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Carrickfergus

Carrickfergus (, meaning "Fergus' rock") is a large town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It sits on the north shore of Belfast Lough, 11 mi from Belfast. The town had a population of 28,141 at the 2021 census. It is County Antrim's oldest town and one of the oldest towns in Ireland as a whole. Carrickfergus Castle, built in the late 12th century at the behest of Anglo-Norman knight John de Courcy, was the capital of the Earldom of Ulster. After the earldom's collapse, it remained the only English outpost in Ulster for the next four centuries. Carrickfergus was the administrative centre for Carrickfergus Borough Council, before this was amalgamated into the Mid and East Antrim District Council in 2015, and forms part of the Belfast Metropolitan Area. It is also a townland of 65 acres, a civil parish and a barony.

Middle Ages
The town is said to take its name from Fergus Mór (Fergus the Great), the legendary king of Dál Riata. According to one tale, his ship ran aground on a rock by the shore, which became known as "Carraig Fhearghais" – the rock of Fergus.

As an urban settlement, Carrickfergus far pre-dates the capital city Belfast and was for a lengthy period both larger and more prominent than the nearby city. Belfast Lough itself was known as 'Carrickfergus Bay' well into the 17th century. Carrickfergus and the surrounding area was, for a time, treated as a separate county. The historical walled town originally occupied an area of around 97,000 square metres, which now comprises the town centre, bordered by Albert Road to the west, the Marine Highway to the south, Shaftesbury Park to the north and Joymount Presbyterian Church grounds to the east. Segments of the town wall are still visible in various parts of the town and in various states of preservation. Archaeological excavations close to the walls' foundations have yielded many artefacts that have helped historians piece together a picture of the lives of the 12th and 13th century inhabitants.

Carrickfergus became an inhabited town shortly after 1170, when Anglo-Norman knight John de Courcy invaded Ulster, established his headquarters in the area and built Carrickfergus Castle on the "rock of Fergus" in 1177. The castle, which is the most prominent landmark of Carrickfergus, is widely known as one of the best-preserved Norman castles in Ireland.

Sometime between 1203 and 1205, De Courcy was expelled from Ulster by Hugh de Lacy, as authorised by King John. De Lacy oversaw the final construction of the castle, which included the gatehouse, drum towers and outer ward. It was at this time that he established the nearby St Nicholas' Church. De Lacy was relieved of his command of the town in 1210, when King John himself arrived and placed the castle under royal authority. De Lacy eventually regained his title of Earl of Ulster in 1227, however the castle and its walled town were captured several more times following his death (in 1242). The forces of Edward de Bruce captured the town in 1315 and the castle in 1316 before his death in battle in 1318. The town was largely destroyed by the Scots in 1402.

Early modern era
The Battle of Carrickfergus, part of the Nine Years War, took place in and around the town in November 1597. It was fought between the crown forces of Queen Elizabeth I and the Scots clan of MacDonnell, and resulted in a defeat for the English. A contemporary Elizabethan illustration of Carrickfergus shows ten tower-houses, as well as terraces of single-storey houses, some detached cottages and 70 or more Irish beehive-type huts in the town.

Sir Arthur Chichester was appointed by the Earl of Essex to govern the castle and town in 1599 and was responsible for the plantation of English and Scottish peoples in the town, as well as the building of the town wall.

Nevertheless, the decaying castle withstood several days of siege by the forces of William of Orange in 1689, before surrendering on 28 August. William himself subsequently landed at Carrickfergus on 14 June 1690. During the Seven Years' War, in February 1760, the whole town was briefly captured and held to ransom by French troops landed from Francois Thurot's naval squadron, after the defenders ran out of ammunition. In 1711 Carrickfergus was the scene of the last witchcraft trial in Ireland. Eight women were charged with bewitching a young girl, and were convicted, despite a strong indication from one of the judges that the jury should acquit. They were sentenced to a year in prison and four sessions in the pillory.

In April 1778, during the American War of Independence, John Paul Jones, in command of the American ship Ranger, attempted to capture a British Royal Navy sloop of war, HMS Drake (1777), moored at Carrickfergus. Having failed, he returned a few days later and challenged Drake to a fight out in the North Channel which the Americans won decisively.

During the 1790s there was considerable support in the Carrickfergus area for the United Irishmen. On 14 October 1797 William Orr was hanged in the town following what was widely regarded as a show trial held in Carrickfergus Courthouse (now the Town Hall ) and in 1798 United Irish founder Henry Joy McCracken was captured on the outskirts of the town while trying to escape to America.

Modern era
In 1912 the people of Carrickfergus turned out in their thousands to watch as the RMS Titanic made its first ever journey up the lough from its construction dock in Belfast. The famous passenger liner was anchored overnight just off the coast of Carrickfergus, before continuing on its journey. During World War II, Northern Ireland was an important military base for United States Naval and Air Operations and a training ground for American G.I.s. The First Battalions of the elite US Rangers were activated and based in Sunnylands Camp for their initial training. The US Rangers Centre in nearby Boneybefore pays homage to this period in history. It is rumoured that Italian and German POWs were held in the town, the Italians in a camp at Sullatober mill, and Germans at Sunnylands.

In the 1970s, the town became an important centre for the textile industry. An ICI man-made fibres factory was opened at Kilroot and was followed by the Rothman's cigarette factory. Courtaulds operated a large rayon works there until the 1980s.

In 1981, Kilroot power station opened and is the largest power station in Northern Ireland.

On 8 September 2007, Carrickfergus was the Northern Irish host for the Last Night at the Proms, featuring Alison Balsom, Alfie Boe, and Ulster conductor Kenneth Montgomery.

The British peerage title of Baron Carrickfergus, which had become extinct in 1883, was bestowed upon Prince William on his wedding day in 2011. He visited the town with Catherine, Princess of Wales in October 2022.

The Troubles
Throughout the course of The Troubles, there was a paramilitary presence in the town, namely the Ulster Volunteer Force and Ulster Defence Association. Census figures show that the Catholic population of Carrickfergus declined from 16.2% in 1971 to 9.56% in 2011.

Carrickfergus in song and poetry
The town is the subject of the classic Irish folk song "Carrickfergus", a 19th-century translation of an Irish-language song (Do Bhí Bean Uasal) from Munster, which begins with the words, "I wish I was in Carrickfergus".

Scottish Gaelic poet Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair's immram poem Birlinn Chloinne Raghnaill ("The Birlinn of Clanranald"), describes the sea voyage of a Highland war galley from Loch Eynort, in South Uist, to Carrickfergus. Alan Riach, who has translated the poem into English, has praised the genius of its 18th-century author and how brilliantly he emulated both Homer and Virgil in telling his tale of men against the sea. Riach has also alleged that, in addition to being an immortal work of Scottish Gaelic literature, The Birlinn of Clanranald, is, "one of the great poems of world literature."

2021 census
As of the 2021 census, in March 2021, there were 28,141 people living in Carrickfergus. Of these:

 * 73.49% were from the Protestant or other Christian community backgrounds and 8.55% were from a Roman Catholic Christian community background.
 * 73.94% indicated that they had a British national identity, 5.53% had an Irish national identity and 37.32% had a Northern Irish national identity (respondents could choose more than one national identity).

2011 census
On census day 2011, 27 March 2011, there were 27,998 people living in Carrickfergus. Of these:

 * 20.23% were aged under 16 years and 14.73% were aged 65 and over.
 * 51.95% of the usually resident population were female and 48.05% were male.
 * 80.70% were from the Protestant or other Christian community backgrounds and 8.35% were from a Roman Catholic Christian community background.
 * 78.26% indicated that they had a British national identity, 4.73% had an Irish national identity and 29.36% had a Northern Irish national identity (respondents could choose more than one national identity)
 * 39 years was the average (median) age of the population.
 * 8.49% had some knowledge of Ulster-Scots and 1.99% had some knowledge of Irish.

Transport
Carrickfergus railway station opened on 1 October 1862. In addition, the northwest of the town is served by Clipperstown railway station, and the east by Downshire railway station. All three stations have regular commuter services to Belfast and Larne. Four historic stations in Carrickfergus; Barn, Eden, Mount, and Kilroot; closed in the 1970s.

Politics
Carrickfergus is covered by the East Antrim constituency, whose Member of Parliament (MP) is Sammy Wilson of the DUP. The Parliamentary constituency of Carrickfergus existed from 1801 to 1885.

Local MLAs for the area following the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election are:
 * John Stewart (UUP)
 * Gordon Lyons (DUP)
 * David Hilditch (DUP)
 * Stewart Dickson (Alliance)
 * Danny Donnelly (Alliance)

Until 2015 the local authority was Carrickfergus Borough Council, based at Carrickfergus Town Hall. Since 1 April 2015 Carrickfergus has come under the control of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council. The town is covered by two of the council's wards, Carrick Castle and Knockagh. In the May 2023 local elections, the following councillors were elected for these wards:-

Carrick Castle
 * Billy Ashe (DUP)
 * Cheryl Brownlee (DUP)
 * Bethany Ferris (UUP)
 * Lauren Gray (Alliance)
 * Robin Stewart (UUP)

Knockagh
 * Marc Collins (DUP)
 * Bobby Hadden (Independent)
 * Peter Johnston (DUP)
 * Aaron Skinner (Alliance)
 * Andrew Wilson (UUP)

Schools and education
There are several primary in Carrickfergus, including St Nicholas' Primary School.

Secondary schools serving the area include Carrickfergus Grammar School, Carrickfergus Academy and Ulidia Integrated College.

Sports
Sporting establishments in the town include the association football clubs Carrick Rangers F.C. and Barn United FC.

