St Patrick’s Day may conjure childhood memories of drunken revellers or standing in the cold and rain watching processionals, but this year there are a host of festivals and fringe events taking place around the country that will celebrate Ireland’s patron saint in style.
From classical concerts to last-minute plans for Mother’s Day activities, here is a round up of what’s on this weekend.
Dublin
From March 14th to 17th, St Patrick’s Festival will run a programme of events across the city including workshops, tours, concerts, walks, displays, long tables and of course, the crown jewel in national festivities – the official parade.
Featuring 12 large scale floats, the national St Patrick’s Day parade will kick off at noon on March 17th in Dublin, running from Granby Row in the north of the city and travelling through O’Connell Street and across the Liffey, before ending at Cuffe Street/Kevin Street junction. This year’s grand marshal will be podcast presenter and Howth native, Vogue Williams.
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The theme of this year’s parade is “roots” and it will be broadcast live on RTÉ One on Tuesday. Performances will include Macnas, Bui Bolg, Spraoi, Inishowen Carnival Group, Curious State, Volkidana, The Outing Queer Arts Collective, Artastic and ArtFX, alongside new entries from Lumen Street Theatre and Show CoMotion, a Dublin-based parade company making its festival debut.
Other St Patrick’s Festival events include Ember Éire, an outdoor fire performance on South King St on Saturday, March 14th; a special tour of the Abbey Theatre on Sunday, March 15th; lunchtime guerrilla Gaeilge in Wolfe Tone Square off Mary Street on Monday, March 16th; and mental health charity Aware will host a 26km Harbour2Harbour walk between Howth and Dún Laoghaire on Tuesday, March 17th.
The full programme of events can be found at stpatricksfestival.ie
Cork
Cork city will kick off its festivities on Friday, March 13th, with an Irish Women in Harmony concert in St Peter’s Church.
The newly renovated Bishop Lucey park will host a series of family-friendly traditional street games at a Play in the Park event on Saturday, March 14th.
Other events include An Céilí Mór at Cork City Hall, the night market on Cornmarket Street, and Coffee House Lates which will see 11 independent cafes host events until 9pm. Cork city will also host a parade which will kick off from South Mall at 1pm on March 17th.
Further information can be found at corkcity.ie
Kilkenny city
Kilkenny’s St Patrick’s Festival boasts a line up of more than 80 events, appropriate for its tag line “the big festival in a small city”. Programme highlights in the Marble City will include a fire and drum show at Nowlan Park on the eve of St Patrick’s Day, while the Parade Plaza will be open until 8pm daily during the festival. The parade itself will begin at 1.30pm at John’s Priory on March 17th.
The programme runs concurrently with Kilkenny’s Tradfest which features skilled musicians such as Iarla Ó Lionáird, Aoife Ní Bhriain, Cormac McCarthy and Clare Sands.
Further information can be found at stpatrick’sfestivalkilkenny.com
Galway city
In Galway, the parade isn’t the only annual St Patrick’s weekend tradition. Galway’s biggest rowing spectacle, the Head of the River, will return to the river Corrib for it’s 37th staging on Saturday, March 14th. Races will take place at 10am, 1.30pm, and 4pm, featuring crews from Ireland, the US, UK, Sweden, France, Germany and Italy. The prize-giving ceremonies will be held at the University of Galway bar from 6pm, followed by post-race celebrations at the Róisín Dubh from 8pm.
Another boating event synonymous with St Patrick’s Day, Bádóirí an Chladaigh, will take place at the Claddagh Basin featuring music, poetry, and Galway hookers in full sail.
This year’s Galway parade is centred around the theme of legends and rising stars. It will start at 11am from University Road on Tuesday, March 17th.
Belfast
Concerts, music workshops, pipe bands, set and céilí dancing are all scheduled to take place the weekend before St Patrick’s Day as part of Belfast’s St Patrick’s Music Festival.
A likely highlight in the festival line-up will be a ticketed double bill of Andy Irvine (formerly of Planxty) and Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh with her new six-piece band at the Mandela Hall on Saturday, March 14th.
There will also be a free festival village at Cathedral Quarter, along with the main parade starting from City Hall on Tuesday, March 17th.
Further information can be found at visitbelfast.com
Derry
Billed as the St Patrick’s Day Spring Carnival, Derry’s festivities will include a spring market in Guildhall Square featuring street food vendors, live traditional music and a parade which will start at 3pm on March 17th.
The carnival will run alongside Derry’s Walled City Music Festival, which returns from March 12th-15th. This will open with Piano Concertos: Passion and Power, featuring pianist Martina Filjak and conclude with Last Songs, Love Songs, Irish Songs: A Festival Farewell from soprano Ailish Tynan. The festival will take place in Derry’s Christ Church.
Further information can be found at derry-strabane.com
