IF YOU ONLY DO ONE THING...

Race to Punchestown

Punchestown Irish National Hunt Festival runs from Tuesday April 25 to Saturday April 29, with a “combination of thrilling sporting action, brilliant live entertainment, delicious food and drink, family fun and dazzling glamour”. Family Festival Day on Saturday April 29 includes a fancy dress parade. See punchestown.com

Get to the Gate

Noel Coward’s hilarious drama Private Lives (below) is given a stylish production, with flawless performances from the whole cast — Rebecca O’Mara, Shane O’Reilly, Peter Gaynor, Lorna Quinn and Esosa Ighodaro www.gatetheatre.ie

Bolt to Ballydehob

The Ballydehob Jazz Festival runs from April 28 to May 1 in Ballydehob, Co Cork, and the line-up includes Home Jazz Band, Rhythm Lord Brothers, Freedom Trio, Nomadic Piano Duo, and Stephanie Nilles and Thomas Deakin Duo. Jazz dance workshops are also part of the programme. ballydehobjazzfestival.org

Enjoy Cup of Tae

Famous Donegal fiddler Martin McGinley will be honoured at the 2017 Cup

of Tae festival taking place in Ardara, Co Donegal, from April 28 to May 1. The Cup of Tae is the name of an Irish Reel, and this is a festival of music, singing, dancing, recitation and storytelling. See cupoftaefestival.com

Behold Bugle Babes

The Bugle Babes – Sisters featuring Derby Browne and The Bugle Babes (below) will perform music by The Andrews Sisters, King Sisters, Glenn Miller, The Chordettes, and many more tributes to the heyday of swing at the National Concert Hall on April 28 at 1.05pm. More details on nch.ie