The Year of the Pig in Enniscrone – biggest Black Pig Festival ever
The Black Pig Festival of Enniscrone is set to be bigger and better than ever before according to Mandy Killoran, Festival Chair, who said, “We’re claiming 2023 as The Year of the Pig in Enniscrone! We have an incredible festival programme including activities, magic shows, walks, a funfair, Taste of Enniscrone and to cap it all, a four night music extravaganza at the marquee by the beach”. The Black Pig Festival runs from Thursday 27th to Sunday 31st July.
The festival programme offers wall-to-wall fun and entertainment for all and the seaside town has pulled out all the stops this year. The festival opens on Thursday 27th July at 7pm with the famous Pig on a Spit and the Taste of Enniscrone food fair giving a flavour of all the local gastronomic delights. With live music and dancing, it’s set to be a foot stomping opening night.
Families will love magic shows, treasure hunts, duck racing, puppet shows, storytelling, Precious Pets mobile animal farm, open air music and of course the merries at the Murray’s Funfair and Amusements which runs throughout the entire festival. No festival in Enniscrone would be complete without a sandcastle competition and the beach is also the location for a Puc Fada and Explore the Shore walks with Conor Ryan. There’s a busking competition for children and the Sniff a Thon doggie event adds something a little different for families with furry friends. The Piggy Picnic at the marquee, complete with facepainting, is a real crowd pleaser. Angela Wallace’s guided Heritage Trail Walk takes place at Castlefield.
Enniscrone is well known for outdoor activities and the Black Pig Festival showcases the best. The triathlon at Waterpoint Aqua Park is a real draw for combination athletes, and for those who just prefer to stay on their feet, the festival has two fun runs (5km and 10km). There’s an invigorating swim at the pier which also hosts the Party at the Pier with stand up paddleboarding (SUP) as well as music and dance.
The beach marquee will be hopping every night with a crowd-pleasing line up including a DJ Trolley Beach Party Disco, Cliona Hagan, the Tumbling Paddies, Jimmy Buckley and Stuart Moyles. A fully licenced bar will pop up for the occasion and of course the All-Ireland Final will be shown live on Sunday. Later that night a spectacular fireworks display will light up the bay for everyone to enjoy.
Tickets for our amazing Live Music nights at the Beach Music Marquee are available to purchase at www.eventbrite.ie. Tickets for each night are available or join us for the whole weekend and purchase your weekend music pass HERE.
Visitors to Enniscrone can’t miss the giant pig sculpture by Cillian Rogers which immortalises the legend of the Enniscrone Black Pig. As the tale goes, many years ago a rampaging black pig terrorised the countryside leaving people dead in its wake. Chased by locals from Donegal southwards, the pig swam from Easkey to Enniscrone where hunters finally killed the giant beast. It was so large it couldn’t be moved and instead was buried under a mound of earth in a townland called Muckdubh (the black pig) to this day. The festival origins might be dark but the Black Pig Festival itself will be a sparkling event full of fun, activity and live music. Full details are available on https://www.facebook.com/EnniscroneEvents/
