Pigstock is a festival that is really up and coming on the Northern Ireland Calendar, and with its…read morewonderful name why shouldn't it! The festival has been running for the last 3 years, and each year has seen a step up in both the professionalism and popularity of the event. At what other festival around does part of the admission fee help fund the open fire pig roast for everyone to feast on to line their stomach before the inevitable drink and moshing bonanza that will end up having your stomach acting like it is blender? The music showcases the best of local Northern Irish bands, both established and up and coming, with last year including local stalwarts A Plastic Rose and the great newbies Key Of Atlas! You can either camp or go just for the music, but for only a fiver more and a whole nights more rowdy banter, the only choice has to be the camping! My good friend Jamie's uncle helps run this and there is so much passion here for local music, I can;t recommend it enough.Be warned though, if you are looking for a good night's sleep head elsewhere: this one gets rowdy! So my advice next May is to get yourself down to Pigstock and you will be as happy as a Pig in...... well, you know the rest!

I've been going to this festival since I moved to Swords and can always count on it to be an…read moreamazing experience. This has always been a place for everything-- Funfair on the beach, BBQ on the Green, food stalls around the village with fun and games, demonstrations, competitions and live entertainment wild art, every kind of music ever playing in different places all at once, and cool performances.This festival gets crowded the later it gets, so I recommend getting there mid-afternoon. It is a lot of fun for what it is, especially for kids. Make sure you bring lots of cash for your food and other things you might want to purchase.

A real collectic mix of music, food, spoken word, comedy a discussion. Parking is £5. #SFF17read more

Sunflower Fest was a brand new event on the Northern Ireland festival calendar , providing…read morefantastic weekend of live music, arts and great food in a hospitable atmosphere, which is more than can be said for a lot of festivals! It must also be said that the festival also had a wonderful cause, with all profits going to rebuilding Haiti after the devastating earthquake. Held over three-days, the focus was on showcasing some of Northern Ireland's finest bands and artists. The festival had two stages - one outdoors and the other indoor. There was a real variety of acts of all types and genres, with personal local favourites of mine Sweet Savage, Rams Pocket RADIO and Mental Deficiency showing their funky faces! The festival continued its ethical edge by encouraging as many people as possible to cycle to the festival, thought a lot of people like me had too far to travel and not enough time to journey down there, but maybe next year! Tickets were £28 for the entire weekend which was fantastic value, with individual day tickets all within a few pounds radius of £10. This was a really well run festival that had real heart, so I look forward to seeing how they build on things next year!

I was super excited to this event. I have been to some fitness days before and knew what to expect…read more I knew that Wellfest would start at about 9 am but I had walked for about 5 hours in the previous evening because of Dublin's Culture night so I was tired and needed to sleep in a little, arriving there at about 11.30 am. I could hear the loud music pumping and I could not wait really. I passed the entrance with no hassle as my name was noted in the Yelp list. Turning to the entrance's corner I saw Emily and Kate in the "Yelp desk" teaching many people how to upload the app and check in to get some freebies. I was a bit disappointed because there were no Yelp special goodies bags anymore and I thought there would be a few saved for the Yelp reporters (but it was my fault as I did not know they would be available for a certain number of people who checked in first) but there was none left so I grabbed a few things that were available and I was told I needed to upload a picture to get the stylized water bottle (which looked all red and pretty amazing). The internet sign was not so good in the park and it took me some time to be able to upload one so by the time I went back there was nothing left. I decided to go around to see what was happening and went right away to the well being tent to try some stretches. I was impressed by the amount of people that were there and I can see the health industry is getting big in Dublin as probably many people were there really because it seemed pretty hype and cool. I thought that for the price people would get some sort of Wellfest bag with samples (because that is what sponsors do in such events) and that yoga mattresses would be provided not to keep but only to use in there when needed but I did not see any, only a few people that seemed a bit lost like me (doing planks in the grass, but this was not such an issue) wondering where was that info that we should have brought our own and then I saw it was being sold in there. Some things were very well organized as the well kept toilets, a station with drinkable water and another one for cleaning up the hands with sanitizer. There were lots of food sellers and the main stage was the one that seemed the most energetic. The set up was basically 2 well being tents (one for walk-ins and the other one for very similar workshops that had to be booked online and had a huge waiting list so I preferred to go to the first tent instead; a spinning tent with lessons that also needed to be booked and were paid; a TRX exercise station with interesting looking machinery; a tent for talks and a cooking show and the biggest tent of the whole festival only had the purpose of selling healthy foods such as active almonds, raw coconut, protein bites, essential oils and so on. Also there were a few bean bags on the grass to relax (but only to the lucky few who managed to catch them!). I decided to browse everywhere then I watched the Happy Pear chefs cooking veggie pad thai and banana bread, did a full on aerobics Viking method of squats/jumping/plank/kicks for 45 mins, relaxed with yoga and meditation for beginners and had some protein balls (because the queues were insane in the stalls). The main thing is that for the price of 35 euros I felt that most people were flogged lots of products that are part of diet fads and it seemed absurd to have to pay extra for a particular workshop. Also, the tent for talks did not have so many interesting topics even though the chefs were indeed funny and charming all the way. Dublin has so much to offer and there are several classes of yoga/pilates/meditation done in parks for free of for a fiver and I did not see anything that was very impressive to be worthy the entrance. Also, being very used to exercises and gym I knew most of the techniques and there are many videos in Youtube which can be followed in your home to do the same thing. For me it was an overall "meh" experience unfortunately even though I still loved to have the opportunity to check it out (thanks you guys!)

