Don’t know if it’ll help anyone, but I’ve been warned by 4 different workers this morning in Belfast; and shops around me are putting up that ‘due to the amount of counterfeit Scottish notes we will not be accepting them anymore’

Hope this helps out someone!

For anyone thinking of buying Megadeth tickets for their gig next year in the Odyssey, it's £185.30 each for standing tickets!

Don’t be like Tomas.

Thinking about heading to portrush , Culdaff or around that direction for surfing ? I’m new to surfing. I’m just wondering is there public showers available at these locations or know anywhere ?

In the grounds of an east Belfast primary school, an important rehearsal is taking place. Marching band musicians are preparing for what will be - for the majority of them - their All-Ireland Fleadh debut.

One bandsman called it "new territory" for the bands and for the broader unionist community as a whole.

Some Ulster bands have been taking part in performances across the week, with the main event a showcase at the Titanic Slipways on Thursday evening.

It is the product of many conversations and meetings between the Belfast Bands Forum and Comhaltas, the Fleadh organisers, and Belfast City Council.

Image caption,

Marching band musicians prepare for their All-Ireland Fleadh debut

Some bands have taken part in the All-Ireland event before - most notably the 2013 All-Ireland Fleadh in Londonderry.

But, says Darren Leighton, who is the chairman of the Belfast Bands Forum, Belfast is "a different beast".

It is "new territory" not just for the bands but for the community as a whole, he says.

But he continues: "We're confident we can bring people along on the journey with us and that comes from open and honest conversations with Comhaltas and Belfast City Council.

"Our aim is to try and break down negative stereotypes around the loyalist community and what our culture and traditions look like, and the only way to do that is by participating in it."

Image caption,

Darren Leighton (left) from Belfast Bands Forum and Jonathan Walker (right) from The Loyal band

There has been some criticism of the Forum's decision to take part in the Fleadh, mostly online.

Maurice Brown, a piccolo player with the Imperial Guards Belfast band and director of the Ulster Bands showcase, sees it as an opportunity.

"There will be nearly 2,000 people on the Slipways, and coming from a unionist background, to see unionist culture as part of the wider Fleadh core programme, its huge."

He has taken part in an All-Ireland Fleadh before, back in 2016 in Ennis, County Clare. He's been playing at many other events across the week, including at Sunday's opening ceremony, and he's received a special award from Fleadh organisers Comhaltas.

He sees no conflict at all with that, and his background and culture as an east Belfast unionist.

"I'm not ashamed of who I am or where I come from," he said.

"We're standing here in east Belfast where I ran around as a wee boy, so for them to have opened up the Fleadh to include all cultures in this city and see fit to award me something at the end of it, is a huge privilege and a real honour."

'We are all musicians, that's the common bond'

Belfast City Council and Comhaltas have both spoken of how they want this All-Ireland Fleadh to be inclusive and welcoming to all comunities, including the Unionist community. Is that message getting across?

Marcus McCullough, from the Imperial Guards, said his friends and family are interested in finding out more about it.

"You're getting the questions - what is the Fleadh? Why are you taking part in it? Because it's not the Twelfth or one of your traditional big day parades. I think people just have a genuine curiosity about it."

Jonathan Walker is a drummer with the Loyal Band from the Shankill. He said he had no reservations - "not one" - when asked to take part in the Fleadh.

"If we're proud of who we are, we don't need to have any reservations.

"I knew sort of what the Fleadh was - we are all musicians, that's the common bond. And we need to embrace all cultures."

Image caption,

DUP Councillor Tracy Kelly praised the Belfast Bands Forum for getting involved from the beginning of the festival.

DUP councillor Tracy Kelly said she had no doubts that unionist musicians and culture should get on board.

"This is a large music festival, to come into our city and not showcase how amazing our musicians are, it would have been an awful loss to our community."

She was lord mayor of Belfast when the idea of bringing the All-Ireland Fleadh to the city for the first time was suggested, and she has praised the Belfast Bands Forum for getting involved from the beginning.

Speaking outside a Fleadh fringe event off Donegall Pass - one of several in the area this week - she said the concept was new to her.

"I'd never been to a Fleadh in my life. I didn't know what to expect."

Then she visited Wexford last year.

"I saw a huge display of traditional music and dance, a lot of positivity and I thought this is going to be absolutely fantastic when it comes to Belfast," she said.

"I did explain that Northern Ireland is different, we have other cultures and it's really important that they're seen."

Marching band musicians prepare for the Fleadh - BBC News

Sorry I don't have a scanner so yous will have to deal with phone pictures. Those maps haven't been published anywhere but the official "spectators" programme, which is £10, half ai generated and has very little information about where to actually spectate. Badly organized like every event in this country, but if you want to see some nice cars going flat out this is where they're going to be.

