Spiegeltent fest bigger and better
FIVE MORE acts were anounced as the 2016 Wexford Spiegeltent Festival was officially launched at its box office last week.
County council chairman Paddy Kavanagh was on hand to to mark the occasion with festival director Brian Byrne at the premises on South Main Street.
Among the latest acts to join the festival are Freak Fantastique, who will stage a Hallow’een Ball like no other in the tent at 10 p.m. on Friday, October 28.
Led by the Ringmaster Jerry Fish and his Electric SideShow, prepare to experience a night of madness and macabre as Jerry and his troupe of carnival performers excite and entertain you.
At 10 p.m. on Sunday, October 23, the Ocelots and Basciville will be on hand to entertain.
Reared in Wexford, twins Brandon and Ashley Watson combine to create The Ocelots. With just a guitar, a harmonica and their voices, they have created a raw sound that has been generated from years of street performing around Ireland. They have crafted their songwriting and musical experience together to create a folk/blues vibe similar to artists such as Bob Dylan and Paolo Nutini.
Following the release of their acoustic video with the Cardinal Sessions in Cologne they were voted among the Top 5 Cardinal Sessions’ favourite bands of the year (alongside Courtney Barnett) as well as featuring as one of the Top 10 bands of the summer by lovindublin.ie.
Basciville meanwhile are quickly becoming one of the leading and most significant forces in modern Irish Soul and Blues music.
Influences range from Rhythm and Blues greats such as Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Ella Fitzgerald to modern day Soul and Jazz artists including Jeff Buckley, Led Zepplin, Ry Cooder and Van Morrison.
Hailing from county Wexford, Basciville comprises brothers Cillian and Lorcan Byrne, both with degrees in music from Wexford Institute of Technology and many years’ experience recording and touring with some of Ireland’s best known acts.
For lovers of the dear departed Father Ted, Further TED is a hilarious show that brings three of the most memorable characters - Joe Rooney (Father Damo), Patrick McDonnell (Eoin McLove) and Michael Redmond (Father Stone) - together for a night of stand-up and musical comedy in the Spiegeltent at 7 p.m. on Sunday, October 30, as well as a chance to compete in a ‘Lovely Girls’ competition.
You don’t have to be a girl to enter and the winner gets a romantic candlelit night in for two, a luxury cruise in a boat of your own making and a full set of bespoke rubber gloves.
The three leads are renowned stand-up comedians who will have you laughing your head off with their unique take on Ireland and improvised audience interaction.side splitting Thecomiside versioncomical trio come together for the first time in a of Riverdance as a show finale.
Joe Rooney was Father Damo was in the Father Ted episode ‘Old Grey Whistle Theft’, while Patrick McDonnell played Eoin McLove in the episode ‘Night of The Nearly Dead’.
Michael Redmond, meanwhile, played Father Stone in the episode ‘Entertaining Father Stone.’ He is an accomplished stand up comedian and hosts a weekly show in The Stand Comedy Club in Glasgow. His live show ‘Eamonn, Older Brother of Jesus’ was a adapted for a BBC Radio 4 series. He has also appeared in Brass Eye and Stewart Lee’s Comedy Vehicle.
And at 12 noon on Saturday, October 29, BAM! A Superhero Circus, will put on a brilliant show for kids of all ages, with prizes for the best superhero and princess costumes.
Can the superhero circus save the world, protecting the planet from the forces of Boring, with their secret weapons of circus and comedy? You’ll have to go to find out.
The festival runs in the Spiegeltent Paradiso on Wexford Quayfront from October 14 to 31. Top acts lined up this year include The Saw Doctors, Christy Moore, Paul Young, Mike Denver, Mick Flannery, Tommy Tiernan, Something Happens and The Four of Us, Little Green Cars and Ralph McTell, as well as star local attractions such as Corner Boy, Wolff and the Wexford Male Voice Choir.