bose facilities in Malaysia and Mexico. All work will cease at the Bose Ireland facility. Impacted employees have been informed, and all employees who lose their jobs based on these actions will receive outplacement services and severance support.

‘Our rapid global growth requires us to keep pace with our customers, dealers, distributors, resellers and stores, and serve them as efficiently as possible,’ said Bryan Fontaine, executive vice president of global operations and corporate development engineering. ‘But these are still difficult decisions because they impact our very capable teams in South Carolina and Ireland. We thank all of them for their dedication, and we thank the communities of Columbia and Carrickmacross for their years of support.’ “

BOSE TO CLOSE CARRICKMACROSS PLANT

23/01/2015 by borderroamer

Bose factory, Carrickmacross Photo: © Michael Fisher

Union representatives will meet management at the BOSE audio systems plant in Carrickmacross next week, after the multinational suddenly announced it is to close the plant in April, with the loss of 140 jobs. The company has been manufacturing audio products in Monaghan since 1978 but will wind down operations within three months. In a statement on Thursday evening, the US-based business said it would be consolidating its wholly-owned manufacturing operations, closing its facilities in Columbia (South Carolina, USA), and Carrickmacross, Ireland, in order to streamline the company’s global supply chain.

BOSE which has its headquarters at Framingham in Massachusetts was founded by a college Professor and classical music enthusiast Dr Amar Bose in 1964. Before he died in 2013, Dr. Bose donated a majority stake in his company to MIT, the Boston school where he earned three degrees in electrical engineering and taught a course in acoustics. The company employs around 10,500 people internationally and has sales of $3.3 billion.

Carrickmacross provides final assembly for select home theatre systems and radios for the European market, as well as some remanufacturing for the region. The Irish operation is due to transfer to BOSE facilities in Malaysia and Mexico.

BOSE executive Vice-President of global operations and corporate development engineering, Bryan Fontaine, said the move came to keep pace with demand from customers and resellers. He said the company’s rapid global growth required them to keep pace with their customers, dealers, distributors, resellers and stores and to serve them as efficiently as possible. These were difficult decisions because they impacted on their very capable teams in Ireland and South Carolina, he said, and he went on to thank the local communities including Carrickmacross for their years of support.

SIPTU Manufacturing Division Organiser Jim McVeigh said the workers were told today by management that the plant was to close in the coming weeks. This came as a complete bolt out of the blue for the workers. It is devastating news for staff, their families and the wider community, he said. Workers have been given a day off today (Friday). Mr McVeigh said he intended to meet the workers and management of the plant on Monday afternoon to discuss what could be done to save their jobs. On Monday evening SIPTU representatives will brief local politicians on the situation and enlist their support in the union’s efforts to save the jobs. He added: “the vast majority of the workforce lives in Monaghan and the plant closure will have a very significant negative impact on the local economy. There are over 140 people employed at this plant and SIPTU is committed to doing everything possible to protect their interests.”

Sean Conlan TD Photo: FG

Cavan/Monaghan Fine Gael TD Sean Conlan said he was very sad to hear of the closure of the BOSE plant in Carrickmacross owing to their global restructuring plan.

“The loss of jobs at Bose, which has been a major employer in South Monaghan for many years, is very upsetting for employees and their families, and the fact that this closure is due to take place so soon adds further stress. I have contacted the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, to ask that his department coordinates with the IDA in the hope of extending the notice period.”

“It is important now that alternative employment is found for those who have been left out of work due to today’s decision. I can confirm that the IDA is currently contacting their network of offices worldwide to try to find a suitable company to invest in the region and take on this highly skilled workforce. All the supports of the State will be made available to all of the workers affected by this situation”, said Mr Conlan.

Matt Carthy MEP Photo: SF

Midlands North West Sinn Féin MEP Matt Carthy, who is from Carrickmacross, said: “I know many of the 140 full time BOSE staff personally and I am absolutely devastated to hear of the planned closure of this manufacturing plant in Carrickmacross. The plant is a well established local employer and the announcement today will cause widespread disbelief. Today’s announcement is not just a harsh blow to the staff and their families but to the wider community and local economy, which will be severely impacted by the closure of the plant.”

“Unfortunately, this area has been ignored by too long by successive Governments. I recently highlighted the fact that Monaghan has only has two visits by the IDA in the past 5 years and many will remember that Bose was the last significant employer attracted to this region by the IDA in the late 70s. I am calling on Minister Bruton to immediately engage with the senior management at the plant and attempt to preserve these jobs.”

