A weekly car boot sale, one of less than a handful that is still reliably taking place, has up to 200 cars/sellers. The stadium is just a few minutes walk from the Red LUAS line stop and numerous bus stops. For traders the Car Boot Sale opens at 06:30 for buyers from 08:00. If you are interested in selling, check the details and register on their website.

The weekly Honest2goodness food market in Glasnevin has fresh meat, vegetables, fish, baked goods, and wines. It is open from 09:30-16:00. It is behind Lidl in the Industrial Estate just after the Glasnevin Cemetary coming from the City Centre.

Parkrun Ireland is organising free weekly runs in parks. It is a timed run over 5km and participation is completely free, but registration before your first parkrun is required.

A whole range of Parkruns take place every week (and if you know some more, please tell me):
+ Malahide Park, Dublin Road, Malahide, Co. Dublin
+ Cabinteely Park, Old Bray Road, Cabinteely, Dublin 18
+ Shanganagh Park, Shankill, Co. Dublin
+ Marlay Park, Grange Road, Rathfarnham, Dublin, Co. Dublin
+ St. Anne’s Park, Raheny, Dublin 5
+ Father Collins Park, Donaghmeade/Clongriffin, Dublin 13
+ Tymon Park, Tallaght, Dublin 24

The SuperNatural Food Market is taking place every Saturday from 09:30-15:30 in St. Andrews Resource Centre in Pearse Street, Dublin 2.

The Green Door Market is a new indoor food/Farmer’s Market that takes place just a few doors down from the Dublin Food Co-op at Newmarket in Dublin 8. Admission is free.

Opening hours are Thu-Fri 12:00-19:00 and Sat 09:30-16:00.

The Belgard Weekend Market is an indoor market with stalls with handcraft (incl. designer jewellery, aran jumpers and wool, christening robes and shawls, cards and cross stitch), household items, bric and brac, furniture, flowers, make-up, clothes, shoes, showers, upholstery, toys, kitchens, cafe, army memorabilia, collectors items, sweets, handbags books, blinds, party shop, tools and more.

It is open every Saturday and Sunday and is located in the Glen Abbey complex (opposite Jacobs) on Belgard Road.

A twelve hour long marathon day of Board Gaming will take place on Saturday.You can bring your own game or play some of the vast amount of games (nearly 50!) that the organisers from ALT Events will bring.

Admission is free, but booking is required via this link. The day is split in two blocks (10:00-16:00 + 16:00-22:00) and you can book just one of them.

Jamestown Flea Market + Car Boot Sale takes place every Sat+Sun from 10:00-17:00. You can reach it from Tyrconnell Road and from Kylemore Road and it is within 3 min from Black Horse stop on the red Luas line. There is free parking.

The County Council Market (CoCo) in Marlay Park is taking place every Saturday and Sunday. You will find a wide range of products. There will be food to eat there and food to cook at home but also crafts and arts and books and lots more.

The Nepal Ireland society is organizing a Nepal Conference in Dublin on Saturday 30 April 2016. The Nepal Embassy London, Action Aid Ireland and Engineers Without Borders Ireland are working with the Nepal Ireland Society.

The main objective of this conference is to build on the relationships forged as a result of many Irish organisations collaborating successfully to help in the Nepal Recovery Process after the devastating earthquake last year.

There will be talks about the current status in Nepal and the challenges ahead and there will be networking opportunities, round table discussions and open discussions.

Admission is free, but places are limited so you have to book via this form.

The Phibsborough Community Arts Festival “Phizzfest” is back. It is a yearly festival and is probably one of the best community arts festivals in Dublin. They have organised a large amount of events and a few of them are free.

Unfortuantely, though, they win NO prizes for the website. The events calendar is not making it easy to get access to the event details and a complete overview over all events is totally missing.

Here is a list of most of the free events (it is not sorted by date, so you have to check them all):

PHIZZFEST BIG DAY OUT – Family Day on Sun 01 May (12:00-16:00) at Mount Bernard Park and Canal Bank at Shandon
There will be displays from local dance and arts groups, bouncy castle, boat rides, reading tent and the yearly Duck Race

——–

Water Polo Tournament – at the Royal Canal 5th Lock
Sat 30 April (10:00-17:00) + Sun 01 May (10:00-15:00)

——–

Spoken Word (www.phizzfest.ie/spoken-word.html):
+ Sat 30 Apr – 16:00: Phizzfest Book Club in Clarkes Phibsborough House
+ Sat 30 Apr – 18:30: Phizzfest Poetry Award in Clarkes Phibsborough House
+ Sat 30 Apr – 21:00: Book Launch “The Money Talks” in Clarkes Phibsborough House

Film (www.phizzfest.ie/film1.html):
+ Mon 02 May – 14:00: Monday Mattinee Documentary Screening

History (www.phizzfest.ie/1916local-history.html):
+ Sun 01 May – 14:00: Development of North City 1660-1960 in McGeough’s Bohemian Lounge

The Temple Bar Markets (Food Market on Meeting House Square, Book Market on Temple Bar Square and the Designer Mart near Cow’s Lane) are taking place every Saturday from 10:00-16:30.

