Weird Belfast: A Miscellany, Almanack and Companion

by Reggie Chamberlain-King

Overview

Did you know that Herr Dobler, Wizard of the World, appeared at the Victoria Hall in Belfast in 1883? Did your granny ever try Dobbin’s Blood Purifier, only available at Dobbin’s Chemist, North Street? And did you hear about the arrest of Jack the Ripper in Memel Street in Belfast in 1888?

Welcome to Weird Belfast, a miscellany that revels in the strange, miraculous, superstitious and uncanny side of Belfast. This is a history of the city that has never been told before – there are ghostly goings-on and accusations of witchcraft; scientific advances and ‘miracle cures’; heinous murders and tragic suicides; and spectacular appearances from The Magnetic Lady and the renowned Blondin, ‘King of the Tight Rope’.

Drawing on newspaper articles, ballads, playbills and advertisements as well as anecdote, hearsay and rumour, this is a vivid and endlessly fascinating account of the weird and wonderful and wonderfully weird in Belfast.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780856409424
Publisher:	Blackstaff Press, The
Publication date:	11/06/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	192
File size:	7 MB

About the Author

Reggie Chamberlain-King quickly sped past youth and education into decrepit early adulthood, becoming, by cold hard luck, a writer, musician, and broadcaster. He makes frequent appearances on Radio Ulster’s Arts Extra and was, for four years, the cultural attaché on After Midnight with Stuart Bailie.

He has written several plays, including The Ballad of Lilliburlero for BBC NI Events, and The Down Chorus, for Wireless Mystery Theatre. His work has appeared on BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4 and has been broadcast in Germany, Canada and the United States.

He is a co-founder, actor, musician and continuity announcer with Wireless Mystery Theatre and author of the cult mystery series The Brittaine & Molloy Inquiry Quarterly. Weird Belfast is his first book.

 

For more on Reggie Chamberlain-King visit
http://thestuffedowl.co.uk/

Or follow him on Twitter
@Reggie_C_King