We applied to the Ulster Scots Agency for funding for our Festival and Music and Dance Workshops. In 2008 we also ran the Ballymageough Ulster-Scots Festival.
Activities at our Festival range from Ulster Scots Music and Dance, traditional Arts and Crafts, re-enactment groups, vintage farm machinery displays and demonstration of traditional farming methods, some of which are unique to the Mourne area, music workshops, such as lambeg drumming and display of lambeg drums with someone there to explain the history behind them. Vintage army equipment features highly in our Festival and always attracts a lot of interest. This year we will have a WW2 re-enactment, as Ulster Scots have always had a major part in military campaigns. A demonstration of Ulster Scots’ cooking adds flavour to our Festival. We always have a display of old time photos of local people and activities and a display of artefacts and someone on hand to explain what they are and how they were used and the history behind them. Children’s side shows and activities feature highly too, including face painting, bouncy caste and slides. An added attraction this year will be the Wild Geese parachute display team. The fire brigade will give a fire safety demonstration. The Festival will conclude with tug-o-war.
We aim to attract families to our Festival and all ages from young children to Grand parents. Therefore, we have a wide range of activities to suit all ages. We recently upgraded our building with disabled facilities, so that those with disabilities can be included in our Festival and other cultural events. As we are close to Cranfield Beach and holiday parks, we target those on holiday in the area as well.
Our Festival was promoted through adverts in the local press and shop windows, flyers being handed out at other major events in the area and flyers being handed out to people staying in caravans at Cranfield. We always try to get it announced on the radio.
As this is the largest Ulster Scots Festival in this area there would be around 1,000 people attending.
We always have positive feedback with people looking forward to the Festival each year. Some folk on holiday who attended our Festival being involved in the Community groups themselves were very encouraged by the size and quality of our Festival. Others who attended our Festival were amazed at how rich the Ulster Scots culture is and as the story is told of the Ulster Scots people and what they have achieved in Ulster, America and throughout the world they themselves became involved in Ulster Scots groups in their own area and so promote the Ulster Scots culture and way of life.
We do plan to have an Ulster Scots Festival in August 2009. It is planned to be larger and better than any so far. We feel the key to success is to plan a Festival early and the major part of our Festival has been planned in January. We feel there are very talented Ulster Scots performers in the local community and we always seek out local Ulster Scots performers and give them a chance to perform in public, this in turn gives them confidence for future public entertainment.
In our opinion a Festival or cultural activities can be held at any time of the year depending on the area you are in and your target audience. As there are a lot of other events being held during the summer months, it may be difficult to get a date when there is no other event on near you which may attract people away from your event.
One reason why we hold our Festival in August is that those families on holiday in caravans will still be here until schools re-open at the beginning of September. We feel this is a good target audience as folk come here on holiday from all over Ireland and other parts of the world. Many have ancestors who emigrated two or three generations ago and know very little about the Ulster Scots and are very interested in the Ulster Scots culture, the community and farming way of life when their forefathers lived in this area. This we feel is a good way to promote the Ulster Scots culture.
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