The Ballycroy Ballroom of Romance photo exhibition is a collection of photos that have never been seen before. They were taken by Dublin native photographer Terry O’Brien who came to live in Achill over 30 years ago and subsequently moved to Bunratty in Clare where he currently works in Bunratty Folk Park as a period photographer and also freelance.
Terry was working as freelance photographer when the Ballroom of Romance film was being made on location in Ballycroy. This exhibition is a collection of photos that were taken of the actors, scenes from the film and actors and locals mingling. The film had a very impressive cast including Brenda Fricker, Cyril Cusack, Niall Tobin and Mayo man Mick Lally. This exhibition came about during a conversation with Terry about the Ballroom of Romance anniversary. Terry thought that he may have some photos of the filming but when he searched his attic he came across a treasure trove of pictures of the filming and other events in Ballycroy going back 30 years. Many of the extras in the film, young men and woman at the time, still live in Ballycroy today.
The exhibition forms part of the annual Ballycroy Festival which opens today August 1 and runs until Sunday, August 10. The exhibition itself will be opened by RTE’S Joe Little on Sunday, August 3 at 1.30pm in Ballycroy Community Centre and will run until the end of the festival the following weekend.
So come along and travel down memory lane back to the Ballroom of Romance, when a little bit of Hollywood came to Ballycroy – you never know who you will meet in the centre on the day. Maybe some of the extras or even ‘The man with the long arms’ !