Carrickfergus Sailing Club and Carrickfergus Cricket Club are also based in the town.

Media
Carrickfergus FM is a Restricted Service Licence community radio station which broadcasts seasonally in the area.

Historical

 * Robert Adrain (1775–1843), mathematician, considered one of the best mathematical minds of his time, was born in Carrickfergus
 * Edward Bruce (c. 1280–1319), High King of Ireland and Earl of Carrick, brother to Robert the Bruce, King of Scots.
 * Sir John de Courcy (1160–1219) Anglo Norman knight and builder of Carrickfergus Castle
 * Hugh de Lacy, 1st Earl of Ulster (c. 1176 – c. 1242)
 * William Orr, United Irishman, was hanged in Carrickfergus on 14 October 1797 shortly before the failed rebellion.
 * Charlotte Riddell, writer of the Victorian period, was born Charlotte Eliza Lawson Cowan (1832) in Carrickfergus.
 * Jonathan Swift, the poet and satirist lived in Kilroot, on the outskirts of the town, and wrote A Tale of a Tub there.

20th century

 * Daniel Cambridge, recipient of the Victoria Cross
 * James Crichton, recipient of the Victoria Cross
 * Sammy Curran, a prolific Irish League goalscorer between the wars playing for Woodburn and Belfast Celtic among others, who was also capped 4 times by Ireland.
 * Bob Gilmore (1961–2015), musicologist and player of piano and keyboards, was born in nearby Larne; lived in Carrickfergus during his childhood.
 * Seán Lester (1888–1959) was born in Carrickfergus. He was the last Secretary General of the League of Nations, from 1940 to 1946.
 * Billy McMillan, former Belfast Celtic and dual IFA and FAI Irish international footballer who lived his entire life in Carrickfergus.
 * Louis MacNeice, poet, moved to the town when he was two years old (his father was appointed Rector of St Nicholas' Church of Ireland Church), and he left at the age of ten to attend boarding school in England; one of his poems, Carrickfergus (1937), relates his ambiguous feelings about the town where he spent his early boyhood.

Contemporary

 * Gillian Arnold, artist and designer, born Carrickfergus. (1971–1990)
 * Ryan Eagleson, Derbyshire and Irish international cricketer, 65 caps for Ireland, 1995–2004.
 * Fit Finlay, former WWE wrestler, was born and raised in the satellite village of Greenisland.
 * Jimmy Hill (Norwich City) and Billy McCullough (Arsenal), Northern Ireland international footballers born in Carrickfergus.
 * Bobby Irvine (Stoke City), Northern Ireland international footballer born in nearby Eden before moving to Carrickfergus.
 * Willie Irvine (Burnley), Northern Ireland international footballer born in Eden before moving to Carrickfergus.
 * Niamh Kavanagh, Irish Eurovision entrant and winner of 1993.
 * Adrian McKinty, novelist, author of the Sean Duffy novels set in Carrickfergus, was raised in the town.
 * Seán Neeson, politician and activist; former leader of the Alliance Party NI sat on Carrickfergus Council (1977–2013), and represented East Antrim in the NI Assembly (1998–2011).
 * Stuart Robinson, host of Northern Ireland's Young Star Search and presenter on Cool FM.
 * Jackie Woodburne, actress known for her role as Susan Kennedy in Australian soap opera Neighbours, was born in Carrickfergus.
 * Jo Zebedee (born 1971), writer brought up in the town.

Twin towns – sister cities
Carrickfergus is twinned with:

 * Anderson, United States
 * Danville, United States
 * Jackson, United States
 * Portsmouth, United States
 * Ruda Śląska, Poland

title: Carrickfergus


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Ballycastle, County Antrim

Ballycastle is a small seaside town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is on the north-easternmost coastal tip of Ireland, in the Antrim Coast and Glens Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Ballycastle lies at roughly the mid point of the Causeway Coastal Route and is a gateway to both the Glens of Antrim and the North Coast. With a number of attractions on the town's doorstep such as the Giant's Causeway, Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge and the Dark Hedges it is a popular destination and stopping point for tourists. The town also benefits from a sweeping bay and beach on its eastern side, with views to Fair Head and Knocklayde mountain dominating the landscape.

The town has been recognised on a number of occasions by The Sunday Times on their "Best Places To Live" list, and has been previously crowned the overall regional winner for Northern Ireland.

The harbour hosts the ferry to Rathlin Island and a smaller passenger and charter service to Campbeltown and Port Ellen in Scotland, with both Rathlin Island and Scotland's Kintyre peninsula able to be seen from the coast. The Ould Lammas Fair is held each year in Ballycastle on the last Monday and Tuesday of August. Ballycastle is the home of the Corrymeela Community.

Ballycastle had a population of 5,628 at the 2021 census. It was the seat and main settlement of the former Moyle District Council.

2021 census
At the time of the 2021 census the population of Ballycastle was 5,628. Of these:

 * 75.5% were from a Catholic and 18.3% were from a Protestant or other Christian background.

2011 census
At the time of the 2011 UK census the population of Ballycastle was 5,237. Of these:

 * 20.2% were aged under 16 years and 17.5% were aged 65 and over
 * 47.5% of the population were male and 52.5% were female
 * 77.1% were from a Catholic and 19.0% were from a Protestant or other Christian background
 * 7.1% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed

History
Ballycastle can trace its history back to the founding of a settlement around Port Brittas, the old name for Ballycastle Bay. It is from here that it has been suggested that Fergus Mór mac Eirc, a purported king of Dalriada, sailed to Scotland and founded a large colony throughout Argyll.

From the late 14th century the area was at the centre of the territory controlled by the MacDonnell's of Antrim. Descended from Clan MacDonald of Dunnyveg, it was through the marriage of John Mór MacDonald and Margery Byset in 1399 that the clan laid the basis of their claim to the Glens of Antrim. However it wasn't until the 16th century when the celebrated chieftain Sorley Boy MacDonnell of Dunaneeny Castle established the clan in both the Glens and The Route.

The settlement around Dunaneeny Castle, along with the settlements at Bonamargy Friary and the castle in the area of the Diamond merged to become the present day town. It is from this castle, that stood on the site of Holy Trinity Church, which the town derived its name. Ballycastle Castle which had been in the possession of the MacDonnell's, before being seized by both Scottish and later Cromwellian troops, fell into disrepair with the last remaining walls being removed in the 19th century.

Around the year 1786 Hugh Boyd, the son of the rector of Ramoan parish church, obtained a lease and permission from parliament to build a new harbour and pier to protect shipping. He is known for establishing coal shafts, potteries, a glass factory and a number of industries which under his care saw Ballycastle become a flourishing town. Hugh Boyd is credited for the construction or establishment of a number of buildings that still stand in the town today.

Governance
The town is located within The Glens district electoral area (DEA) of the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council. In the 2019 Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council election, the residents of this DEA elected 2 Sinn Fein, 1 SDLP, 1 UUP and 1 Independent representatives to the council.

Places of interest
The Ould Lammas Fair, historically a lamb sale, has now become a street get together with market stalls, busking and street performers, attracting upwards of sixty thousand people each year. The fair is normally held Bank holiday Monday and Tuesday at end of August based on the fact that fairs were always held on last Tuesday of the month. (When the bank holiday is the last day of August the fair occurs a week earlier.)
 * Fair Head is a headland near Ballycastle that rises 196 m out of the bay. There is a man-made Iron Age crannóg in the middle of a large lake at the top.
 * Knocklayde, a heather-covered mountain with a height of 1685 ft, is crowned by Carn na Truagh (the Cairn of Sorrow), and has views over Ballycastle, Rathlin Island, Fair Head, and Scotland.
 * Glentaisie, the most northerly of the nine Glens of Antrim ('the Glynns'), lies at the foot of Knocklayde mountain. It is named after the Princess Taisie, the daughter of King Dorm of Rathlin Island. According to legend, Taisie, renowned for her great beauty, was betrothed to Congal, heir to the Kingdom of Ireland. The King of Norway also sought her hand in marriage, and when he arrived to claim his bride, her wedding celebrations to Congal had begun. The king and his army tried to capture Taisie, but in the subsequent battle he was killed, and his army fled leaderless and empty-handed.
 * The Carey, Glenshesk and Tow Rivers flow down from the Glens into the Margy River. It then flows into the Moyle Sea at the start of the Strand.
 * The Strand's Ballycastle Beach is designated a Blue Flag beach.
 * Pans Rocks, which are the remains of an iron salt pan lying at the far end of Ballycastle Beach, jut out into the sea and are a popular spot for fishing.
 * The Devils Churn, lying just beyond Pans Rocks, has steps carved into the stone leading to an underwater tunnel.
 * Clare Park on Clare Road, was an estate owned by the then-local landed gentry, the McGildownys. The 17th-century house has been pulled down but it was set in a site high up on the Antrim coast.
 * The Corrymeela Community (a Christian organisation promoting peace and reconciliation, founded in 1965) is based at Corrymeela, just outside Ballycastle.
 * Overlooking the harbour, there is a monument to Guglielmo, 1st Marchese Marconi, whose employees made the world's first commercial wireless telegraph transmission between Ballycastle and the East Lighthouse on Rathlin Island. Marconi was created a Marchese by King Vittorio Emanuele III of Italy in 1929.
 * Close to the beach, there is a sculpture of the Children of Lir. According to the legend, the children were cursed to spend 300 years on the Sea of Moyle, upon which Ballycastle is a coastal town.