Full report in next week’s Northern Standard.

COLUMBA MCVEIGH

22/01/2015 by borderroamer

Columba McVeigh Photo: Irish Times

The Bishop of Clogher Dr Liam MacDaid at a special Mass last night in North Monaghan appealed “in the name of humanity” to anyone with information about where one of the so-called disappeared, Columba McVeigh, is buried to bring it forward to the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims’ Remains (ICLVR).

At the Mass in Carrickroe, near Emyvale, Dr MacDaid urged anyone who might have even a small shred of evidence about where Mr McVeigh was secretly buried to come forward to the Commission and help end the burden the McVeigh family had carried for forty years. Prayers were also said and a candle was lit for Kieran McAree, the Emyvale man who is believed to have gone into the water in Lough Erne in Enniskillen and for whom the search has continued for five weeks.

The Sacred Heart church is a few miles from Bragan mountain, where Mr McVeigh is believed to have been buried after being abducted and murdered by the IRA in November 1975. Four searches, the most recent in September 2013, have been carried out in the bogland since 1999, but Mr McVeigh’s remains have yet to be found. The Commission is hoping former IRA members directly or indirectly involved in the incident would come forward with more specific information to assist in the search.

Family members of the disappeared point to how after an appeal by the Catholic Bishop of Meath, Dr Michael Smith, in September 2013, new information was passed to the Commission. Last October the remains of another of the disappeared, Brendan Megraw, were recovered from Oristown bog in County Meath.

“In the name of humanity and of this community, I would entreat anyone with any information to search their conscience and help bring an end to this suffering,” Bishop MacDaid told the congregation, who included Columba’s brother Oliver and sister Dympna Kerr, as well as other families of the disappeared. Dympna lives at St Helen’s near Liverpool in England and flew over yesterday afternoon to attend.

Frank Murray Photo: ICLVR

One of the two Commissioners, Frank Murray, a former Secretary to the Irish government, attended the Mass along with forensic expert Geoff Knupfer, who has led some of the searches carried out by the Commission. Before the service, Mr Murray addressed the congregation. He stressed the independence and confidentiality offered by his office and said anyone who gave information to him was immune from prosecution.

“For almost four decades the McVeigh family have had to bear the pain of the loss of Columba, a pain deepened almost beyond imagination by the fact that they have no grave to tend, no place to grieve,” Bishop MacDaid said.

Oliver McVeigh from Donaghmore in County Tyrone also appealed for anyone with information to bring it forward. “The ICLVR needs more information to narrow down the search area to find Columba, just as they were able to do at Oristown and find Brendan Megraw,” he added. “How can anyone with a shred of humanity about them leave us like this after forty years knowing that they could end our suffering?”

The Chief Executive of the WAVE Trauma Centre in Belfast, Sandra Peake, said the families of the disappeared appreciated the prayers and support of Bishop MacDaid and the wider local community. They will not rest until Columba and all those who have yet to be recovered are returned to their families to bring an end to this cruel torment, she said.

The remains of 11 of the 17 Disappeared have been recovered, including those of Jean McConville from Belfast, whose son Michael attended the Mass along with his wife and daughter. I interviewed Michael at various times as the search was going on for her remains, which were recovered eleven years ago, though it seems a lot less.

The six yet to be recovered are Columba McVeigh; Joe Lynskey, who went missing from Belfast in 1972; Captain Robert Nairac, a British Army officer believed to have been shot dead close to the border in the Louth/South Armagh area in 1977; Kevin McKee and Seamus Wright, who disappeared in 1972 and are believed buried in a bog at Coghalstown, near Wilkinstown in County Meath; and Seamus Ruddy. He was killed in France by the INLA in 1985 during an internal feud and is believed to be buried in a forest near Rouen.

