Scotch Hall – St. Patrick’s Music & Arts Festival
Gaeilge Hub & Leprechaun treasure hunt 12-4pm daily in Scotch Hall
Prizes & giveaways for participants
All events listed, free of charge
Saturday 14th
1-3pm Children’s Art Workshop
2pm Martin the Magician
Face painting & Balloons
Food vendors on Riverside
Music from 2pm on Indoor stage
12.30pm Drogheda Male Voice Choir
12.30-2.00pm LMFM Live Broadcast & giveaways
3pm Living Life Choir
4pm Drogheda Comhaltas
4.30pm Starlight Dance Academy
Sunday 15th
1-3pm Children’s Art Workshop
1-7pm The Cottage Market Drogheda & food vendors at the Riverside marquee
6pm – St Patrick sails down the Boyne
Music from 2pm on Riverside stage
2pm Live DJ
3pm Femme Forte
4pm The Fuzzy Papers
5pm The Unit
6pm Conor Judge & Friends
7pm Rapscallion
8pm Fireworks and DJ Justin
Monday 16th
1-7pm The Cottage Market Drogheda & food vendors at the Riverside marquee
3-6pm Face painting & Balloons
3pm & 5pm Kids Ceili Disco
Music from 4pm on Riverside stage
Capoeira Arte – Brazilian Martial Arts
4pm Karma Dance Crew
4.30pm Declan Garry – The Faa Side
5pm Kids Ceili Disco
6pm The Hit Queens
7pm The Wednesday Gang
Tuesday 17th
West St
12 noon St Patrick’s day parade
1.30pm-3.30pm Live music at gig rig Rapscallion, Phil Kermode & Friends & Living Life Choir
Scotch Hall
12-4pm Free family entertainment
2pm Drogheda Comhaltas
3pm Robinson Irish dance school
The St. Patrick’s Music and Arts Festival in association with Scotch Hall
There have been plenty of sad headlines around the country about some parades being cancelled and others struggling to get the event over the line in the last few months but thankfully the parade here in Drogheda is going from strength to strength over the last few years after being in a similar predicament a few years ago.
It was a cold January day when Isobel Sanroma, Honorary President of the parade committee, reached out local businesses because the parade here in Drogheda was due to be cancelled due to a lack of funding. This callout led to the formation of the Drogheda Festivals Committee, under the chair of Sarah Taaffe, who have been running the parade for the last 4 years.
She was delighted to announce at the parade launch night in The Marcy Hotel last week that “Thanks to the support and sponsorship of Scotch Hall we can continue to expand on the parade and make this Drogheda’s first ever St. Patrick’s Music and Arts Festival. And this year promises to be a music and arts spectacular with a host of free family orientated events for the people of the town.”
“Each year we have tried our best to add in a new element to make the experience bigger and better for all of the diverse cultures that make up our community. In the first year we brought the parade back across West Street, we were also the first town in the country to set up a Sensory Street in association with Louth Meath Autism Services to cater for families with neurodivergent needs. Since then we introduced puppet making workshops with schools and local organisations which have added great spectacle to the day and last year featured the parades first ever open-top victory lap of the town for FAI Cup Champions Drogheda United. This year however we have pulled out all the stops to bring you Music, Arts and The Spectacular to this years event!”
It was left to the parade’s Creative Director, Eoghan Darcy to unveil the programme of events to take place at The Riverside in Scotch Hall Shopping Centre from Saturday the 14h of March to Monday the 16th and on West Street immediately after the parade. He began thanking Nichola Kelly and her team at the centre and said “It was wonderful to work with the crew down there on this years event because we very quickly came up with a plan to focus on the music and arts this year since Ireland is the only country in the world with a musical instrument as our national identity symbol. In addition to this Drogheda has always had some incredible musical and artistic talent and will be The Home Of Music in Ireland for this year’s new Saint Patrick’s Music and Arts Festival.”
The Music
Saturday Indoors Scotch Hall Shopping Centre
Festivities will commence at 12:30 on Saturday with The Drogheda Male Voice choir under musical director David Leddy. Founded in 2013 the group are well known for their Christmas Special in The TLT each year. They have also performed in The Royal Albert Hall and for Pope Frances. Taking to the stage at 3:00 will be The Loving Life Choir. In just a few short years this group of young adults have come a long way. From the first performance in 2019 to last years performance on The Late Late Toy Show the choir continues to promote inclusion and diversity. At 4:00 the focus turns to traditional Irish music and dancing when Comhaltas Drogheda perform. Founded in 1951 to promote Irish language and culture and under the leadership of Lolo Robinson were central to Drogheda hosting Fleadh Cheoil na hEireann in 2018 and 2019 which drew over 750,000 visitors and tourist to the town. Wrapping up the first day of music will be The Starlight Dance Academy with a performance inspired by this years parade theme “Once Upon a Panto!” The academy offers classes in drama, ballet, jazz, commercial, lyrical and tap dance for 3-18 year old kids and they were recently awarded the Best Emerging New Business at the local Camber of Commerce Awards.
Sunday Outdoors Gig-rig @ The Riverside.
The music will switch outdoors on a gig-rig at The Riverside Scotch Hall Shopping Centre for the Sunday and Monday and the stage will be chocker block with some fantastic local bands showcasing a wide variety of music.
