This is Dungannon man Joe Morgan. Joe is currently directing the Martin McDonagh play  “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” in the Craic Theatre and will open in early April.  This will be the second or third play that Joe has directed in Craic and you are always guaranteed a great production. He has assembled a very fine local cast for this dark comedy. “The Lieutenant of Inishmore” is more in the tradition of Quentin Tarantino than to JB Keane savagely funny.

This is the oldest church in the parish Clonoe. It’s Saint Michael’s Church of Ireland situated about half way between Coalisland and Brocagh (Mountjoy) Although there has been a church on this site since 1431, it was ruined and disused by 1622. The church was rebuilt in 1699. The interior was altered in the last century losing its original pews and pulpit. The graveyard contains memorials to clergy and laity of both the Catholic and Church of Ireland communities with the most recent Catholic burial taking place in the 1960’s. I have alway found old graveyards to be fascinating places to visit. The headstone inscriptions very often are all that is left to the memory of the people interred therein and can give us some insight into who these people were but it can be frustrating in that it’s very often only a fragment of information beyond dates of birth and death. One of the oldest graves I came across yesterday read “Here lieth the bodies of Major Hugh Mergaugh O’Neill who deceased the 10th October anno dom. 1671 aged 50. And Phelemy Oge O’Neill who departed ys life ye 10th May 1714 aged 79 years. It had a latin inscription  which translated was “Fate Keeps Every Name in Motion”

This is Coalisland lady Freda Keogh  (née Rushe) who is a member of The Evergreen Club. The Evergreen  was established in May 1975 and Freda has been an organiser and member from the early 1980’s Her husband Victor is a well known musician who’s association with the club goes back to when the club opened in ’75 where he has played at many of the social functions organised by the Club. Freda worked for an number of years in the Dainty Fit clothes factory in Cookstown before marrying Victor. They have eight children. The Evergreen Club is where older citizens of the town and surrounding area come together on Wednesday afternoon to socialise. It has been based in the Cornmill in the town for many years but started in Barrack St in the old Democrat Newspaper building before moving to premises down along the canal line side which sadly where badly vandalised. It then spent some time in the AOH hall on Platters Hill before moving to The Mill. It is one of the oldest running senior citizen clubs in the country.

This is The Crescent Arts Centre Belfast which is based in a building that was once Victoria College established by Margaret Byers in 1859. It was an all girl grammar school.  The Centre hosts a wide range of arts and entertainment events, as well as classes in dance, music, verbal and visual arts, and community outreach programmes. I used to attend traditional flute lessons here given by the great Belfast flute player Davy Maguire. My friend Sheena Kelly  a dancer and choreographer (who has featured in this blog) has done a lot at The Crescent.

For anyone who would fancy the simple life the in country this could be the place for you. A tin roof cottage on The Wood Road near Maghery Co Armagh. Passed this on a bike ride.

This is Mario Martens. Mario is from East Timor and has lived and  worked in this part of the world for two years and currently works for Dungannon Enterprise Centre. He has a wife and family who still live in East Timor.

East Timor was colonized by Portugal in the 16th century, and was known as Portuguese Timor until Portugal’s decolonization of the country. In late 1975, East Timor declared its independence, but later that year was invaded and occupied by Indonesia and was declared Indonesia’s 27th province the following year. In 1999, following the United Nations-sponsored act of self-determination, Indonesia relinquished control of the territory and East Timor became a new sovereign state.

Went for a dander around Botanic Gardens in Belfast in the fine weather we have been getting. These are pics of the famous Palm House.

The Palm House building at Belfast Botanic Gardens was designed by Charles Lanyon, who also designed the main building at Queen’s University, The Crumlin Road Jail and Courhouse and Castle Leslie in Glaslough Co Monaghan The foundation stone was laid in 1839 and the two wings were completed in 1840 by leading ironmaster Richard Turner. Turner’s Belfast’s Palm House predates the glasshouses at Kew Gardens in Engaland and the Irish National Botanic Gardens at Glasnevin Dublin which were also built by him. The dome was added in 1852.

The Palm House consists of two wings, the cool wing and the tropical wing which contains the dome. Lanyon altered his original plans to increase the height of the dome, allowing for much taller plants. In the past these have included an 11 metre tall Globe Spear Lily. The lily, which is native to Australia, finally bloomed in March 2005 after a 23 year wait. The Palm House also features a 400 year old plant called Xanthorrhoea.

This is the First Church of Christ, Scientist on University Avenue Belfast. I often park close to this building when I’m in Belfast at events or meetings in the University area near Queens.

The First Church of Christ, Scientist stands, on the corner of Rugby Road. It was built in 1936-7 to a design by Clough Williams-Ellis. More in keeping with the Mediterranean or (perhaps) California it contrasts with the surrounding area which is almost entirely red brick.

Went with Kierna to see “Uncle Vanya” by Brian Friel who fashioned this version from the original by Anton Chekhov. I love the Lyric Theatre and It was great to see it refurbished in the last couple of years. Hopefully it will continue to prosper and give work and opportunity  to local actors and writers.

These portraits hang in the foyer of the new Lyric. Liam Neeson, Conleth Hill and Stella McCusker. Both Conleth and Stella are in this production of Vanya and both were fantastic.

The weather has been great this weekend so I was able to get out on the bike with my brother Frankie.