Belfast Walking Tours

18/11/2024

Was it "Next stop driver" or did you Knock on the window.

1974: Bernard Falk reported on the taxi services filling in for Belfast's buses. Clip taken from BBCarchive Nationwide broadcast 18 November, 1974.

16/11/2024

Stand up, Stand out and Stand tall.👆

Samson & Goliath are as symbolic of Belfast as the Eiffel Tower is to Paris.

Still the biggest free-standing cranes anywhere in the world, they stand watch over the city. They have been classified as official historical monuments (they are part of the roots and culture of Belfast).

The cranes are situated in the shipyard of Harland & Wolff and were constructed by German engineering firm Krupp, with Goliath being completed in 1969 and Samson in 1974. Goliath stands 96 metres (315 ft.) tall, and Samson is taller at 106 metres (348 ft.). Goliath, the smaller of the two sits slightly further inland closer to Belfast City Centre.

The announcement that they were to be built was an important event at the time. Named after biblical figures, they dominate the Belfast skyline and are landmark structures of the city. H&W now focuses on ship repair, civil & marine engineering, and offshore construction and engineering.

The original German yellow paint had faded into a white colour over the years and was later then repainted over with H&W yellow paint, which has kept its colour to this day.

Some say to visitors to Belfast that H&W also means “Hello & Welcome”. Until recently, Harland & Wolff was owned by Fred Olsen Energy. Just as well they didn’t replace H&W with FO.

Ship building may make a grand return to Belfast after Harland & Wolff secured a massive contract to build vessels for the Royal Navy.

Last month, Harland and Wolff’s holding company collapsed into administration while the separate operational companies that run the yards continue to trade. Spain’s state-owned shipbuilder Navantia is in exclusive talks to buy Harland and Wolff, the Belfast-based shipyard.

The last ship built was 2003.

14/11/2024

This is the statue of Lord Kelvin (aka William Thompson) in , unveiled in 1913, and celebrates the achievements of a Belfast boy genius who changed the world. He was a colossal figure in 19th century science and was universally recognised as the leading figure in the world of science for over 30 years. Such were his achievements he was buried in Westminster Abbey beside Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin.

Thompson helped lay the foundation of modern physics inventing the Kelvin temperature scale. He had written 600 scientific papers and held 70 patents by the time he died in 1907. He is possibly best known for his work on the laws of thermodynamics and the invention of navigational and electrical measuring instruments. On the statue he is proudly showing us his calculation for absolute zero and under his cloak are his compass binnacle with spherical correctors known as to the British Seafarer.
An inscription on the statue reads he “elucidated the laws of nature for the service of man”.

One of his many inventions was sensitive mirror galvanometer used in 1866 when a transatlantic telegraph cable was laid from Ireland to Canada. His work in telegraphy revolutionised communication and his legacy included many other transformative inventions although he didn’t always get it right once saying “x-rays will prove to be fake”

William Thompson was born in June 1824 at College Square East (beside Royal Belfast Academical Institution). He was the 2nd son amongst 6 children. His father was born in Annaghmore, near Ballynahinch and his mother, from Glasgow, died when he was 6 year old. His father was professor of mathematics in “RBAI”. The family moved to Glasgow when he was 8 years of age, when his father was appointed as professor of mathematics at Glasgow University. Two years after leaving Belfast he enrolled in Glasgow University at the ripe old age of 10 and then onto Cambridge. After graduating he became Professor of natural philosophy (aged 22) in the University of Glasgow where he served for 53 years

He was knighted in 1866 and he was raised to peerage in 1892 and unfortunately died of the flu in 1907.

12/11/2024

Shoes off, heating on 🌨❄️🥶

12/11/2024

Cavehill and Belfast was something very different today ☀️☁️😶‍🌫️. Tai Chi 🧘‍♀️🇨🇳.

Beautiful 😍

10/11/2024

Fun private tour of Belfast yesterday with sisters Siobhan and Julia all the way from Melbourne. The tour started from their accommodation at Wilton House Belfast in Linen Quarter and finished at the Dark Horse in Cathedral Quarter. On route we visited the Grand Opera House, the Europa Hotel, the Crown Bar, Monument to the Unknown Woman worker, Ulster Hall, Belfast City Hall, Queens Arcade, Victoria Square, Jaffe Fountain, Mal Maison, Beacon of Hope statue, Albert Clock, Merchant Hotel, Duke of York

08/11/2024

"There's more than meets the eye" with The Big Fish, Belfast..
This post is a 'Small Scale' look at Belfast’s 'Big Fish' sculpture by local artist .

