Major celebrations planned for Sunday in Celtic Park
An enjoyable Sunday lies ahead in Celtic Park when Boyle Celtic FC will mark a major milestone in the club’s history with the official opening of its new Clubhouse and Community Hub – the culmination of an ambitious five-year development programme that has transformed Celtic Park into one of the region’s premier sporting and community facilities. Events kick off at 12 noon when the public can tour the new facility. At 12.30pm the Official opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place followed by tea, coffee and refreshments. Then at 2pm it’s time for the Senior Men’s FAI Junior Cup Tie between Boyle Celtic vs Castlebar Town. At half-time, there will be youth games and presentations to the Ladies and Reserves teams. From 6:00pm there will be a gathering for Boyle Celtic past and present members, former players, committee members and volunteers, celebrating the people and memories that have shaped Boyle Celtic FC, while recognising those involved today and those who have helped bring the club’s vision to life. All are welcome to come along and join in the celebrations.
Your support is needed to fund Boyle Christmas Lights
A big thank you to the Christmas Lights volunteers who were out since 7am last Sunday and will be out again this Sunday, erecting the town’s Christmas Lights. There are extra lights and features this Christmas which will add to the festive cheer, but the lights need to be paid for and your support is needed once again this year. All donations here will be greatly accepted and help defray the purchase and running costs of the lights. Further details of the official switching on event on Saturday December 5th will be published later.
The popular “Home and Business Christmas Display” also returns this year. If your home or business is lit up for Christmas, why not enter it (for free) in the competition and compete for the Boyle Christmas Lights Trophy! To enter, simply email [email protected].
Another Christmas Lights fundraiser is the “Festive Afternoon Tea” event in St. Joseph’s Hall on Sunday December 13th from 3-5pm. Bring your friends, family, or neighbors to enjoy delicious seasonal treats, fine teas and festive cheer. Cost is €10 per person or you can choose to host a table. A Christmas Raffle will also take place on the day with fantastic prizes up for grabs. Booking is essential. To secure your place or to find out more about hosting a table, please call or text 0861216690.
In addition, Boyle GAA’s ‘Re-Turn for Christmas’ returns also as a Christmas lights fundraiser. Drop your empties to the Re-Turn bins in the Abbey park and support a good local cause.
King House to the fore with numerous events
Anyone who says ‘there is nothing to do around Boyle’ must have their eyes shut. If you look around, there is so much happening and King House is always to the fore with the various events they hold off season. Tonight ‘The Pale Blue Spot’ takes to the stage and then on Saturday November 21st at 1pm it’s the turn of ‘Backstage of Life’ to entertain audiences. Ireland-based musicians Adrian Mantu, Andreea Banciu (Contempo Quartet) and Dermot Dunne join Romanian performers and composers Cristina Tegzeșiu, Alexandra Tănase, Mihai Murariu and Diana Gheorghiu to invite audiences into the backstage of life — and into the backstage of creation itself. The programme brings together Romanian and Irish cultural influences, with music by Harry O’Connor, Mihai Murariu and Diana Gheorghiu, alongside traditional Irish tunes arranged by Dermot Dunne, all woven around the poetry of Latvian writer and performer Aleksandra Line. Her texts speak of memory, fear, belonging, fragility and the experiences we often carry quietly within us — deeply personal feelings that are, at the same time, shared by us all. Tickets: €10 online or call 087 144 4739.
Can business owners endure a 5% rates increase?
Hard pressed business owners around Boyle and the rest of the county won’t be too happy at a proposal to increase rates in the county by 5%. The CEO of Roscommon Co Co has said there is a need for a rate increase as inflation has increased the cost of service in the county. But there are many in business in Boyle who are not happy with the reduction in the essential services that are funded from rates. With the exception of the road sweeper vehicle that comes on Friday’s, there is no member of outdoor staff keeping the streets tidy, hedging along footpaths is overgrown, street lights are taking months – indeed years to get fixed, there seems to be no maintenance plan for the upkeep of recent infrastructural developments, etc, etc. Getting a rates increase passed may not be that easy if the local councillors take on board the feeling of the business community who pay the rates.
Items relevant to Boyle raised in Oireachtas
Two items raised in the Oireachtas this week were relevant to Boyle. In Dail Eireann, Deputy Martin Daly asked the Minister Alan Dillon what measures he intends to put in place to address “persistently high commercial vacancy rates” in rural towns around the county “including my own constituency where in Boyle there is a commercial vacancy rate of 30%”.
