THE NAME MOSNEY probably conjures up memories for all manner of Irish people, but mainly those born prior to 1990.
The site on the Co Meath coast, just north of Dublin, was of course where the finals of the Community Games were held for many’s a year, but most importantly it was a summer holiday camp for fifty years up until the turn of the millennium.
But whether you spent a week or a day there with your family, or just worked there during the summer, the below video (from the Mosney Facebook page) may well bring a nostalgic tear to your eye.
In 1948 Mosney became the first Butlin’s holiday camp to be established outside the UK. It was sold in 1982 when it became plain old Mosney Holiday Centre, and finally shut its doors in 2000 when it became a camp for asylum seekers.
https://www.facebook.com/ButlinsMosney/videos/862874363804439/
If you’re having trouble viewing that you can watch the video at this link. Alternatively here’s a few tasters.
Terrific stuff, and about as close to Hi-De-Hi as Ireland got. They had us at the breathily whispered “Mosneeeee”.
To give you an impression of what the site is like now, take a look at this from Youtube’s Mosney Memories, who took a stroll around the defunct camp in 2010.
And there’s also this.
Spooky. Looks like the perfect setting for a new Scooby Doo movie really. We can but dream.
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