Buildings of note

 * St Patrick's and St Brigid's Church is a Catholic church located on Moyle Road. Known locally as 'the Chapel', it was initially designed by Fr. Jeremiah McAuley who also designed St. Peter's Cathedral in Belfast. It was erected in 1870. An octagonal spire was added in 1898 and there were further alterations in 1993. The spire was used as a mast by Marconi to send the first radio broadcast to Rathlin Island in 1898.
 * Holy Trinity Parish Church is a Church of Ireland church in The Diamond, Ballycastle's main square. Like the rest of The Diamond, the church is Grade 'A' listed. Built by Colonel Hugh Boyd, who bore the total cost, the church was completed in 1756 and is popularly known as Boyd's Church. It was built in Graeco-Italian style with an apse-shaped chancel, and an octagonal spire about 100 ft high. It was effectively a chapel for the Boyd family and its estate for many years. The remains of many Boyd descendants are in the vaults below – although it was always subject to Episcopal jurisdiction. It was given to the Church of Ireland in about 1950. The church is open every day from 9am-5pm.
 * Bonamargy Friary is off the Cushendall Road on the approach to Ballycastle and is a late Franciscan foundation established in 1485 by Rory MacQuillan. Locked vaults hold the remains of the celebrated chieftain, Sorley Boy MacDonnell, and several of the Earls of Antrim.
 * Dunaneeny Castle is a ruined castle located on the cliffs overlooking Ballycastle Bay. Built by Alexander MacDonnell, the castle was also the birthplace of Sorley Boy MacDonnell.
 * Kinbane Castle is on a headland projecting into the sea, about 3 miles (5 km) from Ballycastle on the road to Ballintoy. Originally a two-storey building, it was built in 1547 by Colla MacDonnell, who died within its walls in 1558.
 * The Ballycastle Presbyterian Church located in Castle Street has a distinctive round tower.

Transport

Bus services in Ballycastle are operated by Translink.

A ferry runs between the town and Rathlin Island as part of a lifeline service. Since 2008 this ferry has been operated by the Rathlin Island Ferry Ltd but previously it had been operated by Caledonian MacBrayne beginning in 1996.

A passenger ferry service to Campbeltown on Scotland's Kintyre peninsula, and Port Ellen on Islay, operated by Kintyre Express, runs seven days during summer months and only on Mondays and Fridays during winter months. Sea Containers Ltd previously ran a ferry from Ballycastle to Campbeltown from 1997 to June 2002.

Ballycastle railway station opened on 18 October 1880 on the Ballycastle Railway, a narrow gauge railway which ran for 17 mi. The railway ran from Ballycastle to Ballymoney station, a station on the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway (BNCR), later Northern Counties Committee (NCC) and now part of Northern Ireland Railways.

The Troubles in Ballycastle
There were several incidents of what came to be known as the Troubles in Northern Ireland, including:
 * Loyalist paramilitaries left a car bomb outside the Roman Catholic church (St. Patrick's & St. Brigid's) in the town on 26 August 1973. It was timed to explode as massgoers left the church. But the service ran late, and the bomb detonated when the congregation were still inside the church, avoiding large-scale loss of life. 50 people were injured, 3 of them seriously.
 * On 19 June 1979 the Irish Republican Army bombed five hotels in different seaside towns in Northern Ireland, including Ballycastle's Marine Hotel. William Whitten, a 65-year-old Protestant hotel guest, was seriously injured in the blast; he died three weeks later.
 * Spence McGarry (46), an off-duty member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), was killed when a Provisional Irish Republican Army booby trap bomb attached to his car exploded in Castle Street car park, Ballycastle on 6 April 1991. Gerard Butler was convicted in 1993 for the attack, and sentenced to 22 years in prison.
 * In 2001, there was an attempt at mass murder by the Red Hand Defenders when a car bomb was left in Castle Street during the annual Lammas Fair.

Parade disputes
In the past, there has been unrest during Orange Order parades in the town. In 2001, there was serious public disorder at 12 July parade. As a result of this, the Silver Plains flute band, from nearby Moyarget, was banned from marching in the town due to allegations of sectarian conduct and paramilitary trappings.

Climate
As with the rest of Northern Ireland, Ballycastle experiences a maritime climate with cool summers and mild winters. The nearest official Met Office weather station for which online records are available is at Ballypatrick Forest, about 4 mi east-southeast of Ballypatrick.

Sport
Sports of local interest include tennis, bowling (Mary Street), hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, (Whitehall/Leyland Road), soccer, golf, quidditch and skateboarding.There is additionally a local pool league between the various pubs in the town.

Golf
Ballycastle Golf Club offers an 18-hole championship course open year-round to both members and non-members. The course is one of the four courses played each June in the world-renowned Causeway Coast Golf Tournament.

Tennis
During the Summer, the town hosts two tennis tournaments, one of which is run by the Moyle District Council.

Association Football
Ballycastle United Football Club combined with Moyle FC in 2011, and the team now competes in the Coleraine and District morning league.

Bowls
Ballycastle Bowling Club has a scenic outdoors setting that is a feature of the town's sea-front.

1500s

 * Sorley Boy MacDonnell (c.1505–1590) – Scottish-Irish prince, born at Dunanynie Castle near Ballycastle
 * Gillaspick MacDonnell (c.1550–1571) – nephew of Sorley Boy MacDonnell, killed accidentally in 1571 at Ballycastle.

1600s

 * The 1st Viscount Longford and 17th Baron Slane (1669–1726) – politician. Lord Longford, known for much of his life as Lord Slane, is buried in the MacDonnell family vault in Bonamargy Friary, Ballycastle, the burial place of the Earls of Antrim.

1700s

 * Hugh Boyd (1746–1794) – writer
 * John Surman Carden (1771–1858) – officer of the British Royal Navy, died in Ballycastle
 * Hugh M'Neile (1795–1879) – controversial anti-Roman Catholic preacher

1800s

 * John Samuel Bewley Monsell (1811–1875) – clergyman and hymnwriter
 * Thomas Witherow (1824–1890) – Presbyterian minister and historian.
 * Sir Roger Casement (1864–1916) – writer and Irish Republican revolutionary who was born and raised in Dublin to a father from Ballycastle.
 * Dame Louise McIlroy (1874–1968) – medical doctor, born near Ballymena, father was a general practitioner in Ballycastle
 * Robert Quigg 1885–1955) – soldier and recipient of the Victoria Cross

1900s

 * Helen Megaw (1907–2002) – crystallographer
 * Donal Lamont (1911–2003) – Bishop of Mutare, Zimbabwe, nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1978
 * Michael Dallat (1925–2000) – Titular Bishop of Thala, Tunisia and Auxiliary Bishop of Diocese of Down and Connor
 * Keith Cardinal O'Brien (1938–2018) – he served as Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, 1985–2013. Cardinal O'Brien was effectively the head of the Catholic Church in Scotland from the death of Thomas Cardinal Winning, Archbishop of Glasgow, in June 2001 until his own resignation as Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh in February 2013. He was created a Cardinal in October 2003.
 * David McWilliams (1945–2002) – folksinger and musician
 * Conleth Hill (b. 1964) – actor

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Ballycastle, County Antrim


text:
Communes of the Landes department

The following is a list of the 327 communes of the Landes department of France.

The communes cooperate in the following intercommunalities (as of 2020):
 * Communauté d'agglomération du Grand Dax
 * Communauté d'agglomération Mont-de-Marsan Agglomération
 * Communauté de communes d'Aire-sur-l'Adour (partly)
 * Communauté de communes Chalosse Tursan
 * Communauté de communes Cœur Haute Lande
 * Communauté de communes Coteaux et Vallées des Luys
 * Communauté de communes Côte Landes Nature
 * Communauté de communes des Grands Lacs
 * Communauté de communes des Landes d'Armagnac
 * Communauté de communes de Maremne-Adour-Côte-Sud
 * Communauté de communes de Mimizan
 * Communauté de communes du Pays Grenadois
 * Communauté de communes du Pays Morcenais
 * Communauté de communes du Pays d'Orthe et Arrigans
 * Communauté de communes du Pays Tarusate
 * Communauté de communes du Pays de Villeneuve en Armagnac Landais
 * Communauté de communes du Seignanx
 * Communauté de communes Terres de Chalosse

title: Communes of the Landes department


text:
The Swan (1956 film)

The Swan is a 1956 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by Charles Vidor from a screenplay by John Dighton. It is a remake of the 1925 silent film of the same name, itself based on the play of the same name by Ferenc Molnár.

The film stars Grace Kelly, Alec Guinness, and Louis Jourdan, with Agnes Moorehead, Jessie Royce Landis, Brian Aherne, Leo G. Carroll, Estelle Winwood, and Van Dyke Parks in supporting roles. The film was released the day Kelly became princess consort of Monaco.

Plot
In 1910, Princess Alexandra, the daughter of a minor branch of a European royal house, is urged by her mother to accept her cousin, Crown Prince Albert, as husband so that their family may regain a throne that was taken from them by Napoleon. Princess Alexandra tries to gain Albert's attention; he is otherwise taken with sleeping late, shooting ducks and playing football with Alexandra's two younger brothers. Alexandra's mother urges her to show interest in the tutor, Dr. Nicholas Agi, to make Albert jealous and stimulate a proposal from him.

Agi is already taken with Alexandra and when she invites him to the farewell ball for the crown prince, he eagerly accepts. Later, when they are dancing at the ball, it appears that Albert is getting jealous, but instead he is more interested in playing the bass viol in the orchestra.

Later, Agi tells Alexandra how he feels about her. She tells him that it was all a ploy to get Albert to propose to her and she suspected he felt this way. She realizes that she has some feelings for him, but he refuses her. Albert comes to discover about this situation and is a little taken aback. Albert and Agi trade insults. Agi then storms out and tries to leave the next morning.

