Muhammad Ali to visit town in September

Run_to_da_hills

Great news for this former legent. I gather all his ancensters must live out in Dun na HInse

I hope he has a better recepton than Meatloaf had a few years ago

http://www.rte.ie/sport/boxing/2009/0808/alim.html

BLITZ_Molloy

What happened with Meatloaf? Not a fan of his music but he's a bit of a ledge. Would have been interesting to meet him.

drunken_munky52

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Great news for this former legent. I gather all his ancensters must live out in Dun na HInse

I hope he has a better recepton than Meatloaf had a few years ago

http://www.rte.ie/sport/boxing/2009/0808/alim.html

Abe O Grady was born in the Turnpike, pure townie!

This is going to be massive for the town. The next irish black guy I want to see will be Obama when he comes to visit BIFFO land.

exiot

Cant believe I have repeat exams on that day, well pissed off

Run_to_da_hills

BLITZ_Molloy wrote: »

What happened with Meatloaf? Not a fan of his music but he's a bit of a ledge. Would have been interesting to meet him.

Crap turn out I believe

croker95

Run_to_da_hills wrote: »

Crap turn out I believe

Was that the Gig in the Showgrounds that the Stunning played support for ?

The Meats first comment when he got on stage was
"I never want those guys to open for me again"

The Stunning were riding high at the time and Meatloaf was in a lull. Tough act to follow and all that !

Run_to_da_hills

croker95 wrote: »

Was that the Gig in the Show grounds that the Stunning played support for ?

The Meats first comment when he got on stage was
"I never want those guys to open for me again"

The Stunning were riding high at the time and Meatloaf was in a lull. Tough act to follow and all that !

Never at it myself, my ex's said it was an non event with poor turnout. Stunning were brilliant, saw them in the West County.

3hn2givr7mx1sc

I hear he's signing autographs and taking pictures in Dromoland Castle, free to the public or invitation only?

buck65

I was at that Meatloaf gig, it was the Locomotion that opened for him, this is back in the late 80s.

drunken_munky52

To hell with Meatloaf, we have a real legend on his way now! Anybody know ah the chain of events for the day is going to be yet? I hear him driving through town in a open top car, down to the turnpike to meet his roots. Feckin gaurds wont let us get within 50 metres of him Id say...

blairfontaine

Bit racist with the ref to Dun na Hinse there run to the hills ?

On the Meat Loaf gig a few of my mates were at that & it was allegedly good - that was late 80's early 90's when his popularity was at an all time low.

The Stunning supported the Waterboys some time after that gig in the showgrounds and the Stunning were so class the Waterboys could not follow them. The Stunning were actually mystery guests & the buzz around Ennis was that it may be them. That concert went on all day with Light a Big Fire, In Tua Nua, Brian Downey playing drums for Brush Shields son's band. Big deal for Ennis back in the day!

On the arrival of Ali to town I am actually possibly related to his dedendant myself so waiting to confirm the link myself. Rumour is that there will be a civic reception for him & that there will be a memorial in Turnpike that day also. Think he is only staying overnite.

Sorry for going on a bit but its great for the town, up the townies

croker95

blairfontaine wrote: »

On the Meat Loaf gig a few of my mates were at that & it was allegedly good - that was late 80's early 90's when his popularity was at an all time low.

The Stunning supported the Waterboys some time after that gig in the showgrounds and the Stunning were so class the Waterboys could not follow them. The Stunning were actually mystery guests & the buzz around Ennis was that it may be them. That concert went on all day with Light a Big Fire, In Tua Nua, Brian Downey playing drums for Brush Shields son's band. Big deal for Ennis back in the day!

Thanks for clearing that up. I was a bit too young to get to it but for Ennis that line up was amazing !:)

soccymonster

blairfontaine wrote: »

up the townies

*pfft!* :P

kj72

Baz2009, where did you hear he was doing something in Dromoland castle?? any more details?? not sure he can sign any more due to his health

3hn2givr7mx1sc

The Star there on monday there was a tiny column in it.. not the most trustworthy i know:P
I don't live locally so I don't know anything about it tbh.

exiot

Taken from the Clare People website:

MUHAMMAD ALI will be named the first Freeman of Ennis when he visits his ancestral home next month.
Ali will be conferred with the honour at a civic reception at the offices of Ennis Town Council on September 1, Mayor of Ennis, Frankie Neylon confirmed this Monday.
The 68-year-old American (pictured below) will become the first person to receive the honour.
A special meeting of Ennis Town Council is due to take place next Monday in order to formally establish the honour and the types of privileges, if any, attached to it.
“Well, he won’t have to pay for parking or water rates,” quipped Cllr Neylon.
As part of his visit to Ireland, Ali is due to arrive at Shannon Airport at 2pm on Tuesday, September 1. From there, he will proceed to Waterpark House, Ennis, before embarking on a swift tour, by car, of the town centre.
It is anticipated that the town centre will be closed to traffic in order to facilitate the large crowds expected to descend on Ennis for the visit of a man widely regarded as one of the greatest sportsmen of all time.
An oak tree will be planted in Ali’s honour at Turnpike Road near the home of a local family, research has indicated are distant relatives of the former world boxing champion.
According to research carried out by Clare Heritage Centre in 2002, Ali’s great grandfather Abe Grady emigrated from his home on the Turnpike Road in Ennis to the United States in the 1860s.
Speaking yesterday Edel O’Donovan, whose late mother Eileen, was the last known O’Grady to live in the Turnpike area, explained that the family were still waiting for confirmation of the link.
“You’d prefer to be absolutely sure about it. But obviously, it would be great to meet him even apart from all the family connections, it would be great to see him anyway”, she added.
Grady sailed from Cappa Harbour in Kilrush, eventually settling in Kentucky, where he married an African-American woman. Their son also married an African-American and one of the daughters of that union was Ali’s mother, named Odessa Lee Grady. She married Cassius Clay Senior, and they settled in Louisville, where their son was initially given his father’s name on his birth in 1942.
He later changed his name to Muhammad Ali when he converted to the Nation of Islam after winning the world title in 1964.
Ali will conclude his visit to Ennis with an appearance at Dromoland Castle later that day. There has been unprecedented interest in Ali’s visit, according to Cllr Neylon.
“The visit will serve as a huge boost to the local economy including its bars and hotels, which have experienced a huge downturn in business over the last year” he said.

Jafin

I heard he was coming to Turnpike and that a big tent or something was being set up on the green up the road from O'Dowds. Il head over if theres a news crew, get my head on the telly again since its only across the road from me, other than that Im not bothered really, not a boxing fan.

drunken_munky52

How is his health recently? Will he even know he is here? Was this his decision to come I wonder?

Cant wait to see him... wont get a close up of him tough, the gaurds will surround him like he were the Pope...

No autographs I would say, but some story to tell the grandchildren