One of the more bizarre aspects of the showband scene in the 50s and 60s was the dreaded 6 weeks of Lent. During this time, all the working musicians had to take an enforced holliday because of the strict 'no dancing' rule in Ireland during this period. The only way around this was to pack up your gear and head for England, or to be precise, London. Here there was loads of work, it seemed like there was an Irish club or pub on almost every street corner. You could dance 7 nights a week if you had the stamina. Our band, The Presidents Showband from Belfast went over during lent in 1964  and played 21 gigs in 4 weeks, all within the greater London area.  How times have changed.  George Caldwell