Crowds from The Open stick around to watch Portrush parade: ‘It was a first-class night of culture'
Instead, it was the Sons of Ulster Flute Band's annual parade. Rarely had the event garnered so much attention.
The parade is a key part of the marching calendar stretching back three decades, and is usually held on the first Saturday after the Twelfth.
This year, however, it found itself in the spotlight due to a clash with the third day's play of The Open, a mile or so down the road at Royal Portrush.
It provided a unique cultural experience for many of those visiting the area from afar.
'Tourists watched the parade, with those I had spoken to saying they had never seen anything like it before'
Moving off at 8.30pm, just as spectators were making their way home from the golf course, dozens of bands marched through the town.
The official application to the Parades Commission said 83 bands were due to take part.
Heading the parade was the Ballykeel Loyal Sons of Ulster Flute Band.
For more than two hours, the parade wound its way through the town, finishing up at around 10.45pm.
Crowds lined the streets to watch as the procession passed.
Some tourists in the area for The Open decided to stick around after the golf ended to watch the marchers.
Harn Huang, who's from South Africa and was with her mum and boyfriend, said: 'We don't have anything like this. I'm here to see both the golf and the parade. It's very cool.'
Among those at the parade was TUV councillor Allister Kyle, who praised its success.
'I was proud to be in Portrush on Saturday night, seeing the vast crowds, many of whom were in golf attire, clearly having attended The Open during the day and staying to enjoy the incredible musical spectacle in the evening,' he said.
Mr Kyle added that it had been 'one of the most successful nights Portrush has seen in years'.
The organising band was offered around £20,000 to postpone their parade, which they refused.
Explaining the reluctance to move it, Mr Kyle said: 'The calendar of annual parades remains largely unchanged so that events don't clash.
'Everyone wants to be close to the Twelfth without overlapping with other major parades. Portrush has successfully held the first Saturday after the Twelfth for many years.
'If they had cancelled or postponed, they could have lost their slot to another band or faced serious difficulties finding a new date.'
DUP MP Carla Lockhart was also among the crowd.
She said: 'The town was buzzing and the atmosphere was something else.
'The band have faced much opposition to their parade, but they persisted and it was a first-class night of culture.'
Jonathan McAuley, another local TUV councillor, said it was an evening to remember.
'Tourists from all over the world watched the parade, with those I had spoken to saying they had never seen anything like it before and enjoyed every minute of the parade,' he said.
Bands taking part came from all over Northern Ireland including Dungannon, Belfast, Londonderry and Coleraine.
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