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LOCAL NEWS ARCHIVE - NOVEMBER 2003
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A large number of local supporters were in Killeshandra Community Centre on last Sunday afternoon when Cornafean took part in the first round competitions of the Cavan 2003/04 Scór na nÓg. The Cornafean participants did themselves proud in every event and Cornafean will be represented in no less than six categories in next weekend’s County Final: the Most Promising Ceili Dancing Group, Solo Singing, Ballad Group, Novelty Act, Instrumental Music and Question Time. Indeed the Question Time final next weekend promises to be a unique event from a Cornafean perspective as the two local teams have qualified for the final.
Congratulations to all the Cornafean representatives on their success on Sunday and we wish one and all every success in the County Final which takes place this Saturday night, again in Killeshandra Community Centre. The annual County Finals in Scór are always very popular and entertaining occasions and Killeshandra is certainly the place to be on Saturday night for a tremendous variety of entertainment and fun. We urge as many local people as possible to support the local teams on Saturday night, and with a little good luck, hopefully a few of the County Titles will be returning to Cornafean when the results are announced.
The local Active Age Club have been busy in recent weeks preparing to stage a comic sketch which will be unveiled at a concert in the Lavey Inn on this Thursday night, 27th November. We understand that fifteen club members will be participating in the 20-minute sketch entitled “A Cornafean Homecoming.” All support on the night will be gratefully appreciated.
The AGM of Cornafean GAA Club will be held in McSeain’s Cornafean on Friday 5th December next. The AGM of the Juvenile club is scheduled for 8.30 on that evening with the AGM of the Senior club starting at 9.00pm sharp. All members are requested to attend and new members are welcome.
The people of Cornafean, and all followers of traditional music and song, can look forward to a rare treat this Friday evening as the RTE television show “Come West Along the Road” features archive material of the Cornafean Ceili Group in a performance recorded on the “Trom agus Eadrom” programme in 1982. It is understood that the programme will also feature a recording of the late singer Tommy Donohoe, Cloncose whose masterful performance on the same show drew rapturous critical acclaim at the time, not least from Trom agus Eadrom presenter Liam O’Murchu.
The show begins at 7.30pm on this Friday evening. No doubt it will obviously revive some great memories for local traditional enthusiasts and its re-transmission at this stage is especially timely given the resurgence in interest in the local traditional scene following the successful release earlier this summer of the popular double CD "The Cornafean Ceili Group - 25 Years On”, which included a mixture of archive material from the past as well as new recordings. Since its release, the strong local tradition in Irish music has continued through the establishment of an Improvers’ Club in the locality where a group of promising young musicians gather on a regular basis to improve their skills and to learn new tunes under the instruction of Paddy McDermott and other experienced musicians.
Raffle tickets are now available locally for a fundraising raffle in aid of the
Renal Dialysis Unit and Irish Kidney Association Hostel at Beaumont Hospital,
Dublin. First prize is a limousin heifer and second prize is EUR100. Tickets are
also on sale for a Fundraising Dance in aid of the same fund which will be held
in the Breffni Arms Hotel, Arva on Friday 5th December next. All support would
be greatly appreciated
Preparations are continuing locally for the forthcoming Scór na nÓg first round competitions. Cornafean are due to take part in the first round on Sunday afternoon 23rd November in Killeshandra and both participants and mentors are currently busy preparing for the occasion. It is expected that the local club will field acts in each of the eight disciplines.
There is strong local interest in the forthcoming Brian Boru musical show
featuring the acclaimed musician Maurice Lennon which will take place on
Friday 21st November in the Cavan Crystal Hotel. The good news is that the plans for
the event will be unaffected by last week's fire which damaged a wing of
the hotel complex. Tickets are now available from Multisound, Cavan and from the
Cavan Crystal Hotel.
A meeting of the local Vintage Tractor Club will take place in McSeains on this Friday night, 14th November at 9.30pm. All members are asked to attend.
Raffle tickets are now available locally for a fundraising raffle in aid of the Renal Dialysis Unit and Irish Kidney Association Hostel at Beaumont Hospital, Dublin. First prize is a limousin heifer and second prize is €100. Tickets are also on sale for a Fundraising Dance in aid of the same fund which will be held in the Breffni Arms Hotel, Arva on Friday 5th December next. All support would be greatly appreciated.
Catherina McKiernan continued her recent good form with an impressive display on Sunday last in the Belgian Cross Cup in Ghent, Belgium where she finished in second place, just four seconds behind Belgium 1500m champion Veerle Dejaeghere over the 5.3 kilometres course. She is now looking forward to next month's Spar European Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, where she is likely to team up alongside Sonia O'Sullivan in the Irish squad.
We extend our sympathy to Mrs. Margaret Geoghegan, Drumkeerin and her family on the death of her father, Mr. Jim Foy, Treanmore, Mohill whose funeral took place earlier this weekin St. Mary's Church, Cloone, Co. Leitrim.
On Friday 21st November, a musical show based on the life of Brian Boru and composed by musician Maurice Lennon will be staged in the Cavan Crystal Hotel. The show tells the story of the life of Brian of Borumha, the greatest king in Irish history, through words and music, and was inspired by the well-known novel on this subject, 'Lion of Ireland' by Morgan Llywelyn. It is co-produced by Donal Lunny & Maurice Lennon and features a voiceover narrative by the leading Irish TV, film and stage actor Sean McGinley.
The composer Maurice Lennon, a former member of Stockton's Wing, is well-known in the locality due to his involvement with the Cornafean Ceili Group on the launch of their successful double CD "The Cornafean Ceili Group - 25 Years On" earlier this year. Maurice has also been the composer and driving force behind the phenomenally successful Ragus dance and musical stage show which has achieved remarkable popularity in recent years.
The Brian Boru musical has already been highly acclaimed by both audiences and critics on a number of nationwide tours and it promises to be an event not to be missed. Tickets are now available from Multisound, Cavan and from the Cavan Crystal Hotel.
