Belclare

Belclare (Irish: Béal Chláir, meaning 'mouth of the plain'^[1]) is a small village in County Galway, western Ireland. The village is on the R333 road approximately 7 km (4 mi) from Tuam. It has a little parish church (The Church of the Sacred Heart), a small primary school, a shop, pub and post office, a community centre, a GAA pitch and a playground.

Belclare Béal Chláir
Village
Sacred Heart Church
Belclare Location in Ireland
Coordinates: 53.4923°N 8.9386°W / 53.4923; -8.9386
Country	Ireland
Province	Connacht
County	County Galway
Dáil Éireann	Galway East
Eircode	H54
Dialing code	+353 93

Geography

Knockma Hill, also known as Castle Hackett hill, is situated 2 km (1.2 mi) west of the centre of Belclare. Legend has it that Finvarra, king of the Connacht Fairies, dwelled there. Maeve, the legendary Queen of Connacht, is reputed to be buried in the Cairn on the summit of the hill - from there are panoramic views.^[2]

Belclare is part of the parish of Corofin.

Politics

Mark Killilea Jnr, the Fianna Fáil politician noted for describing supporters of his party as "people who eat their dinner in the middle of the day", lived in Belclare and died at his home there.^[3]

Current TD for Galway East, Seán Canney is from Belclare.^[4]

Sport

As part of the parish of Corofin, its parish Gaelic football team won the All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship in 1998 (defeating Erin's Isle),^[5] 2015 (defeating Slaughtneil).^[6] They also won the 2018 Championship (defeating Nemo Rangers),^[7] the 2019 Championship (defeating Dr Crokes) ^[8] and the 2020 Championship (defeating Kilcoo) ^[9] to become the first club team to win three finals in a row.^[10]

Popular culture

The 1969 film, Alfred the Great, was filmed in the Castlehackett area. The 1998 film, A Very Unlucky Leprechaun, starring Warwick Davis and Tim Matheson, was filmed at Castlehackett House and Knockma. The 2004 TV series Foreign Exchange, starring Zachary Garred and Lynn Styles, was filmed at Castlehackett House which was called "O'Keeffe's College" in the series.^[11]

The Countdown champion Kevin Steede (who appeared in Series 72 which aired on Britain's Channel 4 in 2015), is originally from Belclare.^[12] Steede studied occupational therapy at the University of Plymouth, having earlier attended St Jarlath's College and NUI Galway locally.^[13]

Gallery

• 
  Welcome to Belclare
• 
  Sacred Heart Church August 2023
• 
  Sacred Heart Church August 2023
• 
  View of the turlough from Belclare
• 
  Ruined castle on Knockma
• 
  View from the top of Knockma Hill

References

1. "Béal Chláir". Logainm.ie. Archived from the original on 15 October 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
2. "Knockma ~ Corofin". Archived from the original on 19 May 2015. Retrieved 21 September 2014.
3. Collins, Liam (6 January 2019). "Former TD who helped resurrect Charles Haughey's political career". Sunday Independent. p. 28. Archived from the original on 29 April 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
4. "About Sean Canney TD Independent politician Tuam County Galway".
5. Kelly, Niall (18 March 2015). "'It bred the group you see here today' - Memories of '98 drove Corofin to All-Ireland glory: Seventeen years on from their first, Corofin finally got their hands on the All-Ireland football title again yesterday". Archived from the original on 11 August 2015.
6. Boyle, Donnchadh (17 March 2015). "Corofin's pace and power too much for Slaughtneil as they claim second All-Ireland title". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
7. "Classy Corofin are All-Ireland club football champions: As it happened". Irish Independent. 17 March 2018. Archived from the original on 18 November 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2018.
8. "AIB GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Club Championship". Gaelic Athletic Association. 17 March 2019. Archived from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
9. "Corofin 1-12 0-7 Kilcoo". Archived from the original on 26 January 2020. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
10. "Corofin Win All-Ireland Club Title for Third Year in a Row - Commentary and Reaction". 19 January 2020. Archived from the original on 16 July 2020. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
11. "Castlehacket House | Castlehacket House Belclare | Knockma House". Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
12. "Belclare's Kevin Steede a Countdown champ". Galway Advertiser. 19 February 2015.
13. "Kevin Steede". Retrieved 18 November 2018.