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For over a century and a half, the arrival of each new
year is celebrated in Portmagee with a unique custom called
'The Old Year'. It's a little bit crazy, a little
bit amazing and a fantastic time.
History of the 'Old Year' Celebration
As the story goes, in Christmas 1822, a Scottish
ship, The MacGonagle, moored in Portmagee's natural harbour
in order to wait out a particularly violent storm that was
brweing out in the Atlantic. The vistors liked the place
so much that they stayed for the entire Christmas season.
Then, on New Year's Eve, when all
the sensible locals had already gone to bed for the night,
an eerie and disturbing wailing noise emanated from the
direction of the pier.
Some of the locals, being well-acquainted
with all sorts of paranormal phenomena from fairies to pucai,
believed that the noise was that of the banshee -
a female spirit whose wailing is said to warn the hearer
of an impending death in the family. However, other more
fearless souls set out to seek a rational explanation
for what was occurring.
Much to their amazement, they found the crew
of the MacGonagle marching up the pier towards them, blazing
torches held aloft in their hands and bagpipes
attending their advance, all led by a decrepit, staggering
old man, dressed in rags.
The procession continued all through the village, as the
locals looked on with now bemused wonderment. The party
turned on its heel and returned to the head of the pier
where, all of a sudden, a shot rang out in the night
and the old man fell to the ground and lay still. The locals
knew that the Scottish were tough men but this seemed a
bit excessive. Just then ...
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