Comhaltas and the Armagh Rhymers take it in turns playing (spooky) games and music, to dance and play along with, whilst the veil between our world and ‘the Other’ is at its thinnest. Bring the kids in their best creepy dress-up (or not) and adults are welcome to join in, too.
With children’s gift bags for the first 50 arrivals — and scarily silly prizes for best Samhain costumes — we encourage eye patches and false teeth, masks and props (store bought or otherwise). Grab the face paint, some spider webs and last year’s glitter slime; practice your deepest, scariest ‘Wohooo’ and get your dancing feet ready for the creepiest ball of the season!
Activities are mainly geared for children 4-12 years old, with supervision. Kids aged 13-113 years old are welcome but require child-supervision! Only pretend broken bones on this dance floor, please!
This event is held in partnership with Liverpool Irish Centre with support from Comhaltas’s musicians.
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Since 2021, Liverpool Irish Festival has been working on revitalising the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail, which includes The Great Hunger commemoration memorial. Today, the Liverpool Great Hunger Commemoration Committee, Conradh Na Gaeilge Learpholl, Liverpool Irish Centre and its choir, the Deaf Choir in and Movema Dance partner with the Festival to lead a Great Hunger Memorial Service that marks the anniversary of An Gorta Mór (The Great Hunger), lasting 1845-1852 and beyond.
Along with speeches, a Liver Bird performance and a minute’s silence, we’ll sing The Ullaloo together. Commissioned especially for The Great Hunger Memorial in 2024, by local musicians Ian Cantwell and Marty Snape, the Liverpool Irish Centre choir will lead the singing and the Deaf Choir will sign it to us.
“Birds, especially those that migrate or fly high, are often seen as symbols of freedom, migration and hope. In the context of refugees, these symbols take on deeper meaning, representing the journey, resilience, and aspirations of those seeking safety and a new life” – Movema. Linking with our theme of arrivals, we’ll consider those arriving in Liverpool to begin the next stage of their journey, here or abroad.
Everyone is welcome. Please note that this is an outside event, and we may have difficulties with sound if it is rainy or windy. We recommend dressing for the weather and bringing seats or walking aids as needed. This is a standing service of roughly 30-minutes. We won’t have chairs available for everyone. People may gather in advance of the service to welcome the vigil walkers.
These activities have been made possible with funds from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
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Complementing our work on the annual Liverpool Irish Famine Memorial, last year’s Walk of the Bronze Shoes has created a new annual opportunity.
For those who don’t know, in 2024 members of our Festival team walked a pair of bronze shoes from County Roscommon (northwest Ireland) to Dublin (east coast of Ireland); sailed them to Holyhead and took them from Seacombe to Mersey Ports, to walk them to Clarence Dock Gates and on to the Famine Memorial. Why?
The bronze shoes are a marker of the National Famine Way in Ireland and Liverpool’s pair — teamed with 15-pairs in North America — are the first to form the Global Irish Famine Way.
Clarence Dock is where 1.8+m Irish Famine poor came into Liverpool. The Great Hunger commemoration memorial (unveiled in 1998) at St Luke’s Bombed Out Church remembers the 300k+ that stayed in Liverpool, the 1m+ that sailed overseas and the 2m+ that died. The journey between the two locations is indicative of the struggles of those sent here.
We’ll repeat the Clarence Dock to St Luke’s Bombed Out Church walk annually, until we find the bronze shoes a permanent home and we welcome you to join us.
This time our group will be led by a time-travelling Liver Bird, a bird cyborg who has travelled through time experiencing displacement due to conflict, famine, economic hardship and climate change. Stewards will help people walk the route. Information will be provided at the site that morning. A small informal ceremony will start the vigil, with walkers from the Walk of the Bronze Shoes,
This activity has been made possible with funds from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
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A Festival-staple and must-see; we invite you to pop-by — or indeed, spend the day with us — at the Museum of Liverpool (Pier Head). There, we’ve a veritable array of activity to entertain kids (and adults) of all ages.
The Armagh Rhymers return with their (exclusive to the Festival) Liver Bird story helping to understand how the First Nations people of North America helped the Irish during The Great Hunger. We’ll introduce visitors to Little Globy, a carbon boffin and a global ambassador for green action. The Bolger-Cunningham Dance School will give it their all in the morning, before the George Ferguson School for Irish Dance produce junior and senior dance sets, whilst Melody Makers and Comhaltas will bring their intergenerational group to play in the space. You’ll also be able to collect a Brave Maeve Tir Na nÓg map. The day puts the Irish of Liverpool at the heart of everything; the programme, the Museum and the city.
The Family Day is sponsored by Tourism Ireland and held in partnership with National Museums Liverpool. As part of the Family programme, you might also like the Samhain Céilí (Sun 26 Oct).
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This 2-hour walk through the former heartland of Liverpool’s Irish community considers schools, statues and graveyards.
It explores what remains of the area’s rich heritage, rousing some old ghosts along the way.