The 10m sculpture was constructed in 1999 and is often referred to as 'The Salmon of Knowledge' with each ceramic scale depicting in 'bite' sizes the colourful unique and at times complex history of Belfast.

The tiles 'reel in' the years with significant events and fascinating characters through the ages. From our historic landscapes, landmarks and industrial past through the 19th & 20th centuries (from Tudor times onwards) to the dark days of 'the troubles' and political milestones such as the Ulster Covenant to the Good Friday Agreement. There are period advertisements and old photographs, including one of the Titanic being built, old theatres and
other places and days long since gone.

Many of the images were sourced at The Ulster Museum and the drawings were done by schoolchildren from local schools.

A few of the darker tiles reflect Belfast’s violent past. You will also see splatters of blood of different colours over the skin of the fish. The white tiles reflect the city’s linen tradition which also reflect the translucency of the fish.

In the under belly of the fish you will enlarged parasites (wild salmon pick up parasites that attach themselves to the scales).

Before sealing the 'Big Fish' the artist invited friends to contribute items for a time capsule for future generations (with images, information and poetry about Belfast and other random objects)

07/11/2024

On the gable wall in the courtyard behind The John Hewitt Bar and Irish Congress of Trade Unions in Donegall Street Place, there is a magnificent mural by Danny Devanny and Mark Ervine which celebrates the important work of the trade unions in Ireland. The artwork tells the story of the historic Belfast Dockers’ and Carters’ Strike of 1907 and also the struggle of women in the factories and mills, up to the current campaigns against austerity and for social justice.

On the wall there is also a bronze sculpture of the great Jim Larkin 👏 by Anto Brennan which was unveiled in 2006. Jim Larkin is the founder of modern radical trade unionism in Ireland. Also featured are several prominent trade unionists and trade union banners representing the “Onward March of Labour”

The mural states ‘An Injury to One is an Injury to All’ and it was unveiled by ICTU in September 2013, the year that marked the 100th anniversary of the Dublin lock-out that ran from August 1913 to January 1914 (Transport workers)

Some of the great women 👏 represented in the mural are (close up photo 3);

> Winnie Carney, was a suffragist, trade unionist, and Irish independence activist from Bangor who was at James Connolly's side throughout the Easter Rising and was the first woman to enter the GPO, as a member of the Irish Citizen Army in Easter 1916. Carney and Connolly co-wrote the Manifesto to the Linen Slaves of Belfast in 1913.

> Inez McCormack, former President of Congress and Regional Secretary of Unison died on 21 January, 2013. Inez was deeply committed to social justice and human rights and was personally involved in ensuring worker’s rights were incorporated into the Good Friday Agreement

> May Blood, Baroness Blood, MBE is a Labour member of the British House of Lords. Blood was born and raised in Belfast and worked in a linen mill from 1952-90 where she soon became an active member of the trade union and a shop steward

01/11/2024

Well said, Jack!

The first-class dinner scene in *Titanic 3D* is a pivotal moment where Jack, a third-class passenger, dines with Rose and the wealthy elite after saving her life.
Dressed in a borrowed tuxedo, Jack charms the guests with his wit and free-spirited outlook, which starkly contrasts with the rigid, upper-class atmosphere. The scene highlights the class divide on the ship and deepens the bond between Jack and Rose, leading to their famous below-deck dance. Tension also brews between Jack and Rose's fiance, Cal, who views Jack as a threat.
Before this 1997 film achieved world wide acclaim people in Belfast rarely talked about Titanic now there is a whole tourism proposition around it

29/10/2024

"Is It Just Me Or Is It Getting Crazier Out There?".. The Joker 🃏🤡

This fabulous short film by Jason O'Neill is set against the cinematic landscape of the Belfast streets. Jason is the principal male dancer in the globally acclaimed Riverdance show. When home he decided to shoot a series of short films doing what he does best, dancing – with the streets of Belfast city centre as his backdrop and stage.

