Fermanagh Trust and the BBC present Fermanagh on Screen

Fermanagh on Screen – BBC Community Archive. 3rd, 4th and 5th October. The Clinton Centre 1pm-2pm. BBC NI’s archives contain a treasure trove of recording about every aspect of community life in Fermanagh over the last 90 years. 

In association with the Fermanagh Trust, this free event as part of the Fermanagh Live Festival, will be screening a short series of BBC commissioned films about County Fermanagh, each of which will be introduced by a guest speaker.

Celebrating local people and places, audiences can expect an afternoon of entertainment and nostalgia.

‘Fermanagh on Screen’ begins on Thursday 3^rd October with a double screening introduced by Father Brian D’Arcy. ‘The Loughsiders’ is a remarkable short film presented by Seamus Heaney with accompanying musical arrangement by Derek Bell. This must see programme, first broadcast in 1972, is a poetic celebration of the islands and waterways of County Fermanagh. It will be followed by another short film, ‘Enniskillen – The Island Town’. It was presented by Hugh Dixon and tells the story of Enniskillen through its many historic buildings.

On Friday 4^th the event will be showing the short film, ‘ The Impartial Reporter’ which takes a behind the scenes look at the work of the local newspaper. It was first broadcast in 1993 as part of a series of authorised programmes by Carlo Gebler, who will introduce this screening. The film is evocative of the early 1990s and describes the business of newsgathering and reporting.

‘The Winding Banks of Erne – The Way That I Went’ will be screened on Saturday 5th, introduced by Jim Ledwith. This partly autobiographical film featuring Paddy Turner, first broadcast in 1989, explores the folk stories, music and traditions of rural Fermanagh and pays tribute to “the world of imagination”. Paddy meets local people and talks about their customs and beliefs. The programme contains some characteristic humour and is notable for its lyrical use of language and its depiction of the Fermanagh countryside.

Lauri McCusker, Director of the Fermanagh Trust said “We are delighted to be involved with ‘Fermanagh on Screen’. There are a range of great films about the community which I’m sure the audiences will enjoy. The role of art and culture is important in making places distinctive and engendering pride in the local community”.

Founded in 2006, the Fermanagh Live Festival is a charitable company which coordinates a popular festival in Enniskillen that achieves a high quality of creative and cultural experience for all ages.

The aims of the Festival are to make Fermanagh culturally and economically richer; a county of enthusiasm and diversity and ultimately a place where people want to live, work and visit.

To apply for free tickets visit www.FLive.org.uk or call the box office 028 6632 5440