There is a LOT to like about Ireland's first fitness & wellbeing festival, most of all is the fact…read morethat there's never really been something like this in Ireland. Held in the completely transformed Herbert Park, there was a feeling in the air that, yes this is strange and unusual, but that it was also the beginning of something that feels perfectly on point for modern day Ireland. First off, congratulations to the organisers for putting together something like this in IRELAND. The weather was completely fine but the gamble these guys were taking was pretty intense. With normal, boozed fuelled music festivals, if it starts raining then you just lash on more booze and numb your way out of the weather. This wouldn't have been an option at Wellfest with the strongest substance going being coffee or some healthy red bull alternatives, not quite enough to make you forget about any rain that could have happened. Thankfully the weather produced the goods. A full range of workshops from yoga to TRX training awaits anyone brave enough to get sporty in front of hundreds of others, and surprisingly everyone was totally jumping in. It was actually a really cool experience watching so many people just forget themselves a little and start joining in on workshops with complete strangers. The TRX training was unlike anything I would normally do but I'm thankful I got to try it out (my body isn't so thankful). There was an all too short meditation section that MANY people seemed interested in, and I really think the organisers should give this a bit more focus next year just by the huge number of people that were interested in it. Some great talks on nutrition (sugar, never again) and mental health by Bressie and others were some of the highlights for me. In fact, just like with meditation, I think even more could be done in these areas next year with maybe some interaction for people to make it more fun and to get people to open up a bit more. People rarely put themselves out there when it comes to expressing themselves and when attending an event like this with an open mind, this really could be capitalised on to bring the most out of people artistically and emotionally. The fact that Bressie talking about mental health was the most attended of the events (as far as I could see) really shows that people are very curious about mental health, and their curiosity could be rewarded more. A special shout-out to the range of amazing foods & drinks provided by some really awesome small businesses. This was suppose to be an event about fitness but the amount I ate would say otherwise. All in all, this event is what I want to see more of. Fitness, mental health, nutrition & openness are some real things that Ireland could pioneer in for the future and it's events like Wellfest that will lead the vanguard in these areas. Sign me up for round 2.

Brilliant theatre and arts venue located in the centre of Armagh. Lovely modern building and a…read moregreat range of events at the Market Place. I've been to see plays and music events in it and many visual art exhibitions. A wonderful place which also has a cafe/ restaurant and bar.

