Residents and visitors from the counties of Tipperary, Clare and Limerick (Ireland’s Mid-West Region) are expected to gather in large numbers, to watch Ireland’s largest Christmas parade which will roll through the municipality of Bunratty, on Thursday November 28th next; as the County Clare village is transformed into a winter wonderland.
Bunratty Castle, in Ireland’s Mid-West Region will host Ireland’s largest Christmas parade in 2024.
Bunratty Castle and Folk Park, supported by the local business community and Clare Co. Council, has announced that 400 parade participants will wind their way through the village to the courtyard of Bunratty Castle, where the annual switching on of the Folk Park’s Christmas lights will take place.
The procession will feature more than 100 elves, Christmas characters, the Tulla Pipe Band, animals from the Folk Park, members of the All-Ireland winning Clare senior hurling team, and Santa Claus, (whose sleigh will be drawn by six horses). Additional musical entertainment will be provided on the evening by the Bunratty Brass Band and two local choirs.
The parade marks the beginning of ‘Christmas at Bunratty 2024’ with 35,000 people expected through the gates of the popular 26-acre visitor attraction during these festivities.
Santa Claus will be making a welcome return to his grotto on the Village Street on Friday, 29th November. Visitors will have full access to Bunratty Folk Park Trail of Lights Experience and can enjoy puppet and magic shows and traditional Christmas tales with Bunratty’s resident Seanchaí, drop into the festive themed shops, meet and greet in the Ice Queen’s Cottage, and take a ride on the Polar Express. The ‘Breakfast with Santa’ event and Christmas-themed castle banquets also return for 2024.
Councillor Mr Alan O’Callaghan, Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council commented, “It is wonderful to see local businesses and the community of Bunratty coming together to support what will be an incredible spectacle for the village. Bunratty never does anything in half measures and this Christmas parade will be no different as the village prepares for its busiest time of the year.”
Ms Charlotte Rebers, Head of Operations at Bunratty Castle & Folk Park said, “We wanted to do something completely different this year by bringing the entire community together to celebrate the magic of the Christmas season. Months in the making, this parade will light up the village up with colourful characters, festive music and a joyful procession along the 700-metre route. Everyone is welcome to attend.”
Following the parade, Bunratty Castle and Folk Park will present a donation to this year’s nominated charity, Down Syndrome Clare.
Spokesperson Ms Bríd Hayes commented, “We are very excited about attending this festive event and we are grateful to Bunratty Castle and Folk Park for their fundraising efforts on our behalf. Such donations enable us to deliver vital services and supports for our members and their families to thrive and for the professionals who work to support them.”
The Bunratty Christmas Parade commences from JP Clarke’s at 6.00pm on Thursday, November 28th. The village main street will be closed to vehicular traffic for the duration of the parade, while public parking will be available throughout the village and at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park in advance.
All businesses in Bunratty will remain open before, during and after the parade. Bunratty Castle and Folk Park will be closed to the public after the parade in line with standard winter operating hours.
The great Leitrim native Seamus O’Rourke, writer, director, actor, poet and independent producer (Big Guerilla Productions) takes us back to 1922.
The year 1922 in Ireland marked the beginning of the final phase in Ireland’s revolution. It saw the ratification of the Anglo-Irish Treaty; the establishment of the Irish Free State; the outbreak of the civil war; and the consolidation of partition as Northern Ireland opted out of the Free State settlement.
‘Monsters, Misfits and Mayhem’, from all over counties Tipperary, Clare and Limerick’s Mid-West Region will gather, before descending on Bunratty Castle & Folk Park this October Bank Holiday Weekend (October 26th-28th), as the County Clare visitor attraction becomes transformed into a haunted Halloween village.
The traditions and superstitions of ‘Samhain’ will be on display during the October Bank Holiday weekend with Halloween games, ghostly characters, witchcraft, a Bed of Nails, tarot reading, street entertainment, and Haunted Train rides past ghosts, grim reapers, and zombies that will appear from the shadows throughout the 26-acre folk park.
Ms Marie Brennan, (Events Manager at Bunratty Castle and Folk Park), commented, “Our Halloween event is hugely popular with people from across the Mid-West Region and beyond. We are very excited about welcoming everyone back to Bunratty, where history meets the haunted.” “It is an eerie time of year, and we have pulled out all the stops to create an unforgettable experience full of fun, frights and festivity for the whole family,” added Ms. Brennan.
Age-old Halloween traditions will be re-enacted at the Golden Vale Farmhouse where the Bean an Tí will speak about the types of food that typically would have been eaten in Samhain and recall the peculiar superstitions of the time. The Farmhouse also will host Halloween-themed fun with traditional games such as Bobbing for Apples, Blind-Man’s-Buff and Snap Apple.
Adult visitors will be invited to step back in time at a Victorian-era parlour séance, where the secrets of the past will be unveiled as the spirits of the departed are summoned. The Wicked Wake will be hosted in The Shannon Farmhouse where the resident MacNamara family will mourn the loss of their beloved Mickey, whose ghostly presence suggests he has unfinished business in the land of the living.
Visitors can experience a re-enactment of a Witch Trial each day at 11.00am, 12.00 noon, 2.15pm, and 3.30pm, by following an angry mob from the village street to Ardcroney Church. Meanwhile, a bewitching duo will take up residence in the kitchen of the Loop Head Farmhouse, where mysterious concoctions will be brewing.
At Corry’s Pub on the Village Street, Bunratty’s resident seanchaí Mickey Joe will recount fables of Samhain and hair-raising tall tales passed down through the generations. Other performances include Halloween puppetry with Konor Halpin each day at 11.30am, 1.00pm, 2.30pm, and 4.00pm in the Village Street Alleyway; Escapologist Monsieur Gusto will showcase his juggling, escapology, and acrobatic skills on October 28th, and fun and frightening frolics with Dracula King of Vampires, The Minister of Death, Escaped Convicts, and Mad Musicians.
The Red Devil and the King of the Vampires will lurk in the shadows ready to pounce at a moment’s notice, The Talking Head guarantees to entertain and frighten guests at the Mountain Farmhouse, Dr. Jekyll’s surgery will open its doors for anyone who is brave enough to enter, a shrinking illusion will be on display in the Castle’s basement, and the Bed of Nails returns this year in the Castle’s Torture Chamber.
Visitors to Bunratty Castle also will get to see the deadly dungeon and monstrous murder hole and meet Maleficent’s Wicked Sister.
‘Monsters, Misfits and Mayhem’ takes place from 10.30am to 1.30pm and 2.00pm to 5.00pmeach day from Saturday October 26th to Monday October 28th.
A female tourist, understood to be aged in her 70’s, has sadly died following a fall, while walking at a popular tourist attraction in Co Tipperary.
Gardaί and emergency services from Killaloe including the Tipperary Fire Brigade, quickly responded to the tragedy, which occurred in the Clare Glens, area near Newport in Tipperary, yesterday evening, Wednesday September 11th, at around 5:30pm.
Sadly the lady, who has not yet been named publically, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Clare River.
Gardai have confirmed that a coroner has since been notified and arrangements will now be made for a post-mortem examination to take place.
Back in January 2015 this extremely picturesque location, a popular visitor attraction for walkers, was the scene of a kayaking accident, when a 26 year old man, was injured while out with a group of friendsHe was treated in Limerick University Hospital for non-life threatening injuries, following a rescue operation which lasted some three and a half hours.
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