Dympna Kerr and her brother, Oliver McVeigh, at the Mass in Carrickroe Photo: © Michael Fisher

TIP FOR THE TOP: KATE BEAGAN

21/01/2015 by borderroamer

Kate Beagan in her studio Photo: facebook

LOCAL ARTIST TIPPED FOR ART BUYERS
Michael Fisher

At her studio beside her house in Donaghmoyne overlooking the fairways of the Manaan Castle golf course, artist Kate Beagan is busy preparing to exhibit her work in London and Dublin in the coming months. She concentrates on painting contemporary landscapes, inspired by scenes close to where she lives. Old houses and fields provide the inspiration for much of her work. As she spoke to me, she was working on a large canvas.
This type of oil painting takes a couple of weeks to complete. Some have been sold privately such as a Carrickmacross street scene. Others have been sold to clients in the public sector such as the Office of Public Works, which bought eight of her paintings, and the business sector including a bank. Kate’s family home where she grew up was close by and she went to the St Louis Convent in Carrickmacross. She went to art college in Galway but did not finish her degree. She emigrated to Australia, where she spent ten years before returning to Ireland. Kate is married to Kevin and they have two daughters in their early 20s and a son aged 17. Twelve of her paintings will be displayed at the affordable art fair in Battersea Park in London in March and will also be shown in Hampstead in June.

Carrickmacross painting Photo: © Kate Beagan

Her other main project is preparing for a solo exhibition in April at the Doorway Gallery in Dublin, with the theme ‘I came upon a place’. Another exhibition is due to be held in Mullingar in September. In the past her works have been displayed in Amsterdam, Brussels, New York, Newcastle on Tyne and London. But she believes Monaghan as a county could give more support to the visual arts, as literature and theatre seem to get more attention. She is hoping to set up a visual arts festival with workshops during the weekend of the Patrick Byrne festival in Carrick at the end of March. Kate has also produced some work for charity. She is one of two County Monaghan artists contributing to the ‘Pig Parade’ next month in aid of the Jack and Jill foundation, but that work is still under wraps at the moment. She is also contributing work for a Paolo Tullio cookbook that will be sold to raise funds for schools in Nepal. In 2007 she illustrated the book ‘Monaghan: County of the Little Hills’, authored by Brian Deery. It seems her star is very much in the ascendant as she is due to be included in an art buyers’ catalogue as one of four or five Irish artists tipped by the auction houses to invest in. So Kate is hoping that 2015 will prove to be a good year.

Carrickmacross News, Northern Standard 14/01/15

CARRICKMACROSS NEWS

14/01/2015 by borderroamer

My job for the next few months is to represent the Northern Standard as Carrickmacross correspondent in South Monaghan while the staff journalist is on maternity leave (congratulations Veronica on the new arrival!). I enclose the first two pages of Carrickmacross news from last Thursday’s edition (January 8th 2015). Pictures are by Pat Byrne.

If you have a story from the area you can contact me at standardcarricknews@yahoo.ie or telephone (042) 9663890 on a Monday/Tuesday or contact the Monaghan office on a Wednesday (047) 82188.

JB THE FUNDRAISER FROM KILLANNY

John Byrne, Killanny Photo: © Michael Fisher

Around the parish of Killanny and further afield everyone knows him simply as ‘JB’. John Byrne from Lannatt is a former mechanic who used to repair and sell cars. Once it was easy work for him to lift an engine out of a car. But a heart attack thirteen years ago which he was lucky to survive meant he would have difficulty for a time lifting small objects such as a can of peas. He is now doing everything he can to ensure that potentially life-saving equipment is readily available at strategic points throughout the parish such as the parochial hall and a local restaurant.
Chatting to him at his house he told me how he had once been an active sportsman. He played football for Killanny GAA Club and also represented the county mainly at under-21 and minor level. He captained the Killanny side that won the double (championship and league) in 1979 earning them promotion from junior to intermediate and eventually senior level. He went on to become chairman and also manager of the club. But in February 2002 at a time when his work was becoming more and more pressurized he had a heart attack. He was taken to hospital in Dundalk and transferred to Dublin for treatment. Three months later he knew he was beginning to recover when he was able to walk from his house along the laneway that leads to the main road. But it would take nearly two years before he could resume work. His wife Noeleen and daughter Aoife (a keen footballer) were then able to help him in his next project. During his rehabilitation in Dundalk hospital JB noticed there was a need for equipment in a small gym that had been established there. So he helped to raise IR£4500 by asking a number of friends to do a bunjee jump at a parish sports day. Then in 2007 a stroll near the River Glyde inspired him to do a river walk, not alongside but in the water itself. Dressed as James Bond and wearing a dry suit over his tuxedo and bow tie, he managed to walk two miles in the river, ending up by killing off a crocodile-like figure that had been put in the water to introduce a bit of drama. His friends at the Riverbank pub provided sustenance after he successfully completed his task. The money raised was enough to provide six defribrillators which were installed at the GAA pitch and other public areas around the parish. They are kept inside specially marked boxes and cost around IR£3000 each. Now the emphasis is on training people in how to use them. JB’s target is to get two people in every household in Killanny (population around 1200) trained in the use of these devices. The youngest person trained so far is 15 and the oldest 85. As the man himself put it: ‘the fun part was the fundraising, the work is only starting now’.

