Issue 55 August 2019
Welcome to the August edition of Schull District and Community Council Newsletter.
It’s the cusp of the Summer, June and July are behind us and the shortening days of August are bookended by the looming threat of the end of the Summer holidays and the start of the new school year. That’s no reason, though, not to wring every ounce of fun out of the next few weeks. And there will be plenty of fun!
Calves Week will bring its usual energetic dynamic to the town. Hundreds of people will make their annual pilgrimage to Schull to enjoy a week of superb sailing as well as lots of shore-based activities. At the end of Calves Week there will be two days of fun on and off the water when Schull Regatta takes place. It will be the highlight of the busiest time of the year for the town. There will be lots of entertainment for every member of every family.
So far this summer we have been blessed with (mostly) lovely weather. There were some memorable events in July. The visit of the Pianocean project and the romance of the concept really caught people’s imaginations. We were treated to two wonderful concerts on the Pier from singer/songwriter, Marieke, as she sang her songs, accompanying herself on the piano mounted on the afterdeck of the “Lady Flow”. The boat and its crew then departed to continue their voyage up the west coast. We wish Marieke and her crew every good fortune on their romantic quest.
Schull Agricultural Show was an unqualified success again this year. There was a huge crowd and every member of it thoroughly enjoyed a brilliant day. All the children’s activities were free and they threw themselves into them with unbridled enthusiasm. Ponies, horses, dogs and their owners went through their paces and a lot of people went home happy with, or without, a prize. Well done to the hardworking and imaginative Committee.
The town is looking wonderful. Lots of people have commented on the virtual absence of litter, the lovely plantings and the spotless public showers and lavatories. Cork County Council, the Tidy Towns Committee, volunteers and those who live and holiday here have all contributed. Young people who gather on the Pier and on the strands have also been very conscientious about leaving no trace.
This year there seems to be a lot of family groups on holiday, three or even four generations of the same family enjoying everything Schull has to offer, picnicking, swimming, sailing, walking, kayaking. An underestimated pleasure is just sitting…. drinking in the beauty of mountains, sky and sea and watching the world go by. Lots of people do just that, the essence of a holiday.
It’s not time to go back to school…. Yet.
Schull Harbour Sailing Club is all geared up for Calves Week’s four days of racing in Schull from August 6th to 9th. Over sixty boats have registered for this year’s event so it should be a busy week. The event is again sponsored by Frank Whelan’s Gas Analysis Service. The prize-giving will take place on Main Street each evening with live music to keep everyone entertained.
Schull Regatta will follow on from Calves Week on the weekend of August 10th and 11th. As well as the rowing and sailing on the water there will be a host of activities onshore to create a super festival event. The theme of the Fancy Dress parade is Recycling and Sustainability so if you are feeling creative be sure to get involved and strut your old stuff. See the Ad in this newsletter for a full programme of events and the Schull Regatta facebook page for more information.
Schull Planetarium Star Shows for the month of August are on every Monday and Friday at 5pm and Wednesdays at 8pm (except for August 2nd). Please arrive early to allow time to buy your tickets as the show starts at these times. Alternatively book online at schullplanetarium.com.
Huge congratulations to the curator of Schull Planetarium – Fionn Ferreira – who was named the global winner at the Google Science Fair in California. Fionn was a Leaving Cert student at Schull Community College this year. His project investigated a way of removing microplastics from water.
SDCC Annual Flag Day will take place on Saturday August 10th. All the proceeds go towards the necessary community projects that go on throughout the year. Your support is very much appreciated.
Promoting Schull Ryan Tubridy’s Radio 1 Show will be broadcast from a location on the Wild Atlantic Way later in the month. We would like that location to be Schull! The show has a daily listenership of 330,000. In order to promote our village you can help by:
Using #sendmeonmywildatlanticway on social media as this is the # that will be monitored to shortlist and select the winning broadcast location
Posting to social media and say where, and most importantly why Schull is so special.
Posting an image or video of your suggestion as an addition to your post.
Make sure with all posts that you use the #sendmeonmywildatlanticway
In early August Ryan will review submissions and he’ll select where he’ll visit and broadcast from.
