Latest news with #CoLaois
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Irish Times
Putting on an outdoor music festival in Ireland: ‘The bands saw they weren't going to be up on the back of a truck in Portlaoise'
When Philip Meagher, a solicitor and indie-rock fan, set out to create a music festival from scratch, he knew he had a lot to prove. He had no experience organising a big event featuring dozens of acts over multiple days – on a brand new festival site. But he was passionate about music and believed there was space in an already crowded calendar for something different. And so was born Forest Fest , a three-day event at Emo village, in Co Laois, that's laser-focused on concertgoers of a particular vintage. 'We were trying to fill a niche. We thought there was a market for a festival primarily focused on a more mature audience. And while we didn't want to go completely retro, we certainly wanted a nod towards artists on the road for a long time. READ MORE 'But we were very specific that we were only talking about bands that were still match fit – basically that they were bands that were still gigging actively, were producing new music, that were touring.' [ Forest Fest 2024 review: Golden oldies shine, Shane MacGowan's spirit inspires Opens in new window ] Meagher launched Forest Fest in 2022 with a largely Irish line-up. It has since expanded to include international acts such as Suede and James. This year's headliners, over the weekend of July 25th to 27th, include Franz Ferdinand and Manic Street Preachers . The challenge, says Meagher, was to put together a bill that reflected his vision of the festival as an event that appealed to over-30s yet did not wallow in nostalgia for nostalgia's sake. He didn't want to lean into the hellscape of glorified 1980s karaoke: the idea was to celebrate artists who were still forging ahead creatively rather than dining out on faded glories. 'The first year we were concentrating mostly on Irish acts. The good, big names, like The Stunning, Something Happens, the likes of those,' he says. 'In fairness to them, they were very open to taking a risk on a new festival. Obviously, they were taking a leap into the dark. We had to give certain assurances about the level of production and staging we were going to provide. 'When they saw the production team we had put together, and they saw the specification of the sound system, staging, the lighting, etc, that we were going to put in place … that was of huge comfort to them. They weren't going to turn up and be up on the back of a truck in the square in Portlaoise. That's with the greatest of respect to bands that play on the back of a truck.' These are challenging times for music festivals. In the UK last year more than 60 festivals were cancelled or postponed, up from 36 in the previous 12 months. In Ireland, where the circuit is obviously a lot smaller, nine such events were nevertheless cancelled last year amid rising overheads in music and ongoing cost-of-living pressures. Those tensions are felt across the industry. In the case of bigger festivals there is an ever more desperate scramble to secure one of the elite acts seen as having the star power to headline a major outdoor concert – think Lana Del Rey, who played Glastonbury in 2023, or Olivia Rodrigo, a headliner in 2025. It's a short list – and everyone wants them. Elite act: Lana Del Rey at Glastonbury in 2023. Photograph: Joseph Okpako/WireImage 'We're seeing a trend of festivals booking acts earlier. Primavera Sound , in Barcelona, announced its line-up in October, and it takes place in June this year, which means negotiations would have started before their last festival even happened,' Finlay Johnson of the Association for Electronic Music , a New York-based organisation with member companies in more than 40 countries, said in January. 'Others have followed suit. Partly, they want tickets to be on sale for as long as possible, but they also want to secure headliners, as there are fewer acts available.' Those headaches do not apply to smaller festivals – at least not in the same way. Still, regardless of scale, an attractive line-up is more important than ever. It can be the difference between a good year and an underwhelming one. If anything, such decisions are even more crucial when it comes to more intimate festivals. 'We need the headliner name on the board to excite people, get a bit of hype going,' says Katie Twohig, who, with her husband, Eoin Hally, programmes the three-stage, 800-capacity When Next We Meet festival , at Raheen House in Clonmel, Co Tipperary, which this year takes place on June 7th and 8th. Headliners: Pillow Queens are at this year's When Next We Meet. Photograph: Debbie Hickey/Getty The main acts include Villagers , Conor O'Brien's thoughtful indie songwriter project, and the postpunks Pillow Queens, alongside the cult alternative artists Paddy Hanna, Skinner and Morgana. Having a big name is important, and not only in terms of shifting tickets or drawing an audience from outside the locality. They also set the tone for the rest of the bill, Twohig says. The idea is to attract acts that have a complementary sound. If When Next We Meet booked the noisy Dublin postpunks The Scratch, for example, they'd have to ensure the rest of the day's line-up had a similar sensibility. The goal is to mould the feel of the weekend around those headliners. It all starts with them. 