Over 300 Westport students watch new Paddington movie in local cinema

WESTPORT’S love for Paddington Bear reached an all-time high today when over 300 students from Scoil Phádraig made the short trip to their local cinema to watch ‘Paddington in Peru’. 

Approximately 330 students from Scoil Phádraig - many dressed up as Paddington - walked to the W Cinema in Westport for a screening of the third live-action film starring the famous bear. 

This included the Brownes - a name strongly associated with Westport - who dressed up as Paddington’s relatives for the occasion. 

Paddington has become a local celebrity in Westport since his statue was unveiled at The Fairgreen as part of the ‘Paddington Visits’ promotional campaign for the new film. 

Thousands of visitors have flocked to see the statue, which will remain in Westport ‘for the foreseeable future’. 

Since Paddington came to town, the students have undertaken several Paddingon-themed educational activities. 

These include writing about how to make marmalade sandwiches and science experiments for the most appropriate coat for Paddington to wear in the Irish climate. 

The students have also created a Paddington ‘shrine’ in the corridor and a cardboard depicting him visiting various landmarks in Westport. 

^{The shrine to Paddington Bear in Scoil Phádraig in Westport} 

Fergus Seoighe, Principal of Scoil Phádraig, told The Mayo News that the release of the new Paddington was resurrecting interest in the Paddington books, which were first released in the 1960s. 

“It’s a classic from when we would have been children ourselves,” said Mr Seoighe.

The idea of going to see Paddington’s latest film was inspired by Brigid Gilboy, who works as a support teacher in the Scoil Phádraig. 

“The whole Paddington story, and the message of Paddington, is about taking in a stranger, looking out for the stranger, we’ve done that so much in the last year or two in Westport particularly,” she explained. 

“With all the international students that have come to us, we’ve embraced them, and they’ve added so much to the school, the whole message as well, there’s one of Paddington’s messages, ‘If you are kind and polite the world will be right’. It links in with our big drive in the school for anti-bullying and the Cineáltas [anti-bullying programme].”

^{Members of the Browne family dressed up as Paddington's family with Fergus Seoighe (right), Principal of Scoil Phádraig} 

Ms Gilboy said that Paddington’s arrival in Westport had also instilled great pride of place among the Scoil Phádraig students. The Westport Paddington is the only one in Ireland, with the other 22 installed throughout the United Kingdom. 

“He finds good in everyone, and he’s polite,” added Ms Gilboy. “It has brought the whole school together, but we are a very strong community school and he has been a unifying force within the school. The children have been so excited.”

Sharon McGreal, a teacher in Scoil Phádraig, echoed Ms Gilboy’s comments about Paddington’s ties to the school’s ethos. 

“In the movie, it says we all belong to different tribes but we are all one family, that is the perfect quote for this school because we come from everywhere but we all work together and we play on the same team. That really struck me that [we have] all the differences but yet we can all be together,” said Ms McGreal.

^{Drawings by students in Scoil Phádraig in Westport depicting Paddington outside The Octagon in Westport}