The Folly Festival 2024, in association with Electric Picnic, takes place this weekend at the beautiful intimate venue of Nancy’s Yard, beneath the towering ruins of the historic Cullohill Castle.
With only days to go before the Folly Festival kicks off on Friday, July 6, the foodie element has been revealed.
Leading the way is renowned Ballymaloe Cookery School and TV Chef, Rory O’Connell,
Rory has a huge connection and affinity to Cullohill; his mother, the late Elizabeth O’Connell, used to run the Sportsman Inn. It was she who inspired both Rory and his sister Darina Allen to follow her into the food world.
Attendees can 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 return courtesy of local artisan food producer, The Merry Mill.
The foodie programme gets underway on Saturday at 12pm with a foraging expedition – a stroll in a country lane with Wild Food Mary (Mary Bulfin), who was named World Forager expert by Sunday Times.
This is followed at 1pm by Bart Pawlukojc, from the award-winning Arán Artisan Bakery and Bistro, Kilkenny.
At 2pm, on ‘The Rocks’, Chef O’Connell will give a cookery demonstration, using all locally-sourced products to show how to create summer dishes that you can cook at home.
The demo will take place in the midst of the artisan food and craft market.
At 3pm there will be a panel discussion with Tanguy De Toulgoet of Dunmore Country School on the joys of sustainable gardening.
The panellists will be gardening correspondent with the Irish Times and co-owner of the Irish Flower, Farmer Fionnuala Fallon, Wild Food Mary, and Rory O’Connell.
RTÉ TV presenter and musician, Doireann Ní Ghlacáin was been announced as the MC of the Festival last month.
Music-wise there is a stellar line-up of headliners including Darren Kiely and The Scratch, alongside other firm favourites such as Roísín O, Dea Matrona, and Oscar Blue. Tullamore’s Best Foot Forward have also been announced.
Performances are punctuated by numerous daytime events for all ages.
Throughout the weekend, Nancy’s yard will host numerous family activities and entertainment, as well as performances on the main stage, and 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 (with the exception of children in Nancy’s yard Play Area, which costs €5).
Activities within the play area include face painting, magic shows, puppet shows, Formula 1 car simulators and garden games.
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 line-up 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.
SEE ALSO – Line-up revealed for ArtLot: Electric Picnic’s alternative visual arts and performance stage
