Manchester will be paying homage to the Emerald Isle next week with ‘The Manchester Irish Weekender’ – to help Mancunians and visitors alike celebrate all things Irish.
The free music and street food event runs from St Patrick’s Day, Thursday 17 March, through to Sunday 20 March on the boardwalk in Piccadilly Gardens.
The city already plays host to an annual community organised city-wide Irish Festival and this new additional event has been put together to help bring a taste of Ireland into the heart of the city centre itself.
It will see a foot-stomping programme of live music and dance, alongside food and drink stalls with traditional Irish tipples on tap, including glasses of Ireland’s infamous stouts, as well as Irish coffees, and classic hot toddies to warm the coldest of hearts and hands.
Irish dancers, pipe bands and Irish folk musicians will be taking to the stage in the middle of the gardens throughout the long weekend and promise to get even the most reluctant toe-tappers dancing with free entertainment every day from 12 noon to 7 pm.
The event has been funded through the European Regional Development Fund and their Welcome Back Fund which has provided councils across the country with a share of £56 million to support the safe return to high streets and help build back better from the pandemic.