Mary was the star of the show on Ireland AM
King House looked brilliant on Ireland AM breakfast show on TV3 last Tuesday morning. Weather presenter Deric O’Hartagain broadcast several segments from the historic house and also from the Crescent area, which can only help in promoting Boyle and King House this year. Star of the show was well known local woman and King House Tour Guide Mary Lavin who looked resplendent as she detailed the history of the house so eloquently. Mary is a great ambassador for the House and Boyle in general. Watching the programme, one had to feel a sense of pride in the town and King House and wonder if the building got the nationwide marketing it deserves, could it be one of the top tourist attractions in the country?
If you missed the programme you can watch it here
McDermott’s Castle in need of urgent conservation
One of the most iconic images of this area is McDermott’s Castle or Castle Island on Lough Key. The Castle and Island is synonymous with Boyle and the Park but if something is not done soon, the Castle will crumble and fall down and gone forever will be one of the most historic buildings in this area.
There is reference to Castle Island in the annals of Lough Ce as early as 1184. During this time the area where Lough Key Forest Park is now was called Moylurg and the Kings of Moylurg were the McDermotts. The McDermott’s official residence was on The Rock or Castle Island as it is commonly known. As space was limited on this small island they had another residence on the mainland where the Moylurg Tower stands today. The McDermotts ruled this area until the 17th century when it was granted to the King family from England under the Cromwellian settlement.
While the historic island, like many others on Lough Key, is in private ownership, if something is not done to save it by someone, very soon, we can say goodbye to McDermott’s Castle on Castle Island forever and that would be a national shame.
Shilling Hill shines again
Well done to Harrington Contractors who completed the resurfacing work at the Shilling Hill with a day to spare (the road closure was until Thursday evening, but reopened Wednesday). The company had the tricky task of managing traffic through the town during the closure and did so very efficiently, even though there were many impatient drivers who may not agree as could be heard from the continual horn blowing over the three days. Indeed one incident of non compliance and needless impatience with the traffic controller on Wednesday morning resulted in a stand off at Lower Marian Road and Gardai having to be called. Today Friday a contractor will re-install the service ducts in the road which will necessitate some disruption.
While on the subject of road works, one has to wonder why some local people felt it necessary to highlight the negatives of this week’s roadworks on national social media when TV3 visited the town on Tuesday. Nearly all comments from the public were on how beautiful Boyle is, but it took some locals to drag the roadworks into the conversation and try and show the temporary disruption as a negative.
Increasing visitor numbers at Boyle Abbey
Boyle Abbey opened to the public for the summer season on Friday March 15th last and will remain open every day for the next six months. While the Abbey is one of our prime tourist attractions, unfortunately visitor numbers to the heritage site are not what they should, and indeed could be. The most recent figures to hand (2022) show that Boyle Abbey attracted only 6,425 visitors. Compare that to the Rock of Cashel which attracted 278,803 and you will see how far off the mark Boyle Abbey is. Joint selling of various local attractions, as initiated by Boyle Town Team some time back, might assist in seeing an increase in visitor numbers at the Abbey but more needs to be done including enticing and providing facilities for tour buses to include the Boyle attractions on their itinerary.
Funding allocated towards Cavetown Walkway
The development of a walkway at Cavetown received a boost yesterday (Thursday) when funding of €29,995 was announced for the project. The grant was part of a total amount of a total of €126,307 announced for 5 outdoor projects in the county by Minister Heather Humphreys. €36,000 was also allocated to the Miners Way Historical Trail for improvement works and the installation of QR codes along the trail to enhance visitor experience.
Garda appeal for safety on our roads this Bank Holiday weekend
Bank Holiday Weekend periods are one of the busiest periods on Irish roads, they are also one of the periods where road users are at the highest risk of being involved in a fatal or serious road traffic collision. An Garda Síochána is urging all road users to be safe this Bank Holiday weekend.
