This year’s Crawley Irish Festival will showcase some great Irish entertainment, music, sport and dance. In its seventeenth year, the festival is a great family day out to enjoy over the August Bank Holiday. And for the first time, this event is absolutely free.

So keep Sunday 26 August 2012 free in your diary for Crawley’s biggest Irish Festival ever! Visit us from 12 noon at Crawley High Street and Queens Square Fields, Crawley, West Sussex – just a short while from Gatwick Airport.

WHAT’S ON OFFER?

Live Music: The Music Stage within Crawley’s High Street will showcase some of the biggest Irish acts from Britain and Ireland. Whilst the Trad Stage features the best traditional and folk acts from throughout the UK and Ireland.

Ireland’s number 1 country singer John McNicholl headlines the Music Stage alongside London based Irish Traditional band London Lasses and Pete Quinn, Celtic Crunch, Pat Nugent and Mustang, Emerald Element, Brogue, Brendan Behan’s Pig and Whistle Band and many more adding to a real Feadh Ceoil experience to the West Sussex town.

Live Dance: Irish Dance displays have always been popular at the festivals and the Open Dance Competition attracts competitors from all over the the world at the Irish Dance Stage which this year takes place at the Grandstand in Queens Square.

Lots of live dance demonstrations from local dance schools and Set Dancing for the rest of us. Enjoy! Crawley is the proud home of some wonderful Irish Dancing Schools. The dance stage will see many of them participating on the day.

The Open Dance competition provides a great opportunity to showcase the very best of young Irish dancing talent in the South East.

Live Sport: GAA Sport also has an important role to play with live action being played out on the big screen right in the heart of Crawley. What better way to spend the post Olympics cool down that seeing some of the world’s most unique sports.

Televised GAA matches at the festival. We will also be televising the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship as the tournament reaches the final stages of the exciting competition.

All-Round Family Fun: Families and children will be well catered for with stalls and an amusement area for all-round family fun.

Younger visitors are well catered for with a free special children’s entertainment marquee involving games, song and story and art workshops with particular emphasis on Irish traditions and folklore.  Playgroup personnel are on duty through the day to entertain and assist parents and children in the marquee and outside areas.

COMMUNITY SUPPORT

All proceeds from the Crawley Irish Festival are invested in community projects to assist in the promotion of Celtic and Irish cultural activities in and around Crawley.

ADMISSION IS FREE

Admission is the best value family day out in the southeast because it’s absolutely Free! That’s right, it’s free. Nothing, nadder, zip!

Support

The Crawley Irish Festival is supported through funding by the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs; Emigrant Support Fund, Crawley Borough Council and West Sussex County Council.