Listowel Food Fair - November 5th - 8th

The annual Food Festival takes place in Listowel from the 5th – 8th November. The celebrity chef taking part in this year’s festival is Kevin Dundon of Dunbrody House. He will be giving a cookery demonstration on the Friday night at the Listowel Arms Hotel and on Saturday morning you can have a cup of coffee with him and chat about food! Other events at the festival include an organic fruit and vegetable gardening class, cake decorating class, seminars and of course the competitions. For more information visit listowelfoodfair.com

Kerry Film Festival 2009

The 10th annual Kerry Film Festival runs from October 31st – November 7th. This year’s festival has an amazing line up of films including, Apocalypse Now, The Magnificent Seven, Pans Labyrinth, The Secret of Kells and a number of both Irish and international short films. The main feature of the festival is the short film competition which focuses on young filmmakers seeking exposure for their work. The adjudicators for this year’s festival include Oscar winning actor Jeremy Irons, Michael Fassbender who set the film world alight with his portrayal of Bobby Sands in Steve McQueen’s Hunger, film critic James Christopher and animator Simon Brown who has worked on many films including Matrix Revolutions, Ice Age – The Meltdown and his most recent project, James Cameron’s Avatar.

In 2008 Kerry Film Festival launched the Maureen O’Hara award for women that have excelled in film. This year’s recipient is Rebecca Miller. Rebecca is a writer and director. She is the author of the The Private Lives of Pippa Lee which has been published in over 30 countries. The film version was released this year, playing at the prestigious Toronto Film Festival, with a cast that includes Robin Wright Penn, Keanu Reeves, Julianne Moore, Alan Arkin and Winona Ryder. She has also written and directed award-winning films such as Angela (1995) and The Ballad of Jack and Rose (2005).

The Kerry Film Festival also works in close collaboration with the Irish Film Institute, Kerry County Council and various schools throughout the county and has lined up twelve screenings and a number of workshops to appeal to students in primary, secondary and third-level education. The Education Programme begins on Monday, November 2nd and runs through to Friday, November 6th. For more details on this and the various film screenings please visit http://www.kerryfilmfestival.com/

The Pre-Madonnas Show - Waterville

Tech Amergin Waterville is the venue for the Pre-Madonnas show on Friday 30th October at 8.30pm.

Mezzo soprano Liz Ryan (Dublin) and soprano Mary Flaherty (Galway), present a delectable programme of arias and duets from composers such as Verdi, Mozart, Bellini, Delibes and Handel, as well as operetta and Victorian songs and comedy sketches. Deborah Kelleher will accompany them piano. For more information visit www.techamergin.com

Music Network presents Ragnhild Furebotten and Tore Bruvoll’s Norwegian Traditional Group “Hekla Stålstrenga” at Siamsa Tíre,Tralee.

Music Network presents Grammy award winner Ragnhild Furebotten and Tore Bruvoll’s Norwegian traditional group, Hekla Stålstrenga at Siamsa Tíre, Tralee, Co. Kerry, on Wednesday 14th October at 8pm. Inspired by the traditional folk music of Norway and the arctic regions, their playing is characterised by intensity, virtuosity and musical nerve. This concert is promoted by Siamsa Tíre and Music Network.

As part of Siamsa Tíre’s Find Out More..! Initiative, a pre-show chat will take place from 7pm where the musicians will discuss the peculiarities of Norwegian traditional music and how it relates to Ireland’s folk tradition. All those attending the performance are welcome to attend!