Four free Yoga sessions take place in MVP in Dublin 8 every Saturday and every Sunday. The times are 10:00, 11:00, 12:00 and 13:00 and the duration is 1 hour. At every session only 8 places are available, so get your bookings in early (you can book weeks in advance).

The sessions can be booked following these links:

+ 10:00-11:00 Beginner
+ 11:00-12:00 Intermediate
+ 12:00-13:00 Beginner
+ 13:00-14:00 Advanced

Classes are open level, so everyone is welcome.

A free (donation based) 1916 Rising Walking Tour will take place every Saturday and every Wednesday from now until the end of June. It is a 3-hour long tour that will start at City Hall, bring you to Dublin Castle, Liberty Hall, the GPO and Moore Street and will end at the Garden of Remembrance and on the way you will also learn about all the other locations where the battle happened.

Booking is required via the link below.

At the Blackrock Market in the centre of Blackrock, you’ll find 50 stalls selling collectibles, antiques, handmade goods, books, food & there’s free popcorn, ballons & facepainting for the kids.
Open on Saturdays and Bank Holidays: 11:00-17:30, and Sundays: 12:00-17:30.

The Terenure Village Market has moved to Bushy Park and is from now on a weekly market.

The market has now grown to 40 stalls offering a whole variety of foods and crafts.

Admission is free.

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

The exhibition “Field Test – Radical Adventures in Future Farming” (11 Mar – 05 Jun 2016) in the Science Gallery is exploring how farming will look like in the future and what new developments will change farming so that we can deal with the global food challenges.

From Farm Cyborgs (for example a Virtual Reality environment for chicken so that they can think they are free range), via odd, unique and forward looking foods (e.g. insects for improving your protein intake); growth houses for your home; very different seeds (e.g. beans that taste like beef) to the “LOCI Food Lab” (outside near the entrance to the Science Gallery) where you can get a customised snack, the exhibition has a lot of interesting exhibits that revealing, intriguing or surprising.

Like all Science Gallery exhibitions, FIELD TEST is suitable for all ages with a particular focus on the age group of 15-25, but I would say that chilren from 10 years of age can understand the whole exhibition if they get some additional explanations and there are even some exhibits that would work for younger children.

When you go to see the exhibition, get help from the Science Gallery mediators! They are helpers (usually students or graduates) that know the whole exhibition inside out and are very happy to help with a lot more information than the little labels at the exhibits can provide. Use their excellent service!

The Science Gallery has very visitor friendly opening hours of Tue-Fri 12:00-20:00 and Sat+Sun 12:00-18:00.
Admission is free.

The Gumball Rally or Gumball 3000 is a yearly 3000 mile road rally of super cars that takes in Europe and usually starts in Britain. This year the starting point is Dublin and the rally will then go via Belfast, Edinburgh, London. Luxembourg, Germany, Prague, Budapest to Bucharest.

On Saturday from 12:00-22:00 you can admire the super cars when they arrive bit by bit. Expect to see Ferrari, Porsche, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Koenigsegg, Jaguar, Bentley, Rolls Royce and more. There will also be many vintage cars. All together more than 100 cars will take part. The cars can be viewed close up until 22:00.

On Sunday Gumball 3000 will start from Merrion Square at 10:00 and you can come and see the superstars and supercars set off. Some well known participants are David Hasselhoff, Formula 1 driver David Coulthard, rapper EVE, actor Sullivan Stapleton and DJ Afrojack.

Admission to the events at Merrion Square is free,

The weekly Ha’penny Flea Market is an indoor market in the Grand Social Pub, which offers vintage Men and Women’s clothing, contemporary crafts, books, DVDs, vinyl records, vintage and handmade jewellery, vintage hair styles, art, photography and much more. Grand Social’s Bar and Gourmet Coffee options are available.

“May Day Customs” with Clodagh Doyle (Museums Curator of Irish Folk Life) is a talk in Collins Barracks.

It will give you an overview of traditional May Day customs. For the celts, Bealtaine or May Day was the first day of summer, but nowadays this has been corrected and the first day of summer is 01 June.

The May Day festival of flowers, dancing and bonfires and other folklore traditions, as people protected themselves and their livestock against supernatural forces will be discussed.

Admission is free and no booking required, places will be allocated 15 minutes before talk begins.

Archive at Lunchtime screenings take place Saturdays (Double Bill), Mondays and Wednesdays. The programme is changing weekly now (instead of monthly as in the past). To find out what film(s) will be screened go to www.ifi.ie/whatson/now-showing-coming-soon/ and look for “Archive at Lunchtime” on the right. Admission is free.

