Feast in Laois at The Folly Festival

All roads lead to captivating Cullohill in Laois for what promises to be a fantastic weekend of fun at The Folly Festival 2024.

The event takes place on Friday and Saturday, July 3-5 at Nancy’s Yard, beneath the towering ruins of the historic Cullohill Castle in association with Electric Picnic.

As the clock ticks down to the event, the foodie element has been revealed and it features some household names and rising stars. Sure to intrigue and whet the appetite of anyone with a modicum of interest in food!

Leading the way is renowned Ballymaloe Cookery School and TV Chef Rory O’Connell, who has a huge connection and affinity to Cullohill. His mother, the late Elizabeth O’Connell, used to run the Sportsman Inn after her husband died. She inspired both Rory and his sister Darina Allen to follow her into the food world.

To work up an appetite by beginning the day with the Folly Festival Mountain walk at 9.30am. You can register at the Retro Food Truck and enjoy a scenic adventure on the Cullohill Mountain with delicious overnight oats on offer on return courtesy of local artisan food producer, The Merry Mill. At 11am, join Marie Moylan for a Painting Demo with this talented local artist.

The foodie programme will kick off on Saturday midday with a foraging expedition, Stroll in a Country Lane with Wild Food Mary with Mary Bulfin (who was named World Forager expert by Sunday Times) followed at 1pm by Bart Pawlukojc from the award-winning Arán Artisan Bakery & Bistro, Kilkenny.

At 2pm, on ‘The Rocks’ Rory will do a cookery demo with Laois Taste ‘Rory O’Connell - Coming Home’. Using all locally-sourced products to show how to create summer dishes that you can cook at home, his objective is to inspire not terrify! The demo will take place in the midst of the artisan food and craft market. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Pictured: Rory O'Connell

At 3pm there will be a panel discussion with Tanguy De Toulgoet of Dunmore Country School on the joys of sustainable gardening alongside gardening correspondent with the Irish Times and co-owner of the Irish Flower Farmer Fionnuala Fallon, Wild Food Mary( Mary Bulfin) and Rory O’Connell.

Music-wise there is a stellar lineup of headliners Darren Kiely and The Scratch alongside other firm favourites including Roísín O, Dea Matrona, Oscar Blue, Jessica Doolan, Saibh Skelly, Paddy Keyes, The Dooley Brothers, The Garda Band, Cullohill Comhaltas and recently announced Tullamore’s Best Foot Forward. The event MC is Doireann Ní Ghlacáin.

Performances are punctuated by numerous daytime events for all ages. Throughout the day Nancy’s yard will play host to numerous family activities and non-stop entertainment with performances on the main stage and if the adults need a bit of a break, there is the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Semi-Final on the big screen!

Festival tickets are not required to take part in the daytime events and all activities are free except for children in Nancy’s yard Play Area (€5). Activities within the play area include face painting, magic shows, puppet shows, F1 car simulators and garden games. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Pictured: Roísín O

The Folly Festival is Ireland’s first-ever gender-balanced music festival, which in 2018 first addressed the discrepancy within the entertainment industry, where male artists outnumbered female artists 5:1 – a ratio which is mirrored throughout the industry’s engineering and production roles. In selecting performers, Folly Festival actively promotes gender-balance, selecting the lineup accordingly, with an equal number of male and female acts.

All proceeds from the Folly Festival are used by the organisers Cullohill Community Council for Village renewal projects along with donations to local schools, clubs and societies. The Folly Festival is brought to you by Cullohill Community Council with the support of Electric Picnic, Laois Partnership Company and Laois County Council.

Ticket info – https://thefolly.ie/tickets/