Looking forward to Nenagh Castlefest

With two weeks to go to the main event of the summer in Nenagh, the organisers of Nenagh Castlefest 2018 are working hard to put together what promises to be a weekend of music, food and fun.

Starting on Friday June 29th with Ceol@Castlefest – a festival concert in Nenagh Arts Centre – and continuing through to Sunday evening, the festival will bring live music, food, funfair and stalls to the Castle Field, but also around the town. Live bands and trad sessions will take place in pubs around the town at night time.

Councillor Hughie McGrath, chair of the organising committee, paid tribute to the work which is being done behind the scenes: “There is a huge amount of work which has to be done to put on a big event such as this,” he said. “Stages, sound and musicians have to be booked, we have to engage with the pubs and local businesses, music sessions are arranged and accommodation has been sorted for visiting musicians.

“Brochures, flyers and signs have to be designed and printed. We have a great committee who do all of this on a voluntary basis and do it for the good of the town of Nenagh.
“I want to say a special thanks to Nenagh Tidy Towns committee, who do such great work to spruce up the town in time for summer and to keep it looking well.”

Further acts have been confirmed for the Live@TheCastle stage – Muriel O’Connor and Fran Curry, Lisa Manning, James McGrath, FarHaven and Crystal Swing will all take to the stage over the weekend. MC Martin Grace will guide us through the weekend and the headliners of the weekend will both feature on Saturday – Johnny Brady and his band will take to the stage at 4.30pm in the afternoon, while the mid-summer night air will be filled with the sounds of the amazing Sharon Shannon and friends, appearing at 7.30pm.  
The Castle Field will host foodstalls, craft stalls, bouncy castles, face painting, funfair and much more to entertain the crowds and, if looking for a better viewpoint, not just of the concert but of the whole town, where better than from the top of a thirteenth century castle? Nenagh Castle will be open for tours all-day long.

“We have received great support from the businesses of the town and from Tipperary County Council,” said Cllr McGrath. “It’s only with their support  that we can bring such a range of musicians and acts to Nenagh. We’re particularly delighted to be able to give exposure to young local acts like FarHaven and Lisa and James, who each have their own following. There are lots of other local acts who we hope to bring on stage over the coming years.”