The Bernard Shaw Flea Market is a weekly market (every Saturday) with approx 16 stalls, music, pizzas from the Big Blue Bus and the Bernard Shaw Garden Bar. Expect vintage clothes, shoes, jewellery, art, records, bric-a-brac and more and DJs will provide the entertainment.

Admission is free.

Every Saturday a kid’s book will be ead in 27 Eason’s stores all over Ireland. In O’Connell Street the reading takes place at 14:00. In the other Eason Stores, the times vary between 11:00 and 15:00 (see website below). Suitable for age 0-6 with their parents.

Admission is free.

Felt Maker Gabi McGrath will run a Family Workshop (Age 8+) where you will be creating some May Day flowers.

Admission is free, but booking is required via 01-6777444.

Learn more about animals that are usually made into cuddly toys, but who are not all friendly in real life. Don’t forget to bring your own favourite Teddy Bear.

Admission is free and no booking required, but places are limited to 20.

A Playreading of “The Voice Factor [X]” by Micheal-David McKernan is taking place in the New Theatre.

Admission is free, but a suggested donation of EUR 2 would be appreciated.

Edel Meade, outstanding jazz singer, will perform in the Harbour Bar as part of the Bray Jazz festival.

Admission is free.

The workshop for families with children between 4 and 10 this week is “A Walk on the Seashore” with Duffy Mooney-Sheppard .

Admission is free, but places are limitted. Check the website below for more details.

Tongue Bundle will perform from pop flavoured stompers to free jazz, mad grooves and noise.

Admission is free and the gig is part of the Bray Jazz Festival.

This is a weekly Saturday night live music event event downstairs in the Wine Cave of KC Peaches Cafe. Food will be served until 21:30 and wine, minerals & music will be available until later. Admission is free and a donation into a hat at the end of the evening is appreciated.

The Jazz Cafe has live Jazz, Blues and Soul music performances every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 20:00-22:30.

The line-up this weekend and in the coming week is:
+ Sat 30 Apr: Honor Heffernan (Vocals) and Trevor Knight (Piano)
+ Thu 05 May: Jess Kav (Vocals) and Stephen McHale (Guitar)
+ Fri 06 May: Brian Dunning (Vocals) and Myles Drennan (Guitar)

Admission is free.

Rock ‘n’ Roll band The Black Temple Shrines are playing a gig in The Mezz at 21:00.

Admission is free,

The Stillorgan Orchard has live music every Friday and Saturday. Many of the performers are established and very good bands. The upcoming gigs are detailed on the website below. Admission is always free.

Yonen will play a gig in Sin E and they are supported by Ben Bix.

Admission is free.

The Bray Jazz Festival will feature a Jazz Trail where every evening a variety of bands play in pubs in Bray and admission is free to all gigs on the Jazz Trail.

On Saturday eight free gigs will take place and they are all listed on the website below.

The Let Loose Band, a great cover band fronted by the outstanding singer Aoife McNamara, will be in Bray for a gig.

Admission is free.

Sweeney’s list an Open Jam event on their website, but since that event normally only takes place on Fridays, you can’t be too certain if it is happening. It will be on the first floor and the music style is Funk/Soul and R&B. All musicians are invited to join in.

Admission is free.

Rock ‘n’ Roll band “The Guilty Party” will be playing rock ‘n’ roll, funk and soul from the Beatles, Rolling Stones, David Bowie and Roxy Music.

Admission is free.

Vernon Jane is performing from jazz through to psychedelic rock, with fast melodies and sharp beats overlayered by singer Emily Jane’s dreamy, trance like singing.

Admission is free. The gig is part of the Bray Jazz festival.

Walpurgis Family and Lie Ins are performing in the new band showcase “Midnight Hour” in Whelan’s. The gig will start at midnight, and admission is free if you arrive before 22:30 or if you sign up for the guest list.

The Green Hen is Dublin’s only late night Saturday venue for live jazz and the performers are

Covers Band The Harleys play a gig in the Church.

Admission is free.

Punk Blues (what is that?) band The Bonnevilles are playing the midnight gig in the Mezz.

Admission is free.

In addition to the Saturday Car Boot Sale in Tallaght, Irish Car Boot Sales run a weekly Sunday Car Boot Sales in Ballymun.

Admission for buyers is free.

It is an extremely stubborn myth in Ireland that Summer starts on 01 May. Primary teachers were and are still (!!) teaching it, despite Met Eireann’s repeated attempts to correct this misinformation.

It is true that the Celts started their “summer” on 01 May, but they lived by a completely different calendar: For the Celts the Dark half of the year started on 01 November and the light half started on 01 May. So strictly speaking it wasn’t even their start of summer, it was just the start of the light half of the year. In addition their day started at sunset!

