Outside Molly Darcy's Traditional Irish Pub last Sunday, Thomas Clifford, producer of the cable program "Ireland on the Move," struggled with a video camera as he shot footage of the South Boston Saint Patrick's Day parade.

Clifford, a middle-aged carpenter, says he has been covering the parade for 15 years. For the past three years--as long as Molly Darcy's has been in business--he has filmed the festivities from that location.

An immigrant from County Kerry, Ireland, Clifford remarked that his temporarily broken video truck almost cost him the ability to cover the parade, but he added with a smile, "Everything always works out for the best."

The crowd of 2,000 seemed to agree.

Wind whipped at the ruddy-faced parade watchers during the two-and-a-half-hour ritual, but because of cultural heritage, neighborhood pride or perhaps simple curiosity, crowds seemed oblivious to the cold. They kept warm by dancing impromptu jigs to the incessant sounds of the pipe and drum bands that were part of the festivities, and by marveling at the diversity of the procession's participants.

Nancy Murphy of Beacon Hill said the ubiquitious bagpipers were closely tied to Ireland.

"The bagpipes are an embodiment of the spirit of Ireland," she said. "They are meant to carry you home. If you have left [Ireland], they tell you, good luck and God bless you--but don't forget who you are or where you are from.

"Short of the Catholic Church and maybe whiskey," Murphy added with a chuckle, "nothing can approximate the glory of Ireland like the mesmerizing sound of the bagpipe."

The parade began at 1 p.m. from the Broadway T station at Broadway and Dorchester Streets.

Joseph R. Mendino of Hyde Park was in charge of crowd control in front of the silent Man Pub, the first South Boston establishment outside the T stop. He wore a big smile, and in spite of the hordes of parade-goers surrounding his pub, Mendino was unflappable.

"Saint Patrick's Day is a wonderful celebration," Mendino said above the bagpipers rendition of "When The Saints Go Marching In."

"Obviously I'm happy because I'm going to see many people today, but if you're even the slightest bit Irish, you can't help getting sentimental over these people. It's beautiful really," Mendino said.

The parade is a storied part of the city's past, and for the last 25 years, it has been organized by the south Boston Alliance of War Veterans. In conjunction with the veterans, several neighborhood organizations also contribute to its success and popularity, including the South Boston Information Center and the South Boston Community Center. Volunteer workers make up the entire staff of these three organizations.

Aside from filmmaker, Clifford fills another unofficial role in the parade--as an institution. Nearly every politician that passed jumped at the chance to get on Clifford's camera.

From a stunning 1960s-era Ford Thunderbird, Albert L. "Dapper" O'Neill waved hello and gave a thumbs-up sign. Raymond Flynn, former U.S. ambassador to the Vatican and former Democratic candidate for the Eighth Congressional District, also stopped to speak with Clifford.