Festival collaboration We pride ourselves on the support that voluntary groups give to each other in Schull. Very often Committees and associations share members and interests. In May the Design Team of the Fastnet Film Festival, with the expertise of Donie Bowen and his craftsmen, created 15 banners, mountings and fittings to decorate Schull for the occasion. The Film Festival designers offered to make banners for the Regatta, using their fittings and the offer was accepted. The next step came when the Regatta Committee offered to commission Bowen’s Forge to make 15 more sets of fittings and the FFF designers agreed to make 15 more Regatta banners. This means that the Film Festival and the Regatta will have 30 branded banners apiece to embellish the town for both events for next year. It’s a win, win situation. Thanks to everyone.
Schull & Mizen Tennis Club Tournament What an incredible month of sport – Wimbledon, the cricket World Cup Final at Lord’s, and most recently the Schull & Mizen Tennis Club tournament on 28th July on the Schull courts. Our “Centre Court” is probably the most picturesque in the world, and Mizen’s only playable public court. The tournament was open only to fully paid-up members of the club (we have about 25 members now) and attracted an entry of 16. With a high standard of play throughout, and undeterred by unforecast showers, the final concluded with Daniel Joyce and Shane Barrett beating Len Lipitch and Frank “ Marina” in a hard fought set. Rosie Somerton won the Ladies Award.
Following the tournament the prize-giving took place at the court with mouthwatering pizzas from Newman’s. Our temporary clubhouse was kindly supplied and erected by Ian Hasledine – and much appreciated during those showers! The prizes were excellent : winners Daniel Joyce and Shane Barrett each got a dinner for 2 at Greene’s Restaurant in Cork (donated by Arthur Little) and runners-up Len Lipitch and Frank “Marina” got splendid Barry’s Tea hampers donated by Denis O’Donovan. Rosie Somerton won a crafted mobile from Enibas. Our excellent umpire Anne Dale was rigorous in applying LTA rules combined with our own Club rules – even calling out footfaults to occasional culprits!
Finally thanks to Cork County Council for creating this wonderful tennis court, and we hope that in due course they will upgrade the second court to match, to meet the ever-growing demand by both locals and tourists for this sport here in Schull.
Family Music Workshop with Caz Jeffreys – Musical Director to Schull based Community Choir, Acapellabella will be held on Friday 16th August 2.30 – 3.30pm at the Community Hall, Goleen.
This session is part of the Goleen Summer Festival and is free of charge. It is aimed at parents and their children between 4-10 years old. However all are welcome to come along to join in! It is an opportunity to build on confidence and musical skills together in a relaxed and fun atmosphere.
To find out more about Caz’s work visit: www.cazjeffreys.com
Scoraíocht & Co this month is all about “Mozart’s Shoes”. This is because Karen and Julia will be passing the hat around in an effort to raise funds to buy shoes for the cast of their production of Amadeus, happening in October! Expect a bit of Mozart, definitely something Austrian or classical or magic flute-like or baroque or fancy costumes or even something to do with shoes. As always everyone is invited to come along and enjoy an evening of shared stories, songs, recitals, recitations and maybe an actor or two. For more information check out the Facebook page Scoraíocht & Company. Date for this month is August 22nd from 8pm in Newman’s Corner House. And in case you’re wondering, the event is not “as gaeilge”.
Tidy Towns volunteers meet every Saturday morning at 10am to do a Litter Pick. And for the summer an additional evening Litter Pick is held on Thursdays at 7pm. Extra hands are always welcome. Meet at the front of the Pier Road Car Park – it’s only for a couple of hours. Ní neart go cur le chéile.
A special thanks to everybody who supported the annual Schull Tidy Towns Golf Classic held recently. Over €2500 was raised for Tidy Towns initiatives. Grateful thanks to the organisers and to all the sponsors of prizes. A Schull Tidy Towns luncheon will be held in Grove House on Saturday August 10th . Contact Maura on 086 8670 222 for details.
