The Irish Festival

[steve 00]

Just wanted to see if anybody else went the Irish festival? had a really good time, nice atmosphere seems to get better each year. Really enjoyed, good entertainment, nice food and good music.Recommend for a good family day out.

[cmck83]

Good fun, but not very Irish to be honest.

Line dancing, kebabs and crepes.

No Tayto crisps, Club Orange or Batter Buuurgers to be had. Pah!

The only Irish things were those odd stalls that didn't seem to be doing or selling anything in particular.

I can see how it would be a good day out for the family, but as an Irish person, I found it a wee bit embarrassing.

[Sally81]

We spent a good couple of hours there. It was lovely. I loved watching the dancing....yes, there was line dancing but there was also the fabulous girls from the Irish dancing school...plus Irish style folk music afterwards (I think the band were called Celtic Crush?...Could be wrong.) Anyway, what I loved was the sense of community and the fact that everyone was having fun. It was great to see everyone joining in. Watching young and old dancing in the sunshine....happy days!

[woodie]

good one this year,usually is,nice eather for it.fun afternoon.

[cmck83]

Ah it is great craic, nowt can go wrong with a funfair and a few pints on the Rye. I just think the Irish Shop on LL should have a stall for all us proper Paddies, so that we can stuff ourselves with Hunky Dories and Red Lemonade!

Be honest though guys, the stalls are a bit odd, aren't they? Am I the only one who thinks so?

[OliviaDee]

i agree with you cmck83 - the stalls were well odd. i wanted football special and, i have to say, a miraculous medal (long story). i thought i was garaunteed but it was just tat and jumble (looked like a lot of it was picked up from all of june's local school fairs) but nothing particularly irish. and i love irish tat. last year i got a prized crocheted green white and orange teacosy and matching coasters. pure class. so a bit disappointed today.

and wouldn't it be great to have a proper good traditional band? apologies in advance if there was one and i missed it. all i got was irish country which i cannot bear.

but the atmosphere was great - and lovely to hear the accents.

[citizenED]

I took my two little boys and they had a good time especially as the older one won a football in a penalty shoot-out game. Can hardly go wrong with the fair and an ice cream van.

I'm not Irish, so don't quite have the perspective of what an Irish Festival should be - but, I can understand cmck83 being a little embarrassed. Lots of green clothing, dancing and music but the stalls seemed uninteresting.

[boosboss]

Had a great time! Irish cider & Guiness helped!

There were stalls? ;-)

[Ladymuck]

I loved the Irish music...what a fabulous band! And all for free.

Bumped into lots of friends/people that I knew.

I found the atmosphere very pleasant and relaxing.

Can't complain at all.

[thebestnameshavegone]

Booze tombola was a good one this year..last year it was only bottles of Stella.

They had bottles of hard stuff / some bubble bath thrown in the mix this time

[????]

Did Sean win the dancing?..again!...I'm sure it's rigged.

[Ladymuck]

Dunno about that, but the main singer of the band (who I thought was marvellous - gorgeous accent) was called "Declan".

So Declan, where were you between the hours of 10.00 and 20.00 earlier today?

[Narnia]

I saw the advert for the festival LM. That was Declan Nerney not Narnia! I stayed well away. Can't stand Irish country music. This may explain why..........

[SeanMacGabhann]

I'm very careful with that disguise quids, I could do without you blowing my cover

[????]

Sorry, it's just that ginger beard came loose during the Cork Freestyle section, again.

[OliviaDee]

yip that's pretty ropy narnia. my father seemed to only own three casettes the whole time we were growing up which we were regularly subjected to whilst hostage in the back of his car. one of these was Johnny mcevoy singing something about 'hedgehoges' and 'rolling love' so bring me anywhere close to that kind of music anymore and i come out in hives feel carsick and have to pee all at the same time.

i didn't hear the bloke LM is talking about - just some woman who made me feel all of the above.

[thebestnameshavegone]

Someone did a fiddle-dee-dee version of 'With or Without You' which was.... interesting.

[Sue]

Having read all the above, on balance I am glad I decided to go to the free World Music festival in Horniman Gardens yesterday instead :)

Great bands, decent food, interesting craft stalls, dance stuff (don't know what that was as it was in the conservatory), kids' activities ......

[Ladymuck]

Ha ha ha...Narnia...

Crystal Swing have obviously scarred you for life...they are bad...gawd indeed...

Ahhhhh, but Declan Nerney was very good - you missed out. You too Sue and OliviaDee.

[Sue]

Ladymuck Wrote:

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> - you

> missed out. You too Sue and OliviaDee.

xxxxxxxx

Sadly, can't be in two places at once :))

[Ladymuck]

Too true...sounds as though I missed out equally.

*expects HAL9000 to turn up soon and to start spouting on about Hugh Everett's many-worlds interpretation*

[HAL9000]

Sue Wrote:

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> Sadly, can't be in two places at once :))

Actually, as LadyMuck has pointed out, according to Hugh Everett's many-worlds interpretation, you were - you just don't know about it.

[Ladymuck]

Right on cue!

[Catalyst]

Personally I'm glad the full-on paddywhackery is fairly limited. Line dancing is massive in Ireland so I don't think it's all that odd it was on the agenda.

In previous years I've have enjoyed watching camogie and hurling matches. Don't think that happened this time though.

[observermum]

Think the sports are always on the saturday

http://www.southwarkirish.com/