Kerry International Chamber Music Festival

A number of concerts have been organised for the weekend as part of the Kerry International Chamber Music Festival. On Friday Con Tempo (String Quartet) with Arvid Engegård (Violin), Juliet Jopling (Viola), Matthew Hunt (Clarinet) will be performing in Muckross House, Killarney. The concert begins at 8.00 pm. On Saturday the music moves to St James Church in Dingle with a lunch-time concert and the final concert of the festival is in Waterville in Tech Amergin. Throughout the festival the musicians will be performing works by Beethoven, Mozart and Dvorák. For more information go to www.kicmif.ie

Dingle Food Festival also takes place in Dingle this weekend. The festival activities include a series of cookery demonstrations, special menus at restaurants, food markets, cheese & wine seminars and culinary trails. For more information go to www.dinglefood.com

The Listowel Harvest Festival

The Listowel Harvest Festival runs in conjunction with the week-long Listowel Races (Sunday 13th – Saturday 19th). The festival includes a wealth of street entertainment including busking, fun street races and the annual All Ireland Wrenboy Bands competition. For more information on the races visit www.listowelraces.ie

Dingle Film Festival 2009

Jim Sheridan is this year's recipient of the Gregory Peck Award at the Dingle Film Festival which runs from the 10th - 13th September. The award which will be presented by Anthony Peck at the Phoenix Cinema on Friday 11th September recognises the contribution that Jim Sheridan has made to the film industry with award winning films such as My Left Foot, The Field and In America to name but a few.

Some of the other guests at the festival include Marc Flanagan, two time Emmy Award winner, writer and producer of the Tracy Ullman show, Geoff Wonfor, Grammy Award winner and director of the Beatles Anthology and Ned Dowd producer of Apocalypto and Last of the Mohicans.

Films such as the Beatles Anthology, Monty Python and the Holy Grail as well as award winning comedy shorts will be screened in various locations around Dingle. There will also be interviews and talks with many of the invited guests during which they will share their experiences and knowledge. For more information visit www.dinglefilmfestival.com

Heritage Week in Co Kerry

Heritage Week began on Saturday 22nd and a number of events have been planned for Kerry. On Sunday 30th you can get a free guided tour of a number of historical sites in Kerry including Ardfert Cathedral, Derrynane House in Caherdaniel, Ross Castle in Killarney and Listowel Castle.

Fancy some pigeon pie? Café Essence at the Kerry County Museum have organised a lecture on and tastings of medieval foods in Ireland on the 29th August. The event is free but booking is essential.

There are a variety of nature walks to choose from including a walk of Black Rock Ballyheigue at 11.00 am and a Guided Tour entitled Birds of The Iveragh Peninsula & Habitats in Cahirciveen from 12.00 pm – 2.00 pm on August 29th.

Muckross Traditional Farms will be holding a Céilí in the Kitchen on the 30th August from 2-5 pm. Adults are €1 and children are 50c. For more information and further details about the events listed above visit www.heritageweek.ie

Christine Best of Herbalistix will be opening her herb gardens at An Paircín, Stacks Mountain, Kilflynn to the public as part of Heritage Week. Admission is free from 11 am – 6 pm. Guided tours of the gardens will begin at 11.30 am and 3 pm and will look at the different uses of medicinal herbs both wild and cultivated. For more information Christine can be contacted at christinebest57@gmail.com

Weekend in Kerry

The Rose of Tralee Festival kicks off tonight with the Rose Ball. The festival which is celebrating 50 years is running until the 29th August this year. A wide and varied selection of events and activities have been organised for the festival week including street entertainment, the traditional Rose Parade, music concerts featuring Jack L, a tribute to Michael Jackson, Tommy Flemming, The Coronas, the Five Counties Ceili Band and Sharon Shannon - the list goes on. There are also a number of exhibitions and food fairs, while the amusements and the circus make a welcome return. For more details check out the program guide at www.roseoftralee.ie

Stage two of the Tour of Ireland cycle race will finish in Killarney on Saturday 22nd August. Seven times Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong (Astana) and eight time Tour de France stage winner Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia-HTC) are participating in this year's event. Mary Black and Aslan are performing at the INEC.

The John Millington Synge photography exhibition continues in the Siamsa Tíre Gallery Tralee.

