Barry's Amusements was an amusement park in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label=Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. North ...
. Located in the center of
Portrush
Portrush () is a small seaside resort town on the north coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It neighbours the resort of Portstewart. The main part of the old town, including the railway station as well as most hotels, restaurants and bars, ...
,
County Antrim
County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...
, on the north coast, it was founded in 1925. The owners offered it for sale in 2019 and it was reported sold for redevelopment in 2021. In April 2022, it reopened under lease as Curry's Fun Park.
Park
The amusement park occupies in the center of Portrush;
it was the largest amusement park in Ireland.
It has a mixture of traditional and modern amusements and was normally open from
Easter Monday
Easter Monday refers to the day after Easter Sunday in either the Eastern or Western Christian traditions. It is a public holiday in some countries. It is the second day of Eastertide. In Western Christianity, it marks the second day of the ...
until the first week in September.
[ Barry's employed many teenagers and university students from the area.]
History
Barry's was founded by the married couple of Francesco Trufelli, a former trapeze artist
A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a ceiling support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances. Trapeze acts may be static, spinning (rigged from a single point), swinging or flying, an ...
and manager of the Royal Italian Circus, and Evelyn Chipperfield of the Chipperfield's Circus
]
Chipperfield's Circus is a British family touring show, continuing a 300-year-old family business.
Chipperfield's Circus originates with James Chipperfield with his performing animals at the River Thames frost fairs, Thames Frost Fair of 16 ...
family,[ The couple toured with the circus and then opened the amusement park in 1926 after being invited by the local railway company to permanently locate on a site beside the ]railway station
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...
; according to the company history, rather than use either of their family names, they named it 'Barry's' after the first supplier to arrive on-site, Barr.[ The family at one time also operated Barry's amusement parks in ]Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingd ...
and Bangor.
The park was offered for sale in November 2019 as a going concern,[ but was unable to open for the 2020 season because of the ]COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...
. In May 2021 it was offered for sale as a development opportunity.[ An online petition was launched protesting against development. In early August, Barry's was reported sold to property developer Michael Herbert.][ In September 2021, the new owner sought a tenant to operate it as an entertainment or leisure venue; in March 2022 the Curry family, who operate Curry's Fun Park in ]Salthill
Salthill () is a seaside area in the City of Galway in the west of Ireland. Lying within the townland of Lenaboy (''an Léana Buí''), it attracts many tourists all year round. There is a 2 km long promenade, locally known as ''the Pro ...
, in County Galway
"Righteousness and Justice"
, anthem = ()
, image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg
, map_caption = Location in Ireland
, area_footnotes =
, area_total_km2 = ...
, announced that they had signed a long-term lease and planned to reopen Barry's at Easter, also as Curry's Fun Park. It reopened on 9 April 2022.
Attractions
Attractions
Former attractions
See also
* List of theme parks in the United Kingdom
References
Further information
*
*
External links
*
Official websitearchived
on 6 March 2019)
{{Authority control
1925 establishments in Northern Ireland
Tourist attractions in County Antrim
Amusement parks in the United Kingdom
Portrush