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A Unique Irish New Year tradition - Portmagee's "Old Year" Celebrations

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How we celebrate the New Year in Portmagee.

Ok. Vincent, Patricia's brother here. We admit that what follows wouldn't immediately spring to mind as most people's idea of the best way to celebrate the New Year, but, believe me, it is just about the coolest place to merrily sing 'Auld Lang Syne'. 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'. Myself and God knows how many of my friends made our way from Cork, Dublin, London, Austria and San Jose to be in Portmagee for this last year! It's crazy, slightly surreal and brilliant fun.

The piper harks back to the first enactment of the custom back in 1822. Photo by Michael Hermann

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 Old Year turns on his heel and heads Eastward. Photo by Michael Hermann

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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How we celebrate the New Year in Portmagee.

History of the 'Old Year' Celebration