How I met my partner: Dance hall Arcadia was the Tinder of the day in the 60s

CORK love stories aren’t what they used to be with the majority of local couples meeting on Facebook or dating apps.

Ballincollig woman Collette Desmond might have preferred those options in her younger days given how much she detested dance halls.

Nonetheless, she has no regrets as she recounts meeting her husband at the famous Arcadia in Cork city back in 1969. Paul recalled how the then 17-year-old’s dress caught his eye on that memorable night.

“It was blue with a little bit of red on the breast pocket. She was standing by a pillar and I thought she looked lovely. I was nervous about asking her to dance but fortunately, she said yes.

“The song that was playing was Don’t Forget to Remember by the Bee Gees. That was on September 27 of 1969 back when the Arcadia was the Tinder of the day.”

Of course, the couple will never forget the details of that night.

Collette chipped in: “Back then girls would refuse a lot of fellas who asked them to dance because they would be after a few drinks. Paul was after a few drinks himself but he was still standing so I decided to say yes,” she joked.

Paul recalled their instant connection.

We got on very well because we were able to make each other laugh and that’s very important,” he said.

The couple will never forget their first date.

“We went to a place called Inchigeelagh’s on Coburg Street. You could get a pint of milk and a cake there.”

Collette revealed how different it was in those days.

“Back then nobody went for coffees. It was always either milk or cups of tea.”

Paul remembers their walks together like they happened yesterday.

“We walked everywhere including to Fitzgerald Park and the Lee Fields. We’d often stop in the shop on Sunday’s Well and buy Yorkshire toffees and Taytos. Those were always our favourites.”

The pair wed three years later.

“Our wedding day was in the Church of the Ascension Gurrananbraher,” Collette said. “We were the last of the morning weddings and got married at 11.30am. At that time there were no hairdressers or make-up artists coming to the house like there is today.

“I made my own flowers. They were lovely but nothing like the real ones you see now. One thing we regret is leaving to go to Dublin on the 3pm train. The reception was at lunchtime. That was just how they did it back then. Looking back, it seems like an awful waste that we didn’t have the evening.”

Collette and Paul had a second chance at a wedding reception some years later.

“The Metropole invited back all the couples who celebrated wedding receptions there in the last 70 years and it was a great night,” Paul said.

The Cork man revealed why he fell for Collette.

“My favourite thing about Collette is that she has a great sense of humour and she’s liable to do anything,” he said. “You never know what she is going to do next.”

The couple have three children - Deirdre and identical twins Tracy and Carol.

“We get on well because we are working together for the same thing,” Collette said. “All we want is to make family life happy and be nice to one another.”

With Christmas approaching, the couple reflected on their early Christmases as a family.

“It took us five years before we could finally sit down and eat Christmas dinner together. The first year the twins were born and the second I had pneumonia. Pfizer’s were on strike the third Christmas and the fourth year we only realised when sitting down for dinner that the turkey had gone off.”

The family insist on keeping up important family traditions.

“Every year on Christmas eve we take a trip into town,” Paul said. “It’s a tradition that we have because we feel the twins miss out with having their birthday on Christmas eve.”

Collette and Paul now have added quite a few to the guest list for Christmas dinner over the years.

“Our grandchildren are Dylan, Tara, Ciara, Eoin, Isabelle, Grace, Jacob and Kai. Our daughter Tracy’s husband Kevin has a daughter Natleigh who we are extremely fond of.”

The couple were glad to see their first grandchild mark his recent graduation.

“Our dream was to see Dylan in a graduation robe and that’s finally happened. We are really proud of all our children and grandchildren and feel like they are the thanks we have for working so hard in life.”