St. Patrick's College, Belfast
Encyclopedia
St Patrick’s College, Bearnageeha (Irish
Coláiste Phádraig, barna gaoithe) is a Roman Catholic secondary school
for boys aged between 11-19 based on the upper Antrim Road, in Belfast
, Northern Ireland
. St Patrick's was the first Catholic
secondary school
in Belfast
to offer A-Levels. The college's catchment area encompasses the New Lodge
, Ardoyne
, the Antrim Road areas of North Belfast.
In the Autumn of 2006, the College celebrated its golden jubilee. The college is one of many schools and colleges throughout the island of Ireland that has taken the name "St Patrick's", after the island's patron saint
.
P.J. O'Grady retired from his role as Headmaster of Bearnageeha at the end of the 2010/11 academic year. The Board of Governors of St Patrick's College then appointed Ms Paula Stuart as Principal. Ms Stuart became the first female to hold the position.
John Linehan
, who created the character May McFetridge, James Mulgrew, who had a successful television career as Jimmy Cricket
and playwright
Martin Lynch
.
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
Coláiste Phádraig, barna gaoithe) is a Roman Catholic secondary school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
for boys aged between 11-19 based on the upper Antrim Road, in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
. St Patrick's was the first Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
in Belfast
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
to offer A-Levels. The college's catchment area encompasses the New Lodge
New Lodge, Belfast
The New Lodge is an urban, working-class Catholic community in Belfast, Northern Ireland, immediately to the north of city centre. The landscape is dominated by several large tower blocks. The area has a number of murals, mostly sited along the New Lodge Road...
, Ardoyne
Ardoyne
Ardoyne is an Irish nationalist, working class and mainly Catholic district in north Belfast, Northern Ireland. It gained notoriety due to the large number of incidents during "The Troubles". It is home to approximately 20,000 inhabitants...
, the Antrim Road areas of North Belfast.
In the Autumn of 2006, the College celebrated its golden jubilee. The college is one of many schools and colleges throughout the island of Ireland that has taken the name "St Patrick's", after the island's patron saint
Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick was a Romano-Briton and Christian missionary, who is the most generally recognized patron saint of Ireland or the Apostle of Ireland, although Brigid of Kildare and Colmcille are also formally patron saints....
.
P.J. O'Grady retired from his role as Headmaster of Bearnageeha at the end of the 2010/11 academic year. The Board of Governors of St Patrick's College then appointed Ms Paula Stuart as Principal. Ms Stuart became the first female to hold the position.
Former pupils
Former pupils of St Patrick's include comedianComedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
John Linehan
John Linehan
John Joseph Linehan, MBE is better known as the character May McFettridge.-May McFettridge:John Linehan was a car mechanic before he rose to fame in the guise of his plain-speaking, gap-toothed housewife character, May McFettridge. Eamonn Holmes, a relative, had asked Linehan to phone his then...
, who created the character May McFetridge, James Mulgrew, who had a successful television career as Jimmy Cricket
Jimmy Cricket
Jimmy Cricket is a comedian. He currently lives with his family in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England.- Early life and career :...
and playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
Martin Lynch
Martin Lynch
Martin Lynch is a native of Belfast, Northern Ireland and was reportedly a member of the Provisional Irish Republican Army Army Council. Not to be confused with the Belfast playwright of the same name, Lynch is alleged to have been the adjutant-general, who had day-to-day control of the IRA...
.