Alexandra, distraught over what happened, tries to leave with him, but he refuses her again. Albert's mother, The Queen, shows up and is aghast upon hearing the entire story. Albert gives his blessing to the pair and says that when he becomes king, he will allow them back into the country. However, Agi ends up leaving the mansion without Alexandra.

Albert tries to console Alexandra by telling her she is like a swan: on the water she looks serene, but on land she is more like a goose. Albert then offers Alexandra his arm and they walk back into the mansion together.

Background
The 1925, 1930, and 1956 films are all based on the 1914 Hungarian play A Hattyú, Vígjáték Három Felvonásban (The Swan, A Comedy in Three Acts) by Ferenc Molnár.

Grace Kelly had previously appeared in the CBS Television production of The Swan on June 9, 1950.

MGM bought the screenrights in May 1955 as a vehicle for Kelly. Head of production Dore Schary also announced he intended to remake The Barretts of Wimpole Street with Kelly.

Kelly visited the Cannes Film Festival later that month. It was there she met Prince Ranier.

By August 1955, the lead roles had been given to Louis Jourdan – who had done a screen test in Paris – and Rex Harrison. However, Harrison was unable to come to terms with the studio. By the end of the month, Alec Guinness signed to play the role – it would be his first Hollywood movie.

Director Charles Vidor said the filmmakers paid close attention to the Princess Margaret–Peter Townsend romance. "If they had wed we would have thought very seriously about changing our ending", he said. "However, by not marrying a commoner made our Swan a new, modern story. Now they can't say it's old-fashioned."

Production
The film was shot on location in North Carolina, at the 1895 Biltmore Estate of George W. Vanderbilt in Asheville and at Lake Junaluska.

MGM held the release of The Swan to correspond with the civil wedding ceremony of Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier of Monaco, on April 18, 1956.

Music
The score was composed by Bronislau Kaper and conducted by Johnny Green, with orchestrations by Robert Franklyn. One piece of source music, "Rakoczy March", an 1809 piece by John Bihari, was conducted by Miklós Rózsa.

MGM Records released two suites of portions of the music from the film on long-playing record after the release of the film. The complete score was released in 2004, on CD, on the Film Score Monthly label.

Box office
According to MGM records, the film earned $1,763,000 in the US and Canada and $1,986,000 elsewhere, resulting in a loss of $798,000.

Earlier film versions

 * The 1925 silent film with the same title was directed by Dimitri Buchowetzki and starred Frances Howard as Princess Alexandra, Adolphe Menjou as Crown Prince Albert and Ricardo Cortez as the tutor. That version ends with Alexandra and the tutor kissing, and the expectation they will marry.
 * One Romantic Night (1930) starred Lillian Gish as Princess Alexandra and Rod La Rocque as Prince Albert, with Conrad Nagel as the tutor. It was directed by Paul Stein.

Original Broadway production
The original Broadway production of The Swan opened on Broadway in 1923, with Eva Le Gallienne as Princess Alexandra, Philip Merivale as Prince Albert, and Basil Rathbone as the tutor.

title: The Swan (1956 film)


text:
Talk:Analog signal

Link suggestions
An automated Wikipedia link suggester has some possible wiki link suggestions for the Analog article, and they have been placed on this page for your convenience. Tip: Some people find it helpful if these suggestions are shown on this talk page, rather than on another page. To do this, just add to this page. — LinkBot 00:52, 18 Dec 2004 (UTC)

Do we want articles that aspire to sounding erudite? Articles that are comprehensive to the point of being chopped hash? These are the properties found in standard encyclopedias. We can be different by having plain, clear explanations.

Correction
It was formerly asserted that a microphone's operating mechanism is a variance of current caused by sound pressure. This is technically incorrect (compare Microphone), since it is not current that varies with the sound pressure, but voltage. I've made this correction in the article. HarmonicSphere 03:03, 2 February 2006 (UTC)

...Unless you are talking about a carbon microphone—still found in older telephone sets—A carbon microphone effectively is a resistor whose value varies with sound pressure. When a carbon microphone is placed in a circuit that is supplied by a constant-voltage source (e.g., a battery), then the current in that circuit that will fluctuate in response to sound pressure fluctuations. Drondent 00:35, 18 July 2007 (UTC)

 * To be strictly accurate, a varying magnetic field induces a current in a coil of wire.  All microphones that employ an electromagnetic principle thus induce a current in the electrical conductor be it a coil or a ribbon.  The only reason that a voltage also occurs is because the current is passed through a load resistor of some sort.  The only type of microphone that directly produces voltage variations that leaps to mind is the condensor microphone which requires an electrometer type circuit to produce a useable signal.  The article was originally correct and I have corrected the error 20.133.0.13 (talk) 08:21, 9 September 2009 (UTC)

 * There is no longer a mention of microphones in the article. ~Kvng (talk) 18:46, 7 May 2022 (UTC)

I'd like to add that it might be misleading to say that digital signals require more bandwidth. Digital signals, being representative, can be subject to compression. For example, the mathematical equation of a long sine wave would require far less bandwidth to transmit than the actual sound, and it's resolution is limited only by the hardware decoding/converting it. This is why digital television channels have far greater quality to bandwidth ratios than analog ones. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 74.243.110.209 (talk) 01:34, 4 May 2012 (UTC)

 * There is no longer a mention of bandwidth in the article. ~Kvng (talk) 18:46, 7 May 2022 (UTC)

Added wikilinks
I made the anon changes, forgot to log in

Modem
There is an obvious problem on Modem that most people think a Modem converts digital signals to analog signals. The modem article is already too long to include a tutorial on the difference between analog and digital signals, and there isn't any good place to reference -- so any suggestions would be welcome.203.206.162.148 (talk) 08:01, 8 September 2010 (UTC)

title: Talk:Analog signal


text:
Rathlin Island

Rathlin Island (Reachlainn, ; Local Irish dialect: Reachraidh, ; Scots: Racherie) is an island and civil parish off the coast of County Antrim (of which it is part) in Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's northernmost point. As of the 2021 Census there are 141 people living on the island.

Geography
Rathlin is the only inhabited offshore island of Northern Ireland, with a steadily growing population of approximately 150 people, and is the most northerly inhabited island off the coast of Northern Ireland. The reverse-L-shaped Rathlin Island is 4 mi from east to west, and 2+1/2 mi from north to south.

The highest point on the island is Slieveard, 134 m above sea level. Rathlin is 15+1/2 nmi from the Mull of Kintyre, the southern tip of Scotland's Kintyre peninsula. It is part of the Causeway Coast and Glens council area, and is represented by the Rathlin Development & Community Association.

Townland
Rathlin is part of the traditional barony of Cary (around the town of Ballycastle), and of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council. The island constitutes a civil parish and is subdivided into 22 townlands:

2021 Census
Rathlin Island is labelled as The_Glens_B1 Data Zone according to the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. As of the 2021 Census it is the smallest Data Zone. On Census day (21 March 2021) there were 141 people living in Rathlin Island. Of these:

 * 57.5% (81) belong to or were brought up in the Catholic religion, 19.9% (28) belong to or were brought up in a 'Protestant and Other Christian (including Christian related)' religion, 17.7% (25) had no religious background and 5.0% (7) came from other religious backgrounds.
 * 38.3% had an Irish national identity, 39.0% had a Northern Irish national identity and 22.0% indicated that they had a British national identity (Respondents could select more than one nationality).

Irish language
The Irish language was originally spoken on Rathlin Island until around the 1960s and was perhaps the main community language until the early 20th century.

The local dialect shows many features typical for Scottish Gaelic and not found in other dialects of Ireland, e.g. forming plurals with -(e)an, use of the interrogative có (standard Irish cé), it uses the object pronouns e, i for subjects of finite verbs, etc., thus it is sometimes treated as a dialect of Scottish Gaelic rather than Irish. It was nevertheless mutually intelligible with dialects of the Irish mainland in the Glens of Antrim. The features shared with Irish dialects are typically retentions that were lost in Scotland between the 17th and 20th century rather than innovations common with Irish, like e.g. retention of eclipsis of p, t, c, f (but not b, d, g) after some words ending in a consonant (eg. nar bpeacaidh 'our sins', nar bpiúr 'our sister', seacht bpont 'seven pounds').

As of the 2021 Census, 33.3% of the population had some ability in Irish. 7.1% of the population spoke Irish at least weekly.

Transport
A ferry operated by Rathlin Island Ferry Ltd connects the main port of the island, Church Bay, with the mainland at Ballycastle, 6 nmi away. Two ferries operate on the route – the fast foot-passenger-only catamaran ferry Rathlin Express and a purpose-built larger ferry, commissioned in May 2017, Spirit of Rathlin, which carries both foot passengers and a small number of vehicles, weather permitting. Rathlin Island Ferry Ltd won a six-year contract for the service in 2008 providing it as a subsidised "lifeline" service. There is an ongoing investigation on how the transfer was handled between the Environment Minister and the new owners.

Natural history
Rathlin is of prehistoric volcanic origin, having been created as part of the British Tertiary Volcanic Province.

The island was owned by Rev Robert Gage who was also the island's rector. He had two daughters, Adelaide in 1832 and Dorothea in 1835. Adelaide was a botanist who wrote a book concerning the island's flora and fauna. She visited Dorothea in Germany after she married his Serene Highness Albrecht, Prince of Warbeck and Pyrmonte. Adelaide was buried in Ramoan Churchyard in Ballycastle in 1920 and her book on Rathlin is now lost.

