Orange hall will be renamed in memory of late Queen Elizabeth II

The renaming ceremony takes place tomorrow night at West Belfast Orange Hall on the Shankill Road – also known as ‘The Shankill Citadel’ and ‘The West’ – after which time its official title will be West Belfast Queen Elizabeth II Memorial Orange Hall.

Secretary of the board of trustees William Humphrey said: “Last year with the Queen’s passing in September there was a huge was a huge outpouring of love and affection for the Queen, across the United Kingdom in general but particularly in the Shankill with the mural down at Crimea Street being at the forefront of that.

"The trustees thought that given that out hall is this year celebrating its 125th anniversary – it opened during Queen Victoria’s reign (on April 22, 1898) – that we would mark the fact that the people of greater Shankill have such love and respect and adoration for the Queen, and given all that she had done for the nation and the Commonwealth, that it was fitting that we should include her name along with our own.

"When the trustees met I was detailed to speak to the Lord Lieutenant of Belfast Dame Fionnuala Jay-O’Boyle, she played her part and is now coming to the ceremony to confer that title on the hall.

"We have a number of invited guests from the loyal orders and the community. We’re going to have hopefully, weather dependent, the grand masters from the Orange and the Black.”

Former DUP MLA Mr Humphrey said the hall has always been used by a number of groups in the area: “We’ve got representatives of the Boys’ Brigade, Scouts, local community and clergy – the Orange hall has been a community hall in this part of north west Belfast for 125 years and we want to mark and celebrate that and reach out to the community.

"The hall is used very widely. It’s used by women’s groups, by a cultural society, every Saturday night there is old time dancing in it, we also use it for cultural talks and tours. There are a number of museums in the hall where artefacts we have built up over those 125 years are displayed.”

He was grateful that the Shankill Road building has remained unscathed over the years: "Not that any hall should be attacked but we’ve been very fortunate that our hall has been unscathed.

"We’ve spent a huge time renovating both inside and outside. Last year for example we put in a lighting system which we got funding from government for, so it will be lit up externally tomorrow night. It was first switched on by the Lord Lieutenant on the eve of the Queen’s Jubilee celebrations.

“As part of the ceremony we’re going to have two marble tablets placed outside the building which will bear the new name – they’ll be illuminated as well.”

The official ceremony to rename the hall takes place at 8pm, in The Burdge Room of West Belfast Orange Hall at 342-344 Shankill Road.