Massive crowds turn out for hugely successful Banagher Horse Fair

MASSIVE crowds turned out on Sunday last for the Annual Banagher Horse Fair and the weather was lovely too.
Founded by a Royal Charter from Charles I, in 1608, this prestigious Fair has been run every year since.
It was an important fair for the British Army to purchase horses for their cavalry regiments; and horses bought here took part in a number of famous battles, including Waterloo.
Locally the tradition is extremely strong and many people want to keep it going. This was clearly obvious by the huge numbers which thronged the town's main street throughout the day.
“Banagher will always have an Annual Street Horse Fair,” one of the attendees told the Midland Tribune. “It is a Chartered given right.”
The following day another local told the Tribune that, “Thousands attended the Fair. It was a resounding success.”
He also said it would be unfair to link the Fair with the street brawl which took place on the town's Main Street the night before.
“That incident had nothing to do with the Horse Fair. There have been quite a few public order incidents on the streets of the towns and villages of South Offaly over the last few months. This was another of them and it had nothing to do with the Fair. Some people don't like the Fair and it would be wrong for them to use the street brawl incident as ammunition to try and get the Fair stopped.The Fair Day itself, on the Sunday, was completely peaceful. It was good humoured, friendly, a nice family day out. Anyone attending the Fair that I talked to was appalled by the news of the previous night's brawl.”
CCTV footage shows a row breaking out between a group of men standing on the street in the early hours of Sunday morning, during which punches are thrown. A Garda spokesperson said a man was later taken to Midland Regional Hospital Tullamore for treatment, and no arrests were made. The Gardai are, however, investigating the incident.