Intangible and Shared: Culture, Heritage and Sport to the fore at National Ploughing Championships
Visitors to this year’s National Ploughing Championships can look forward to an exciting and vibrant offering, celebrating Ireland’s intangible cultural heritage, shared traditions and much more.
The Culture, Creativity, Archaeology and Sport Marquee, located at Block 3, Row 12, within the Government of Ireland Village
Sport Ireland, Screen Ireland, the Council of National Cultural Institutions and the Ulster Scots Agency will be among the exhibitors in the marquee, which will be fully staffed over the three days to welcome visitors, and demonstrate all of the excellent work they undertake and the services they offer.
Sport Ireland will be on hand promoting the various opportunities for sport across the nation. With information on National Governing Bodies and Local Sports Partnerships, as well as active demonstrations, Sport Ireland staff will be more than happy to chat through opportunities to be active in Ireland as an individual or member of a sports club.
The exhibition, Society and State – Ireland through its Records, presented by the National Archives, showcases a selection of records which chronicle how the state and Irish society interacted from the 1920s to the end of the twentieth century. Marking a century of independence, this reflection on Ireland’s changing culture is not to be missed.
Another featured exhibition will be Back to the Bronze Age! Bronze Age replica handling with the National Museum of Ireland. Visitors will have the opportunity to meet and have a chat with the Education and Outreach team from the National Museum of Ireland, and to see and handle a collection of replica artefacts from Bronze Age Ireland. See an Early Bronze Age axehead, a bronze spearhead, and some amber beads, and discover what objects people were making and using during the Bronze Age.
Also featured at the Culture, Creativity, Archaeology and Sport Marquee will be the Ulster-Scots Agency/Tha Boord o’ Ulster-Scotch, who will showcase some of the talent, heritage and diversity within the Ulster-Scots community and particularly the farming sector at their exhibition Mined in Scotland, Forged in Ulster, Exported worldwide.
The Department’s International Cultural Policy Unit will highlight their work to preserve and enshrine Ireland’s intangible cultural heritage through hands-on demonstrations of uileann piping and reed-making, as well as fascinating expositions of dry stone wall construction, Limerick lacemaking and Irish Traveller traditions.
More highlights include:
Harvest Knot Demonstration - Join the Education Department of the National Museum of Ireland – Country Life and learn how to make a Harvest Knot. Harvest knots are knots of woven straw that were made as part of the harvest celebration. As the year’s crop had to be drawn in by hand, the farmers would put on a dance as a thank you to the all the community who had helped during this busy time of year. Guests wore harvest knots. Usually, they were made in two types: an elaborate braid with the corn ears still attached which was worn by the women and a less ornamental twist which was made for the men. People sometimes exchanged these knots as tokens of affection. Women wore them in their hair and men attached them to clothes on their chest.
Immersive VR Demonstration
Screen Ireland will be offering a short Virtual Reality (VR) demonstration for visitors to the marquee. The VR experience will comprise of a short 5-minute demonstration using a dedicated VR headset and motion sensing controllers. Participants will have the opportunity to use this hardware to explore a range of immersive experiences in an artificially generated audio-visual environment.
Her Moves
Get ready for Her Moves, an initiative by Sport Ireland aimed at inspiring teenage girls to get active and embrace sports! Swing by the Her Moves area to explore a range of sports opportunities designed just for girls. Don’t miss the interactive Dance Pound Fit session on stage, where you can groove to the beat and discover how exciting staying active can be. It’s all about having fun and finding your movement!
Badminton Ireland
Badminton Ireland is bringing the excitement to the main stage with two thrilling stations! First, watch an electrifying exhibition featuring top players, showcasing the incredible speed and skill of badminton in a 10-15 minute match. Then, enjoy interactive target practice with cut-outs of high-performance players. Test your accuracy as shuttles fly at the targets and see who can hit the mark. It’s a fun and dynamic way to experience the game!
Animation Showcase & Flipbook Workshop
This practical and accessible session with a professional animator will offer visitors a glimpse into the creative workflow and processes that go into creating your favourite cartoons on film and TV. Participants will get a quick introduction to the key principles of animation and how animators bring static 2D drawings to life on screen. Under the guidance of an instructor, participants will create their own animated flipbooks using simple hand-drawn sketches.
Performances
Moyne Pipe Band and Moyne Highland Dancers
The folks from Donegal are very talented, and are kindly coming along to demonstrate both pipes and one of Scotland’s most cherished dance forms – Highland Dance. Discover how this ancient war-dance differs from traditional Irish dancing and see these terrific dancers showcase the modern, sophisticated dance.
Fingal Mummers
North County Dublin (Fingal) has a long and continuous tradition of Mumming. Each character has his/her own particular traditional rhyme. The Fingal mummers will take to the stage to give audiences a live performance which includes playing music and dancing masked and dressed in their straw costumes.
Andy McGregor – Highland Piper
Andy McGregor was just 8 years old when his father decided that he would take up the Great Highland bagpipes. This majestic instrument moulded his life and has seen him travel to many countries including Russia, the USA and Dubai. Andy trained at Edinburgh Castle and is highly regarded both locally and internationally. He is a founding member of folk band Pure Blarney and performs regularly as a solo piper too.
Andy will demonstrate, and talk about, the variety of instruments he brings along. This is one not to be missed.
Speaking ahead of the Ploughing Championships, the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and the Media, Catherine Martin TD, said: "Once again, the National Ploughing Championships will feature the very best of Ireland’s culture, sport, history and heritage with a fantastic line up of events and experiences.
"Performers, experts and artists from many different backgrounds and traditions will be a great source of entertainment and information to the thousands and thousands of visitors over the three days of the event. The Culture, Creativity, Archaeology and Sport Marquee will showcase cutting edge technology in our world-leading audiovisual industry, as well as a shared tradition and culture on this island that goes all the way back to the Bronze Age.
“I particularly encourage everyone to attend the National Archives exhibition: Society and State: Ireland through its records. This exhibition delighted over 50,000 visitors over its summer run in Dublin Castle, and many more will be amazed by the stunning visual presentation of a century of Irish history over the next few days.
“I wish all who are exhibiting, performing, and participating in workshops and sharing their knowledge and creative practice as part of my department’s schedule of events the very best of luck.”
Minister of State for the Gaeltacht, Sport and Physical Education, Thomas Byrne TD, said: "It is exciting to see the department’s programme of events for the National Ploughing Championships this year.
"As ever, I am particularly pleased to see that Sport Ireland will be showcasing their wide range of services and activities and will be on hand to promote opportunities in sport, and to provide visitors with information on the work of the National Governing Bodies and Local Sports Partnerships, as well as interesting demonstrations of sports and exercise programmes, particularly for women and girls.
"I am also delighted to see the Ulster-Scots Agency’s programme of events, showcasing a linguistic tradition and culture with a rich history. I wish everyone involved in the department’s marquee great success for the three days of the event.”