Border Reivers festival in Kilkeel

The Border Reivers Festival, organised by the Schomberg Society, takes place in Kilkeel this July with a range of entertainers and performers.  Organiser Maynard Hanna has put together a varied programme of events that's sure to put Kilkeel on the map - again!
Maynard recently accompanied an Ulster-Scots Agency delegation to the Reivers Festival in Hawick, Scotland and came away determined to make the Kilkeel Reivers festival a major local event.
The event is funded by DARD / Mournes Heritage Trust, Ulster-Scots Agency and Diversity Challenges and organisers will play host to musicians from Scotland, Londonderry and those closer to the Mountains of Mourne.
Kirknarra School of Dance will provide Scottish Highland dancing at numerous venues throughout the festival, while Gareth Fulton will be in attendance for a light hearted evening of crack supported by special guests 'Addiction.'
The Schomberg Fife and Drum pageant will depict King William and the Duke of Schomberg, William's senior commander.  The pageant will also feature the Williamite soldiers and an Army Battle Train passing through the town.
Several open-air concerts have been organised featuring musicians such as champion Highland piper Robert Watt, accordionist Emma Culbertson, world champion drummer Mark Wilson and the acclaimed 'Fiddlesteeks' Fiddle Orchestra from Markethill.
Those from a little further afield also giving performances are Beggar's Row, from Scotland, who will be playing live on stage and the Reivers Tartan Night Out.  Also performing  will be Gary Gibson in his show Elvis: 'Night Fever', which will include music from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s.
There will be fun for the kids throughout the festival with the Tommy Ticklemouse Kids Show, face painting and a toddlers fun fair.  A teddy bear's picnic (bring your own picnic) and clowns and a magic show will also be held.  And for those who want to party hard, 'The Good Old Days' senior citizens night-out promises to be an evening not to be forgotten.
A series of exhibitions will also run throughout the week - a free art exhibition in Reivers House, an Ulster-Scots cooking demonstration by Rev Jim Mattison in Reivers House and a joint exhibition from the Ulster-Scots Agency and the Ulster-Scots Heritage Council, also in Reivers House.
The festival will come to a close with the Lambeg drum workshop and display, followed by the annual Lambeg drumming competition held in the Lower Square in Kilkeel.  The finale will be at Hanna's Close where all are invited to a Bar-B-Q and hoolie to close the week's proceedings.

Maynard Hanna, Schomberg Society, with David Nuttall, chairman of the Hawick Partnership, organiser of the Reivers Festival in Hawick, and a member of the 'Steel Bonnets' re-enactment group.  Some of the 'blood-thirsty' members of the 'Steel Bonnets' re-enactment group will appear at the Border Reivers Festival in Kilkeel in July.