Portarlington and its people are the stars of this opening sequence to 'Hall's Pictorial Weekly'.
People in Portarlington in County Laois go about their daily business with some taking the time to wave for the cameras.
Once a week, from June to September, the 'Hall's Pictorial Weekly’ film crew would arrive at a town or village in any county in Ireland. They would film the people and the place and return to RTÉ where the footage was edited and the theme music added.
This short film of around one minute’s duration formed part of the opening sequence for that week’s episode. No-one knew which location had been chosen, and it was not advertised as part of the programme billings in the RTÉ Guide or newspapers.
So with this in mind, people the length and breadth of the country tuned in religiously, in case it was the turn of their town or village to have its few minutes of fame.
This episode of 'Hall's Pictorial Weekly' was broadcast on 3 November 1976.
