Bank holiday frolics get under way

A fun-filled weekend is promised this bank holiday weekend with festivals, parades and sporting events taking place throughout the country.

The entertainment starts this evening with heavy metal legends Iron Maiden at the O2 in Dublin, and Rod Stewart in Belfast.

Lissadell House in Co Sligo opens its gates tonight for a homecoming concert by boyband Westlife, while Leonard Cohen will be performing at the same venue tomorrow and Sunday. Tickets for the Cohen concerts are still available with prices ranging from €80 to €115 per person.

Dublin is host to a number of gigs over the weekend including Michelle Shocked, Jens Lekman and 2 Many DJs.

Among the festivals taking place over the coming days is the Castlepalooza Festival in Tullamore, Co Offaly, which is headlined by Mercury Rev and Fionn Regan.

Martha Wainwright is top of the bill at the Cork X Southwest festival in Skibbereen. Other acts at the event include Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, The Hothouse Flowers and The Frank and Walters.

Also in Co Cork, the Indiependence Festival in Mitchellstown has a host of acts including White Lies, The Coronas, Codes, Jape and Duke Special.

The inaugural Athlone Music Festival meanwhile will feature performances from Imelda May, Mundy, Sharon Shannon and the Undertones.

Waterford hosts its annual Spraoí festival this weekend with street theatre, music and more. The festival, which attracts over 80,000 people to the city each year, will finish with a fireworks display on Sunday and motorists are warned that the Quay will be closed during the event.

The Scariff Harbour Festival in Co Clare is also on over the next few days with acts such as Mary Black and Aslan performing. In Co Meath, the Le Chéile arts and music festival is on with Fight Like Apes, Jerry Fish and Jack L all playing. Summerfests are also continuing in Bray, Co Wicklow and Killarney, Co Kerry.

The 180th RHA Annual Exhibition is on in Dublin and this year the event includes work a number of artists including Mick O’Dea, Stephen McKenna, Martin Gale, Eilis O’Connell and John Gibbons. Still in Dublin and the capital's answer to the London Eye opens tomorrow in the Docklands. The Dublin Wheel operates daily from 10am to 10pm. A 13-minute trip costs €9 per person.

On the sporting front, the Irish Open continues in Killarney as does the Galway Races at Ballybrit. Clonmel is host to the Suir Valley three-day International Cycling Race while the Aviva Stadium in Dublin will be opening its gates for the first time for the Combined Provinces rugby clash between Ulster/Leinster and Munster/Connacht.  On Sunday, the All-Ireland senior football quarter-finals between Roscommon and Cork and Meath and Kildare take place.

Gardaí have urged all motorists to take care on the roads during the bank holiday weekend as there will be significantly more vehicles on the road.

Met Éireann forecasts a mixed weekend weatherwise, with clear spells and a few scattered showers tonight. Tomorrow is expected to be fresh and breezy with sunny spells and showers while Sunday will bring a few brighter spells but will also be fairly cloudy. Some showers or scattered outbreaks of light rain are likely also.

Bank holiday Monday will start dry with some sunny spells but it will turn cloudier from the west during the day. Rain and drizzle will develop along west and southwest coasts and will spread gradually inland later, although eastern parts should stay dry until the evening.