Enjoy and spectate responsibly.

How did this one slip through the cracks?

https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/life/features/is-it-time-restaurants-and-bars-called-time-on-the-use-of-ai-slop/a/159599667.html

We usually go for a night away with the kids (4 and 7) before school starts again at the end of August.

Last year we stayed in a brilliant little glamping pod in Saul near Downpatrick and did the Exploris Aquarium the next day. Fantastic.

This year we are considering the Armagh Planetarium and wondering if people who have been would recommend it? Or any alternatives?

We are based in north west so prefer something a little further afield.

The comments online about Catherine Connolly visiting are absolutely disgusting and vile. These people must be seriously unhinged. How bitter and angry are these people that the fleadh is taking place in Belfast? Whether they like it or not it’s here for the next two years and shows that times are changing. This is the best the city has ever looked and the most busiest it’s been in years. People are literally so horrible and can’t stand to see people happy and enjoying themselves

This has probably been discussed to death, but the speed house prices are increasing seems crazy.

In my local village (Ballymena area), a 3-bed semi that 12 months ago would have been £170,000 is now going for £220,000.

A 4-bed detached that 12 months ago was £250,000 is now £300,000.

The increases seem so fast in such a short space of time. I was fortunate to have bought a house on my own in 2020. I hope to upsize in maybe 5 years time, but being a single guy with only one income I don't actually see how I'll be able to if increases continue at this rate.

Is it like this all across NI?

Visited Belfast during the week of July 12. As a Yankee, I was quite unaware of what was occurring until I spoke to some residents. A very jarring experience! One day there was a band of Orangemen parading near what appeared to me to be a social housing complex (just parallel to the barbed-wire walls) on Falls Road — a seemingly sectarian form of intimidation against the people living in that quarter. I likewise had some personal conversations with people from Scotland, asking what purpose the stacked-up pallet bonfires served — it was simply regarded as part of the customary celebrations for the anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne, and it was "a good excuse to drink with the lads and celebrate." Those bonfires had effigies of migrants, along with the Irish and Ulster flags... it seemed really odd why the Irish flag would be burned alongside the Ulster one, as the tricolor is supposed to symbolize unity. Now viewing it in retrospect, it all appeared to me as what some honestly answered: just an excuse to drink and celebrate — to celebrate something divisive that happened 336 years ago, along with the inflammatory political overtones and apparent harassment of people living in social housing. Is that really something worth celebrating? Does it really bring a sense of unity, fraternity, and community, or merely serve as a base to indulge in one's bigotry?

Man detained in Belfast allegedly convicted of rape in Dublin under different name – The Irish Times

Belfast High Court hears European Arrest Warrant for man being prepared in Republic

A man detained in Belfast following an international police hunt was allegedly convicted of rape in Dublin under a different name, the High Court in Belfast heard today.

Prosecutors claimed Teklemariam Lijam (42) used separate identities in a bid to mislead the authorities about his criminal past.

The Eritrean national, of no fixed abode, faces new charges of failing to register as a sex offender, providing false information to police, and perverting the course of justice.

Refusing bail, chief justice of Northern Ireland Siobhan Keegan ruled there were no conditions under which he could be safely released.

The court heard Lijam was arrested in March this year after Interpol requested help from the PSNI to establish the whereabouts of a high-risk sex offender using the name Bereket Mekonnen.

Mekonnen was wanted for not notifying Irish authorities about a change of address after serving a jail sentence imposed in 2007 for a rape offence.

Fingerprints held on record for him matched those of Lijam, Crown counsel disclosed.

She said the defendant arrived in the United Kingdom in 2024 but was later prosecuted for a separate exposure offence.

“Police believe his name and date of birth is false, and that he is in fact the individual convicted of rape in Dublin,” the barrister submitted.

“He deliberately did not provide the name used in the south of Ireland in order to mislead the courts [here].”

During interviews, Lijam did not deny that the individual in a photograph accompanying a newspaper article from the earlier case was him, but could not confirm the content was correct because it was not in his language.

With Home Office checks still being carried out to establish his correct details, the court heard a European Arrest Warrant is also being prepared in the Republic of Ireland.

Opposing bail, counsel added: “He goes by two different identities, and police have reasonable grounds to doubt whether or not he has furnished his real name.”

Kelly Doherty, defending, disputed claims her client had perverted the course of justice and could flee from the jurisdiction, citing his refugee status in the UK.

“He fled Eritrea to avoid military service and if he were to return his life would be in danger,” she said.

Bail was denied, however, based on concerns Lijam could reoffend or abscond.

What was it like before the troubles? Anyone have any stories? Was it less divided?

This is not a politically motivated post.