In response, Minister Dillon outlined proposals for a retail activation programme, but Deputy Daly argued that bringing businesses and residents back into town centres must be part of the response.
In Seanad Eireann, Senator Gareth Scahill questioned the Minister of Justice, Jim O’Callaghan, about the rural policing model and how it has not been serving our communities to the best of its ability. He challenged him to consider that Scotland, where Ireland’s rural policing is modelled after, has since changed its strategy.
News snippets from around Boyle
Roscommon Co Co advise that the road closure for N61 Tulsk to Greatmeadow planned for 9th to 20th November 2026 has been put on hold as of 11th November 2026. The road will remain open to all traffic as normal until further notice…………This Christmas Boyle Family Resource Centre is asking the community to help make the festive season a little brighter for local families who need extra support. With this in mind, representatives form the Centre will be outside Super Valu on Friday 13th and Saturday 14th November, from 10.30am to 4.00pm where you can donate some items from your weekly shopping. Every single item will make a difference………Some tickets are still available for “The Pale Blus Spot” this evening at 7.30pm in King House. The show will also feature the musical and creative responses of some fantastic young musicians from Music Generation Roscommon, who have been working with Elevation Ensemble to contribute to the “reimagining” of the Golden Record. Tickets: Online www.visitkinghouse.com or call 087 144 4739……….Well done to Boyle native octogenarian athlete John McDermott won won the Sprint Athlete of the Year at the recent Irish Masters Athletics Awards ceremony………A large source of funding for Boyle Family Resource Centre is the recycling bins located outside the main building. The Centre recently issued an update on the bins: “We’ve had a few issues recently with our new recycling bins getting blocked while there is still plenty of room inside them. The problem appears to be that larger bags are getting stuck in the chutes, preventing other bags from going in. Could we ask everyone to please use smaller bags when dropping off in the future and hopefully this will allow us to make full use of the bins”……….. There was a time when the ‘Boy Racers’ took to the roads during the night, but now it’s morning, noon and night. From first light until late evening and into the night, modified cars with loud engines use the town center as a racetrack. A few emit annoying black fumes as they speed up and down our streets. This speeding in a built up town centre is an accident waiting to happen, yet like the illegal parking that unfortunately has become acceptable in Boyle, there seems to be no repercussion for those breaking the law……….Lough Key Triathlon Club AGM will take place in the Hive, Carrick-on-Shannon on Tuesday November 10th at 8pm………..Boyle Ladybirds, Brownies and Girl Guides will be celebrating ‘Youth Night’ in Supervalu on Friday 13th from 5pm-7pm when they will be putting into practice their Guide laws and motto………Boyle man and Government Minister Frank Feighan was in Brussels on Monday representing the Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union, where he addressed the opening ceremony of the European Union-Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (EU-OACPS) Joint Parliamentary Assembly (JPA) at the European Parliament………..Cinema North-West movie night (“Power Ballad”) in Boyle Family Resource Centre Saturday 14th at 8pm. As venue has limited capacity, if you like to reserve a seat please email [email protected]………King House Tea Rooms Christmas Dinner will be held this year on Sunday December 27th. If you know anyone who would like to avail of the dinner, please call 087 6430326.
And finally……..!
A taxi driver picks up a Nun.
She gets into the taxi and notices that the very handsome cab driver won’t stop staring at her.
She asks him why he is staring.
He replies: “I have a question to ask, but I don’t want to offend you.”
She answers, “My son, you cannot offend me. When you’re as old as I am and have been a nun as long as I have, you get a chance to see and hear just about everything. I’m sure that there’s nothing you could say or ask that I would find offensive.”
“Well, I’ve always had a wish to have a nun kiss me.”
She responds, “Well, let’s see what we can do about that…
1. You have to be single and 2. You must be Catholic.”
The cab driver is very excited and says, “Yes, I’m single and Catholic!”
“OK” the nun says. “Pull into the next alley.”
The nun fulfills his wish with a passionate kiss. But when they get back on the road, the cab driver starts crying.
“My dear child,” said the nun, “why are you crying?”
“Forgive me, but I’ve sinned. I lied and I must confess, I’m married and I’m Jewish.”
The nun says, “That’s OK. My name is Kevin and I’m going to a Halloween party!”