'We're absolutely thrilled where things landed this year. Villagers are the main band closing on Sunday. But also Pillow Queens, on the Saturday night, they'll be headlining. We feel like they're strongest line-up to date, and a lovely balance in terms of genres as well. And Pillow Queens probably have a younger audience, so it's a lovely scope there,' Twohig says. 'Sometimes it's hard to get that balance right. There's no end to the amount of great artists that are out there. When you're curating something, it takes time to get that balance right. Once you book one artist it narrows down your choices, I suppose, in the lower tiers on the programming. We're very happy with how it turned out this year. But some years we've been stressing over about getting the right fit.' As with so much else in the music industry, putting together a good festival bill is helped by having a solid network of contacts, says Emmet Condon, who promotes live music under the Homebeat banner and programmes Another Love Story , an intimate festival at the 18th-century Killyon Manor, in Co Meath, which has a capacity of about 2,000 people. (This year's festival is on August 23rd and 24th.) In the music business there are people who get involved because of the romance, and then there are people who are hard-nosed businesspeople. We tend to try and work with or find acts and people who have the same heart that we have about doing it — Emmet Condon Having started in 2014, Another Love Story remains the best-kept secret of the Irish festival year, though it has attracted many high-profile artists. This year the headliners are the Barcelona producer and DJ John Talabot and the Co Wicklow songwriter Fionn Regan . 'I have been running shows as Homebeat for 15 or 16 years now. I've been active as a booker and a promoter for a long time. I've worked as a booker for things like Body & Soul,' says Condon, referring to the Westmeath festival last held in 2023. 'Over a span of time you build up contacts, and people trust what you do.' The bigger acts Another Love Story has attracted, according to Condon, include Talabot and, last year, the German electro supergroup Modeselektor. It has also hosted people like Alabaster DePlume, the acclaimed jazz and spoken-word artist, and the famed fiddler Martin Hayes, 'who would be luminaries in their own right'. It takes work to reel in these international artists, who may have festival offers from around the world. 'For us to attract them to the smaller stage, we have to work pretty hard to deliver what we do each year. And then to sell the dream of the thing to those people. 'In the music business there are people who almost inevitably get involved because of the romance, and then there are people who are hard-nosed businesspeople,' who want to make money. 'We tend to try and work with or find those acts and those people who have the same heart that we have about doing it.' With smaller festivals, there are no blockbusting stars to draw the audience. It has to be about something more than that. 'It started as a relatively small thing and has grown into a relatively substantial adventure each year,' Condon says about Another Love Story. 'As it's grown, as a booker, the opportunity has been to increasingly fill the space and create a narrative of sorts through music. 'We're not a massive festival that has massive headline acts, obviously. My favourite thing about the whole thing is the spreadsheet that I get to keep and hone – like my baby – from one September, when one festival ends, and straight over to the next part of the year. 'It's a joy to create a mood piece, using music throughout the whole weekend, and to kind of create an arc of experience and the soundtrack that fits around it.' In the case of Forest Fest, which has a 12,000-person capacity across three stages, Philip Meagher had a clear vision: a festival that would appeal to those whose wayward youth is well behind them and are perhaps starting to weary of megafestivals. He had worked as a solicitor for the late John Reynolds, the much-respected Irish promoter who established Electric Picnic in 2004. It was being at that festival, which has drifted towards a younger audience over the past 15 years, that made Meagher decide there was a niche for music lovers who had aged out of Stradbally weekend. 'The main acts that we have are obviously of a very, very high standard. They have a huge international standing. The curated bands that would support them would be of a similar quality but wouldn't quite have, perhaps, the international standing that the main acts would have. 'And that would filter down into the other supporting stages, where we would have acts slightly smaller in standing and then supported by the best of up-and-coming Irish and international acts,' he says. 'We have very, very strong new acts coming from the UK, coming from Ireland, coming from the US – giving them a chance. And they're appreciative of the fact that a lot of them are getting their first big festival experience – and playing on the same bill as the likes of the Manics and Travis and Dandy Warhols. 'They're going to meet them all and learn from them and see what it's like to be a rock god for the weekend.'
