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THE REAL CAPITAL CITY

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May 2011

SAINT FIN BARRE’S CATHEDRAL IN CORK CITY

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PHOTOGRAPHED MAY 2011 AND REPROCESSED 15 JUNE 202

The church grounds are south of the River Lee on Holy Island, on one of the many inlets forming the Great Marsh of Munster. Saint Fin Barre’s is on the site of at least two previous church buildings, each dedicated to Fin Barre of Cork, patron saint of Cork city and founder of the monastic hermitage at Gougane Barra.

Finbarr was born in about 550. He was, by legend, given Gougane Barra as a place of contemplation, and visited Cork city to lay the foundation stones for the “one true Christian faith”. According to tradition, after Finbarr died his remains were brought to Cork to be enclosed in a shrine near the site of today’s cathedral.

Archaeological evidence suggests the first site at Fin Barre’s probably dates from the 7th century, and consisted of a church and round tower that survived until the 12th century, after which it fell into neglect, or was destroyed during the Norman invasions.

These images date from May 2011 and I used a Sony VG10E with a Sony E 18-200mm lens. The NEX-VG10 is a camcorder and while I like it (and still use it today in 2023) it does not offer RAW as an option which is a great pity.

I had planned to photograph the interior of the church but when I arrived I discovered that there was no public assess (because of repair work) and despite visiting the area at least once every year I never did get to photograph the interior.

I already visited Cork in May 2023 and as a backup had booked a hotel for four nights in August. I asked if I could change my August booking [which cost Euro 434] to May 2024 and was informed that it would cost an additional Euro 500 so I will not be visiting Cork in 2024. I have already failed to secure affordable accommodation in Belfast, Limerick, Waterford or Galway for 2023 or 2024 which is disappointing.

ST PATRICK’S HILL IN CORK

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AS IT WAS BACK IN MAY 2011

Driving up and walking down is recommended, how you manage this is up to you.

To the best of my knowledge the majority of the houses on St Patrick’s Hill in Cork were built in the early nineteenth century and they are, in general, interesting examples of late Georgian architecture.

Today the street is promoted as an ideal film location as it is an incredibly steep hill with some classic views over the City, especially as it looks directly down to the main shopping Street of Patrick Street. The visual effect of the Hill cannot be overstated for film makers an photographers and it also has some fine period buildings both on the hill and at the top – ‘The Ridge’ as it’s known. The top of the Hill also offers some of the best panoramic views of the City; particularly of Shandon Tower and the North Side. Driving up & walking down is recommended.

I PHOTOGRAPHED A MINIMAC IN CORK IN MAY 2011

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1972 AUSTIN MINI PICKUP

I have been advised that this 1972 Morris Mini has been worked on since I photographed it in 2011 and it is now painted red.

This is an interesting little car (pickup). It is much smaller in reality than it appears in my photographs.

Minimac is on the back but I cannot find any reference to this variation of the mini so I am assuming that it is a mini pickup. The pick-up, launched in 1961 at the same time as the original 997 Cooper, is the second rarest of the product range, with about 58,000 produced against around 49,000 Mokes and 520,000 vans. Note: Minimac appears to be a brand of rear facing infant car seat.

The Mini is a small car that was made by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered a British icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout (which allowed 80% of the area of the car’s floorpan to be used for passengers and luggage) influenced a generation of car-makers. The vehicle is in some ways considered the British equivalent to its German contemporary, the Volkswagen Beetle, which enjoyed similar popularity in North America. In 1999 the Mini was voted the second most influential car of the 20th Century, behind the Ford Model T.

Mini Pick-up (1961–1983). A pick-up truck (technically a coupé utility by definition), 11 ft (3.4 m) in total length was built on the longer Mini Van platform, with an open-top rear cargo area and a tailgate. The factory specified the weight of the pick-up as less than 1,500 lb (680 kg) with a full 6 imperial gallons (27 L; 7.2 US gal) tank of fuel.

As with the van, the pick-up had stamped metal slots for airflow into the engine compartment. The Pickup was basic, although the factory brochure described a “fully equipped Mini Pick-up is also available which includes a recirculatory heater”. Passenger-side sun visor, seat belts, laminated windscreen, tilt tubes and cover were also available at extra cost. Like the van, the pick-up was renamed as the Mini 95 in 1978.

A total of 58,179 Mini pick-up models were built.

CORK TO COBH SERVICE AT KENT TRAIN STATION

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2 YEARS BEFORE THE STATION WAS BADLY DAMAGED BY A FREAK STORM

These photographs are of interest because they show the station as it was two years before the station was badly damaged by freak weather conditions.

During my visit the staff kindly gave me access to all areas.

In May 2023 I travelled by train to Kent Station and on the journey I met young lady from Austria and she was a train drive who was very excited about visiting railway stations in Ireland. She was surprised by the “big fuss” that Irish Rail staff made when she saw her special pass and realised that she was a train driver … this did not happen in other countries “especially France”.

Thursday, December 19, 2013: A “miracle escape” was how local newspapers described the mini-tornado which caused the collapse of a large section of the roof in Kent Train Station. The freak weather which ripped through the station moments after the Cork-Cobh train had left the platform at 3pm left a woman in her 20s injured. It was also reported that a large portion of the roof collapsed onto a train which was not in service, while the rest slumped onto the platform which seconds earlier had contained passengers bound for Cobh.

Back in 2011 the Cork to Cobh service could not be described as “good”. Today [May 2023] the service is much better and very usable.

The station offers direct intercity rail services to Heuston Station and stations in Kerry such as Killarney, Farranfore (for Kerry Airport) and Tralee. Cork Suburban Rail services follow the Cobh and Mallow lines. Since July 2009, a commuter line also operates to Midleton.

The station has three terminating platforms, numbered 1 to 3 (in the Cobh direction), and two through platforms, numbered 4 and 5. The only platform not directly accessible from the station concourse, platform 5, is accessed through a subway, unlike most other Irish stations, which use footbridges. Until the mid-1990s, the through platforms were numbered 5 and 6, as there had been a fourth terminating platform adjacent to platform 3; it was removed in 1984.

Since December 2005’s timetable change, the through platforms tend to get quite congested as commuter trains often come in together, clogging up limited space. Since the reopening of the Cork & Youghal Railway as far as Midleton, increased use has been made of the terminating platforms 1 to 3. There is also a loop line behind platform 5, which used to be used to facilitate moving locomotives from the end of arriving trains to the other end in preparation for departure. This line used to be a double-tracked freight, avoiding the line that enabled goods trains to bypass the passenger station. It is no longer necessary since all services to the station are operated either by railcars or by Mark 4 sets with a driving van trailer.

In 2017, the Cork to Dublin reached record usage of 3.15 million passengers, up 6.5% from 2016.

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