The small intimate theatre and the staff working there are lovely. For this alone it would be four…read morestar. If the toilets were kept clean it would be five star. We had a really great night of comic entertainment with two comedians, including Al Porter. He was quick fire, really quick witted and camp. However, it was the extortionate prices and poor service at the theatre bar that are very, very far from funny and took the smile off my face. That's the reason for one star. I had a Brewdog IPA beer at £3.90 for 330mls which equates to £6.71 a pint. Yes please read this again: £6.71 for a pint of beer. Also I bought a Jameson whiskey and a 330ml bottle of coke: they had the tiny coke bottles giving a miserable 200ml serving, this is a rip off too. The whiskey & coke was a stonking £7.85. This is late night and daylight robbery. I mean I wouldn't pay these rip off prices in an airport. I noticed too as I queued at the bar that the young barman was serving people who weren't even bothering to queue. While I observed this I didn't speak however a man beside me, who had been standing at the bar for ages, when the young barman served two young guys who were standing behind him, just let rip. Quite right. He was polite but he nailed the staff misconduct. He asked for a manager to be told there wasn't one with some half baked excuse. I must have been waiting a solid 10 minutes to be served when this man spoke up. I guess if the man hadn't complained I likely would have waited even longer. As it was the young barman had moved away to serve two young girls right at the far end of the bar, passing waiting customers, including me, to do so. It's a SABENA moment at the bar here - such a bloody experience never again.

Without a doubt Culture Night Belfast is the best night of the year. Despite recent arts cuts…read moreCulture Night was back in September 2015 even bigger and better than before. It's an annual occurrence consisting of a full day of activities. Over 250 free arts events starting at 1pm and running until late. Belfast comes to life on this one day like no other. There's a leisurely, relaxed, bustling vibe throughout the city with most activities happening in the Cathedral Quarter area. Visual art, music, dancing, sword fencing, magicians, street artists, performance art, circus acts, art exhibitions, fire dancers, roller derbies, jugglers, food and drink. There's a bedazzling array of entertainment and it's for all age groups from babies to centenarians. The streets are closed off to traffic and you can grab a drink, a Culture Night brochure and just wander about exploring what's on. It's a magical night. Forget Christmas, Halloween or any other festivity or festival. Nothing compares to Belfast Culture Night - it's the best - I hope it never stops. Here are some of my favourites from CNB15: INKIE art exhibition ~ Ink Monkey art shop Claire Carpenter art exhibition ~ Cafe 31 Faigy art exhibition ~ Assembly Rooms Yarn bombing by Saturday Knit Fever Fire dancing by FirePoise Lumen by Guerilla Shout & DSNT Hit The North Street Art Festival Urban dance by Cypher Sessions Belfast Roller Derby Irish dance ~ Tir na n-Og Dance Group DeLorean Print Cars ~ Belfast Photo Festival

Culture Night Belfast took place for the first time last year, and it got even bigger this year. It…read morebasically involves every arts organisation flinging its doors open to the public for free and as a result, there's a real buzz about the place. It initially started as a Cathedral Quarter event, but was extended a little to include some of South Belfast this year. My understanding is that they want to eventually have Culture Night take place all over the city, which would be some achievement! The events are massively varied - Belfast Film Festival might put on what they call "Bean Bag Cinema", which is where a film is screened in one of the Cathedral Quarter's alleyways, with the audience sitting on Bean Bags. The galleries in the area might put on special shows, artists take to the streets to create something on the night and almost every cafe or restaurant has some sort of live music going on. It's such a great way to remove some of the barriers that stop people getting involved in the arts. Since it's all so relaxed, it's really easy to just go down, have a wander round and see what grabs your attention!