Heritage week 2009 starts on Saturday 22nd across the country. As part of this national event, the Kerry County Museum are offering free guided tours of the Medieval Experience for adults and families everyday. For more information on the tours visit www.kerrymuseum.ie/events_2.html

Culture Night Tralee - 2009

Culture Night Tralee takes place on September 25th. A number of events have been organised for the occasion including Dancing in the Green. Here Siamsa Tíre, Samhlaíocht Chiarraí and Kerry County Museum have organised an Irish dance line challenge. Irish dancers from all over Munster will be dancing around the perimeter of Tralee Town Park in the hopes of beating the current Guinness World Record for the largest Irish dance ever held. The record is currently held by a town called Dublin in Ohio.

Other events organised include a dance performance by the American based Printz Dance company at Siamsa Tíre and free entry to exhibitions in the Kerry County Museum.

For more information visit: http://culturenighttralee.com/

Weekend events in Kerry

The weekend is upon us and once again there is plenty to do in Kerry. The Dingle Races begin today and run until Sunday. There are over 20 races and plenty of activities to keep the children entertained. There are 6 races on the card on Friday,starting at 5.30pm. On Saturday and Sunday there are 7 races. On Saturday the first race is at 1.30pm and Sunday the races begin at 2.30pm. For more information visit http://www.dingleraces.ie/


At the INEC Killarney, Luka Bloom is performing tonight in the Acoustic Club and Randy Travis will be performing tomorrow night. In St John’s Theatre Listowel tonight is a play based on the humorous writings of Oscar Wilde, Jonathan Swift, Oliver Goldsmith, George Bernard Shaw, Seán O'Casey, J.M. Synge and Christy Browne.


Of course Puck Fair begins on Monday and runs for its traditional 3 days with the Horse Fair taking place on Monday.


For future events and festivals in Kerry check out the find magazine website.

La Solitaire du Figaro Yacht Race

The La Solitaire du Figaro Yacht Race which travels between towns in France, Spain and Ireland will be in Dingle from the 13th -16th of August. The race is celebrating its 40th year and to mark the occasion a number of festival activities have been planned including traditional music sessions. There will also be visits by the Irish and French navy.

Puck Fair one of the oldest festival fairs in Ireland runs from the 10th – 12th August. With concert performances from Alsan and Kila, traditional music sessions and street entertainment for the children, Puck Fair should not disappoint. The program guide can be downloaded from www.puckfair.ie

Something to do in Kerry this August Bank Holiday Weekend

I usually do this post on Friday but with it being the bank holiday weekend there are a number of festivals and events taking place throughout the county so I thought I would post it today.

Bank holiday weekend events in Kerry include the Sean McCarthy Weekend, this festival now in its 16th year takes place in Finuge and commemorates the life of Sean McCarthy and his love for music, song and dance. The highlight of the festival is the concert on Friday night in Teach Siamsa featuring the Kilkennys, a four piece traditional Irish ballad group. For more information visit www.finugeweekend.com.

In Cahersiveen the Celtic Festival of Music and Arts begins on Thursday billed as a festival for all the family it features music workshops, street entertainment, cookery exhibitions, historical walks and a fireworks display. The festival programme guide can now be downloaded from the website www.celticmusicfestival.com. Other festivals include the Dan Paddy Andy Festival, Féile Lios Póil and Féile na Lúnasa in Dingle.

There are two performances in the Acoustic club at the INEC over the weekend Hazel O’Connor (1st August) and the Hothouse Flowers (2nd August).

The Dan Paddy Andy Festival

The Dan Paddy Andy Festival takes place this bank holiday weekend. This festival in Lyreacrompane commemorates the last of the great Irish matchmakers, Dan Paddy Andy O’Sullivan. This year’s festival will be opened by Weeshie Fogarty on Friday night followed by dancing in the marquee. There will be music and dancing all weekend in the marquee and weather permitting in the open air dance floor. The ever popular dog show is on Saturday starting at 1.30pm and on Monday the annual bog walk and turf cutting demonstration takes place. For more festival information visit www.lyreacrompane.com

Weekend Events in Kerry

This weekend in Kerry you can choose from the Wife Carrying competition in Sneem which takes place on Saturday, the Munster Military Vehicle and Re-enactment event in Ardfert or the Ventry Regatta in Dingle on Sunday. The Kerry Way Cancer Research Walk is in Killarney this weekend. On Friday the walk is from Molls Gap to Kenmare, Saturday from Lauragh to Kenmare and on Sunday Torc Waterfall to Kenmare.

