Galway set to celebrate Bog Week

Concerts featuring musicians Mary Bergin, Johnny Connolly, Ringo McDonagh, Dermot Byrne, Johnny O’Halloran and the Kane Sisters, exhibitions from upcoming artists, the launch of a new EP from Connemara singer-songwriter Eileen Keane,and food demonstrations from some of Connacht’s finest chefs will form part of this year’s annual Bog Week Festival in Letterfrack. Bog Week opens this weekend and runs until June 2. This is the 30th anniversary of Bog Week and its sister festival, Sea Week, which takes place every October. Later in the year President Michael D Higgins will attend Bog Week to formally mark the milestone. In the meantime, people attending Bog Week in the north Connemara village will be assured of a warm welcome, says the event’s founder Leo Hallissey, who is still its driving force three decades later. From the beginning its ethos was to offer everybody in the community scope to express themselves and that remains the case this year. “The variety of events has something for all ages – whether you want to go walking or talking or making music or simply hang out in the landscape,” says Leo. Conamara Environmental Education and Cultural Centre, the award-winning group that organises the festival, has always strived to make access a cornerstone of its policy and once again this year, most events are free.