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East Clare

Clarenbridge set for two days of oyster-swilling fun

IT will very much be a case of “down the hatch” for over 5,000 succulent oysters during one of Ireland’s longest running festivals on September 15 to 16.More families are expected to flock to the 58th Clarenbridge Oyster Festival, which has undertaken a major revamp.Speaking to The Clare Champion, festival chairperson Marie Cloonan confirmed the event has taken a new direction. There is much more of a casual/chic emphasis with plenty of fun and entertainment and less focus on the formal social side that is often more attractive to the business sector.Ms Cloonan said the committee had decided to reduce the festival to a two-day event to encourage more visitors to include it as part of a weekend break.She noted the dramatic overhaul is already paying off with up to 3,000 tickets sold for various events and a strong international interest with bookings from Switzerland, Sweden, France, the United States and Canada.Due to the reduction in ticket prices, the festival …

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‘Painfully slow’ €2.9m roadworks near Spancilhill Cross

“PAINFULLY slow” is how East Clare residents and locals in Spancilhill refer to the progress on the Spancilhill Road Improvement Scheme and as construction nears the three-year mark, the wait might soon be over. The Clare Champion has learned that this 750-metre stretch of road forming the basis of the Spancilhill Road Improvement Scheme will cost €2.9 million on its completion and will have taken almost three years to construct.  With up to 6,000 vehicles using the route on a daily basis, frustration with the delay in completing this small stretch of road is mounting and many are wondering when the wait will be over for the completion of the Spancilhill Road. Indeed, a piece of stone work to mark Spancilhill Cross has been waiting to go in at the cross since March of this year in hopes that works would be completed. In a statement to The Clare Champion this week, Clare County Council estimate the scheme will be …

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Joanne Allen, Scariff Show secretary, with cattle section committee member, Owen Flannery, centre, and competitor, Paddy Burke at the launch of Scariff Show, which takes place on Saturday, September 1. The cattle classes are being reintroduced after a gap of almost two decades. Photograph by John Kelly

Scariff Show moo-ving with the times

AS September 1 approaches, it is time to get the 68th annual Scariff Show on the road and this year sees some additions as well as the reintroduction of some old-time favourites. Having been absent for many years, the cows come home to Scariff Show as the cattle section is reintroduced with nine classes in the champion and reserve champion section. Speaking about the upcoming show, which takes place on September 1, Joanne Allen, secretary of Scariff Show, said this was the year to bring back the cattle section. “Our cattle section has been reintroduced after an absence of 12 or 15 years. We just felt that there was a need for it. A lot of local people and a lot of breeders have been asking when we would bring it back and we have been threatening to bring it back for the last two or three years but there were various things we needed to clear with the Department …

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Joanne Allen, Scariff Show secretary, with cattle section committee member, Owen Flannery, centre, and competitor, Paddy Burke at the launch of Scariff Show, which takes place on Saturday, September 1. The cattle classes are being reintroduced after a gap of almost two decades. Photograph by John Kelly

Scariff Show moo-ving with the times

AS September 1 approaches, it is time to get the 68th annual Scariff Show on the road and this year sees some additions as well as the reintroduction of some old-time favourites. Having been absent for many years, the cows come home to Scariff Show as the cattle section is reintroduced with nine classes in the champion and reserve champion section. Speaking about the upcoming show, which takes place on September 1, Joanne Allen, secretary of Scariff Show, said this was the year to bring back the cattle section. “Our cattle section has been reintroduced after an absence of 12 or 15 years. We just felt that there was a need for it. A lot of local people and a lot of breeders have been asking when we would bring it back and we have been threatening to bring it back for the last two or three years but there were various things we needed to clear with the Department …

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Hopes high for air spectacular take-off

IT’S all go for the Lough Derg Air Spectacular and hopes are high the air show might become a regular fixture on Mountshannon’s calendar of events. The air show is scheduled to take place on September 9 across the skies above Lough Derg. According to Dr Allan Mee, project manager of the Irish White-tailed Sea Eagle Reintroduction programme, the air show will not be a danger to the white-tailed sea eagles that have recently made Lough Derg their home, provided a safe distance is maintained. “I haven’t been told what their plans are but it is proposed that they stay a minimum of 2km from the shore and 1,500ft up, so if they stick to that then it will minimise any disturbance [to the white-tailed eagles]. On the other hand, if they overfly that shoreline then I think that would be detrimental,” he said.The event is being organised by a local committee committed to attracting tourism to the East Clare …

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