DESMOND FISHER (2)

05/01/2015 by borderroamer

Desmond Fisher Photo: © Michael Fisher

My father Des Fisher was Editor of the Catholic Herald newspaper in London (1962-66) at the time of the Second Vatican Council. He reported from Rome and managed to attend one of the sessions dressed as a Protestant clergyman observer. Since his mother from Portstewart Co. Londonderry came from a Church of Ireland background, that was probably very appropriate and he was able to use his knowledge of Latin to goof effect. His last work as a writer was to finish a book on the Stabat Mater, and he produced his own English translation of this 14thC poem. I was helping him to finish the work by reading the first proofs up to a few days before his death at the hospice in Blackrock, Co. Dublin on Tuesday 30 December.

The Catholic Herald has published this story, based on the obituary written by Arthur Jones of the National Catholic Reporter. Arthur worked for my father in the Herald. There is a minor error in the last sentence. He had been married to my mother for 66 years. Their wedding was at St Macartan’s Cathedral in Monaghan on September 8 1948.

Former Catholic Herald editor Desmond Fisher dies….He covered Second Vatican Council during his time in charge of the paper…..

Former Catholic Herald editor Desmond Fisher has died, aged 94.

He passed away at Blackrock Hospice in Dublin on December 30, surrounded by his family, leaving behind his wife Peggy, daughter Carolyn, sons Michael, Hugh and John and four grandchildren. His funeral was held on January 2, in accordance with his wishes.

In a career spanning 70 years, Mr Fisher worked at the Irish Times, RTE news, Economist and the Irish Press in London, and his last article for the Irish Times’s Rite and Reason column appeared on September 30.

As editor of the Herald from 1962 to 1966 he covered the Second Vatican Council, after which he worked for RTE. He was in Rome in 1962 before the council was set up and covered the 1963 and 1964 sessions.

Born in Derry on September 9, 1920, during the troubles that led to partition in 1922, his father soon moved their wine and tea wholesalers business to Dublin, where Mr Fisher grew up. He won an all-Ireland scholarship at the age of 11 and throughout his life he had excellent Greek, Latin and Irish, writing a new translation of the Stabat Mater in his 90s. After graduating from University College Dublin he took his first job in journalism at 25, and moved to London in 1952 to become London editor of the Irish Press.

His reporting of the Second Vatican Council was said to be so incisive that Cardinal Cardinal Franz König of Vienna said he learned more from reading Mr Fisher’s reports than from being there.

Arthur Jones, who worked for Mr Fisher on the Herald, wrote in the National Catholic Reporter that with Fisher’s death “the legion of writers who covered the Second Vatican Council (1962-65), has thinned practically to vanishing point”.

Mr Fisher married Peggy in 1948, and the pair celebrated their 65th (sic.) anniversary last year.

SEARCH FOR KIERAN MCAREE

03/01/2015 by borderroamer

Kieran McAree Photo: PSNI website

Since before Christmas, the thoughts and prayers of many people in North Monaghan and beyond have been focused on the family of Kieran McAree from Emyvale. With police in the North believing the 23 year-old is dead, after claims he entered the river near Enniskillen Castle, the focus now is on retrieving his body.

The PSNI and other agencies continue to conduct a search operation in the Round ‘O’ area, which began following the report on Wednesday, December 17^th, that he was missing. Kieran is described as 5’7” tall, with short curly brown hair, and wore glasses. He may have been driving a Volkswagen Golf car prior to going missing.

PSNI Chief Inspector Brian Foster said, “Significant water-based and land-based searches are continuing. Police have appealed for anyone who can help with their enquiries to contact them. We are also appealing for anyone in the vicinity to check outbuildings and land.”

Police divers searched the lake bed near to the Lough Gates at Lough Erne, eliminating areas of interest located by specialised sonar equipment. A police helicopter and victim recovery dog have also been used to check the surrounding area. Kieran McAree’s family and friends searched the river banks and kayakers along with private boats checked the Lough.

Boyne Fishermen’s Rescue and Recovery divers stayed overnight and were out on the lough at first light. Many dives where carried out in the fast river current making this a very difficult and dangerous task. Other dive teams attended for the family and worked till dark. Three police boats assisted in the tasks and will be back on the water in the morning.