I love all things German so always make an effort to get down to Oktoberfest and soak up a bit of…read morethe atmosphere...except this year there was a bit more of an 'Irish Festival' vibe, not exactly what I was looking for! We got down there around half six on a Saturday and didn't have to queue to get in. We also got seats at the edge of one of the tables really quickly, which was handy as it would have been awkward standing with the volume of people moving through. We got the obligatory pints of Erdinger which were fine, but at €6.50 a pop you would expect them to be full, which they weren't. I then went in search of some proper German Bratwurst. A lot of the stalls were selling hot dogs with frankfurters but if you want a proper bratwurst there's one stall beside the entrance (looks like a wooden cabin) and you can get a really tasty hot dog here for €5.50, not bad given the size of the portion. They also had some other dishes here like fried potatoes with saurkraut and these looked really good too. After a while we tried some gourmet popcorn with melted marshmallow (€4) and a cinnamon pretzel (€2.50) from two of the stalls and both were really tasty. We hung around for a couple of hours but at around half nine we decided to move on as things were getting a bit messy. While I love the food and drink associated with Oktoberfest, I'm not really a fan of the 'Irish Festival' vibe and that's what was on offer down here, becoming progressively more present as the night went on. Also, we saw three ambulances arrive during our time there and given the fact thay we were down there quite early this was quite concerning. I will go back to Oktoberfest next year but I'll be heading down early and leaving early!

So made it back after my first visit was thwarted by a long Q. Arrived at 5pm and we queued for 15…read moremin before finally getting in. The place was already packed so I can only imagine how busy it would be later. 12 euro for a ltr of beer and 5 euro deposit for your plastic glass which is returned upon presenting your token once done. How could they improve? - Get organised. With the hordes of thirsty beer guzzling customers they need to get the beer flowing better. - 5 euro deposit for a plastic glass? Charge 5 euro upfront or set up a return station as you leave because as things stand it's not working - Layout is not great and doesn't lend itself to a flow of traffic. I would suggest they look at how the food and beer stations are positioned. Finally it's not very German nor does it even get close to representing a beer garden experience. The music isn't reflective and at 5pm there were already people who were "two sheets to the wind" Glad I went but in its current format I doubt I'd go back on 2016

This place has a lot of functions to do with different community projects. However, it's best known…read morefor being the ticket office for all events at the West Belfast Festival, a.k.a. Féile an Phobail, a.k.a. the "Fla". Every year, for about a week and a half, there's a festival organised which starts at the end of July. It's reputedly the biggest community festival in Europe, and attracts tourists from far and wide. It has a whole host of events - live music gigs; lectures; comedy nights; photographic/art exhibitions; debates... the list goes on, and the events are held in a huge variety of venues from schools and community centres to pubs and marquees. It's amazing how many visitors this attracts every year.

I would love to review this but I cannot remember when it occurs... Oh that's right! Everyone's…read morefavourite excuse to get drunk ST PATRICK'S DAY! I remember having worked one out of my three Belfast St Patrick's Days which means that all I have to go on is this year's festivities which might I say were terrific, and last year which shall we say became newsworthy for the wrong reasons. SPD (as I have decided to refer to it as because it is becoming too tedious to constantly type it out) in Belfast usually guarantees you drunk people, primarily students, and a tentative atmosphere for most people. In the city centre however, they do insist on trying to cater for young ones by having parades and a concert featuring all of the classic Irish themed acts of the year - most notably Eoghan Quigg... from the X Factor... still nothing? Unfortunately with drunken revelry there often comes drunken behaviour and that has not been more evident than last year's riots which made news around the world. The was a strange atmosphere around Belfast's student quarter and since that behaviour, St Patrick's Day has become a much more family friendly, police orientated day with many more cars and riot police patrolling the student areas. Away from the student area you are guaranteed to find leprechaun themed events all over the city and while it may never be as popular or as well behaved as Dublin, at least it is still a bit of craic.

St Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland and the saint whose special day causes most people in…read moreIreland, both north and south to get drunk. The 17th of March gathers a sea of green into the city centre where a festival is held to celebrate the history of St. Patrick and the culture he brought to Ireland. The crowds are usually of varying age but you will find two extremes from the 'drunken' teens slurring and wobbling on the pavements to the family with young children trying to enjoy the day. The yearly parade is the best part of the festival as local pipe and accordion bands play traditional tunes along the streets of Belfast. This is a great event for families and tourists and rarely brings much trouble. Each year after the parades, a concert is held to try and entertain the crowds into the late afternoon and evening. However this is usually headlined by a Z list celebrity who lip syncs through a lack lustre performance, but it is free so we can't really complain! All in all, if you have nothing better to do to celebrate St Patrick's Day it's worth a shot.