Anniversary of opening of Royal Ballroom in Mayo's county town

By Tom Gillespie

FIFTY-nine years ago this week the edition of The Connaught Telegraph of December 28, 1963, carried a front page report on the official opening of the Royal Ballroom at the Travellers’ Friend Hotel, Castlebar.

Stated to be the biggest and greatest in Ireland, the opening of the ballroom marked yet another milestone in the recent progress and development in Mayo’s county town – Castlebar.

The newspaper reported:

The ballroom, which was erected by Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Jennings, enterprising and go-ahead proprietors of the Travellers’ Friend and Imperial Hotels Group, has every modern amenity to meet the needs of modern dance fans, and it was officially opened by the Minister for Lands, Michael O’Morain.

The spacious building, which was erected by Mr. Paddy McDonnell, another progressive and enterprising local man, in what must be a record time - three months - has one of the most spacious floor areas in Ireland.

Apart from it being a centre for dancing, it has provided Castlebar with a centre where conferences or any other large gatherings of people can meet.

On arrival at the ballroom the minister was greeted by the hotel proprietors, Paddy and Mary B. Jennings, and Castlebar town clerk, Mr. J.J. Smyth. He was accorded a tumulus reception as he cut the tape and declared the building officially open.

Mr. O’Morain said: “It is a great pleasure and a privilege for me to attend this pleasant function and declare the new Royal Ballroom officially open.

“This spacious building, with its ultra modern facilities and amenities, represents a further step by local enterprise in this town.

“I understand that the capacity of the ballroom is from 3,000 to 3,500 people and that the ultimate cost is in the region of £30,000.

“You will, therefore, appreciate that we are privileged to witness the opening of the largest ballroom attached to any hotel in the whole of the country.

“On your behalf and on my own, I want to tender our heartiest congratulations to my fellow townsman, Mr. Jennings and Mrs. Jennings, on this wonderful achievement.

“There is a saying in forestry circles that if you plant a tree in this country you are expressing an act of faith in Ireland’s future.

“By constructing this magnificent edifice, Mr. and Mrs. Jennings are, in a similar way, expressing an act of faith in the future prosperity and expansion of this historic town and indeed in the future of tourism in this county.”

Mr. O’Morain went on: “We are highly conscious here of the tourist potentialities of the west and we regard it as probably the most important industry.

“I have long felt that there would be no more suitable or interesting place than Mayo’s capital for the holding of conferences if we had the accommodation available.

“It has been my privilege to meet many members of the Municipal Authorities Association since their conference here and without exception they were unanimous in their praise of Castlebar as a suitable venue.

“There is no reason why this town of ours should not henceforth be a conference centre with the facilities we have now available. We can offer our guests not alone unrivalled scenery in the immediate vicinity here but also unrivalled fishing in their spare time, ranging in variety from the lordly salmon to the humble perch.

“Those organisations, therefore, whether they be national or international, who wish to have their annual conferences conducted in the friendly, peaceful atmosphere, which only the west can provide, will, I feel sure, consider all these new facilities and all this new accommodation that is now being provided in our town.”

The minister continued: “Already here in the west tourism is an expanding business and you have no doubt read of the proposed plans to create further tourism promotion through a special organisation linking our neighbours in Galway and Sligo with us.

“This new organisation will, I am sure, realise that further facilities such as are being provided here will be an asset to all businesses if there is an extra flow of tourist traffic to Mayo, and the neighbouring counties will also benefit.

“I have spoken elsewhere of the necessity for those concerned with the tourist business to make plans to fight our ancient enemy - the wet day. We have here in the west unrivalled outdoor facilities, both at the sea and by our lakes, rivers and mountains. In the main, however, we have been slow to provide for the boredom that follows the odd wet day when our visitors are confined to their hotels.

“Knowing the progressive outlook of Mr. Paddy Jennings, I have no doubt that he will take advantage of the tremendous amount of space he has now available to provide for indoor entertainment here during the tourist season when the Lord provides what we westerns call ‘a soft day’.”

All through the 1960s and ‘70s the country’s top showbands played at the Royal Ballroom, which was also the venue for the Castlebar International Song Contest.

The ballroom has since been transformed into the 2,500-seater Royal Theatre which is run by Pat Jennings, son of Paddy and Mary B.