Rathlin is one of 43 Special Areas of Conservation in Northern Ireland. It is home to tens of thousands of seabirds, including common guillemots, kittiwakes, puffins and razorbills – about thirty bird families in total. It is visited by birdwatchers, with a Royal Society for the Protection of Birds nature reserve that has views of Rathlin's bird colony. The RSPB has also successfully managed natural habitat to facilitate the return of the red-billed chough. Northern Ireland's only breeding pair of choughs can be seen during the summer months.

The cliffs on this relatively bare island stand 70 m tall. Bruce's Cave is named after Robert the Bruce, also known as Robert I of Scotland: it was here that he was said to have seen the legendary spider which is described as inspiring Bruce to continue his fight for Scottish independence. The island is also the northernmost point of the Antrim Coast and Glens Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

In 2008-09, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency of the United Kingdom and the Marine Institute Ireland undertook bathymetric survey work north of Antrim, updating Admiralty charts (Joint Irish Bathymetric Survey Project). In doing so a number of interesting submarine geological features were identified around Rathlin Island, including a submerged crater or lake on a plateau with clear evidence of water courses feeding it. This suggests the events leading to inundation – subsidence of land or rising water levels – were extremely quick.

Marine investigations in the area have also identified new species of sea anemone, rediscovered the fan mussel (the UK's largest and rarest bivalve mollusc – thought to be found only in Plymouth Sound and a few sites off the west of Scotland) and a number of shipwreck sites, including HMS Drake, which was torpedoed and sank just off the island in 1917.

Algae
Species of algae recorded from Rathlin, such as Hypoglossum hypoglossoides, Apoglossum ruscifolium , Radicilingua thysanorhizans and Haraldiophyllum bonnemaisonii , were noted by Osborne Morton in 1994. Maps showing the distribution of algae all around the British Isles, including Rathlin Island, are to be found in Harvey and Guiry 2003.

Flowering plants
Details and notes of the flowering plants are to be found in Hackney.

Archaeology
The island has been settled at least as far back as the Mesolithic period. A Neolithic stone axe factory featuring porcellanite stone is to be found in Brockley, a cluster of houses within the townland of Ballygill Middle. It is similar to a stone axe factory found at Tievebulliagh mountain on the nearby mainland coast. The products of these two axe factories, which cannot be reliably distinguished from each other, were traded across Ireland; these were the most important Irish stone axe sources of their time.

In 2006, an ancient burial was discovered when a driveway was being expanded by the island's only pub, dating back to the early Bronze Age, ca. 2000 BC. Genomic analysis of DNA from the bodies showed a strong continuity with the genetics of the modern Irish population and established that the continuity of Irish population dates back at least 1000 years longer than had previously been understood.

There is also an unexcavated Viking vessel in a mound formation.

History
Rathlin was probably known to the Romans, Pliny referring to "Reginia" and Ptolemy to "Rhicina" or "Eggarikenna". In the 7th century, Adomnán mentions "Rechru" and "Rechrea insula", which may also have been early names for Rathlin. The 11th century Irish version of the Historia Brittonum states that the Fir Bolg "took possession of Man and of other islands besides – Arran, Islay and 'Racha'" – another possible early variant.

Rathlin was the site of the first Viking raid on Ireland, according to the Annals of Ulster. The pillaging of the island's church and burning of its buildings took place in 795.

In 1306, Robert the Bruce sought refuge upon Rathlin, owned by the Irish Bissett family. He stayed in Rathlin Castle, originally belonging to their lordship the Glens of Antrim. The Bissetts were dispossessed of Rathlin by the English, who were in control of the Earldom of Ulster, for welcoming Bruce. In the 16th century, the island came into the possession of the MacDonnells of Antrim.

Rathlin has been the site of a number of massacres. On an expedition in 1557, Sir Henry Sidney devastated the island. In July 1575, the Earl of Essex sent Francis Drake and John Norreys to confront Scottish refugees on the island, and in the ensuing massacre, hundreds of men, women and children of Clan MacDonnell were killed. Also in 1642, Covenanter Campbell soldiers of the Argyll's Foot were encouraged by their commanding officer Sir Duncan Campbell of Auchinbreck to kill the local Catholic MacDonalds, near relatives of their arch clan enemy in the Scottish Highlands Clan MacDonald. They threw scores of MacDonald women over cliffs to their deaths on rocks below. The number of victims of this massacre has been put as low as 100 and as high as 3,000.

On 2 October 1917, the armoured cruiser HMS Drake (1901) was torpedoed off the northern Irish coast by GS U-79 (1915). She steamed into Church Bay on Rathlin Island, where, after her crew was taken off, she capsized and sank. On 27 January 1918, the RMS Andania was hit amidships by a torpedo from German submarine U-46 captained by Leo Hillebrand. The ship immediately took a list to starboard and began to sink. Attempts were made to tow the ship but it sank after a few hours. The passengers were saved, but Andania's sinking killed seven crew members. The wreck is lying at a depth of between 175 and 189 metres.

Commerce
In 1746, the island was purchased by the Reverend John Gage. Rathlin was an important producer of kelp in the 18th century.

A 19th-century British visitor to the island found that they had an unusual form of government where they elected a judge who sat on a "throne of turf". In fact, Robert Gage was the "proprietor of the island" until his death in 1891. Gage held a master's degree from Trinity College, Dublin, but he spent his life on the island creating his book "The Birds of Rathlin Island".

Tourism is now a commercial activity. The island had a population of over one thousand in the 19th century. Its current permanent population is around 125. This is swollen by visitors in the summer, with most coming to view the cliffs and their huge seabird populations. Many visitors come for the day, and the island has around 30 beds for overnight visitors. The Boathouse Visitors' Centre at Church Bay is open seven days a week from April to September, with minibus tours and bicycle hire also available. The island is also popular with scuba divers, who come to explore the many wrecked ships in the surrounding waters.

Richard Branson's hot air balloon crashed near Rathlin Island in 1987.

On 29 January 2008, the RNLI Portrush lifeboat Katie Hannan grounded after a swell hit its stern on breakwater rocks just outside the harbour on Rathlin while trying to refloat an islander's RIB. The lifeboat was declared beyond economical repair and handed over to a salvage company.

Communications
The world's first commercial wireless telegraphy link was established by employees of Guglielmo Marconi between East Lighthouse on Rathlin and Kenmara House in Ballycastle on 6 July 1898.

In July 2013, BT installed a high-speed wireless broadband pilot project to a number of premises, the first deployment of its kind anywhere in the UK, 'wireless to the cabinet' (WTTC) to deliver 80 Mb/s to users.

Notable people

 * Alexander Smyth (1765–1830), lawyer, soldier, and politician in Virginia
 * Catherine Gage (1815–1892), botanical and ornithological illustrator

title: Rathlin Island


text:
Cookstown

Cookstown (An Chorr Chríochach, ) is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is the fourth largest town in the county and had a population of 12,546 in the 2021 census. It, along with Magherafelt and Dungannon, is one of the main towns in the Mid-Ulster council area. It was founded around 1620 when the townlands in the area were leased by an English ecclesiastical lawyer, Dr. Alan Cooke, from the Archbishop of Armagh, who had been granted the lands after the Flight of the Earls during the Plantation of Ulster. It was one of the main centres of the linen industry west of the River Bann, and until 1956, the processes of flax spinning, weaving, bleaching and beetling were carried out in the town.

History

In 1609 land was leased to an English ecclesiastical lawyer, Dr Cooke, who fulfilled the covenants entered in the lease by building houses on the land. In 1628, King Charles I granted Letters Patent to Cooke permitting the holding of a twice-weekly market for livestock and flaxen goods.

In 1641, the native Irish revolted against the Planters in a bloody rebellion and the town was destroyed. The rebellion had a devastating effect on the town and development ceased for nearly a century. Over the succeeding years, the lands around Cookstown were progressively bought up by William Stewart of Killymoon until in 1671 all of Dr Cooke's lands were in the hands of the Stewart family. William Stewart and later his son James set out plans for the town soon after this. Inspired by the Wide Streets Commission's work in Dublin, they planned a new town to be built along a tree lined boulevard which was to be 135 feet wide.

In 1802, Colonel William Stewart (James Stewart's unmarried son) approached the London architect, John Nash, and requested that he visit the area to rebuild Killymoon Castle. Nash also designed the Rectory at Lissan for the Rev John Molesworth Staples in 1807.

With the establishment of Gunning's Linen Weaving Mill, with over 300 looms, Cookstown developed in the 19th century as the local centre of the linen trade. Two railways established terminus railway stations at Cookstown - the Belfast and Northern Counties Railway (1856-1955) and the Great Northern Railway (1879-1959).

Prominent developments in the second half of the 19th century included J.J. McCarthy's Church of the Holy Trinity on Chapel Street.

On 17 June 1920, during the Irish War of Independence, the Irish Republican Army (IRA) raided the Royal Irish Constabulary (RIC) barracks in Cookstown, with help from four sympathetic RIC officers. In a brief firefight, IRA member Patrick Loughran was killed. He was the first IRA man killed on active service in what became Northern Ireland.

Cookstown Town Hall was designed by the town surveyor, Charles Geoffrey Birtwell, and built on the Burn Road by James Corrigan of Pomeroy: it was officially opened on 27 May 1953.

During the Troubles, Cookstown suffered from several bomb attacks: on 2 November 1990 an off duty soldier from the Ulster Defence Regiment was killed by a car bomb.

Cookstown Town Hall was demolished in 1998 and the Burnavon Arts and Cultural Centre opened on the site in 2000.

