The King of Cong

SIXTY years ago, during the sun-splashed summer of 1951, the first of the trucks that would change Cong forever rumbled into town.

“It was hectic,” recalls local man Jack Murphy, 81. “There was great activity, great craic and great money. For a couple of weeks before they came, we had been looking out for them. It was a very big thing to have all of these stars arriving in a little place overnight.”

And what stars! John Ford, Maureen O’Hara and John Wayne set up camp in Ashford Castle over the next seven weeks leaving an indelible mark on this sleepy corner of Co Mayo.