Letterkenny Home Town Musings - Spot the 1970-75 class of St Eunan's College

A few of these young fellows will be getting together next weekend for the 50th reunion of the St Eunan’s College class of 1970-1975.

As you will have gathered with the giveaway clue, they’re not so young anymore but it nevertheless promises to be a lively weekend starting in Blake’s Bar on Friday night and continuing on Saturday with a visit to the old Alma Mater where a special memorial mass for those fellow students who have passed on will take place.

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Saturday night will see the former College boys assemble in the Mount Errigal Hotel for dinner and entertainment. And probably a few hours of banter and one or two episodes of slagging.

Meanwhile, it’s competition time. Name all the people in this picture and win a meal for two in the St. Eunan’s College refectory (bread and butter pudding obligatory) …

Driving the Donegal emigrants
Some of you out there might be familiar with the man on the right in this photograph.

Had it not been for the caption that accompanied it, I, for one, wouldn’t have recognised him but he is a native of Letterkenny and if you ever travelled on one of the Glasgow Corporation Transport buses back in the early 1960’s, recognition might indeed have dawned.

He’s Seamus Duggan from the Oldtown – ah, now you remember him – and he features in an outstanding exhibition that is currently running at the Donegal County Museum on the High Road. Seamus worked as a bus driver and was probably familiar with another Donegal emigrant, Maire Rua Gallagher who toiled as a clippie on the Glasgow bus network.

Entitled ‘Working Over By’, the exhibition focuses on those emigrants from this county who spent much of their working lives in Scotland between the years 1940-1990. There are numerous more photographs featuring Donegal people who made their living there and a lot of stories to enjoy and to back up the images.

And not alone that but there’s a superbly produced 100 page booklet (part of the Donegal Heritage series) that, like the admission to the museum, is free (though there’s nothing to stop you dropping a euro or ten into the special donation box).
I’ve been browsing through the booklet and, honestly, were it for sale in a shop, you might have been forking out 20 or so euro for it.

Not sure who the fellow is that is standing to the left of Seamus. He too could hail from Donegal or perhaps they let the odd Glaswegian drive the buses too! Whatever the case, you should get along to this exhibition and you have plenty of time to do so as it doesn’t end until January.

Trial run
Got chatting to a man who was bemoaning the fact that, in his view, there is a distinct lack of stage plays featuring in the An Grianan Theatre programme for the Autumn/Winter season.

“A lot of comedians in it but not enough dramas as far as I can see,” he insists. He may be right to some extent but all I’m hoping for is that the Spring/Summer brochure WILL feature a play called ‘The Evicted’.

I’ve heard it but not seen it – namely because there was a special reading of it at the County Museum one recent Monday afternoon.

Written by Kieran Kelly and directed by Charlie Bonner, the play centres on the trial for murder of Francie Bradley in 1865 – one of those thrown out from their homes during the infamous Derryveagh Evictions. I’m not generally fond of play readings but this was compelling drama and whenever it does make it to the stage, promises to be even more so.

Reunion video showing
The Letterkenny Reunion will come alive again in the Station House Hotel on Friday night September 26th!

Sad for so many townies, home and abroad, that it had reached the end of the road but there’s a chance to watch a video of the 2024 event on the night. A two hour showing that will underline what the whole event was all about – and a short trip down memory lane at the end. And for those who reside overseas, it will also be available on YouTube to watch at the same time.

The latter group won’t be able to avail of the tea and coffee afterwards but sure they can make their own!
The night’s reminiscences get underway at 8.p.m.

Stumped
And so as the residents awoke, And other passing by folk,
Noticing that something wasn’t right, Something that had gone overnight,
A sorrowful farewell to that stately old oak
(Lines in memory of a 90 year old tree, formerly of Ballyraine, and the Letterkenny Urban District Council that passed away in 2014. Had it still been here today, so might the old landmark tree….)