Irish Times
7 days ago
- General
- Irish Times
Could the disappearance of Fiona Pender finally be solved?
Nearly thirty years ago, in August 1996, 25-year-old Fiona Pender disappeared and was never seen again. Detectives have always believed Ms Pender, who was seven months pregnant when she vanished, was murdered on the day she was last seen alive. However, her remains have never been found. Earlier this week, gardaí announced the case had formally been upgraded to a murder investigation and began a search and excavation operation at Graigue near Killeigh village in Co Offaly. Gardaí are now carrying out a second search operation in Co Laois . What does the upgrade to murder inquiry mean for the investigation and why are gardaí suddenly conducting new searches? READ MORE And what do we know about the primary suspect in the case? Crime and security editor Conor Lally discusses the latest developments in the case. Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.
BreakingNews.ie
28-05-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Search begins in Laois as part of Fiona Pender murder investigation
A search on open ground in Co Laois has begun on Wednesday as part of the investigation into the disappearance and murder of Fiona Pender. Gardaí announced last week that they would excavate lands in Co Offaly as part of their investigation into the disappearance of Fiona Pender almost 30 years ago, which has been upgraded to a murder probe. Advertisement On Wednesday, they announced open grounds in Co Laois would be subjected to excavation, technical and forensic examinations. Garda during a search operation that was launched on open ground in Tullamore, Co Offaly, over the disappearance of Fiona Pender (Niall Carson/PA) Ms Pender, who was aged 25 and seven months pregnant when she went missing, was last seen at around 6am on August 23 1996 at her flat in Church Street in Tullamore, Co Offaly. Over the past 28 years, An Garda Síochána said they have carried out various inquiries and collated 300 statements of evidence and a number of exhibits. 'Investigating gardaí continue to appeal to any person with any information in relation to the disappearance of Fiona in the early morning of Friday 23rd August 1996, who has not spoken to Gardai, to please come forward and speak to our investigation team,' a Garda statement said. Advertisement Fiona Pender, 25, was seven months pregnant when she went missing almost 30 years ago (Irish Police/PA) 'Gardaí continue to appeal to any person who may have previously come forward who felt they could not provide gardaí with all the information they had in relation to this matter, to contact the investigation team again. 'An Garda Siochana appeals to anyone with any information, no matter how small or insignificant you might believe it to be, to contact Tullamore Garda Station on 057 932 7600, or any Garda Station. 'Anyone who wishes to provide information confidentially should contact the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.'