In St John’s Theatre Listowel on Friday night, the participants in the July drama & dance summer school present their end of term production ‘What happens next?’ Finally, performing at the INEC this weekend are Keith Barry and Elenor McEvoy. Both performances take place on Saturday 25th. For more information visit http://www.inec.ie/

Kerry County Museum

The Kerry County Museum was named ‘2009 Museum of the Year’ in May of this year. So here at the find we decided to pay a visit since the last time any of us had been there was when the museum had electric cars to take visitors around the Medieval experience. They apparently were taken out years ago! So we thought it was time we went back.

For the month of July and August the museum is running a special summer offer. Free entry for children, while adults are €5.00. The museum is divided into six main areas, the special exhibition gallery, audio visual room, museum gallery, Tom Crean room, Knights hall and the medieval experience.

The exhibition currently running in the special exhibition gallery is ‘Spymaster’. The exhibition looks at the life of William Melville a publican’s son from Sneem. Melville worked as a policeman in London and was one of the founding members of the Special Irish Branch which was set up to deal with the Fenian dynamite campaign in England. He was recruited by the British Secret Service during the war and was responsible for foiling a German spy network. Melville know as ‘M’ worked for a number of years as an espionage agent until his death in 1918. This exhibition was fascinating and I particularly liked how the museum provided a number of fun activities for children to encourage them to actively take part. Activities such as looking at the uniqueness of your fingerprints, a questionnaire to identify if you have criminal tendencies, finger print dusting and code cracking. The other exhibitions were equally good and definitely worth a visit.

For further information and the museum opening times visit their website www.kerrymuseum.ie

Summer Festivals this week

The Ardfert Summer Festival and the Sneem Family Festival take place this week. The Ardfert Summerfest begins on Wednesday with the official opening at 8.00pm. There are a number of activities for children over the 5 day festival including sports events, amusements, a dog show and a fancy dress parade. On Saturday evening there is an Open Air Karaoke competition and on Sunday events to choose from include helicopter rides, military re-enactments and Kerry’s largest air display. For more information and a programme of events go to www.ardfertsummerfest.webs.com The Sneem Family festival also begins on Wednesday this week. For more details on this festival visit www.sneemfestival.com or any of our previous posts on this family festival.

Weekend Events in Kerry

If you are looking for something to do this weekend in Kerry there are a number of events to choose from including the Seatrout Festival in Waterville, the Synge exhibition in Siamsa Tíre, Tralee and the Ballyheigue Summer Festival.

The Ballyheigue Festival has been running all week and some of the activities this Saturday and Sunday include a dog show, busking competition, sandcastle competition, village fete and a grand parade. For more details on the festival you can download the programe of events from www.ballyheiguefestival.com

The Killarney Summerfest is drawing to a close this weekend with the Pussycat Dolls concert in Fitzgerald Park.

John Millington Synge - Photography Exhibition

John Millington Synge - Photographer
Exhibition of forgotten photography marks the centenary of Synge’s death

From July 18th – August 10th an exhibition of the photographs of John Millington Synge will run at the Siamsa Tire Gallery, Tralee.

The photographs in the exhibition include images taken on his first trip to the Aran islands as well as photographs taken in Connemara, Wicklow and West Kerry between 1898 and 1905. There are 51 surviving photographs which form part of the Synge manuscript collection in the Library, Trinity College Dublin. The original glass plates (23) and surviving print photographs have been restored and digitalised by the Library, especially for this exhibition. It is the first time they will have been exhibited in a visual arts context.

As well as the exhibition, a day long event titled The Gathering takes place on July 18th in Kerry, in association with University College Cork. Participants will take part in a range of activities, including a guided tour of the exhibition, contributions from academics, and a tour to Mountain Stage where Synge stayed during his stay in Kerry in 1903. A limited number of tickets at €25 are available from the Siamsa Tíre Box Office.