So, if you live like the Celts, your year starts on 01 November and your day starts at sunset, then for you, 01 May is a good day to start the summer. ;-)

If, however, you have adjusted to a modern calendar – unlike your primary teacher!? – then the start of summer is on 01 June as Met Eireann confirms to us. And if you use a thermometer to determine the seasons then you KNOW anyway that this weather outside just CAN’T be summer!

So have a great May Day and look forward to the start of summer in 31 days.

The Belgard Weekend Market is an indoor market with stalls with handcraft (incl. designer jewellery, aran jumpers and wool, christening robes and shawls, cards and cross stitch), household items, bric and brac, furniture, flowers, make-up, clothes, shoes, showers, upholstery, toys, kitchens, cafe, army memorabilia, collectors items, sweets, handbags books, blinds, party shop, tools and more.

It is open every Saturday and Sunday and is located in the Glen Abbey complex (opposite Jacobs) on Belgard Road.

A Farmers’ Market will take place at Farmleigh House this Sunday. Because there are no other events at Farmleigh House this weekend, don’t expect a very busy market.

Admission is free.

The Gumball Rally or Gumball 3000 is a yearly 3000 mile road rally of super cars that takes in Europe and usually starts in Britain. This year the starting point is Dublin and the rally will then go via Belfast, Edinburgh, London. Luxembourg, Germany, Prague, Budapest to Bucharest.

On Saturday from 12:00-22:00 you can admire the super cars when they arrive bit by bit. Expect to see Ferrari, Porsche, Bugatti, Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Koenigsegg, Jaguar, Bentley, Rolls Royce and more. There will also be many vintage cars. All together more than 100 cars will take part. The cars can be viewed close up until 22:00.

On Sunday Gumball 3000 will start from Merrion Square at 10:00 and you can come and see the superstars and supercars set off. Some well known participants are David Hasselhoff, Formula 1 driver David Coulthard, rapper EVE, actor Sullivan Stapleton and DJ Afrojack.

Admission to the events at Merrion Square is free,

Jamestown Flea Market + Car Boot Sale takes place every Sat+Sun from 10:00-17:00. You can reach it from Tyrconnell Road and from Kylemore Road and it is within 3 min from Black Horse stop on the red Luas line. There is free parking.

The County Council Market (CoCo) in Marlay Park is taking place every Saturday and Sunday. You will find a wide range of products. There will be food to eat there and food to cook at home but also crafts and arts and books and lots more.

Every Sunday, the Merrion Square Open Air Art Gallery takes place. Up to 200 artists exhibit their paintings on the railings on three sides (West, North and East) of Merrion Square and you can just enjoy the exhibition or even buy.

The Phibsborough Community Arts Festival “Phizzfest” is back. It is a yearly festival and is probably one of the best community arts festivals in Dublin. They have organised a large amount of events and a few of them are free.

Unfortuantely, though, they win NO prizes for the website. The events calendar is not making it easy to get access to the event details and a complete overview over all events is totally missing.

Here is a list of most of the free events (it is not sorted by date, so you have to check them all):

PHIZZFEST BIG DAY OUT – Family Day on Sun 01 May (12:00-16:00) at Mount Bernard Park and Canal Bank at Shandon
There will be displays from local dance and arts groups, bouncy castle, boat rides, reading tent and the yearly Duck Race

——–

Water Polo Tournament – at the Royal Canal 5th Lock
Sat 30 April (10:00-17:00) + Sun 01 May (10:00-15:00)

——–

Film (www.phizzfest.ie/film1.html):
+ Mon 02 May – 14:00: Monday Mattinee Documentary Screening

History (www.phizzfest.ie/1916local-history.html):
+ Sun 01 May – 14:00: Development of North City 1660-1960 in McGeough’s Bohemian Lounge

Three free Yoga sessions take place in MVP in Dublin 8 every Saturday and every Sunday. The times are 10:00, 11:00, 12:00 and 13:00 and the duration is 1 hour. At every session only 8 places are available, so get your bookings in early (you can book weeks in advance).

The sessions can be booked following these links:

+ 10:00-11:00 Beginner
+ 11:00-12:00 Intermediate
+ 12:00-13:00 Beginner
+ 13:00-14:00 Advanced

Classes are open level, so everyone is welcome.

A free (donation based) 1916 Rising Walking Tour will take place every Saturday and every Wednesday from now until the end of June. It is a 3-hour long tour that will start at City Hall, bring you to Dublin Castle, Liberty Hall, the GPO and Moore Street and will end at the Garden of Remembrance and on the way you will also learn about all the other locations where the battle happened.

Booking is required via the link below.

The Drumcondra Village Market is an arts and crafts fair in the centre of Drumcondra. There will be Food Stalls, Flea Market, Vintage Clothing, Arts&Crafts and a Pop-Up Record Store.

Admission is free.