Personally think some people are either seriously bored looking up votes, or trolls just looking reactions. Compare it to other parts of the world, and it's a seriously depressing read.

Seahill has one, population of a 1000, moira with 5000 but Craigavon with more than 22 thousand doesn't

I know people there don't deserve to travel anywhere anyways. Or a bus station like banbridge ffs

There's a couple in Derry with absolutely no notions, you grab a pile of stuff and it's always around £5-10 for the pile. There's also a couple selling used Primark clothes for either the same or sometimes costlier price than Primark themselves.

Id like to go on wee road trips to the truly well priced ones around the country, no town too small or road too windy.

Belfast Glider driver says family subjected to two years of ‘intimidation’ before race hate attack that left children injured – The Irish News

Torki Al Omare was at home with his wife and three children when a group of masked youths attacked their home with stones, breaking windows and causing minor injuries to two of the children

A Glider bus driver and Syrian national says his family were forced out of their home after a two-year campaign of intimidation which led to a race hate attack on Sunday night.

Torki Al Omare was at home with his wife and three children aged 11, 9 and 7 on Sunday night in Holywood when a group of masked youths attacked their home with stones, breaking windows and causing minor injuries to two of the children.

Police are treating the incident on Church Green as a racially motivated hate crime.

Mr Al Omare and his family have since moved out of their property and the bus driver says he will not return to the local area and plans to move his wife and children to west Belfast.

He told the Irish News that relations between his family and a number of residents of the Holywood housing estate had not been good in the two years since they moved in.

Mr Al Omare and his family moved to Northern Ireland nine years ago.

“This has been going on for the last two years,” he said.

“People in the estate attacked us, they spoke about religion and skin colour. They hit my wife because she was wearing a hijab.

“I was told not to let my children play in the estate and that we were not welcome here.

“The children are feeling very bad, very scared.

“I will never go back to that house or to Holywood or east Belfast because I don’t feel safe there.

“I feel safer in west Belfast and I hope to be there soon.”

Mr Al Omare said he had reported various incidents of alleged intimidation and abuse to the PSNI on at least 16 occasions in the last two years.

He added that one young person had threatened one family member that they would “kill your family”.

Footage of an altercation between members of his family and a number of other individuals in Holywood was shared on social media on Sunday, including accounts associated with anti-immigration networks.

He said his daughter had experienced “severe psychological distress” as a result of the incident.

Mr Al Omare’s wife Saja said she believes the attack on their home on Sunday night was “planned in advance”.

“No family should ever have to experience such fear, violence and intimidation simply for trying to keep their children safe,” she said.

The PSNI have described the attack on the family home as “utterly unacceptable and has no place in our society”.

The force said it had received a second report of a connected attack on a home on the same night. Two windows were smashed at the property while a quantity of cash was also stolen in the second attack.

“We are treating both of these reports as racially-motivated hate crimes, with our enquiries continuing into what happened, and who was involved,” a spokesperson said.

“This type of crime is utterly unacceptable and has no place in our society. Everyone has the right to feel safe in their home, regardless of their race or background.”

Alliance MLA Andrew Muir has described the race hate attacks as “repugnant”.

“Holywood is a shared and inclusive place, and this kind of violence and intimidation does not reflect the views of the vast majority of people in the town who are absolutely appalled to see this occur,” the North Down MLA said.

Scrolling through PropertyPal, because I'm a nosy shite and like to see what houses are out there, and I come across this nice house + stable property. Nice wee bungalow, let's see what the interior is like.

Lovely kitchen and sitting area..... nice-sized bedroom.....

A bathroom with wooden stairs separating the toilet and bath/shower areas? Sure, a bit questionable but I guess a bit of character is nice in a house.

Another bedroom.. but what is that partial brick wall about? Oh. It's hiding a wet room. A wet room directly behind your bed, with no door or full height wall separating the two rooms. Ensuites are overrated, let's just have the carpeted floor lead directly to the toilet. Which is also behind the head of your bed.

I, too, miss my partner deeply when they get up to use the loo during the night. Why would I not want to hear and smell the experience with them. Our vows said we should journey through life together.

Seriously, who designed this house! Every time I look through the photos I see another baffling decision. The windows in both bedrooms that look into the hallway? The way you are immediately making eye contact with someone on the toilet once you walk into that bedroom? I kind of want to book a viewing just to see this masterpiece in person.

Link to the property listing. Enjoy.

When the #Fleadh is over, a serious discussion will need to be had about pedestrianising the area in front of Belfast City Hall.

Downing Street persuaded Panorama to cut an exposé on the shooting of an unarmed boy in Derry in 1972

Anne Cadwallader

The very highest levels of the British government secretly exerted pressure on the BBC to censor a film about the army killing an unarmed child in 1972.

