World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Commemorated in Partry

Heritage Week has been a major part of the calendar in Partry, Co. Mayo for some time now and 2015 promises to be the best yet. With a wide variety of entertainment to suit every age group from Céilí Dancing and Photographic and Video Exhibits to Pony and Trap rides and fascinating lectures, Partry Heritage Week 2015 should not be missed. The week takes place from Saturday, August 22nd through to Friday, August 28th and most events will take place in Partry Community Centre.

Launching on Saturday, August 22nd with the Annaly Céilí Band (Dancing from 10pm), Partry Heritage and Family Fun Day which will take place on Sunday, August 23rd from 1.00pm at Partry Athletic FC Grounds. It will be a fabulous day for the whole family, with Arts and Crafts demonstrations, vintage displays, bouncy castle, face-painting, pony and trap rides, fancy dress, music and dancing and so much more. Heritage Week continues on Monday 24th, with a guided walking tour of the old Furnace in Partry, through to Tuesday 25th with an absorbing bilingual lecture from Clodagh Doyle on ‘Traditional Housing' at 8.30pm. Pat Gibbons will have an open exhibition of old photographic and video footage of local life and times on Wednesday 26th.

Something very different is promised for Thursday and Friday as Partry's links to World Heavyweight Champion ‘Gentleman Jim' Corbett are commemorated. James J Corbett, or ‘Gentleman Jim' as he became known, became World Heavyweight Boxing Champion in 1892, beating the famous John L. Sullivan. ‘Gentleman Jim', whose father was from Mayo, visited his uncle, Fr. James Corbett, who was Parish Priest in Partry in 1894. He left his mark on the village, donating stained glass windows to the church and having a fundraising exhibition in the old town hall in Ballinrobe in aid of the Church.

Thursday night will have the Community Centre changing to a cinema with the screening of biographical movie from 1942 ‘Gentleman Jim' with Errol Flynn in the title role. Friday night will be the pinnacle of Partry's commemoration with an exhibition of photos and documentary footage will take place in the Community Centre. Patrick Myler, renowned Boxing Correspondent and author of ‘Gentleman Jim Corbett: The Truth Behind a Boxing Legend' will give a talk on the fascinating life of ‘Gentleman Jim' accompanied by Andrew Gallimore, Director of the documentary ‘The Gentleman Prizefighter'. This will be a fascinating night and should not be missed!

With something to offer for every generation, make sure to put Partry Heritage Week in your diary this month!