Fastnet Marine & Outdoor Education Centre continues its summer sailing classes during August. There are still some places available on the courses – further information can be got from their website or on 028 28515. Also there are a few places on the Powerboat Course for the weekend of August 3rd.
Route 2 Crook 5-mile road race for walkers and runners, organised by Goleen & District Community Council, will take place on Sunday August 11th at 11am. To register visit www.popupraces.ie and for more information contact Kieran on 086 8434 146 or Eamonn on 086 8163 878
Wild Threads West Cork is delighted to be holding its Summer Exhibition in the Blue House Gallery this year. This group show will highlight the versatile and diverse nature of textiles and hand stitching, showcasing the equally diverse approaches of the nine artists involved. Exhibition runs until the 7th August.
Schull Rowing Club is seeking new members. If interested please contact the following emails: chair.schull.rowing@gmail.com or secretary.schull.rowing@gmail.com
Bunratty United Soccer Club are running Soccer Summer Camps for girls and boys aged 6 to 16 from August 12th to 16th. For more details please phone 086 377 5194 or email martina.mc@live.ie
What’s on in Schull
Blue House Gallery This month in the Blue House Gallery we have an opening on Friday 9th August from 6pm. Downstairs celebrating the foundation of the Bauhaus in 1919 is ‘Bauhaus/Blau Haus’. In this exhibition we have examples of all the disciplines taught in this period i.e. Tomasz Madajczak exhibiting photography, Diarmuid Breen – painting, Johanna Connor – theatre, Ian McNinch – sculpture and many more. Upstairs in the gallery, curated by Catherine Weld is ‘The Drawn Line’, a celebration of drawing in its many formats and in the Boiler Room gallery we have Alison Ospina. Artists talks this month are: Sat 3rd August – Julia Zagar, Sat 10th August – Brian Lalor, Sat 17th August – Catherine Weld and Sat 24th August – Alison Ospina. All these talks begin at 3pm.
Brosnan’s Centra is now open every day from 7am until 10pm.
Country Market The Schull Country Market operates every Sunday from 10am until 2pm in the Pier Road Car Park. Please note that on Sunday 28th July the Market will be at the Town Park as part of the Schull Agricultural Show.
Easel In The Ditch Judi Whitton is holding a ‘one off’ watercolour exhibition ‘Easel in the Ditch’ from 10th – 18th August 2019 (10.30am – 5pm daily) at The Schoolmaster’s House, Lissacaha, Schull, West Cork P81 H363. Judi has been painting outside on the Mizen Peninsula for the last ten years and has gathered together this exciting new collection of work. The venue is easy to find and will be signed from the main road at Lowertown, 3km West of Schull. There will be over 65 pieces of work on show and pictures may be removed from the exhibition. See Judi’s website www.watercolour.co.uk or contact Judi on judi @watercolour.co.uk Judi is a well established painter, author and teacher. She has published 3 books about painting, has written over 60 articles for The Artist and is sought after at home and abroad for her teaching skills. She has held many one man shows but has taken a break in recent years to concentrate on her writing and painting and this is her first show for 14 years.
Schull Bridge Club We have 5/6 tables in the Parochial Hall every Thursday evening at 8 to 11 p.m. cost €5. Cash prizes. Free lessons (individual or group) are available – tel 028 28292.
Fastnet Trails There are eight signed Walks branching out from the Schull Trailhead that is located at the entrance to the East End car park in Schull. These walks vary from easy to moderate in grade and they “offer the walker a unique tapestry of landscapes and seascapes, where every turn allows a fresh view of the heart of West Cork”
Outdoor Gym is located beside the Tennis Courts and is free to use by anyone over the age of 16.
Schull Tennis Club meets every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday at 9.30am at the Tennis Courts. New participants are always welcome.
Tourist Office The Discover Schull Tourist Office is now open every day. This year its home is in the Film Centre at the top of Main Street. The Tourist Office is financially supported by Schull Business & Tourism Association, Schull District & Community Council and grant-aided by Cork County Council. All of the volunteers give freely of their time. It is very much appreciated.
