Northern Ireland

Musicians join drive to save iconic Donegal boat wreck

Bád Eddie (Eddie's boat) has become a legendary symbol of the Gweedore Gealtacht. Picture by Mal McCann.
Bád Eddie (Eddie's boat) has become a legendary symbol of the Gweedore Gealtacht. Picture by Mal McCann. Bád Eddie (Eddie's boat) has become a legendary symbol of the Gweedore Gealtacht. Picture by Mal McCann.

SINGERS and musicians from Co Donegal have joined a campaign to preserve and construct a replica of an iconic boat wreck on a Gweedore beach.

A Gofundme page launched to raise €5,000 to save Bád Eddie (Eddie’s Boat) has almost reached its target after just six days.

Bád Eddie lies on the scenic Magheraclogher Beach in Bunbeg and has been there since the 1970s. Called “Cara na Mara” (Friend of the Sea) it was built in France and brought by a Donegal fisherman called Eddie.

Images of the wrecked fishing boat with Errigal in the background have become symbols of the west Donegal Gaeltacht region. The boat has also won wider acclaim as a backdrop for photographs and is frequently used by newly married couples for wedding pictures.

In 1985, the vessel won world fame when it was used in the music video for “In a Lifetime”, a hit by U2 and west Donegal group, Clannad. However, the boat has fallen into serious disrepair over the last 50 years and is now in danger of disintegrating completely.

The future of Bád Eddie has now been taken up by a local committee who hope to preserve and design a replica structure to replace it.

The committee launched its campaign with a concert at the wreck featuring some of Donegal’s best-known musicians, including Moya Brennan, singer with Clannad. She was joined by singer and fiddle player with Altan, Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh among others.

By last night, Friday, €4,190 of the targeted €5,000 had been raised. A spokeswoman for the committee said the money would be used to preserve the wreck.

She said: “Thousands enjoy Bád Eddie when they visit Gweedore and we as a committee would like your support to preserve what is left of her and to design a structure that will combine the bones of what is left of the boat with a replica structure designed to be a permanent fixture on the beach in Bunbeg.

“We would like to raise money to protect the image of what is the focal point of our parish and the money raised will give a good start to the project.”

The Bád Eddie Gofundme page can be accessed at https://www.gofundme.com/f/bad-eddie.