Sunday promises to be legendary day of music with well known Irish balladeers Rapscallion headlining that night at 7:00. Before them will be performances from Conor Judge & Friends, The Unit, The Fuzzy Paper and all girl band Femmes Fatale. The performances start at 2:00 with a Live DJ
Monday Outdoors Gigrig @ The Riverside.
Starting a little later at 4:00 on Monday Kelley McArdle and her Karma Dance Crew will kick things off with a bang as they bring their relentless energy and enthusiasm to the stage. Kelley and her crew are also fundraising for a trip to the world championships. She’ll be followed by the one and only Declan Garry – The Faa Side one of Drogheda’s most popular entertainers. Up next is another local legend Ellen O’Reilly who will take to the stage with her fantastic 3 piece band The Hit Queens. And to wrap up music that evening will be none other than The Wednesday Gang. A seven piece band known for their unique blend of folk, rock and roll, and blues. Capoeira Arte – Brazilian Martial Arts will also be performing on the day.
Tuesday Outdoors Gigrig @ Saint Peter’s Church, West Street.
The parade committee are also delighted to announce that the road closure of West Street will continue until 4 PM this year to allow for a post parade concert from 1:30 until the 4:00.
The towns people of Drogheda are blessed that Rapscallion have come back together for gigs this weekend. While they make only rare appearance at this stage for almost two decades they were one of Drogheda’s most loved acts and they first got back together last year for the Leinster Fleadh. Next up on the gig rig will be The Living Life Choir. They will be followed by a performance by Phil Kermode & Friends. As part of the programme this year the committee are also delighted to have Saint Brigid’s Drama Group on board. They have a production of “The Came a Gypsy Riding” by Frank McGuinness running in Drogheda Arts Centre from Tuesday the 10th until Saturday the14th of March.
After the parade there will also free family entertainment running from 12 until 4 in Scotch Hall Shopping Centre with live performances by Drogheda Comhaltas and Robinson School of Irish Dancing.
The Arts @ Scotch Hall Shopping Centre
What a weekend it’s going to be down at Scotch Hall Shopping Centre with a wide range of arts and crafts and free events for children and families. Thanks to the support of Scoil Aonghusa there will be a real focus on Irish language and culture with a Seachtain Na Gaeilge type focus and wide range of events organised by the school including Ceilí Disco, Pop up Gaeltacht and a Leprechaun Treasure Hunt where every child gets a treat for entering and big prises drawn at random throughout the day. There will be a Gaeilge Hub downstairs in the centre and events will run from 12:00 until 4:00 Saturday to Monday. Principal, Edel Ní Bhroin, was only too happy to get on board saying “This partnership highlights a shared commitment to celebrating and promoting our rich Irish language and cultural heritage within the heart of the community.”
The Committee are also delighted to announce that Waterstones will have Irish language readings and free World Book Day gifts over the weekend also hosted in the Gaeilge Hub. While the Omniplex Cinema are screening a number of Irish movies including Spongerbob and Kneecap over the weekend.
Local artists Darren Finnegan and Rose Dunne have been busy preparing for workshops that will take place upstairs in Scotch Hall Shopping Centre on Saturday the 14th and Sunday the 15th of March between 1:00-3:00.
Also running on Sunday the 15th and Monday the !6th of March will be Drogheda’s renowned Cottage Market in a marquee specially erected for the weekend at Scotch Hall Shopping Centre. Established in 2016 by Eimear Cullen the market has steadily grown over the years and can have up to 60 stalls where locals can display all the best of homegrown, homemade and hand crafted goods.
In addition to this The Drogheda Saturday Market at Bolton Square will open on Saint Patrick’s Day from 8:00 until 2:00 and promises a few surprises.
The Spectacular
Saint Patrick’s return!
This year truly will be a spectacular at Scotch Hall Shopping Centre on the Sunday because for the first year ever Saint Patrick will arrive into Drogheda just like when he stepped back on Irish soil all those years ago. Thanks to The Boyne Fisherman’s Rescue and Recovery Service the people of the town can be part of a very unique occasion and see him sail back up the River Boyne and disembark opposite the shopping centre and be escorted across the De Lacy Bridge and to the gig rig at The Riverside.
Fireworks
This will bring us to the grand finale of events down at Scotch Hall Shopping Centre with the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade Fireworks display with the great man himself there to kick things off just like he did on the Hill of Slane all those years ago. Firework display to start at 8:00 and to be followed my music from local DJ and MC Justin Murtagh.
The Parade
The parade in Drogheda is growing every year with over 70 entries last year and drawing almost 30,000 people into the town on Saint Patrick’s Day. In the last few years representatives from the local Indian, Philippine and Ukrainian communities have all won awards and this reflects the wonderful tapestry of culture that makes the day so unique and wonderful across the world.
This year in addition to the usual Business, Sports and Community categories there will be an additional prise for Drogheda’s Best Dressed Dame in celebration of this year’s Once Upon a Panto theme.
Anyone looking to get involved in the festival or the parade as an entry a volunteer or sponsor can still get intouch with the committee via droghedafestivals@gmail.com
The Sponsors and Support
The Drogheda Festival Committee would like to thank all their generous sponsors including Fitz Scientific, Louth County Council, and Drogheda BIDS along with the support of local service providers The Garda Síochana, Boyne Fisherman’s Rescue and Recovery, The Irish Coast Guard, Order of Malta and Louth Volunteers who together make this weekend the best family day out of the year.