26/10/2024

Spring Forward ⏩, Fall Back 🔙 🕓 🕥 🕗 Back in time from the BBCNI archives

25/10/2024

All things are dark, and all things mean! It's a horrid little poem.

Please don't try it at home! Because although its vicious, it's completely fictitious!

'The Ballet of William Bloat' is a famous brutal old black comedy murder ballad that has become part of the darker cultural heritage of Belfast.

The topic of the poem is murder gone awry. A man, named William Bloat, who tries to murder his wife, then hangs himself. This poem has many different meanings hidden within the main theme of “A man who kills his wife.” Firstly, there is “poetic justice”, as Mr. Bloat’s wife survives, but Mr. Bloat is killed by his own handy work.

This is simple analysis until you consider the line about the defective razor blade was 'German made' whilst the indestructible sheet was 'Irish linen' made in Belfast

This line is a jab at the quality of German products. The context of the poem was written in 1926 (not long after WW1) and followed the characteristic black Irish humour. The author is boasting about the quality of Irish products versus those in Germany!

It is set on the Shankill Road (the shocking and comedic cultural reference to 'solemnly cursed the Pope' just belongs in a mythical Shankill setting).

The ballet was written and composed by Helen's Bay man William Calvert to entertain a cast party for members of his Queens University Drama Society in 1926, and it was first published as a poem in 1950.

The authors wife explains that "it was conceived as a piece of fun with no political significance whatsoever." Nonetheless, the ballad has passed into the folk memory of Ulster people at home and abroad. Mythical or not, Mr Bloat is one hell of a goat!

24/10/2024

22/10/2024

HMS Caroline is an iconic fixture of the Titantic Quarter. Beautiful ship and definitely worth onboarding over the school holidays. 🫡

18/10/2024

This wonderful mural of Olaudah Equiano on the high gable in Joys Entry by Dreph takes us back to Belfast in the year 1791. It recalls Olaudah's visit to Belfast in May 1791 as a freed slave and campaigner for abolition. He was one of the first black abolitionists to visit Ireland.

In 1791, the population in Belfast was only 18,230 (2209 houses) although it was a rapidly growing merchant town and port.

Olaudah was invited by United Irishman Samuel Neilson, with whom he lodged, to tell his gruesome personal story and strengthen the support against the slave trade developing in Belfast. At the same time it is estimated 480,000 slaves were working in Britain’s Caribbean colonies with whom many Belfast merchants were conducting business. Many prominent local citizens in the town such as Thomas McCabe, however, took a firm stand against slavery and indeed helped prevent a slave-trading company from being set up here in 1786. Consequently Belfast has no history of 'direct' involvement in the slave trade. Pages 3,4,5,6,7,8, on this post elaborate in more detail as to what the environment in Belfast was like at the time

Olaudah was born in Nigeria (1745) he was enslaved as an 11 year child, forced to become a sailor eventually buying his freedom and escaping to London and writing his memoir 'the interesting narrative of the life of Olaudah Equiano or Gustavus Vassa, the African’ (1789). Equiano spent 8 months travelling around Ireland to promote his book, recording that he found “the people extremely hospitable, particularly in Belfast”. He stood at the quays with copies of his autobiography in his hands and delivered talks at the Charitable Institute – now known as Clifton House.

Equiano described how he and his sister had been tied up by slavers, with their mouths gagged to stop them crying, and then how they had been placed in sacks and carried on board the slave ship. During the start of the voyage, the two children comforted one another, then they were separated and never saw each other again. Refusing to eat during the voyage, Equiano was flogged until he did so. One fellow-slave was flogged so severely that he died of his wounds and was tossed over the side of the ship like a piece of rubbish

Belfast was a positive voice for abolition and campaign started by William Wilberforce would eventually bear fruit as the slave trade was ended throughout the British Empire in 1807 (although it would be the 1830s before the practice of owning slaves was made illegal)

15/10/2024

Always look on the brighter cider life with Long Meadow Cider 🍏🍎😍.

Quality day exploring the Orchard county with the Travelling Foodie. The Ciders have changed from my White Lighting and Diamond White days 🤮. Long Meadow 😍.