A weekly market with lots of food, but also many other products (art & crafts, books, etc) takes place every Sunday in the beautiful People’s Park in Dun Laoghaire. It is a very popular market and with around 50 vendors also one of the bigger markets.

A felt making workshop with Gabriella McGrath willt ake place in the Pheonix Park Visitor Centre on Sunday. Admission is free.

The well known Palestrina Choir sing every Sunday at the mass in St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral. They sing complete masterworks by Mozart, Haydn, Dvorak, Palestrina, de Victoria, usually accompanied by Prof. Gerard Gillen on the organ, who often also plays a solo piece.

The next Pure Vintage Fair will take place this week and it is what it says on the tin. A market/flea market for vintage items, which will take place on the first Sunday of every month. There will be vintage clothes, furniture, collectibles, jewellery and many more vintage items. Sounds interesting and with 30 stalls, it is well worth a visit. There will also be food, hot drinks and a DJ.

Admission is free.

A Photography exhibition, Poetry Reading and Music Performance entitled “Syria Lives! – The people of Syria and their lives” will take place in Ranelagh on Sunday.

The photographs are from Charity Human Appeal Ireland staff and volunteers while carrying out their aid work in the troubled region.

The readings of Syrian poetry in Arabic and English as well as performances of Syrian traditional music, with performances by Bassel Malak, will happen at 15:00.

Admission is free, but donations are much appreciated.

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

The International Dublin G ay Theatre Festival starts with the seminar

“1916 – Because Freedom is Personal”

The seminar celebrates the contribution of les bian and ga y people to the 1916 Rising.

The programme features performance pieces from the Festival’s 1916 theatre programme and contributions from:

+ Historian Dr Mary McAuliffe UCD Women’s Studies
+ Dr Brian Hughes, Associate Lecturer of the University of Exeter
+ Brian Merriman, playwright
+ Honor Molloy, Irish/US playwright
+ Brian Lacey, author

…and there will be a panel discussion.

Admission is free, but registration is required. For further information and to register go to the website below.

At the Blackrock Market in the centre of Blackrock, you’ll find 50 stalls selling collectibles, antiques, handmade goods, books, food & there’s free popcorn, ballons & facepainting for the kids.
Open on Sundays: 12:00-17:30. Open on Saturdays and Bank Holidays: 11:00-17:30.

Hard Working Class Heroes and First Music Contact are organising six weekends of “Dublin Live Music Trails” this year. The performances will be 20 minutes long and will be acoustic in all sorts of usual and unusual venues. SO it is feasible to see & hear ALL gigs because they are all in walking distance.

The second Music Trail weekend will take place on 01+02 May and the line-up and venues are listed below.

Admission is free and the event is supported by Failte Ireland, Dublin City Council and Dublintown.

Line up and schedule for Sunday are:

12:30 Stay Gold @Generator Hostel
13:00 Bad Sea @The Church
13:30 Participant @Winding Stair
14:00 ProFound @Tourist Office Suffolk st
14:30 Basciville @Berlin
15:00 Moossmann @Powerscourt Townhouse
15:30 Me Auld Flower @Bear
16:00 Pine The Pilcrow @Jo Burger
16:30 Atlas Moon @Urban Picnic
17:00 We, The Oceanographers @Oxfam Georges St

A map with all venues can be found on the website below.

The exhibition “Field Test – Radical Adventures in Future Farming” (11 Mar – 05 Jun 2016) in the Science Gallery is exploring how farming will look like in the future and what new developments will change farming so that we can deal with the global food challenges.

From Farm Cyborgs (for example a Virtual Reality environment for chicken so that they can think they are free range), via odd, unique and forward looking foods (e.g. insects for improving your protein intake); growth houses for your home; very different seeds (e.g. beans that taste like beef) to the “LOCI Food Lab” (outside near the entrance to the Science Gallery) where you can get a customised snack, the exhibition has a lot of interesting exhibits that revealing, intriguing or surprising.

Like all Science Gallery exhibitions, FIELD TEST is suitable for all ages with a particular focus on the age group of 15-25, but I would say that chilren from 10 years of age can understand the whole exhibition if they get some additional explanations and there are even some exhibits that would work for younger children.

When you go to see the exhibition, get help from the Science Gallery mediators! They are helpers (usually students or graduates) that know the whole exhibition inside out and are very happy to help with a lot more information than the little labels at the exhibits can provide. Use their excellent service!

The Science Gallery has very visitor friendly opening hours of Tue-Fri 12:00-20:00 and Sat+Sun 12:00-18:00.
Admission is free.

Every Sunday, the National Botanic Gardens invite to two guided walks. The first one is at 12:00 and the second one at 14:30.

Admission is free.

A Latvian May Festival and Spring Market organised by the Latvian Society in Ireland will take place on Meeting House Square. There will be live performances, market stalls with food and crafts and games for kids.

Admission is free.