PSNI launch Photo: PSNI Fermanagh facebook

Thomas Daly, a volunteer with the Boyne Fishermen’s Rescue and Recovery Service, has said his team which has included up to 37 people will not leave Lough Erne “until we have found Kieran”.

“We have spent the last two weeks searching from where the car was last seen, where the shoes were found. We have been studying the river and there was a fair flow on the river the morning he entered it. We are searching along the spots where we believe he could be”.

“We will not be leaving yet, no, not until we have found Kieran. We are thinking about the family and are here to help put an end to this, to help them move on,” he said.

Scores of people joined the search on Christmas Day and St Stephen’s Day following appeals by family members on Facebook and Twitter.

“This is the biggest search I have ever witnessed on Lough Erne. The community in Fermanagh is really pulling together to help Kieran’s family,” Constable Gavin Huey told The Impartial Reporter.

“We have been using a helicopter, boats and sonar. The divers have been searching in very cold, fast flowing water. The speed of the river and poor visibility has made it difficult but we are determined to keep going for as long as we can. I have never seen a search of this nature last as long,” he said.

Rodney Edwards in his excellent reports from the scene says it is believed that Kieran entered the water after abandoning his Volkswagen Golf near Henry Street in the early hours of December 17. Some of his belongings, including his shoes, have been recovered close to the scene. For his father Martin, mother Geraldine, brother Damien and sister Aisling from Emyvale the wait is an agonising one and there has been a sombre mood at the Round ‘O’ where they have been standing every day since he disappeared. They wait and hope. There are tears, prayers and emotional scenes. Yet among all the sadness, there is a strong sense of community.

“The level of support from across the county and across Ireland has been quite extraordinary. From taking part in the search to making food. The Anchorage Coffee Shop at the Round ‘O’ have been making tea and sandwiches and other food for free. Everybody has been out in force; all types of groups, organisations and people – all eager to help,” explained Constable Huey.

“All our thoughts and prayers must continue to be with Kieran’s family. I know so many people are thinking about them and want to help and you can see that through this search and the reaction on Facebook. Many people have been getting emotional during all of this. We would just love to get a resolution so we can bring the family some closure. They really do appreciate all the help and support of the people in Fermanagh,” he said.

CLONTIBRET ‘INVASION’

29/12/2014 by borderroamer

It was hardly an ‘invasion’ in the true military sense. Nothing like the 200,00 Allied forces that invaded Iraq in 2003 or the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 or of Poland in 1939. Yet Peter Robinson’s nocturnal excursion along with a group of 150 loyalists across the border into the quiet County Monaghan village of Clontibret on August 7 1986 was dubbed an ‘invasion’ by some sections of the media.

It was more like a sortie, a raid, an incursion or an infiltration. His intention was to show what he believed were the gaps in cross-border security, following the signing of the Anglo-Irish agreement in 1985. Yet it was the RUC who tipped off the Gardaí about his plans, according to Stormont papers recently released by the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland.

Historian Éamon Phoenix who has researched them says that a note from a Northern Ireland Office official from the Political Affairs Division to the British Ambassador to Dublin refers to about 150 loyalists, “some wearing paramilitary uniforms and carrying cudgels” entering Clontibret.

They daubed the slogan “Ulster is Awakening” on a Garda station and from what I myself remember of the day in question, on some walls including that of a Church of Ireland school. The crowd also injured two Gardaí.

The BBC reports that the note said: “The RUC’s action in tipping off the Gardai during the night of 6-7 August about the incursion by Peter Robinson and his loyalist thugs was also warmly appreciated in Dublin, according to Michael Lillis [of the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs].”

The NIO official who wrote the note told the ambassador: “We have done our little bit here by holding Irish hands in the [Anglo-Irish] Secretariat and feeding them with material for their hourly reports to their ministers during periods of particular tension.” The report notes that the crowd dispersed when gardai fired shots into the air.

“Robinson, who appears to have lingered behind deliberately, was arrested and held in custody for 32 hours (during which he refused all sustenance provided by the gardai, preferring the wholesome Ulster food brought to him by his wife) before being charged with four offences, including assaulting gardai and causing wilful damage.”

Although Mr Robinson was already in Ulster, this reference is to the breakfast brought to him by his wife Iris during his detention at Monaghan Garda station.

The official noted that Mr Robinson (who first appeared in court in Ballybay) was granted bail to appear in court in Dundalk on 14 August.