Parking in Schull Free car parking is available in all the car parks in Schull. If you must park on the Main Street please observe the parking regulations and especially do not park on double yellow lines!
Yoga with Clare Mulvany Yoga continues for the summer months in Schull Parish Hall on Wednesday evenings from 7pm to 8pm. Classes incorporate a range of movement and breath practices. Beginners and Drop-Ins welcome. Contact clare@claremulvany.ie for more information.
Schull Services
Schull Meals on Wheels at the Social Centre or delivered to your home. Phone Nuala at 086 3159719
Schull Credit Union Opening times – Tuesdays and Fridays 9:30 am – 12:30 and 1:30 – 5 pm. Saturday 9:30 am – 1 pm. Phone 028 28666
Derryconnell Civic Amenity Centre – Open Tuesdays and Thursdays 9 am – 12:30 pm & 1:30 pm – 4:20 pm. Saturdays 9 am – 1 pm. Note that in addition to these regular hours the centre will be open on Mondays for August only on Aug 12th, 19th, 26th.
Bus Times Schull to Cork: Mondays – Saturdays 08:05, 12:40 and 17:50. Sunday 16:30 only. Departs from top of Main Street (outside the Film Centre/Old AIB Bank). Also check Bus Éireann on line for up-to-date information. Route number is 237.
Free Wi-Fi There is free Wi-fi access in Schull village which is available by connecting to the Free_WiFi internet connection. This service is provided free of charge by our local internet service provider DigitalForge.
Mizen Medical Practice – all enquires and appointments phone 028 28311. Out of hours service phone SouthDoc 1850-335-999
Drinagh Pharmacy Schull – 028 – 28108
Defibrillators are located outside Brosnan’s Centra on Main Street, outside Schull Harbour Hotel and at the Pier.
AIB Mobile Community Banking – Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays Ballydehob – 9:30 am – 10:30 am. Schull – 10:45 am – 12:30 pm and 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm. ATMs in Schull outside Brosnan’s Centra and inside Centra.
Mass Times – Mondays and Fridays 9 am in Schull, Tuesdays and Thursdays 10 am in Goleen, Wednesdays 10 am in Ballydehob. Saturday night Lowertown 8 pm. Sundays – Ballydehob 9:30 am, Schull 10:30 am and Goleen 12 noon.
Church of Ireland Services – Sundays Schull 10 am, Toormore 11:30 am, Ballydehob 11:30 am.
Kilmoe Union of Parishes – St Brendan’s Crookhaven: List of preachers for the Summer Compline Services, held at 8.30 pm
August 4th The Most Rev Richard Clarke Archbishop of Armagh, August 11th Dame Julia Neuberger,
August 18th Canon Eithne Lynch, August 25th Rev Rosemary Logue
Please note that during the vacancy Canon Paul Willoughby is Rector-in-charge, but for all parish matters, particularly those concerning pastoral needs contact Rev Rosemary Logue on 087 365 2978
Schull Library Opening Hours: Tuesday, Thursday and Friday – 2.30pm-5.30pm. Wednesday – 9.30am-1pm & 2pm-5.30-pm. Saturday – 9.30am-1:30pm. Closed on Saturdays of bank holiday weekends. Closed Mondays. Phone number 028 – 28290
Schull Garda Station – Office (028) 28111 or Mobile 087 980 2865. In the case of an emergency always call 999.
Public Toilets & Showers are located close to the Pier. Open from 8.30am to 8.30pm everyday. Showers cost €2 for a five minute shower.
Schull Coast Guard is on call 24/7. Call 999 or 112 if you are in trouble or if you see others that need assistance.
Editor’s Notes
Thanks so much to everyone who contributed to this month’s Newsletter. We are always delighted to receive updates from any club, business, society, group, voluntary committee, etc.
If you wish to place an Ad in the Newsletter it costs €10 for a Text only Ad and €20 for a quarter-page Ad.
We hope that you have enjoyed reading about the news and happenings in Schull. All feedback is much appreciated to any member of SDCC or by email to our email address below.
Please email your news items or notification of upcoming events to schullnewsletter@gmail.com on or before the 24th of each month.