The Smithfield Market Fair will take place again in the Generator Hostel at Smithfield Plaza.

There will be over 40 market stalls, selling Vintage Clothes, Food, Vinyl records, Contemporary Arts, Jewellery pieces and much more. Live Music, a free film screening and free yoga will add to the good atmosphere.

Admission is free.

The Sundays at Noon Concert Series continues in the Sculpture Gallery at the Hugh Lane Gallery. This series of free (mainly classical) concerts continues to present the best of Irish and International music and musicians. Concerts run from September to June.

The next concert will feature Eyolf Dale on solo piano, playing Jazz.

Come to this event and discover life in the rock pools using net buckets and help cataloguing the species found at this time of year. This is an event for the whole family.

Admission is free, but booking is required via event leader Andrew (Mouse) Fleming (OWLS). Send a text message to Andrew on 087 3299936. Meet beside small section of beach at Sandycove.

As part of the 1916-2016 Centenary Commemorations, a free tour will take at Arbour Hill Cemetery every Sunday at 14:00. (from March until end of October).

No booking necessary. The meeting point is at the 1916 Memorial Wall towards the back of the cemetery.

The “Dublin Sketchers” is an informal group of (hobby) artists who go somewhere different in Dublin every Sunday (e.g. National Museum, Maritime Museum, Dublin Flea Market, Farmleigh, Botanic Gardens, Dublin Castle, Science Gallery, …), sketch for one to two hours and then meet up for coffee afterwards and discuss their sketches.

There are some hugely talented people among them and it is a great idea to meet up with others who have the same hobby. Find out on their website below or on their Facebook Page where they will meet and join them if you do some sketching/drawing yourself. I know that the Dublin Sketchers often use the Dublin Event Guide to find interesting free events and I am delighted to be able to help!

Every Sunday a free tour takes place in the Hugh Lane Gallery.

Admission is free and booking is not required, but places are limited, so early arrival is recommended.

Come to the Family Drawing every Sunday in the RHA Gallery. All children are welcome to use the RHA Art Cart, in the RHA Atrium. Find out all details via the link below.

Admission is free.

Afternoon Jazz in Café en Seine. The Stella Bass Jazz Trio play every Sunday from 14:00-16:00 in Café en Seine in Dawson Street. Admission is free. A video is here www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8aKqtOB5S8

The Council of Trade Unions is organising a Parade from the Garden of Remembrance to Liberty Hall.

Music will be provided by the Wally Page Band & Shadada People’s Choir.

At Liberty Hall, there will be speeches from DCTU President Tom Simpson and DCTU Secretary Sam Nolan, as well as speakers representing LUAS, TESCO and health sector workers, the National Homeless & Housing Coalition and the Work Must Pay campaign. The rally will also be addressed by Unite official and Right2Water spokesperson Brendan Ogle.

Come to the Learning Resource Room in the National Museum in Kildare Street to see if you could become an underwater archaeologist. Examine some mysterious objects to decode if they came from a Bronze Age boat or a Viking Age boat and solve the secret of the lake bed.

Admission is free and no booking required. Suitable for Ages 6+

Form Roots will perform a gig in the Harbour Bar in connection with the Bray Jazz Festival (www.brayjazz.com)

Admission is free.

The lecture “The Rising and Separatism: the British response to 1916” with Professor Eunan O’Halpin (Trinity College Dublin) is part of a free lecture series looking at the theme of ‘Visualising Commemoration’, in association with the current exhibition “James Stephens, the National Gallery of Ireland, and the 1916 Rising”.

Travel around European traditional dancing culture without a ticket at the Bal Folk Dance Sessions.

And if you don’t know how to dance, don’t worry! Workshops are provided and admission is free.

The event takes place every Sunday in the Cobblestone Pub. The time alternates a little: On 1st+2nd Sunday of the month it is from 16:00-19:00 and on 3rd and 4th Sunday from 18:00-22:00. And on every 4th Sunday there is also a Breton session from 15:00.

Robert Sarazin Blake, Singer and Storyteller from Washington, will be in the Hot Spot Music Club on Sunday.

Every Sunday evening from 18:00-20:00, the Wiley Fox is hosting a trad session, where some of Ireland’s finest traditional musicians will play for you.

Admission is free.

The Sweeney’s Dixeland Jazzmen play their weekly gig on the ground floor in Sweeney’s. Admission is free.

The Firehouse Film Contest is a monthly competition and film screening for new short films (3-5 minutes) which are not older than one month. Screenings take place on the first Sunday of the month.

Admission is free.

At the Jawbone Gig night in Arthur’s Pub, Acoustic Folk & Blues will be performed every Sunday. Admission is free.

www.facebook.com/pages/Jawbone-Dublin-Acoustic-Folk-Blues-Commune/724102984268967

The Front Door will have live jazz for you every Sunday from 19:00.

Admission is free.