• To date (28/03/2024), 55 people have lost their lives in Road Traffic Collisions on Irish roads
• The Easter Bank Holiday Weekend is a period where the risk of a Fatal or Serious Injury Collision is high
• The risk of a fatal or serious injury road traffic collision is highest between 3pm & 6pm during the Easter Bank Holiday Weekend
• The highest risk day for a Fatal/Serious Injury Collision over the course of the Easter Bank Holiday weekend is Saturday
The enforcement operation is focusing on the dangers of intoxicated driving, speeding, mobile phone use / distracted driving, and seatbelt offences. There will also be a focus on increasing drivers’ awareness of the dangers of driving on mornings, following nights out, and reinforcing to drivers that there is a strong possibility of being stopped and tested for alcohol and/or drugs.
The An Garda Síochána enforcement operation over the Bank Holiday weekend which commenced at 7am Thursday 28th March 2024 will continue until 7am Tuesday 2nd April 2024.
News snippets from around Boyle
Driving towards Creightons Corner from the Pleasure Grounds felt really strange this week as traffic management necessitated turning Shop Street two way for three days to facilitate road resurfacing at the Shilling Hill……….Darkness into Light walk will take place in Boyle on the morning of Saturday May 11th……..Last December we highlighted the vandalism to the nose of the ‘River King’ at the green bridge. This week artist Barra Cassidy returned to his sculpture to make good the damage. What type of person vandalises such a beautiful work of art? Do you know who did it? if you do please inform Boyle Gardai so we can stamp out this type of anti social behaviour in our town……..Good luck to Its.Slushie, the new juice and smoothie bar that has opened on Shop Street in Boyle………. Boyle Library and Roscommon Sports Partnership are teaming up for Chair Yoga for Older Adults at Boyle Library commencing Thursday April 11th from 2-3pm.The programme is suitable for those with mobility concerns who wish to engage in a more active lifestyle. Places are limited. Contact Boyle Library to register: [email protected] or 071 9662800………..Easter Afternoon Tea and raffle will be held on Easter Monday 1st April from 12.30pm to 5.30pm in Tawnytaskin Community Centre………A great event in Ardcarne Garden Centre this Saturday from 11am-12 noon when TJ Maher presents ‘Grounded in the Garden’ with 130 photographs during an hour long journey through colour and how to use it in the garden, design ideas, plant combinations and numerous other topics from his new book………Boyle Tidy Town clean ups for April – Thursday 4th: The Lawn and Pleasure Grounds meet at the Lawn at 6.30pm, Thursday 11th: Mockmoyne/St Patrick St/Engine meet at Applegreen 6.30pm, Thursday 18th: Sligo Approach Road meet at Boyle Celtic 6.30pm, Thursday 25th: Roscommon Approach Road meet at Gannons Corner 6.30pm………..Clocks go forward this Saturday night with an hour less in bed!………..While the public realm works continues on the new footpaths, remember there is plenty of free parking available in all the car parks in Boyle town centre with only a handful of on-street parking spaces affected by the current work……….Great work done again yesterday by Tidy Towns volunteers and some of our new residents in Boyle who cleaned all the signs and railings around King House. Last Sunday the same group cleaned up the household rubbish that was tipped over the wall from the old Carrick Road into the Pleasure Grounds.
And finally……!
The doctor, who had been seeing an 80-year-old woman for most of her life, finally retired.
At her next checkup, the new doctor told her to bring a list of all the medicines that had been prescribed for her.
As the young doctor was looking through these, his eyes grew wide as he realized she has a prescription for birth control pills.
“Mrs. Smith, do you realize these are birth control pills?!?”
“Yes, they help me sleep at night.”
“Mrs. Smith, I assure you there is absolutely nothing in these that could possibly help you sleep!”
She reached out and patted the young Doctor’s knee.
“Yes, dear, I know that. But every morning, I grind one up and mix it in the glass of orange juice that my 16 year old granddaughter drinks, and believe me, it helps me sleep at night!”