Other loyalist shows of strength planned to take place on the same night as Clontibret were limited by RUC activity to Swatragh in County Derry where a group of masked men, some carrying firearms, marched through the nationalist village, causing some damage to property. Both incidents were condemned by the British and Irish governments. For its part, the DUP hailed the operation “as a clear indication of the absence of cross-border security”.

A separate file reveals that Peter Robinson and his party leader, Ian Paisley, felt they “narrowly escaped with their lives” and made a formal protest to the British Foreign Office about inadequate protection, following a court appearance in Dundalk over the Clontibret incident.

Peter Robinson later took over from Ian Paisley as DUP leader and First Minister of Northern Ireland.

CHRISTMAS IN MONAGHAN

24/12/2014 by borderroamer

Saint Macartan's Cathedral Monaghan Photo: © Michael Fisher

I was at the Christmas Eve Mass at Saint Macartan’s Cathedral in Monaghan where the chief celebrant was Bishop MacDaid. Standing room only when I arrived. Here is the joint Christmas Message from the Bishops of Clogher Dr Liam MacDaid and Right Reverend John McDowell.

http://www.clogherdiocese.ie/2014/12/joint-christmas-message-from-the-bishops-of-clogher-2014/

EDELLE MCMAHON

20/12/2014 by borderroamer

Edelle McMahon at the Blue Bridge, Emyvale, August 2013 Photo: Michael Fisher

Edelle McMahon is a Belfast-based singer/songwriter, who hails from Emyvale in County Monaghan. In August 2013 she performed at the Blue Bridge outside Emyvale during the unveiling of a plaque as part of the William Carleton International Summer School. The following month I saw her performing in Crumlin Road Gaol during Culture Night Belfast 2013. Now her début solo single has been reviewed very favourably by “Joe” from the music review website, Bearded Radio. I have reproduced it in full with links where possible:-

“The musical voyage of Edelle McMahon first began in County Monaghan, in the Republic of Ireland. Starting young, it was through the hugely popular Sean Nós channel that Edelle entered into the world of child stardom, continuing on and reaching great success in Irish folk and traditional music, a current which has continued to the present day. For the past several years, Edelle has been a performing member of Belfast’s country rockers ‘Jackson Cage’ and more recently joined forces with studio-only based ‘The Badhearts’ who are due to release their first single together in early 2015. Along with being a familiar face on the gigging circuit, Edelle is one of the organisers of popular Belfast acoustic showcase, ‘The Lagan Sessions’.

Recently released and aptly named “Belle Curve” is her cleverly worded début solo single. Its origins stem from a retaliation to a good friend, who themselves had composed a comedic and banter filled song referring to the singer songwriters relationship status. What began as a witty and humorous idea, had now started to venture and take itself into darker waters. In the lyrics Edelle found herself reflecting on the lonelier side of being single. Originally intended as a guitar and vocal number, for the singles production, Mark Donaldson had the creative idea for the song to open up with piano and include string arrangements, thankfully this was hugely to Edelle’s liking and approval. Providing the perfect backdrop for “Belle Curve” is a stunning and picturesque video which was filmed on Canada’s Prince Edward Island by Richard Brennan.

It was back in May of this year when I first became aware of Edelle McMahon. Along with a feast of other respected Belfast-based musicians, Edelle’s jaw-dropping performance of “Demeanour” (co-written with Jim Johnston), was a part of a hugely successful project called “Eastside Sessions”, I fortunately have the DVD (you can watch it from youtube link below). Edelle McMahon has a pretty interesting and bulging itinerary ahead, now treading new waters and in the process of recording her début solo album, also due for release in 2015. It is with great exclusiveness and much excitement I can reveal “Demeanour” will be featured on this. I have also included the links for Facebook, twitter and her SoundCloud where you can listen to more from her unreleased songbook, “Pilgrimsville” and “Ships Will Sail” are particular favourites of mine. Joe”.

Michael Fisher's News

Category Archives: MONAGHAN

BOSE CLOSURE REACTION

BOSE TO CLOSE CARRICKMACROSS PLANT

COLUMBA MCVEIGH

TIP FOR THE TOP: KATE BEAGAN

CARRICKMACROSS NEWS

DESMOND FISHER (2)

SEARCH FOR KIERAN MCAREE

CLONTIBRET ‘INVASION’

CHRISTMAS IN MONAGHAN

EDELLE MCMAHON

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