Places of interest

 * Ardboe High Cross and Abbey (Seanchrois Ard Bó agus Ministir Naomh Colmán), one of the best examples of a 9th/10th century High cross in Ireland, is 10 mi from Cookstown. It forms the only remaining part of an early monastery on the site.

 * Other ancient sites nearby include Beaghmore stone circles and Tullyhogue Fort (beside the village of Tullyhogue), the inauguration site of the chiefs of Tyrone (Tir Eogain), the O'Neills.

 * The Donaghrisk walled cemetery to the southwest of (and clearly visible from) the fort is the resting place of the O'Hagans, the chief justices of Tyrone (and as such, they presided over the inauguration ceremonies of the O'Neills).

 * Lissan House lies on the outskirts of Cookstown. It is a large structure which was the home of the Staples family for 350 years.

 * Killymoon Castle is about 1 mi south east of Cookstown. This structure is regarded as one of Cookstown's finest pieces of architectural heritage. It was built in just over a year at a cost of £80,000 and was Nash's first Irish commission.

 * Drum Manor, approximately 5 mi from the town. Alexander Richardson, a burgess from Edinburgh, Scotland, bought the estate of Craigbalk in 1617 and built Drum Manor, which was also known Manor Richardson. Alexander's son Sir William Richardson left it to his second son, Alexander, from which the Richardsons of Drum descend. Sir William's third son, William, who inherited lands near Augher, obtained a lease for lands in the townland of Tullyreavy on the Drum Manor estate, where he built a house by the lake known as Oaklands.

 * St Luaran's Church of Ireland church is on Church Street.

 * James Joseph McCarthy's Catholic church, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was constructed between 1855 and 1860 with a tower and spire at the east end.
 * Derryloran Old Cemetery is a historic site of interest, located on the Sandholes Road on the outskirts of the town, which features an old graveyard and churchyard dating back to the 17th Century.

Politics
In elections for the Westminster Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly it is part of the Mid Ulster constituency.

The local authority, Cookstown District Council, was established in 1973, and included part of County Londonderry, notably the villages of Moneymore, The Loup and Ballyronan.

As part of the Local Government Reform (NI) Cookstown District Council merged with Dungannon and South Tyrone Borough Council and Magherafelt District Council to form a larger Mid-Ulster District Council in 2015.

Townlands
The following is a list of townlands within Cookstown's urban area, alongside their likely etymologies:
 * Clare (from Clár meaning "level land")
 * Cookstown (an English name from Alan Cooke, bishop of Armagh)
 * Coolkeeghan (from Cúil Caocháin meaning "Keighen's corner")
 * Coolnafranky (from Cúil na Francaigh meaning "corner of the rats" or "French")
 * Coolnahavil (from Cúil na hAbhaill meaning "corner of the orchard")
 * Coolreaghs (from Cúil Riach meaning "grey corner")
 * Gortalowry (from Gort an Leamhraigh meaning "field of the elm place")
 * Loy (from Láigh meaning "hill")
 * Maloon (from Magh Luan meaning "plain of the lambs")
 * Monrush (from Móin Rois meaning "wooded peatland")
 * Sullenboy (from Sailean Buí meaning "yellow willows")
 * Tullagh (from Tulach meaning "hilltop")

Cookstown townland
Cookstown townland itself is situated in the historic barony of Dungannon Upper and the civil parish of Derryloran and covers an area of 217 acres.

The population of the townland increased overall during the 19th century:

Motorcycling
The town plays host to the Cookstown 100 Road Races, the longest running motorcycle road race in Ireland. Held in April of each year the races are seen as the curtain raiser to the Irish National Road Racing Championship.

Gaelic Football
Cookstown Fr. Rock's, the local Gaelic Athletic Association club, won the All-Ireland Intermediate Club Football Championship in 2013.

Association Football
Local association football clubs include Cookstown Olympic F.C. (an intermediate-level football club), Mid-Ulster Ladies F.C. (a women's football club), Killymoon Rangers F.C., Coagh United F.C. and Sofia Farmer F.C. (clubs in the Cookstown District that play in the Ballymena & Provincial Intermediate League).

Hockey
Cookstown Hockey Club is the town's field hockey team.

19th century population
The population of the town increased during the 19th century:

Cookstown is classified as a medium town (i.e. with population between 10,000 and 18,000 people) by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA).

2021 Census
On census day in 2021 there were 12,546 people living in Cookstown. Of these:
 * 21.05% were aged under 16, 63.93% were aged between 16 and 65, and 15.03% were aged 66 and over.
 * 51% were female, and 49% were male.
 * 56.21% (7,053) were from a Catholic background, and 34.34% (4,308) were from a Protestant or other Christian background, 1.12% were from other religious backgrounds and 8.33% (1,045) had no religious background.
 * 31.68% indicated they had a British national identity, 31.29% had an Irish national identity, and 28.58% had a Northern Irish national identity. (respondents could select more than one national identity).
 * 14.55% had some knowledge of Irish, and 8.88% had some knowledge of Ulster-Scots.

2011 Census
On census day (27 March 2011) there were 11,599 people living in Cookstown. Of these:
 * 98% were from the white ethnic group
 * 56% were from a Catholic background, and 39% were from a Protestant or other Christian background
 * 40% indicated that they had a British national identity, 30% had a Northern Irish national identity, and 28% had an Irish national identity (respondents could choose more than one)

2001 Census
On census day (29 April 2001) there were 10,646 people living in Cookstown. Of these:
 * 26.0% were aged under 16 years and 15.6% were aged 60 and over
 * 49.7% of the population were male and 50.3% were female
 * 52.8% were from a Catholic background and 45.1% were from a Protestant background
 * 3.9% of people aged 16–74 were unemployed.

Education
Secondary schools serving the area include Cookstown High School and Holy Trinity College, Cookstown.

At third level, the Loughry Campus of the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise is 2 mi south of Cookstown. South West College (a technical college) is also in the area.

Healthcare
The first community hub for primary care in the province is to be established in the town, backed by four local GP practices and the health board. It is to incorporate scanning facilities, a minor surgery suite, a pharmacy, out-of-hours consultations and community healthcare partnerships, with the possibility of developing supported living accommodation for older people.

Notable people
Arts
 * Jimmy Cricket - comedian
 * Nick Laird - poet and novelist
 * Eamonn McCrystal - singer and broadcaster
 * Owen O'Neill - writer, actor, director, and comedian
 * Oliver Sheppard (1865-1941) - sculptor, born in Cookstown
 * Jonathan Swift - stayed at Loughry Manor as a guest of the Lindsay family while writing Gulliver's Travels (published in 1726)
 * Lias Saoudi - Fat White Family musician, grew up in Cookstown

Business

 * Finbarr O'Neill - former CEO of J.D. Power.

Sport
 * Kenny Acheson - racing driver
 * David Ames - 2016 Olympian, Great Britain
 * Jacqueline Burns - footballer, Northern Ireland women's national football team
 * Stuart Dallas - footballer, Northern Ireland Team
 * Terry Devlin - footballer, EFL League One, Portsmouth F.C.
 * Aaron Hughes - footballer, Northern Ireland Team
 * Owen Mulligan - Tyrone GAA footballer
 * Ian Sloan - 2016 Olympian, Great Britain
 * Martin Sloan - field hockey, Ireland men's national field hockey team captain of 1990 Men's Hockey World Cup team

Politics Medical
 * William Craig - politician, founder of Ulster Vanguard, born in Cookstown
 * Bernadette Devlin - Republican Socialist political activist, raised in a small housing estate called Rathbeg
 * Major-General Sir Richard Havelock Charles, 1st Baronet (1858–1934) - medical doctor, Serjeant Surgeon to King George V
 * Mary Mallon, aka Typhoid Mary

title: Cookstown


text:
High cross

A high cross or standing cross (cros ard / ardchros, crois àrd / àrd-chrois, croes uchel / croes eglwysig) is a free-standing Christian cross made of stone and often richly decorated. There was a unique Early Medieval tradition in Ireland and Britain of raising large sculpted stone crosses, usually outdoors. These probably developed from earlier traditions using wood, perhaps with metalwork attachments, and earlier pagan Celtic memorial stones; the Pictish stones of Scotland may also have influenced the form. The earliest surviving examples seem to come from the territory of the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, which had been converted to Christianity by Irish missionaries; it remains unclear whether the form first developed in Ireland or Britain.

Their relief decoration is a mixture of religious figures and sections of decoration such as knotwork, interlace and in Britain vine-scrolls, all in the styles also found in insular art in other media such as illuminated manuscripts and metalwork. They were probably normally painted, perhaps over a modelled layer of plaster; with the loss of paint and the effects of weathering the reliefs, in particular scenes crowded with small figures, are often now rather indistinct and hard to read.

The earlier crosses were typically up to about two metres or eight feet high, but in Ireland examples up to three times higher appear later, retaining thick massive proportions, giving large surface areas for carving. The tallest of the Irish crosses is the so-called Tall Cross at Monasterboice, County Louth. It stands at seven metres or twenty-two feet high. Anglo-Saxon examples mostly remained slender in comparison, but could be large; except in earlier Northumbrian examples their decoration is mostly ornamental rather than figures. The crosses often, though not always, feature a stone ring around the intersection, forming a Celtic cross; this seems to be an innovation of Celtic Christianity, perhaps at Iona. Although the earliest example of this form has been found on fifth-seventh century Coptic textile. The term "high cross" is mainly used in Ireland and Scotland, but the tradition across Britain and Ireland is essentially a single phenomenon, though there are certainly strong regional variations.