Led by historian Greg Quiery, this walk explores the dense history of a world-famous district. Featuring stories of heroic men and women; footballers and rock stars; two hidden statues; a graveyard and the legends of ‘Dandy Pat’ and James Carling. The walk ends at St Anthony’s Church, a short bus ride from town.
Those interested in this walk, may also be interested in the in-person South Liverpool walk (see event listing and book early to avoid disappointment) or the self-guided Liverpool Irish Famine Trail liverpoolirishfaminetrail.com, accompanied by the Festival’s books Revive and Reveal, available online at liverpoolirishfestival.com/shop.
This in an outdoor walk in October; please be weather prepared, comfortable and hydrated.
Ticket holders should join Greg outside Liverpool Central Library ready for the walk start time.
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On this 2-hour walk you’ll discover Irish connections to many of the historic Hope Street and Rodney Street buildings, hearing from some of the colourful characters who populated them.
Led by historian Greg Quiery, early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.
Anyone interested in this may also like the in-person Scotland Road walk (see event listing) or the self-guided Liverpool Irish Famine Trail liverpoolirishfaminetrail.com, accompanied by the Festival’s books Revive and Reveal, available online at liverpoolirishfestival.com/shop.
This is an outdoor walk in October; please be weather prepared, comfortable and hydrated.
Ticket holders should join Greg at the Liverpool Irish Famine memorial in the garden of St Luke’s Bombed Out Church for the walk start time.
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In 2021, Liverpool Irish Festival began our custodianship of the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail. We formed a volunteer History Research Group (who’ve since undertaken 1,700+ hours of research) and released two books: Revive and Reveal (available in the Museum’s gift shop or here: liverpoolirishfestival.com/shop/).
Having trained in tour creation and management – and thoroughly researched the Irish objects on display in Museum of Liverpool – the History Research Group now lead tours of the Museum of Liverpool’s Irish objects. Using live-link headsets, visitors will be guided through the collections, homing in on Irish objects. These headsets work over hearing aids.
These in-person tours additionally take in the Pilotage Building, just outside the Museum. Tours are anticipated to take approximately 45-60mins, depending on audience questions. These activities have been made possible with funds from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
People who’d like to visit the Irish objects tour in a self-guided trail (no booking needed) can use the guide map online liverpoolirishfestival.com/events/self-guided-irish-trail/ or may collect paper maps (for free) from leaflet holders in the Museum’s foyer.
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Irish people have made homes all over the world and Liverpool is no exception, being known as East Dublin, East Belfast and the 33rd county! Taking this year’s theme of ‘arrivals’, the George Ferguson Irish Dance School and Merseyside’s Melody Makers have collaborated to produce a welcoming programme, celebrating what it is to arrive. Whether home is new or old, arriving there can be full of anticipation, expectation and nostalgia. We’ll also welcome new guests to the stage.
This engaging two-hour programme features over 50 musicians and dancers from across Merseyside. The performance takes place in one of Liverpool’s most emerald spaces: the ever-magnificent Sefton Park Palm House.
Liverpool Irish Festival is proud to present this thematic collaboration, building an ongoing series of bespoke programmes, and becoming a firm fixture of the Festival. Grab your tickets whilst you can.
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Conradh na Gaeilge Learpholl, in partnership with the Liverpool Irish Festival, are pleased to present the annual Tony Birtill Lecture.
On 21 Oct 2021, Liverpool (and Ireland) lost a great Irish Language supporter; Tony Birtill. He made an invaluable contribution to the conservation, promotion and teaching of the Irish language on Merseyside for over 30 years. A Gaeilgeoir (fluent Irish speaker) and walking enthusiast, Tony was also a keen historian and language activist. His widely acclaimed book Liverpool – A Hidden History gives a very incisive insight into the lives and living conditions of Irish emigrants living in Liverpool in the aftermath of the Great Famine (1845-1852).
This year’s memorial lecture is in two parts and will be delivered by local historian Greg Quiery and Dr. Eoghan Ahern from the University of Liverpool’s Institute of Irish Studies. Greg’s talk will be about the establishment of the Great Hunger commemoration memorial in the gardens of St Luke’s Bombed Out Church in 1998 and Dr. Ahern’s talk will be about the impact of the Famine on the Irish language. Join us to hear to Greg Quiery and Dr. Ahern deliver two most interesting talks.
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The Druids Irish Folk Band are back with another master show, featuring captivating new blends of traditional Irish folk music and storytelling. This type of performance highlights the band’s rich musical heritage, weaving together timeless Irish ballad songs with the powerful narratives that have been passed down through generations.
The combination of music and stories would give audiences a deep dive into Ireland’s cultural history, offering a mix of lively jigs, heartfelt ballads and tales that reflect the country’s folklore, struggles, and triumphs. Irish folk bands often use this format to connect with their audiences on a more emotional level, while also providing an immersive, entertaining experience.