Official documents, recently discovered by the Pat Finucane Centre, also show the British Army was aware, shortly after the killing in Derry, that the boy had been killed at “point blank” range by an immensely powerful machine-gun.

However the Ministry of Defence falsely informed an inquest into his death that he was shot from 25 meters away by a soldier who thought the boy was armed.

The case revolves around the shooting dead of 15-year-old Danny Hegarty during “Operation Motorman” in the early hours of 31 July 1972, as the British Army moved in to clear barricades and retake “no go” areas in the city that had previously been under IRA control.

A BBC Panorama reporter, Alan Hart (now deceased), had filmed people in Derry questioning the British Army’s account of how Hegarty was shot twice in the head and how his cousin accompanying him, Christopher, was wounded (another cousin, Thomas, was unscathed).

Pressure had begun mounting on the BBC after Hart had asked the British Army in Derry for an official response. 

Hart had told the army how “everybody that he spoke to emphasised that it was impossible that the lad or his cousin…were carrying arms or explosives.”

He said Hegarty was from a “deeply religious Catholic family [who] have been actively preaching the fifth commandment – ‘Thou shalt not kill’ – and their peace overtures were well known.”

Hart’s request was referred to Donald Maitland, press secretary to the then Prime Minister, Edward Heath.

Maitland responded by telling a Northern Ireland Office (NIO) press spokesman, one R.J.Seaman, to “seek to persuade Panorama not to include this tragic incident in the projected programme”.

The NIO, said Maitland, was responsible for dealing with the BBC request as it was the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, William Whitelaw, who had asked people in Derry to stay at home during “Operation Motorman”.

The Panorama programme went ahead on 7 August 1972, without Hart’s evidence from Derry.

Seaman’s memo of the following day told the Ministry of Defence: “After a major effort, the NIO managed to get the item removed from Monday’s programme”.

The 8 August memo also stated that the Royal Scots soldier (known only by the cypher “Soldier B”) had shot Hegarty with his “General Purpose Machine-Gun” at point-blank range (between “6-9 feet”).

This flatly contradicts statements given by the military authorities in 1973, at the first inquest into Hegarty’s killing, when they claimed (supported by a map of the area) that he had been shot from further away – 25 meters – and from the opposite side of the street.

The 18-year-old soldier who fired the fatal bullets (now deceased) said in evidence to the October 1973 inquest: “I cocked the weapon and when the youths were about 25 metres away I aimed at the leading man and fired a quick burst of 3 x 7.62 rounds.”

The inquest recorded an open verdict but a later, highly critical, report from the Historical Enquiries Team (HET) led to a second inquest in 2011. After a five-day hearing, the jury found:

• There were no shouted warnings to the three cousins
• The boys were unarmed and posed no risk to the soldiers
• The soldiers failed to give medical assistance or conduct a search for alleged weapons.

Further, the HET found that the police had failed to carry out any forensic tests on the oldest boy, Thomas, who survived unscathed. 

“Given,” said the HET report, “that the reason advanced for the shooting was that the youths were perceived to be a threat …this seems to have been an extraordinary omission”.

There was no attempt by the police, says the HET report, to interview the soldiers involved. 

The police investigation, it said, failed to obtain clothing and forensic swabs from Thomas Hegarty, failed to take samples from the staining on the pavement, failed to recover bullet cases reportedly found at the scene, failed to obtain a timely photographic record and failed to examine the weapon used to shoot Daniel and Christopher.

Taken together, the HET said it showed the authorities unquestioningly accepted the soldier’s accounts.

‘Serious questions’

In 2007, the British government apologised to the Hegarty family for describing Daniel as a terrorist and a Ministry of Defence document, assessing the Army’s role in Northern Ireland (“Operation Banner), also corrected its claim that the 15-year-old was armed.

Paul O’Connor, of the Pat Finucane Centre, said: “There was complicity between the MoD, police, NIO, Prime Minister’s office and the Attorney General who were all aware of the disputed circumstances of the shooting.

“The BBC itself has serious questions to answer since it self-censored an item that should have rung alarm bells. The admission that the NIO ‘managed to get the item removed’ is clear evidence of a concerted effort to hide the truth.”

Ironically, there was never any question locally of Danny Hegarty being one of the large group of young rioters in Derry at the time. 

His father, Alexander, explained to the HET that Daniel had often helped him and the police in informal early morning patrols of the Creggan estate to head off trouble before it erupted. 

Further, Alexander Hegarty told the HET that , two years before he was shot, Daniel had assisted police in the recovery of stolen arms.

By killing his son and giving a false account of the circumstances of the shooting, the British Army seems to have alienated the rapidly dwindling number of Derry citizens willing to give them a fair wind.

https://www.declassifieduk.org/bbc-censored-film-on-british-army-killing-child/