Dr McAllister, the Northlands magician
GREAT to see the works ongoing at the Village Hotel in Bettystown.
It has a wonderful history and I was checking up a bit on it recently and its array of owners and managers.
In 1964, the annual International Magicians’ competitions were held at The Village or the Northlands Hotel back then.
They came from all over for it and Dr. McAllister of The Northlands was President of the Irish Society.
At the first of these conferences, the trick of catching the flying bullet in the teeth was seen in Ireland for the first time. It was a trick in which a .22 rifle is fired at the magician’s mouth from some 25 paces and the bullet is caught in the teeth, if all goes well. The user of the rifle is naturally selected as a crack shot.
In 1979, it changed hands when Fred Brady from Kells took it over. He made vast improvements and in 1980, Paul Kirwan, who was manager of the Gwent, came in as manager.
The chef was Jim Brown, who worked in the London Hilton. In charge of the bar was Raymond Finnegan, formerly of the Mullary Inn.
In 1983 The Village, which was acquired by Mr. Noel Ryan, re-opened to the public.
It opened for buffet style luncheons, featuring seafood specialities and salads.
In the late 1980s, Ray Fitzsimons was owner. The eleven bedroom hotel was to be sold a few years later.
It would be great if the new owners held a ‘Magic Weekend’ each year to remember Dr McAllister.