Traditionally the Belfast parade takes a twenty minute rest once the head of the parade reaches Marlborough Park. One Orange man – at this stage still standing in Bedford Street and no where near the leafy suburbs of South Belfast! – quipped that just because the boss man at the front of the parade has Barnett Demense (the ‘field’) in his sights, doesn’t mean to say the rest are even half way there.
It’s a chance for the marchers to stop and catch their breath, have a smoke and chat to people they know in the crowd. For some bandsmen in Bedford Street, it was the opportunity to down a bottle of Bud. And for some, it was time for a display to keep the crowds entertained.
One drum major twirled and threw and (usually) caught his drum baton, with a series of tricks that apparently includes throwing it high in the air, doing a cartwheel and then getting back up to catch it … not caught on camera this time!
Alan Meban. Tweets as @alaninbelfast. Blogs about cinema and theatre over at Alan in Belfast. A freelancer who writes about, reports from, live-tweets and live-streams civic, academic and political events and conferences. He delivers social media training/coaching; produces podcasts and radio programmes; is a FactCheckNI director; a member of Ofcom’s Advisory Committee for Northern Ireland; and a member of the Corrymeela Community.