Athenry News & Views Spring 2026

Spring 2026

Mary & Frank Coyne’s

Mary & Frank at their 60th Wedding Anniversary celebration on the 3rd of August 2025 in the Newpark Hotel, Athenry.

Frank Coyne and Mary Williams were married on the 3rd of August 1965 in Newcastle Church with the wedding breakfast, as it was known then, in Hayden’s Hotel Ballinasloe. The best man was Peter Holland and bridesmaid Rosie Williams .

Mary & Frank Coyne with their family, sons, daughter, wives, husband, partners, grandchildren and great grandchildren at the anniversary Front: (left to right) Fri, Knud, Sabina, Tadhg, Jessica, Aimee. Middle Row: (left to right) Rune, Sara, Mary, Frank, Caitlyn, Conor, Vibeke. Back Row: (left to right) Frank, Gary, Tracy, Kevin, Linda, Michelle, Gerard, Mary, Joe, Peter and Malie. Missing from photo Nathan.

From the 1940s through the late 1960s, rural Ireland moved to the rhythm of the dance bands. Long before discos or nightclubs, the local dance hall was the beating heart of community life, a place where neighbours met, romances began and the week’s worries were forgotten under bright lights and brass melodies. Across the country, parish halls and crossroads dances drew crowds that sometimes numbered in the hundreds. People travelled by bicycle, bus or on foot, often walking miles just to dance for a few precious hours. There was no drink, no disco lights, just music, laughter and the smell of polish from the dance floor. The typical rural dance hall was simple but full of life, benches along the walls and a stage for the band. Entry cost a few shillings and tea or minerals were sold. Though modest, these halls and, in the Summer, marquees became the social hub of their time. Parish clubs and committees ran them and a good dance could fund everything from new church roofs to local GAA Clubs. Ballrooms of Romance

‘Band of brothers’ Jack and Jimmy Curran from Cappamoyle, Newcastle, Athenry. Photo: Restored by AI In the 1940/50s one of the best known local bands was ‘Jack Curran’s Dance Band’. The main musicians were brothers Jack and Jimmy Curran, uncles of Gerald Corbett and Florrie O’Shea from Cappamoyle near Newcastle. Both lived for their music and farming with a passion for motor cars and new inventions. Photo: Jack and Jimmy with drums and their prized motor cars.

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