With the energy and power of a punk rock band and a broad range of influences, the five-piece jazz band “Umbra” from Dublin stretch the boundaries.

Admission is free.

High Society are playing Swing & Jazz in Sweeney’s Mongrel but in typical and infuriating Sweeny Mongrel fashion the time for the gig is not specified again, instead they just list the opening times 19:00-03:00. Not impressive!

Admission is free.

The Workman’s Club is well known for their Bank Holiday weekend parties. This time it takes place on Sunday only and the line-up is

Segrasso, Sun Mahshene, Beach. These three live bands are followed by the Karaoke Club and then a range of DJs.

Admission is free.

Every Sunday this singer-songwriter night takes place in the Bleeding Horse in Camden St. from 8.30pm. It is an Open mic night and performers can just turn up and put their name on the list for that night.

The Comedy Crunch is a free Stand Up comedy downstairs in Stag’s Head, Dame Lane from 21:00 every week on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Every week different comedians entertain and on top of that there is some free ice cream. The line-up can be found via the Comedy Crunch Facebook Page (see link below).

“Rhythm Rocker at The Globe” is a weekly event on Sunday night in The Globe with live music (Rockabilly) and DJs. Admission is free.

The Night Before Larry Got Stretched is a traditional singing session run by a collective of young singers with an emphasis on encouraging singers of all ages to come together to share songs.

Admission is free.

Billy Treacy & The Ha’Penny Heads are playing Ballads, Folk, Trad and Classic Country every Sunday. Featuring Guitar, Mandolin, Fiddle and Banjo.

The Bray Jazz Festival will feature a Jazz Trail where every evening a variety of bands play in pubs in Bray and admission is free to all gigs on the Jazz Trail.

On Saturday six free gigs will take place and they are all listed on the website below.

Funk, Soul, Blues

CC Brez is a singer and guitarist, who is the guitarist and a founding members of funk rock band Republic of Loose. He is playing a Funk / Soul / Blues gig in teh Harbour Bar.

Admission is free.

Every Sunday (except at Bank Holiday weekends), the Ragtime, Roots and Country Blues Band “Cool Hand Dukes” play in the Porterhouse near Grafton Street.

Rock ‘n’ Roll band The JIve Cats will play a gig in teh Mercantile.

Admission is free.

The Dublin Blues Cartel will be in Whelan’s again and will perform mostly a version of New Orleans R’n’B with a classic rock twist, sandwiched with swing, Rock’n’Roll, Soul, Funk, Blues and rap of all eras. Admission is free.

Pete Pamf will play a gig in the Mezz.

Admission is free.

Emily Gallagher will run a weekly “just for fun” photo trail where you get instructions to hunt for specific snaps around the city centre. Afterwards the symbolic significance to the snaps will be shared. The overall theme is “Get a glimpse of directions you may wish your life to take and discover decisions you may desire to make.”

Meeting point is the Meeting House Square.

Participation in the photo trails is free but donations are welcome and booking is required via chooseyourowntracksphototrail@gmail.com or 085-2725095

The Dublin Food Co-op and the Latin American Solidarity Centre (LASC) are inviting to their Cinco de Mayo festival this bank holiday Monday. There will be vegetarian Mexican food, activities for kids and adults like pinata making, talks, dance performances and a live Mariachi band.

Admission is free.

“Forgotten Voices” is a 2-hour walking tour that will explore the lives of the people who lived in Dublin’s inner city from the Georgian Period to the middle of the last century.

Meeting point is at the entrance of the Four Courts Dublin. The tour is free but donations are welcome and booking is required via email to jsfolkloregirl024@gmail.com or – if you can’t book beforehand – just show up on the day.

Private group bookings off up to 25 people can be accommodated at a different time and or day on request.

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

Hard Working Class Heroes and First Music Contact are organising six weekends of “Dublin Live Music Trails” this year. The performances will be 20 minutes long and will be acoustic in all sorts of usual and unusual venues. SO it is feasible to see & hear ALL gigs because they are all in walking distance.

The second Music Trail weekend will take place on 01+02 May and the line-up and venues are listed below.

Admission is free and the event is supported by Failte Ireland, Dublin City Council and Dublintown.

Line up and schedule for the Bank Holiday Monday are:

12:00 Cfit @The Gutter Bookshop
12:30 Miles Graham @Dublin Ink
13:00 Ailbhe Reddy @Urban Picnic
13:30 Cult Called Man @Tourist Office Suffolk st
14:00 New Pope @Bear
14:30 Exploding Eyes @Berlin
15:00 Callum Orr @Jo Burger
15:30 Not Monsters @Oxfam Georges St
16:00 My Tribe Your Tribe @The Church
16:30 Inni-k @Winding Stair

A map with all venues can be found on the website below.

The Ecuadorian community in Ireland is hosting a Fundraising Cultural event on Monday. Admission is free, but places are limited. Proceeds will be used to help the victims of the earthquake in Ecuador which happened on 16 April 2016.

