A Fair Day of old for Blacklion

Last Saturday saw the regeneration of Blacklion Fair Day when A four-day extravaganza of events centred around the concept of reviving the spirit of the old fair days took place in this small west Cavan village. The festival weekend was officially opened on Friday evening on the original village Fair Green by Neven Maguire, the well-known and popular chef of the MacNean Bistro. This was followed by an open air concert with Jonnie Gallagher and Boxty providing the entertainment for the evening. Saturday"s Fair Day was the focus of the weekend but local historian Harold Johnston set the tone early on Thursday with a talk on heritage and the history of the Breifne area. Jim Nolan, his fellow local historian, followed this up with a heritage walk on Saturday. Cavan County Council sponsored the walk, which highlighted local heritage features visible in the landscape including the old coach road from Dublin to Sligo. Jim Nolan pointed out that our heritage is a fragile thing which we must work at to preserve, 'So much can be lost in such a short time. Placenames can be lost, their history and their meaning can be lost.' The work of preserving and reviving the Fair Day spirit took place in the village throughout Saturday. A parade of vintage cars and farm machinery complemented the multitude of antique stalls and displays of bygone arts and skills. A barrel-organ provided an authentic sound-track for the people enjoying the day. Children were introduced to a way of life that naturally included a variety of animals with pony rides and a farm petting zoo. Local Blacklion residents Mary Perill and Helen O"Reilly commented: 'The butter-making was absolutely fabulous, the whole atmosphere, the barrel-organ gave you a sense of back in time and a festival feel.' The fancy dress competition was very popular and provided another outlet for the historical theme with people dressing up in old style costumes. Displays of traditional butter-making, sheep-shearing and the very popular Aughakillymaude Mummers performance also reminded the large crowd of the fair days gone by. Patsy Smith from Blacklion commented: 'It"s a great effort to invoke memories of the old Fair Day.' The original fair days were held monthly, generally on the 22nd, to allow farmers to buy and sell livestock though Phil McCaffrey, a 91-year-old resident of the Barrs near Blacklion; 'Everything you could count agriculturally could be sold at it.' Twice a year the Fair Day would swell for the Hiring Fair, held on May 22nd and November 19th. Farm labourers would set themselves out for hire and Phil recalls that large landowners, often from the north of the country, would travel to Blacklion to hire extra labour for the months ahead. At this fair all the usual stallholders, known as "cantmen" would be in attendance. Phil recounts: 'They were very good talkers and could start up a fuss about anything.' When asked about his memories of the old Fair Day, another local Blacklion man, Brendan McGovern, rubbed his head and ruefully admitted: 'I got measured over the head with a plant.' Luckily this was not the favoured form of entertainment at Saturday"s Fair Day. Modern attractions were available alongside the more traditional forms. For the children there was face-painting and a large bouncy slide while Neven Maguire"s cookery demonstration proved hugely popular. The charismatic chef shared the secrets of his cuisine with a rapt audience. The day was a huge success and when asked about it, Sean Nolan chairman of the organising committee said: 'I"m as proud a Blacklion man as you"ll ever get. We"re a wonderful village with wonderful people.' The Fair Day was not the end to the celebrations. On Sunday the hotly anticipated final of Blacklion"s Got Talent was held outdoors on the Fair Green. Carrick-on-Shannon band "The Experts scooped the top prize impressing both the judges and audience. The weekend continued into Monday with a Duck Race under the bridge connecting Belcoo and Blacklion and the Shannon Aces providing the music for jiving in the street. The festival proved very popular with local residents and visitors alike. Cavan County Councillor and Blacklion local John-Paul Feeley stated, 'It"s great to see Blacklion crowded. All of these things take a huge amount of work for the organisers, I"m glad to see it paying off for them.' Danny McCann from Blacklion summed the whole weekend up very succinctly: 'The Black never had it so good.'