Irish Times
28-05-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Gardaí begin second search in Fiona Pender murder investigation
Gardaí investigating the murder of Fiona Pender in Co Offaly in 1996 have started a second search and excavation operation, in a bid to find her remains, in Co Laois. It is the second such operation of the week after a two-day search at another location, near Tullamore, Co Offaly, was concluded on Tuesday afternoon. Detectives have always believed Ms Pender, a 25-year-old who was seven months pregnant when she vanished, was murdered on the day she was last seen alive in August, 1996. They believe her remains were concealed in the region to cover up the killing. The Garda announced on Monday the case had been upgraded from a missing person's inquiry to a murder investigation and that a search and excavation operation was underway at Graigue near Killeigh village, Co Offaly. READ MORE After that operation was concluded on Tuesday, a second search was begun on Wednesday morning close to Clonaslee, Co Laois, in the Slieve Bloom mountains. A search was conducted in that general area in 2008, though nothing of evidential value was found. 'This area of land will be searched and subject to excavation, technical and forensic examinations,' the Garda said in a statement on Wednesday morning. 'This search forms part of a sustained investigation carried out by Gardaí in Laois-Offaly Garda Division over the last 28-years to establish Fiona's whereabouts and to investigate the circumstances in which Fiona disappeared.' Gardaí have also encouraged anyone with information about Ms Pender's disappearance, especially those who may have felt unable to come forward since 1996, to contact the investigation team in Tullamore Garda station. Ms Pender, a hairdresser, was last seen at her flat on Church Street early in the morning of Friday, August 23rd, 1996. She had spent the previous day shopping with her mother and had bought clothes for her baby. Gardaí do not believe she had any plans to leave the area and suspected foul play from the outset. In 1996, vast tracts of land were searched and sections of Grand Canal were drained during the first wave of investigation in Co Offaly. However, no trace of Ms Pender has been found and nobody has been charged despite five arrests taking place in 1997. In 2008, another search operation was carried out in woods near Mountrath, Co Laois, when a cross with Ms Pender's name was found there. Six years later another search took place in the Slieve Bloom mountains, Co Laois, after a woman known to the suspect nominated it as potentially Ms Pender's burial site, though nothing was found.
Irish Daily Mirror
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Electric Picnic fans given last chance to secure tickets ahead of 2025 festival
Fans who missed out on tickets to this year's Electric Picnic have been handed a final opportunity to seal their place at the Co Laois festival this summer. Three is offering hopeful festival-goers a chance to obtain the last available tickets as they make their return to Ireland's most iconic music festival. Electric Picnic 2025, which boasts a star-studded lineup featuring the likes of Hozier, Chappell Roan and Fatboy Slim, will take place at Stradbally Estate this August. The festival initially sold out within hours after tickets went on sale back in August 2024. A limited number of tickets were made available for purchase last month but were snapped up in just over 15 minutes. Fans who have been unable to get their hands on tickets have been given one final chance to secure a coveted pass thanks to mobile operator and Electric Picnic partners, Three. Three is stepping in with an exclusive offer through Three+, giving customers access to last chance tickets. Three customers will have the chance to redeem an exclusive pre-sale code to get the final tickets for the festival. Final tickets will then go on sale on Wednesday, May 28, at 10am via the Three+ app. Electric Picnic 2025 also marks the return of Three's Charge & Chill Station, positioned at the heart of the main arena offering festival goers a well-earned escape without straying too far from the buzz. Three customers can enjoy unbeatable views of the main stage from a dedicated viewing platform, while recharging both their phones and themselves. Expect everything from secret performances to immersive experiences and surprises all in the unbeatable atmosphere of the popular Three Charge & Chill Station. Electric Picnic takes place from August 29-31 and last week organisers s revealed more than 40 new acts who will take to the stage at Stradbally Estate this summer. Alongside Sam Fender and Kings of Leon, who were confirmed to appear at this year's festival back in March, this year's line-up is also set to feature huge acts such as Becky Hill, Confidence Man, The Kooks, Barry Can't Swim and Lord Huron Estonia Eurovision star Tommy Cash, as well as Dutch Eurovision favourite Joost, are also on the bill, along with a host of top Irish artists such as Orla Gartland KhakiKid, Amble, Bell X1, Kingfishr, The Academic, Maverick Sabre and Mundy. This year, capacity at the festival has increased once again as organisers have said they will be welcoming 80,000 people to the 600-acre Stradbally Estate in this August.