Some crosses were erected just outside churches and monasteries; others at sites that may have marked boundaries or crossroads, or preceded churches. Whether they were used as "preaching crosses" at early dates is unclear, and many crosses have been moved to their present locations. They do not seem to have been used as grave-markers in the early medieval period. In the 19th century Celtic Revival Celtic crosses, with decoration in a form of insular style, became very popular as gravestones and memorials, and are now found in many parts of the world. Unlike the Irish originals, the decoration usually does not include figures.

Ireland and Britain
High crosses are the primary surviving monumental works of Insular art, and the largest number in Britain survive from areas that remained under Celtic Christianity until relatively late. No examples, or traces, of the putative earlier forms in wood or with metal attachments have survived; the decorative repertoire of early crosses certainly borrows from that of metalwork, but the same is true of Insular illuminated manuscripts. Saint Adomnán, Abbot of Iona who died in 704, mentions similar free standing ringed wooden crosses, later replaced by stone versions. Perhaps the earliest surviving free-standing stone crosses are at Carndonagh, Donegal, which appear to be erected by missionaries from Iona. fleeing the Viking raiders, "giving Iona a critical role in the formation of ringed crosses". The round bosses seen on early crosses probably derive from Pictish stones. High crosses may exist from the 7th century in Northumbria, which then included much of south-east Scotland, and Ireland, though Irish dates are being moved later. However the dates assigned to most of the early crosses surviving in good condition, whether at Ruthwell and Bewcastle, the Western Ossory group in Ireland, Iona or the Kildalton Cross on Islay, have all shown a tendency to converge on the period around or slightly before 800, despite the differences between the Northumbrian and Celtic types. The high cross later spread to the rest of the British Isles, including the Celtic areas of Wales, Devon, Brittany and Cornwall, where ogham inscriptions also indicate an Irish presence, and some examples can be found on Continental Europe, particularly where the style was taken by Insular missionaries.

Most Irish High crosses have the distinctive shape of the ringed Celtic cross, and they are generally larger and more massive, and feature more figural decoration than those elsewhere. They have probably more often survived as well; most recorded crosses in Britain were destroyed or damaged by iconoclasm after the Reformation, and typically only sections of the shaft remain. The ring initially served to strengthen the head and the arms of the high cross, but it soon became a decorative feature as well.

The high crosses were status symbols, either for a monastery or for a sponsor or patron, and possibly preaching crosses, and may have had other functions. Some have inscriptions recording the donor who commissioned them, like Muiredach's High Cross and the Bewcastle Cross. The earliest 8th- or 9th-century Irish crosses had only ornament, including interlace and round bosses, but from the 9th and 10th century, figurative images appear, sometimes just a figure of Christ crucified in the centre, but in the largest 10th century examples large numbers of figures over much of the surface. Some late Irish examples have fewer figures (often Christ accompanied by a local bishop or abbot), approaching life-size, and carved in very high relief. The Irish tradition largely died out after the 12th century, until the 19th-century Celtic Revival, when the Celtic cross form saw a lasting revival for gravestones and memorials, usually just using ornamental decoration and inscriptions. These are now found across the world, often in contexts without any specific link to the Insular Celts or Britain.

Anglo-Saxon crosses were typically more slender, and often nearly square in section, though when, as with the Ruthwell Cross and Bewcastle Cross, they were geographically close to areas of the Celtic Church, they seem to have been larger, perhaps to meet local expectations, and the two 9th century Mercian Sandbach Crosses are the largest up to that period from anywhere. The heads tend to be smaller and usually not Celtic crosses, although the majority of cross-heads have not survived at all. Carved figures in these large examples are much larger and carved in deeper relief than the Irish equivalents with similar dates – only some very late Irish crosses show equally large figures. Anglo-Saxon decoration often combines panels of vine-leaf scrolls with others of interlace, although the placement and effect from a distance is similar to Celtic examples. Smaller examples may have only had such decoration, and inscriptions, which are much more common on Anglo-Saxon than Irish crosses.

After the Viking invasions, the settled Norse population of the Danelaw adopted the form, and a number of crosses combine Christian imagery with pagan Norse myths, which the Church seems to have tolerated, and adopted at least as metaphors for the period when conversion was bedding down. The Gosforth Cross, a very rare almost-complete cross in England, is an example. By the 10th century such Anglo-Norse crosses were the bulk of the production in England, as the high cross seems to have been abandoned further south, although the simple and practical Dartmoor crosses, no doubt an essential aid to navigating Dartmoor, appear to have continued to be made for centuries after. Given the tough granite used, decoration is mostly slight and they are hard to date confidently. Market crosses, many once dating to the Early Medieval period, have continued to be erected and replaced until modern times.

In Pictish Scotland the cross-slab, a flat stone with a cross in relief or incised on an essentially rectangular stone, developed as a hybrid form of the Pictish stone and the high cross. The cross is normally only on one side of the stone and the remaining areas of the stone may be covered with interlace or other decoration. These are usually distinguished from true high crosses.

Scandinavia
The tradition of raising high crosses appeared at a time when Norse settlers appeared in the British Isles and met a Christian culture. A fragmentary cross has been discovered in Granhammar in Vintrosa parish in Närke, Sweden and testify to the English mission in the central Swedish provinces. The Swedish cross was very similar to a cross in Leek, Staffordshire, and may have been made by an English immigrant. In Norway the British tradition was more widely accepted and some 60 stone crosses are known from the country, but only four of them can be safely dated to the Viking Age thanks to runic inscriptions on the crosses. Many of the crosses have probably been raised on pagan grave fields when the family was baptised. Later, they were moved to cemeteries. The high cross tradition also probably helped increase the popularity of raising runestones (often with engraved crosses) in Sweden.

Notable examples
Amongst the most famous are:
 * Muiredach's Cross and West Cross at Monasterboice, County Louth
 * The Clonmacnoise crosses: Cross of the Scriptures (the original 9th century cross is housed in a museum, but a copy stands on the original site), and the North and South Crosses.
 * The Nether (or Lower) Cross, a 9th-century granite cross with ornate carving, in the graveyard of St. Canice's Church, established by St. Canice, Finglas village, Dublin. The Cross was taken from its original location in the grounds of St. Canice's Abbey and buried to prevent damage by Cromwellian forces in 1649. It was found 160 years later intact and moved to its present location.
 * The Anglo-Saxon Ruthwell Cross from Scotland, 8th century, with relatively large figures.
 * The Anglo-Saxon Bewcastle Cross Northumbrian
 * The Anglo-Saxon Irton Cross, Cumbria showing affinity to the style of Bewcastle
 * The Pictish/Early Medieval Dupplin Cross in Strathearn, Scotland
 * The Pictish/Early Medieval Camus Cross in Angus, Scotland
 * Classic examples of 9th-century Pictish cross-slabs: Aberlemno 2 and 3 at Aberlemno, Angus
 * The 8th century Kildalton Cross from the Hebrides
 * Iona Abbey has two crosses, with others on the island.
 * Saint Tola's High Cross. A 12th-century cross at Dysert O'Dea near O'Dea Castle showing Christ and a bishop carved in high relief on the east side, with geometric motifs and animal ornament on the other sides. On the west side of the base are shown the Temptation, with Adam and Eve beneath the tree of knowledge, while on the north side is some ceremony with several figures holding croziers. This is a particularly finely preserved twelfth-century example, that does not use the circle of the Celtic cross.
 * The Ahenny High Crosses. The two sandstone Ahenny crosses date from the 8th to 9th centuries and are among the earliest of the ringed high crosses. Ahenny, County Tipperary, near the Kilkenny border, and the Monastic site of Kilclispeen, or the church of St. Crispen
 * Ardboe High Cross, a 10th-century cross near Cookstown, eroded, showing 22 panels with scenes from the Old and New Testaments.
 * St. Kevin's Cross, Glendalough, a 12th-century cross, well preserved, made of granite.
 * South Cross, Kells, County Meath, the best preserved of several 10th century crosses in the town.
 * Doorty Cross, Kilfenora, County Clare; 12th century, has a bishop and two other clerics carved on it.
 * Kilree High Cross, 9th century high cross said to be the burial place of Niall Caille, located 4 km southeast of Kells Priory, County Kilkenny.
 * Kilkieran High Crosses, three crosses near Ahenny, County Tipperary: Plain Cross (unadorned), West Cross (with much ornamentation), Long Shaft Cross (has a long shaft with decoration).
 * The two Moone High Crosses, in County Kildare near Moone. The large cross is believed to have been carved between 900 and 1000 AD. It is highly decorated and 5.33 m. high

Modern period
From the 19th century, many large modern versions have been erected for various functions, and smaller Celtic crosses have become popular for individual grave monuments, usually featuring only abstract ornament, usually interlace.

In 1887, the Rev. William Slater Calverley commissioned a replica life-sized copy of Gosforth cross and had it erected in the churchyard at Aspatria, Cumbria.[3]

In the early 21st century, Irish sculptor Brendan McGloin was commissioned by the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Portland to handcraft a full size replica of the Clonmacnoise Cross of the Scriptures. The 13-foot, 5 tonne sandstone cross was completed in 2007 and shipped from Donegal to Portland, Oregon, where it will stand as a Famine memorial. In 2016, a high cross was erected outside Wakefield Cathedral, West Yorkshire, England, carved from stone quarried in Holmfirth and carved by Celia Kilner. This was based on the remains of a Saxon high cross, dated 930 A.D.

title: High cross


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Monasterboice

The Monasterboice (Mainistir Bhuithe) ruins are the remains of an early Christian monastic settlement in County Louth in Ireland, north of Drogheda. The ruins are a national monument of Ireland and also give their name to the local village and to a civil parish of the same name.