Gone Fishing!

Waterville Seatrout Festival

The Waterville Seatrout Festival takes place this weekend (18th-19th July). Waterville is renowned for its seatrout fishing together with its magnificent coastal landscape, lakes and coastal walks making it a perfect spot for this festival. Most of the activities take place around Waterville’s cultural centre Tech Amergin. There are a number of events planned including sprey casting, flytying for seatrout and salmon, boat fishing, cookery demonstrations and illustrated talks.

On Saturday night after the official opening there is a concert featuring Paddy Bushe and a host of local musicians. For further details visit the Tech Amergin website.

Weekend events in Kerry

The Tralee Art Fair takes place this weekend at Manor West Hotel organised by the Sol Art Gallery. The fair opens on Friday at 7pm and 12-9pm on Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free. To see some of the artists exhibiting at the fair visit the Sol Art Gallery website.

Summerfest continues in Killarney with a host of street entertainment planned for the weekend. On the Main St Spraoi Chiarrai will be performing their outdoor traditional art show which features singing, dancing and storytelling. Other entertainment on the streets include buskers and street performers. For more information visit the Killarney Summerfest website.

Killarney Summerfest

Kerstin Doelle (Soprano) will be performing at Muckross House on Friday 10th July as part of the Classical Music Evening for the Killarney Summerfest. Tickets are still available contact Muckross House for more details.


The Balloon Meet also takes place this weekend Friday 10th – Sunday 11th (dusk and dawn, weather permitting). This will be third time lucky for me. Every year I pick the wrong day and time to go. So hopefully… fingers crossed… I might get some photos this year!


For more information on other events organised for this year's Summerfest check out the Killarney Summerfest website.

Pat Shortt in Listowel

Pat Shortt brings his latest offering ‘The Hall’ to St John’s Theatre, Listowel on Friday 10th July. The Hall is set in a community centre of a small rural town. The local drama group decide to stage a gala fundraising concert for their latest production but as you can imagine things don’t go according to plan. The Hall is full of mad characters brought to life in true Pat Shortt style. For more information contact St John’s Theatre 068 22566.

The Irish National Wife Carrying Competition Sneem 2009

Sneem is the venue again for the Irish National Wife Carrying Competition 2009. Last years winning couple John O'Shea from Caherdaniel and Aoife Desmond from Castlecove, received an all expenses paid trip to represent Ireland in the World Wife Carrying Championships on the 4th of July in Finland this year. They will be competing alongside 10 other countries including Japan, China, Australia and USA.

The competition which is the highlight of the festival sees contestants carrying their wife, on a 253 metre course over sand and grass, two dry obstacles and one water obstacle which is about a metre deep. The national record to beat is 1 min and 12 seconds!




In addition to the competition other things to see and do at the festival include the very popular Crate Climbing Competition, laughter yoga, walks, craft market, circus skills workshop, 7-a-side soccer tournament, sheaf tossing, pet show plus much more. For more information visit the Sneem Family Festival website.

The Killarney Summerfest is also taking place this month. Once again there are a variety of activities to choose from including the International Street Performers competition, Junk Art - Don't Rubbish it, Midnight Walk at Ross Castle, Hot Air Ballooning Display, Teddy Bears Picnic; the list is endless. The big concert features the Pussycat Dolls with special guest McFly on the 18th . For more information visit the Summerfest website.

With Pat Short at St John’s Theatre Listowel, Mick Flannery at the INEC Acoustic Club and an exhibition of the photography of John Millington Synge at the Siamsa Gallery there is lots to do in Kerry over the month of July.

Events for June

For all bikers and biking enthusiasts Killarney is the place to be for the annual Killarney International Motorcycle Gathering running from the 5th – 7th June. The Gathering is billed as a great family event suitable for all ages, with entertainment, games, ride outs, demonstrations and music. The Bike Village is where you will catch most of the action check out their website for more information www.irelandbikefest.com

On Saturday 20th June Steve Balbi will be performing in St John’s Theatre Listowel. One of Australia’s finest singer/songwriters, the voice behind Ewan Mc Gregor in Moulin Rouge, part of the 90’s multi platinum award winning Australian rock band ‘Noise Works’. He has been compared to Bob Dylan, John Lennon and Glen Hansard. This is his only European show so make sure you check it out.

