Barry's amusements: 'It's my wee happy place'

New owners Curry's hopes the reimagined Portrush attraction will be a screaming success

The smells of popcorn and candy floss, the rattle of the machines, the blaring music and the screams from the big dipper.

Who doesn't love a funfair?

The news that the former Barry's amusements in Portrush has reopened under new management and with a new name has prompted a wave of nostalgia and excitement among lovers of the north coast holiday resort.

The Curry family, who run a fairground in Salthill, County Galway, have taken on a long-term lease on the site and renamed it Curry's Funpark.

Alison Armstrong's family has been going to Barry's at "the Port" for decades.

"It's my wee happy place. I have so many happy memories of it," says the Cookstown woman.

Alison Armstrong with baby Laurenn, the third generation of the family to have enjoyed the Portrush carousel

She has clear memories of her first trip to the funfair with her family when she was three or four years old.

"We went through the place like a whirlwind," she says.

On a later trip she emerged from the ghost train screaming and her parents told her they could see her tonsils.

"We have a caravan up there and my kids have grown up at it," the funfair fan adds.

Like many others, Alison says it will always be Barry's to her, but she's just thankful that the Portrush institution has been saved for future generations.

"I'm looking forward to that feeling you get when you walk through Barry's door. Just being happy," says Alison.

Barry's had been operated for almost 100 years by the Trufelli family, but closed at the start of lockdown and was sold in 2021 to the Belfast businessman Michael Herbert.

Residents and local representatives expressed concern at the time that the complex would be renovated into apartments.

It was later advertised to let as a "prime leisure and entertainment venue".

Stephen Morrison and family prepare to be spooked on the Barry's ghost train

Stephen Morrison says the funfair has been central to Portrush's success as a resort.

"It's its heartbeat, without a doubt. Every seaside town needs to have a heart," the east Belfast man says.

"My earliest memory is of the clown arch at the entrance, going on the coin-operated cars and the helter skelter," says Stephen.

"On the mini dodgems my grandfather let me go 10 times in a row," he says.

Nowadays Stephen is more of a big dipper fan: "I love it, going upside-down. The speed!"

These one-armed bandits could soon empty a fistful of pennies

Stephen is a big fan of funfairs, but Barry's in Portrush and Blackpool's Pleasure Beach are particular favourites.

He collects memorabilia, including the tokens you exchange to pay for rides on the attractions.

The old Barry's tokens are currently changing hands on eBay for about £2 each.

"It's a pity they haven't got a Portrush museum and they could have put some of the old rides in there," he says.

As an indoor attraction, the funfair has never been reliant on Northern Ireland's summer weather

Karen White was another "early adopter" of the Portrush landmark.

"I remember going in the front door. There was a huge laughing clown inside a glass case and when you put 10p into the slot, he would laugh, which had us in stitches," she says.

Karen, from Tempo in County Fermanagh, is delighted that the funfair has been saved.

"I am looking forward to getting back in through the doors, enjoying the sights , sounds and that signature smell that Barry's had.

"Also bringing my kids and now my nephew to Curry's, to experience the old faithful rides and embrace the new ones," she says.

And Karen thinks funfairs may have some educational value in the 21st century.

"Kids these days have forgotten how to have fun as they are constantly on their phones," she says.

"They have no skills as to how to talk to each other, so maybe some old-fashioned fun might help reignite that.

"Maybe some day my kids will bring their family to the Port to relive their memories in Barry's, Curry's, or what ever it may be called in the future."

All aboard the Barry's express!