Project Blog

Liam Neeson was guest of honour at an exciting and emotional weekend to celebrate the end of an era at the Lyric Theatre in Belfast. Liam is Patron of the Lyric and has been closely involved with the campaign to raise funds for a new theatre.

Describing his early career at the Lyric as “the best training any actor could have”, Liam held a press conference at the Lyric on his return to the much-loved Belfast venue for the first time since his last appearance on its stage in 1977. This was followed by a private dinner in Roscoff’s Brasserie for major supporters of the Lyric’s fundraising campaign. The menu for the evening was carefully selected by Paul Rankin in honour of Liam’s Lyric homecoming and reflected the best in local product.

The last ever public performance at the current Lyric Theatre was Glinda’s Glitter Ball. Many of the guests got into the spirit of the day by donning glittery attire and arriving at the theatre for a sparkling Marques de Monistrol pink champagne reception hosted by United Wines.

A gala performance of The Wizard of Oz featured not just a chorus of forty young children, but also a number of local celebrity Munchkins - Dan Gordon, Olivia Nash, Nuala McKeever, BJ Hogg, Marie Jones, and Gerard McCarthy and Glen Wallace from Hollyoaks. UTV presenters Pamela Ballantine, Ivan Little and Julian Simmons took a bit of good-natured stick about their wooden performances as trees, and Grimes & McKee provided lots of laughs in their roles as crows and Oz guards.

Following an interval drinks reception sponsored by Harry’s Road and Coca-Cola Bottlers (Ulster) Ltd., guests enjoyed the second act of The Wizard of Oz, the highlights of which included a cameo appearance by James Nesbitt and a rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow by local singer/songwriter Brian Kennedy.

The icing on the cake for the packed audience was Liam Neeson’s first steps onto the Lyric stage in over thirty years. After the final curtain call, Liam walked on to a standing ovation and told an enthralled audience, “this is the end, and the beginning,” referring to the plans to demolish and rebuild Northern Ireland’s only full-time producing theatre.

An auction presided over by Grimes & McKee offered a range of unique prizes, including the chance for a snuggle on stage with James Nesbitt and Liam Neeson. By far the most frenzied bidding was for the original of the Neil Shawcross artwork for The Wizard of Oz which fetched an amazing £15,000.

The party continued late into the night with a post-show reception sponsored by Botanic Inns, The House and Coole Swan - the world’s first super premium cream liqueur created from the highest quality ingredients, inspired and created with William Butler Yeats.

Liam and the other celebrities mingled with guests, happily signing autographs and posing for photographs until the lights were dimmed and ‘last orders’ called at the Lyric’s bar for the final time in the current building.

As well as being a fitting and fantastic send-off to the current Lyric, the estimated £60,000 raised from the event will help to build a stunning new theatre on the existing Ridgeway Street site overlooking the River Lagan. The Lyric has so to date raised £16million out of the £17million required. Funders include the Department of Culture, Arts & Leisure; Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Belfast City Council, as well as private donors, trusts and foundations, and the corporate sector. It is hoped that the final £1million will be raised before construction begins on the new theatre in summer 2008.

Filed under General