The INEC Killarney has lots of entertainment this month for children including SpongeBob Squarepants Live and for the adults you can catch either Jack L or the hilarious Des Bishop. Siamsa Tíre – The National Folk Theatre of Ireland have performances in Teach Siamsa in Ballydavid and Finuge. As you know the summer festivals have started and the Con Curtain Traditional Music festival takes place in Brosna from the 26th – 28th June.

I have only scratched the surface of what’s going on in Kerry this month so check out the findmagazine website for more information.

Enjoy!

Events for May

This month sees another fantastic line up of festivals and activities taking place in Kerry, Cork and Limerick. I just thought I’d mention a few but more details can be found on the find website.

The month kicks off with the annual Tarbert Cuckoo Walking Festival (1st – 4th May). A number of walks have been organised over the long weekend, which take in the scenic views of North Kerry. The Listowel Writers’ Week also takes place this month from the 27th – 31st of May. St John’s Theatre, Listowel have announced their line up for the festival which includes Sive by John B Keane presented by the Listowel Players and Moby Dick presented by the Gare San Lazare Theatre, Paris to name but a few.

The Visions of Africa photograph competition takes place on May 25th. KADE and ClubHeadbangbang will be hosting this event. This photography competition invites amateur and professional photographers to submit their positive images of rural and urban Africa. The photographs will be exhibited in Siamsa Tire, Tralee and the Killarney Library.

In the Ducartes Restaurant in the Hunt Museum Limerick. Peter Steedman will be returning with a new collection of limited edition photographs. His collection will encompass many themes ranging from Landscape and Stained Glass to Textures and Old Buildings. To view his work and for more information on Peter log on to his website http://www.pmsphotography.com/

Even though this event doesn’t take place until July I thought I’d mention it to give anyone interested time to raise sponsorship money. The Kerry Way Cancer Research Walk will be taking place again this year from Friday 24th – Sunday 36th of July. The three day event in July begins on Friday 24th with a walk from Sneem to Kenmare, Saturday 25th walk will be from Lauragh – Kenmare and Sunday 26th July walk will be from Killarney – Kenmare. The organiser’s launched their new event website http://www.kerrywaycancerwalk.ie/ at Torc Waterfall in Killarney, one of the walks’ many scenic spots. All event information including routes, training, accommodation and fundraising can be accessed on this user-friendly site, which also allows for easy event registration and keeps event costs to a minimum. Last year’s event raised over €119,000 for cancer research.

For more information on other events and activities visit the find magazine website.

Festival Time in Kerry has started!

To help you plan your summer festival activities we have produced a handy little calendar highlighting a number of festivals taking place around the county. So keep your eye out for one.


Starting with this month the Samhlaíocht Easter Arts & Children's Bumblebee Festival takes place from the 11th – 13th April. The festival has all the usual favourites a parade, fireworks, puppet shows and street entertainment but two musical events caught our attention here at the find. This year the festival co-ordinators have organised for musicians from the National Concert Hall to run workshops for budding classical musicians. The workshops are themed by age group with workshops aimed at under 3’s and their parents and at 3 year olds – 8 year olds and their parents. The workshops take place at Siamsa Tíre on Easter Saturday and Sunday.

The other event Rock for Experience provides an opportunity for bands to perform in front of an audience using a professional PA system. This event takes place in the Syndicate Rooms in Tralee on Monday 13th. 10 bands have already signed up and according to the festival organisers one of the hottest up and coming acts Philtre will also be performing (I am not going to even pretend to know who these guys are but the age group this event is aimed at will!). We just think the two events in this festival give musicians a great opportunity to show their talent.

For more information about the festival please log onto www.samhlaiocht.com or call 066 712 9934.