Brian’s Away With The Birds

Brian’s Burns left Belfast over forty years ago . He is now the caretaker of the
Mc Crae Homestead which was built in 1844 and is owned by the Australia National Trust . He lives in a beautiful spot called the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria , here in Australia .

When I first spoke to Brian I asked him if he was interested in sharing his story about his memories of Belfast and leaving for Australia he was more than happy to do so .

It was in 1957 when Brians twin brother was tragically killed at the intersection of Ballymurphy and Whiterock Road . His childhhood was thrown asunder .
Brian lived in Ardoyne and was brought up by his grandparents Margaret and Patrick Dempsey in 36 Jamaica Street . That street and all the surrounding streets have been demolished in the mid 1970’s .
He had also an Aunt and Uncle who lived in Ardoyne called Mary and Brian Lynn . Brian’s best friend was Frankie McCann who loved in 44 Jamaica Street . They often played cowboys in a spot in Ardoyne called The Dumps .
He told me ,
“Frankie and I always had a shootout for about an hour after the movies . We always got into trouble when we got home .“

It was innocent fun , fingers were six shooters and bullets imaginary .
Back in those days it was fourpence to go to the flicks .
Frankie , Curley and Patsy O’Neill often went to The Forum or over to the Savoy , sometimes they would visit the Flea Pit otherwise known as the Park picture house .

Brian was called Curley by his friends of whom he had many . He rattled off their names like a roll call at school .

“ Frankie McCann, Patsy O’Neill , Sammy Keenan, Tommy Dixon , Joe McCall , Patsy Mc Kenna, Gerard Murphy , Danny Toal, Christy Thomson and his brother who had a dog named Dozer that followed them everywhere .”

Brian worked in Billy O’Carroll’s shop weighing spuds out the back. He loved it as lots of very friendly people used to come into the shop . It was just like a great big family .

Sundays nights was when Brian would go up to Freddie Fusco’s chip shop to meet his girlfriend Julie . There they would sit and share a chip and a soft drink before going for a walk up to the Horseshoe Bend and then back again through Silverstream into Ardoyne . There they spent the night in Maggie Toals house in Havana Street listening to records .
Brian used to feed the pigs over the bone for Hugh Taylor . Patsy O’Neill would lend a hand . He was pain half a crown for his trouble . That half a crown was as big as the moon . Depending on how you looked at it .
In Jamaica Street where Brian lived a lot of people loved pets . He recalls their love for cats , dogs , goldfish and birds . Down at the bottom of the street were the Mc Brides , Dixons , and the Mc Kennas . They all shared this cat called Pinky who actually belonged to someone else . Pinky would have her kittens in the house where she would rear them up and then go back home to Brian’s house . Everyone used to feed Pinky .She must have been the best fed cat in Belfast . Nearly everyone in the street had a cat that was from Pinky . There were the Johnsons , Mrs Adams , Gibsons , Mc Taggarts , Morgans Bobby Scott and The Beggs .
There were sometimes fights over who actually owned Pinky . Poor little cat .
Pinky eventually died after getting run over by a taxi one day .
Mrs Adams had a huge goldfish and Brian used to go around to the dam at the back of Jamaic Street for little red worms to feed the fish . There were budgies and canaries lofted up on back yard walls a;; around Jamaica Street .
Brian rememberts the day the Gibsons left Ardoyne . They were sadly missed as Gerry was a beautiful singer . Gerry had lost his Mother at a young age and had lived there in number 34 with his brothers and sisters .
After the Gibsons moved out Lily and Joe Stewart moved in .
Brian went to St Gab’s school until he was 13 and went to work for his uncle Jim at the Maypole Dairies on the Newtownards Road .

Brian loved to watch his friends and others go around the ring in Butler Street Boxing club . There were some good boxers there like Charlie McAuley or Co-Co as he was known . Co-Co-‘s brother Patrick fought well as did Bo-Bo Fern and Mickey Meehan . Curley put the gloves on himself at times .

Brian would get away sometimes to the Antrim Coast with Danny Toal on their bikes . He said ,
“It was so beautiful there .“
Brian enjoyed sitting on the hobby horses with Jimmy and Hugh Mullen . Annie Mullen looked after Brian and often sent things home for him .

In 1960 Brian decided to leave Ardoyne for Leicester . Then in 1979 Brian left England for Australia .
Brian or Curley has now settled in Australia . He races pigeons and is a bit of a character . He painted the Irish Flag on top of the pigeon house just in case the birds
Get lost . As we were putting this story together he had to move the entire pigeon house . Luckily it was just going next door . He hired a crane for the day and it was all over in an hour or so . The entire neighbourhood was out watching the spectacle .
He like his birds have adjusted well in their new home away from home .

THE END

By Paul McCann