ONE of Northern Ireland’s most esteemed musicians, Barry Douglas CBE has been awarded with the prestigious Lifetime Achievement accolade at the Ulster Tatler Awards, which took place on Thursday 8th September in St. Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast.
The south Belfast born star picked up the award which in the past has been won by a host of local luminaries including Dame Mary Peters OBE, Sir James Galway, Brian Friel, Phil Coulter, Gloria Hunniford, Michael Longley, Gerry Armstrong, Barry McGuigan, Terri Hooley, Marie Jones, Hollywood actor Ciaran Hinds, sporting hero Pat Jennings and John Linehan aka May McFettridge who was honoured at last year’s ceremony.
The Lifetime Achievement recipient grew up in south Belfast in the 1960s, not far from Queen’s University where he would later be awarded an honorary Doctor of Music degree. Although renowned as a pianist and conductor, when he attended the City of Belfast School of Music he was highly regarded as a clarinettist and for a while as a schoolboy, he was the organist in a local church.
Having had his initial piano lessons in Belfast and in Dublin, after school he moved to London, and later to Paris and Moscow, for conservatoire training. Considerable success in prestigious piano competitions and great reviews for his earliest recordings launched him onto a stellar career which has taken him to play with most of the world’s leading conductors and orchestras.
The calibre of his playing, and his breadth of repertoire, have kept him in constant demand and it’s no wonder that he was appointed OBE in 2002, and CBE twenty years later, for his services to music and to community relations in Northern Ireland. The Royal College of Music in London awarded him a Fellowship and a Visiting Professorship, and the National University of Ireland conferred on him an Honorary Doctorate in Music in 2007.
He has always been both a high-profile role model for up-and-coming young musicians and an active champion to do all he can to raise standards and to provide top level opportunities for young players. In 1998, he established Camerata Ireland to give a platform for our best home-grown orchestral players and, as their conductor, to lead tours to international venues.
To date, he has released over 30 albums and has performed at some of the world’s most prestigious venues alongside famed orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra.
Ulster Tatler editor Chris Sherry noted that Douglas was an extremely worthy winner of the evening’s pivotal award.
“He is one of the most respected internationally acclaimed musicians to have hailed from Northern Ireland, with his accomplishments reflecting a truly extraordinary career.
“Most importantly, Barry is a wonderful ambassador for Northern Ireland and the opportunities he provides for young musicians throughout the country is particularly admirable. We’re delighted this award has gone to someone who in every way, represents the essence of what our Lifetime Achievement Award is all about,” he added.
Awards host Pamela Ballantine delivered the citation for the award to a full house of more than 400 guests at St. Anne’s Cathedral, reliving the exciting and inspirational life to date of the legend Barry Douglas.
Other big winners on the night included Jonathan Rea who was named Sportsperson of the Year in a hotly contested category that saw him compete with Belfast Giants Head Coach Adam Keefe, golf superstar Rory McIlroy, the current WDF (World Darts Federation) world champion Neil Duff and Northern Ireland women’s footballer Julie Nelson for the coveted title.
NI women’s football manager Kenny Shiels was awarded the Insight.Out Financial Special Merit Award on the night. This award has been previously awarded to former Ulster Rugby coach Brian McLaughlin, the Northern Ireland football team and Ulster Rugby legends Ruan Piennaar, Tommy Bowe, Andrew Trimble and Tyrone GAA.
The Celebrity of the Year award was awarded toTik Tok viral magician Joel Mawhinney aka Joel M who contested with a mix of local and international stars for the title including Rebecca McKinney, Gyasi Sheppy, Nicola Coughlan and Adrian Dunbar.
Winners in other categories included Le Jardin who lifted Spa of the Year, Radiance Beauty and Day Spa who took home Beauty Salon of the Year and Castle Leslie which received the award for Hotel of the Year; Pearl and Grace which was presented with Fashion Boutique of the Year; Trevor Wilson of Beaufort Interiors who was named Interior Designer of the Year. Amy Millen of Revolution Fitness took the award for Personal Trainer of the Year; Margaret Doherty Hair which was named as Hairdressing Salon of the Year; A Peculiar Tea was awarded Restaurant of the Year; Herd Coffee took the award for Coffee House of the Year; Gary Doherty of THINK Network who earned himself Business Man of the Year, Sinead McDermott who won Arts Personality of the Year and Shelley Lowry (Shelley Lowry Talent) and Christine Mackin (Radiance Beauty & Day Spa) who both were named as Business Woman of the Year.
The evening wasn’t short of ‘glitz and glamour’ as other celebrities attending on the evening included NI women’s football star Julie Nelson, darts champion Neil Duff, well-known artist Terry Bradley, Miss Great Britain Eden McAllister and well-known presenters Rebecca McKinney and Gyasi Sheppy who also stepped out to celebrate at the venue.
“The difficulty in choosing just one deserved winner seems to become greater every year and that speaks volumes on just how high the standard is across the province. Every single category was bursting with worthy nominees,” said Ulster Tatler editor Chris Sherry.
“I want to extend massive congratulations to each of the winners and all those shortlisted, who should all be exceptionally proud of what they have achieved throughout the last year. I also want to personally thank everyone for their continued support.
“This year we are celebrating the fifteenth year of the Ulster Tatler Awards and the event was a complete sell-out in the stunning St. Anne’s Cathedral so we couldn’t have asked for a better evening. The night was a huge success,” added Chris.
The Ulster Tatler Awards 2022 was sponsored by Andrew Mulvenna Hair, Revolution Productions, Hafele, Linwoods, Velvet Rose Galgorm, Savvy & Shine, RagDollz HQ, Elite Travel NI, Mark McCallister Carpets, The Courtyard Carrickfergus, Holley Optometrists, So Good Juice, Mills Selig, Mode German Kitchens, Incorporate Solutions, Duffy Rafferty Communications, The Lobster Pot, Kildare Village and Insight Out Financial.
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