Name
The name Monasterboice is a part-anglicisation of the Irish name Mainistir Bhuithe meaning "monastery of Buithe". It was formerly anglicised as Monasterboye and Monasterboyse. Boice is the English version of the Latin name Boecius, which was adopted as the equivalent of the Irish Buithe.

History
The monastic settlement was founded in the late 5th century by Saint Buithe (or Buite) who died around 521.

Poet and historian Flann Mainistrech, Flann of Monasterboice, was lector here.

Little is known about the monastery except for a list of abbots (759-1122). It fell into ruin after the establishment of the Cistercian Mellifont Abbey nearby in 1142.

A parochial church was in use at the location by the 13th century.

Description
The site includes the remains of two churches built in the 14th century or later and an earlier round tower, but it is most famous for its high crosses.

The round tower is about 28 metres tall, and is in very good condition. It was likely built shortly after 968 and damaged in a fire in 1098.

The three high crosses date from the 10th century and form part of the scriptural group (showing biblical scenes).

The 5.5-metre Muiredach's High Cross is regarded as the finest high cross in the whole of Ireland. It is named after an abbot, Muiredach mac Domhnaill, who died in 923 and features biblical carvings of both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. The North and West crosses are also notable examples of this kind of structure, but these have suffered much more from the effects of the weather. A copy of the main cross is held in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.

Today
The property is owned by the National Monuments Service and is accessible to the public.

Burials in the graveyard around the ruins continue in the present day.

title: Monasterboice


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Diva

Diva is the Latin word for a goddess. It has often been used to refer to a celebrated woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, theatre, cinema, fashion and popular music. If referring to an actress, the meaning of diva is closely related to that of prima donna. Diva can also refer to a person, especially one in show business, with a reputation for being temperamental or demanding.

Derivation
The word entered the English language in the late 19th century. It is derived from the Italian noun diva, a female deity. The plural of the word in English is "divas"; in Italian, dive. The basic sense of the term is goddess, the feminine of the Latin word divus (Italian divo), someone deified after death, or Latin deus, a god.

The male form divo exists in Italian and is usually reserved for the most prominent leading tenors, like Enrico Caruso and Beniamino Gigli. The Italian term divismo describes the star-making system in the film industry. In contemporary Italian, diva and divo simply denote much-admired celebrities, especially film actresses and actors, and can be translated as "(film) star". The Italian actress Lyda Borelli is considered the first cinematic diva, following her breakthrough role in Love Everlasting (1913).

An extravagant admiration for divas is a common element of camp culture.

Modern usage
Women are often referred to as divas if they are "difficult, temperamental and demanding". Welsh National Opera note that the title emerged in the early 19th century after an increase of female leading sopranos who "almost became goddess-like in the eyes of their adoring public". They also note that the word has been used by the media to name many female politicians and entertainers rather than "just ambitious and assertive like their male counterparts".

Many pop stars have been labelled as divas in the media, including Aretha Franklin, Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, Cher, Christina Aguilera, Diana Ross, Tina Turner, and Whitney Houston. Additionally, Madonna and Mariah Carey have been called an "ultimate diva" in the press and have often embraced the title as their media persona. Carey herself noted on a podcast with Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex that today's media "mean you're a successful woman" but also a "bitch" and that "it's not okay for you to be a boss". Musicologist Lily E. Hirsch argues that the phrase may be used in a sexist and racist manner when discussing a woman of color.

Multiple female artists and bands have also released albums and songs either titled or containing the word "diva". These include Annie Lennox, En Vogue, Beyoncé and Sarah Brightman. English media personality and businesswoman Gemma Collins is well known for her "diva persona". In 2018, she released a book titled The GC: How to Be a Diva and began starring in her own reality television series Gemma Collins: Diva.

In 1998, VH1 debuted its first annual VH1 Divas concert with Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion, Gloria Estefan and Shania Twain. Some other artists who performed at later concerts are Whitney Houston, Cher, Tina Turner, Diana Ross and Destiny's Child. From April 1999, WWE used the term "diva" to refer to their female performers. In 2016 they discontinued this term becoming Women in WWE.

title: Diva


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David Mansfield

David Mansfield (born September 13, 1956) is an American musician and composer.

Mansfield was raised in Leonia, New Jersey. His father, Newton Mansfield was a first violinist in the New York Philharmonic. David played guitar, pedal steel guitar and fiddle in his first band, called Quacky Duck and His Barnyard Friends, which also included two sons of Tony Bennett.

Bob Dylan asked Mansfield to tour with him on his 1975 Rolling Thunder Revue tour; he remained in Dylan's band through their 1978 world tour.

After the Revue ended in 1976, Mansfield and two other members of Dylan's band, T-Bone Burnett and Steven Soles, formed The Alpha Band. The band released three albums, The Alpha Band in 1977, Spark in the Dark in 1977, and The Statue Makers of Hollywood in 1978. While Mansfield in 1978 was working on the album, The Statue Makers of Hollywood with The Alpha Band, he appeared as a guitarist on Desire Wire by a struggling pop/rock artist Cindy Bullens that same year.

In 1986, Mansfield was an initial member of Bruce Hornsby and the Range, including playing the title instrument on the hit "Mandolin Rain". However, he left the Range before their first tour.

Since The Alpha Band broke up, Mansfield has continued to work as a musician in sessions for Dylan, Burnett, Johnny Cash, Nanci Griffith, Roger McGuinn, Sam Phillips, Mark Heard, The Roches, Edie Brickell, Spinal Tap, Lucinda Williams, Dwight Yoakam, Victoria Williams, Loudon Wainwright III, Willie Nile, Chris Hillman and Herb Pedersen and others.

Mansfield composed the music for the 1980 film Heaven's Gate – he appeared in the movie, playing the fiddle on roller skates – and has since gone on to write scores for a number of other films, including others directed by Heaven's Gate's Michael Cimino. Mansfield cobbled together the soundtrack album for Songcatcher. He also composed the music for the soundtrack to The Ballad of Little Jo (1993), a movie written and directed by Maggie Greenwald, whom he married in 1994. Together they adopted two children. Maisie Mansfield-Greenwald (1997) and Lulu Mansfield-Greenwald (2000). He also composed the score with Van Dyke Parks for Walter Hill's Broken Trail (2006), and they were nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Music Composition for a Miniseries, Movie or a Special (Original Dramatic Score).

Filmography

 * 1980	Heaven's Gate
 * 1985	Year of the Dragon
 * 1986	Club Paradise
 * 1987	The Sicilian
 * 1989	Miss Firecracker
 * 1990	Desperate Hours
 * 1991	Late for Dinner
 * 1992  Me and Veronica
 * 1993	The Ballad of Little Jo
 * 1995  Outlaws: The Legend of O.B. Taggart
 * 1996  Deep Crimson
 * 1997  Floating
 * 1997  Road Ends
 * 1997	The Apostle
 * 1998  El evangelio de las maravillas
 * 1998	Dark Harbor
 * 1999	Tumbleweeds
 * 1999  No One Writes to the Colonel
 * 2000  Such Is Life
 * 2000  Ropewalk
 * 2000	A Good Baby
 * 2000	Songcatcher
 * 2002	Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
 * 2003  Flora's Garment Bursting Into Bloom
 * 2005	Transamerica
 * 2006	Stephanie Daley
 * 2006	Diggers
 * 2006  El carnaval de Sodoma
 * 2007	Then She Found Me
 * 2008	The Guitar
 * 2011	Certainty
 * 2011  The Reasons of the Heart
 * 2013	The Last Keepers
 * 2016  Sophie and the Rising Sun
 * 2019  Devil Between the Legs

title: David Mansfield


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Steven Soles

Steven Soles is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and guitarist.

Known also as J. Steven Soles, he was asked by Bob Dylan to join the band for his 1975–1976 "Rolling Thunder Revue" tour, he appeared on Dylan's album "Desire" and he also played with Dylan on Street Legal and the following tour, including the live album Bob Dylan at Budokan. When that tour ended, Soles and two other members of Dylan's band, T Bone Burnett and David Mansfield, formed The Alpha Band.

Like most of the musicians in The Rolling Thunder Revue, Soles appeared in the 1978 film, Renaldo and Clara, in which he played the rôle of Ramon.

During its time, The Alpha Band released three albums, The Alpha Band in 1977, Spark in the Dark in the same year and The Statue Makers of Hollywood in 1978.

After its breakup, T Bone Burnett went on to a distinguished production career, working with artists such as Roy Orbison, Lisa Marie Presley, John Mellencamp, Counting Crows, Elton John, Elvis Costello and k.d. lang. He won two Grammy Awards and an Academy Award.

Steven Soles released two solo albums of original material, The Promise in 1980, and 1982's Walk By Love. Allmusic gave the first an album rating of three stars and the second four stars, commenting of Walk By Love that, "more commercial than The Promise, this second solo album features catchier songs and fuller pop arrangements." Allmusic pointed out that the albums had both been critically acclaimed, "if little heard".

Soles went on to produce or perform on albums by Dylan, Burnett, The Washington Squares, Bob Neuwirth, Steve Poltz, Peter Case, Elvis Costello, Roger McGuinn, Don McLean, The Monkees, The 77s, Olivia Newton-John, Roy Orbison, Tonio K, Victoria Williams, Steve Scott and others.

He was part of the highly acclaimed Cinemax special Roy Orbison and Friends, A Black and White Night. As J. Steven Soles, he is credited as "Music Supervisor" in the movie Space Truckers (Stuart Gordon, 1996).

Soles was married to actress P. J. Soles from 1973 to 1975.

title: Steven Soles