Festivals in flower over weekend

The Oxegen 2011 festival kicks off today on what promises to be a busy weekend entertainment-wise.

For those who are too old, too broke or too sensible to want to spend their time camped out in a muddy field with 80,000 other people, there are plenty of alternatives on including sporting action, garden festivals and ballet.

The festival, which has been running since 2004, gets under way today and continues until Sunday night. Among the acts scheduled to perform over the weekend are Black Eyed Peas, Beyoncé, Coldplay, Foo Fighters, The Strokes, The National, Primal Scream and The Script.

Between 70,000 and 80,000 people are expected to attend, and festivalgoers have been advised to use public transport where possible. Dublin Bus and Bus Éireann are running services to the festival from Dublin, Cork and Galway, while a park-and-ride service is available from Goffs on the M7.

The Beach Boys celebrate their 50th anniversary with a show at the National Concert Hall in Dublin tomorrow and Sunday. Meanwhile, Westlife are in Cork city tomorrow as part of the Live at the Marquee festival.

The Birmingham Royal Ballet's well-received performance of Coppelia continues at the Grand Canal tonight and tomorrow while Ballet Manila will be premiering their gala show East meets West at the Convention Centre tomorrow night.

Up to 5,000 people are expected to attend the Galway Garden Festival at Claregalway Castle this weekend. A free courtesy bus will be available from Galway City Rail station to the festival every hour from 10.30am.

The West Cork Literary Festival continues in Bantry with  Eats, Shoots & Leaves  author Lynne Truss and Booker Prize nominee Justin Cartwright among the guests. Kinsale Arts Week begins tomorrow and continues until next Sunday. Comedy, music, theatre and poetry will all feature, and extra bus services will run between Kinsale and Cork city during the week.

In Letterkenny the Earagail Arts Festival begins as does the Carrick-On-Shannon Water Music Festival in Co Leitrim and Bray Summerfest in Co Wicklow. The Cairde Summer Festival in Sligo also continues over the weekend.

On the sports front there plenty of GAA action over the next few days including Wexford's clash with Dublin in the Leinster football final at Croke Park on Sunday. There's also racing at Tipperary, Sligo and Fairyhouse racecourses.

Met Éireann is predicting heavy showers and thunder today with temperatures of up to 18 degrees today. The forecast is brighter for the rest of the weekend with sunshine and some scattered showers tomorrow and Sunday.