PLANS to replace a shipwreck which has become an iconic image of the west Donegal Gaeltacht with a life-size steel replica are to be put before the community in Gweedore.
Bád Eddie (Eddie’s boat) has been lying on the popular Magheraclogher Beach at Bunbeg since it was grounded in the 1970s. Originally called Cara na Mara (Friend of the Sea), the trawler has become a popular landmark.
The boat was made famous to a world wide audience when it featured on a music video for In a Lifetime by U2 and Clannad. The trawler has also been used as a marketing image – with Mount Errigal in the background - and has even become popular as a backdrop to wedding photographs.
However, exposure to the elements has left the vessel in an extremely dangerous state. As the wooden hull continues to rot, the boat now poses a danger to anyone in its vicinity.
Plans to replace it with a life-size steel replica created by Buncrana artist John McCarron will be put to a public meeting at Ionad Naomh Pádraig in Gweedore. Donegal Sinn Féin TD, Pearse Doherty said Mr McCarron would attend the meeting.
Mr Doherty said consensus that, if Bád Eddie was removed, it should be replaced with a fitting tribute which could also become a tourist attraction.
“I have been working closely with Donegal sculptor John McCarron on a proposal for the site which includes a plan to create a replica full-size stainless-steel sculpture of Bád Eddie and have it erected on the strand at Magheraclogher where Bád Eddie now sits,” he said.
Mr Doherty said the meeting would enable the local community to have their say on the plans.
