AIMSIR
Bhí sé te go leor ach scamallach ar an tSráid agus an-gnóthach, idir shean-mhargadh agus nua. Bhí dráma beag á léiriú ann freisin!
DAOINE
Signers, Stalls, Grannie acrobats and Topless Models!
Bróna, Orla, Eileen and Diarmuid were the foireann for a day of unusual drama on the street. Not the real drama of the 1916 battle or of the re-enactments of Battle or of Surrender – something very different.
Bill & Fred Productions had two female actors disguised as elderly ladies, in a comic and kind of acrobatic routine. When alerted last week of this event, we asked whether the performers would mind our banner remaining up while they performed and they were delighted to have it there. We’ll post some photos of their performance later.
They did two performances, one at 3pm and another at 4pm. Some of us stayed to enjoy the performances and to recover our banner afterwards. “Grannies” is a relevant enough theme for Moore Street, where the present traditional traders are often grandmothers, who remember their own grandmothers buying stock to sell from their own stalls. After years of local authority lack of care for their working conditions, none have descendants willing to take up the work now.
As usual we had lots of conversations with passing people from Irish and other backgrounds, whether living and working here or visiting. This included a visitor from Algeria who talked about his people’s struggle for freedom from French colonialism, in which 1.5 million were killed, including two of his martyred uncles.
A well-known woman from an Irish Republican Tyrone family signed our petition, as did a German visitor couple and a family group from Afghanistan, the teenage daughter translating for her mother.
Mostly it was Dubliners who signed and, as often, we were pleased to see those bringing their children to the stall and encouraging them to sign their own names. As we say: they sign in the present to preserve the past to strengthen their future.
We enjoy the livening up of the market with the additional tent-stalls which was much needed; there should be a bakery and a couple of cafes on the street too. We would also like to see a focus on Irish history and culture.
UASDÁTÚ
The High Court hearing sought by Hammerson to hear their objections to the Council’s naming buildings in “the 1916 Terrace” as “protected structures” is due to be heard next month.
No update on our and others’ appeals to An Bord Pleanála against the Hammerson Plan for Moore Street being approved by DCC’s Planning Department.
A couple of media articles on Moore Street https://www.irishtimes.com/…/work-to-finally-start-on…/ https://www.rte.ie/…/0422/1378545-moore-street-dublin/ have been published recently (see links), including the news that Government work is to go ahead on Nos.14-17 to develop as a museum. We commented on these in our album for 6th May.
SUPPORTING THE CAMPAIGN: A very helpful thing you can do is to publicise the campaign, e.g by sharing our posts from time to time, from our Facebook page or website smsfd.ie, reaching people we can’t and which the media doesn’t care to.
