Regional

WHAT has been labelled the Cold Pro surf and music festival will take place at the White Strand in Miltown Malbay on June 4 and 5 next. The festival’s primary aim is to promote surf tourism and familiarise people with surf culture. Held over two days, the festival will incorporate two stages with artists like Imelda May, The Amplifetes, Those Dancing Days, North Atlantic Oscillation and Scott Mathews. Furthermore Peter Hook and ‘The Light’ will present Joy Divisions Unknown Pleasures. Martony Vaughan of Extreme Production Solutions is one of the event promoters and is predicting that thousands of people will flock to Miltown for the weekend. “The event will attract about 5,000 people to the area and will be worth an estimated €2 million to €2.5 m to the local economy,” he forecast.“It will feature some of the best musical talent both from here and the UK. Surfing is the fastest-growing sport in Ireland and County Clare is home to …

AUTHORS John Connolly, Alex Barclay and Kevin Barry will read in Portumna this Thursday as part of the Peregrine Readings.Add to the mix the unmistakable playful voice of Kevin Barry and the evening will surely be entertaining also. The three writers will also discuss reading and writing as part of the Peregrine Readings on tour from the Irish Writers’ Centre.Noelle Lynskey of Portumna’s Arts Group is hosting the event. “This is a great opportunity for all the lovers of crime, the voracious reader and the lover of literature to hear writers read their work and share their own words in Portumna,” Ms Lynskey stated.John Connolly’s first novel, Every Dead Thing, introduced a character called Charlie Parker to his readers and this September, the 10th Parker novel will appear.Alex Barclay blends psychological suspense, multidimensional characters and edgy plotlines that will have people on the edge of their seats.The newly published and acclaimed novel of Kevin Barry’s The City of Bohane will …

ROYAL wedding fever has hit Ennis with a special coffee morning planned to celebrate the royal nuptials, as well as  raise funds for Clare Crusaders.When Prince William and Kate Middleton tie the knot this Friday, guests will be able to watch the action in style from the Cloister on Abbey Street. Refreshments will be supplied free of charge, with organisers asking that a donation be made to Clare Crusaders. Organiser of the event on behalf of Clare Crusaders, Ennis Town Councillor Mary Howard explained, “This will be a wonderful way to celebrate the day by watching the royal wedding together and also to help raise much-needed funds for Clare Crusaders, which is a wonderful organisation. People can make donations of whatever they deem appropriate. And there will be a special lunch menu available suitable for a prince or princess.”She went on to praise the work of Clare Crusaders saying, “They provide much-needed therapy to children living in Clare with cerebral …

AN opportunity to witness 150 years of history in Ennis awaits visitors to Coláiste Muire’s open day next weekend.The school was founded by the Sisters of Mercy back in September 1860 and over the years, the school has gone on to educate generations of girls from throughout the county. On Sunday, May 8, as part of their 150th anniversary celebrations, an exhibition of photographs documenting the school’s past, along with other displays relating to the school’s history, will feature as part of an open day from 2pm to 5pm.Jean Pound school principal said, “This is a very special year for Coláiste Muire Ennis. It’s a huge landmark to think that the school is still here after all these years and while society may have changed from when the school first started, the basic ethos of the school and the importance of education is still the same. Several generations of families have been educated in the Coláiste.“When you think back to …

SINCE 2006, Pieta House has been bringing light to thousands of people affected by suicide and self-harm across the country.One man who knows only too well how the centre for the prevention of self-harm or suicide can help people in need is Ennis man, Tom McEvoy.His family turned to Pieta House for help following the tragic loss of his brother, Adrian, who died by suicide.In the aftermath of this tragedy, another brother found it difficult to cope with the loss, despite his family’s best efforts to support him. Tom credits Pieta House with saving this brother’s life. He believes that if they had known about the service when Adrian was alive, he too would still be here today. That is why he is urging people to come out and support the service’s fundraising Darkness into Light walk/run, which takes place in Lees Road on May 7.Tom recalled that after the loss of Adrian in 2007, “It was a traumatic time …

DOOLIN Coast Guard Unit was called to two separate incidents in Lahinch on Saturday after a boat ran aground and a surfer got into difficulty.At 11.20am, the local coast guard unit was tasked by Marine Rescue Sub Centre, Valentia to assist a 25-foot pleasure boat with engine failure off Lahinch. The team assembled and travelled by road with the D-Class to Liscannor and launched from there, with the intention of towing the boat off shore.However, there were big breakers off the beach and the pleasure boat washed ashore at Lahinch Beach. The person onboard at the time was uninjured and was able to walk ashore. Coast guard members recovered the boat from the beach with a trailer shortly afterwards.Doolin Coast Guard Unit was tasked for a second time that afternoon when a member of the public called emergency services after becoming concerned about a surfer in difficulty off the busy North Clare beach.Doolin Coast Guard Unit was tasked at 5.30pm, …

A former Gort Community School student who sold his Leaving Cert notes on Internet auction site eBay, is now collaborating on another online project in an effort to support himself through college. Website mocks.ie, founded by entrepreneurs and brother and sister team Ailish (30) and Eoghain (33) Ryan in late 2009, has enlisted the help of two students who racked up straight As in their Leaving Certs, to provide comprehensive study notes for second-level students. Cillian Fahy (pictured with his Leaving Cert results) from New Quay in North Clare is studying English and mathematics at Trinity College Dublin after receiving seven As in his Leaving Cert which he sat last year. He, along with Dubliner James Esses who earned 590 points in his Leaving Cert in 2010, is now collaborating with mocks.ie in an effort to provide comprehensive, up-to-date, grade-A standard revision notes.Fahy shot to fame in August 2010 when, after receiving straight As in his Leaving, he came up …

The South Galway and North East Clare regions will come together again this May for the 2011 Aughty Gathering. Caher House on the shores of Lough Graney, famed in Brian Merriman’s Midnight Court, will this year provide the backdrop for the sixth Annual Aughty Gathering, which takes place on Saturday, May 7.  The event was previously held in Crusheen, Kilchreest /Castledaly, Woodford, Tuamgraney and last year in Gort. The gathering is informal and is dedicated to hospitality. Everyone is welcome to attend and to share their knowledge and interest in the heritage of the Sliabh Aughty region.The Aughty Gathering itself has been gaining momentum over the past five years and each year in a different location aims to celebrate our wonderful heritage. Heritage takes many forms; ancient, built, cultural, artistic and literary and living heritage projects to include some hugely valuable initiatives, being undertaken at community level right across Sliabh Aughty Communities.The Gathering will welcome world-renowned musician Martin Hayes to …