There will be a short documentary shown about the earthquake, an auction of Ecuadorian crafts donated by the Ecuadorian community in Ireland will happen and Vicente Chalacan, a distinguished musician from Ecuador, will perform.

Archive at Lunchtime screenings take place Saturdays (Double Bill), Mondays and Wednesdays. The programme is changing weekly now (instead of monthly as in the past). To find out what film(s) will be screened go to www.ifi.ie/whatson/now-showing-coming-soon/ and look for “Archive at Lunchtime” on the right. Admission is free.

If you regularly or occasionally buy books online, you can help the Dublin Event Guide hugely even without having to pay cent directly. In fact you even save money this way:

Buy your books from The Book Depository and get better prices and free (!!) delivery for all orders independent from the volume and when you click on the picture here before you buy, then 5% of what normally The Book Depository would get, they give back to the Dublin Event Guide. Everybody wins!

www.bookdepository.com?a_aid=dubevg

If you prefer Amazon to buy your books (for free postage you need to order a minimum of GBP 25), then use this Amazon link to help the Dublin Event Guide. Thanks!

The Phibsborough Community Arts Festival “Phizzfest” is back. It is a yearly festival and is probably one of the best community arts festivals in Dublin. They have organised a large amount of events and a few of them are free.

Unfortuantely, though, they win NO prizes for the website. The events calendar is not making it easy to get access to the event details and a complete overview over all events is totally missing.

The remaining free event is:

Film (www.phizzfest.ie/film1.html):
+ Mon 02 May – 14:00: Monday Mattinee Documentary Screening

Estonian choir K.O.O.R will perform a free concert in Dublin on Monday.

Admission is free.

Feather is an eight piece futuristic Afro soul band led by Emma Garnett. Originally from Sierra Leone, their music combines Emma’s African roots with their hip hop and funk.

Admission is free.

Song Cycle is a weekly Singer/Songriter showcase. The line-up is not always easily findable on the Whelan’s website, but admission is always free.

The Circle Sessions is an “Open Mic” that provides an opportunity for up and coming musicians, spoken word artists, poets and comedians to perform.

Come to this weekly show to perform or to simply watch a great mix of music, poetry, spoken word and comedy.

Admission is free.

Every Monday the Woolshed Bar hosts “The Comedy Shed”, usually with 3 headline acts.

Admission is free.

Part of the Bray Jazz Festival, these two gigs feature Electro Jazz, Rock and Pop. Fronted by Jess Kav, BARQ bring a totally unique sound to the Bray Jazz Festival.

Sax Panther are a five piece instrumental band from Dublin.

Admission is free.

The Comedy Crunch is a free Stand Up comedy event every Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Every week different comedians entertain and on top of good comedy you will get free ice cream. Admission is free. The line-up can be found via the Comedy Crunch Facebook Page (see link below).

Every Monday a Jazz Jam Session will take place in the Grand Social and you are invited to listen or even to participate. Admission is free for musicians and audience.

Instruments are supplied (drums (no cymbals), double bass, guitar amp, bass amp, PA system) and ideas and themes will be proposed prior to the session to the musicians who join the event on Facebook (see Facebook Page below).

An Open Trad Music Session is taking place every Monday in Mother Reilly’s. Admission is free.

Donal Kirk and Anto Drennan are playing music from Lowell George Little Feat, Bonnie Raitt, Free, Bad Company, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Beatles, Bobby Bland, Vince Gill, Ray Charles, Etta James, Elvis, Ry Cooder, Dobie Gray, Guy Clarke, early ZZ Top, Dave Edmunds, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Willie Nelson.

Admission is free.

“Ancient Inspirations – the development of the Italian Renaissance” with Dr Sarah Wilson (Art Historian) is a lecture as part of a free lecture series in May and June about the theme of “Leonardo da Vinci: Artist, Inventor, Renaissance Man”, in association with the exhibition “Leonardo da Vinci: Ten Drawings from the Royal Collection”.

It is not clear if us normal people are invited to this event or not, but I wasn’t able to find any further information about that. Reading between the lines, though, it seems that we are not really welcome there.

Michael D. Higgins will unveil a plaque naming the East Link Bridge “Tom Clarke Bridge”. Thomas J. Clarke was one of the first signatory of the Proclamation in 1916. A Defence Forces colour party will be attening and a Dublin Fire Brigade piper will play. Irish traditional music group ‘Laeg’ will also provide music.

Since the bridge is now owned by Dublin City, I would be a lot more impressed by an announcement that using the bridge will be free in the future. But I think we will be waiting a long long time for that.

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

After his first novel, La mirada del bosque (The Look of the Forest), a police thriller set in rural Ireland, Chesús Yuste returns to Ireland with his new book “Regreso a Innisfree y otros relatos irlandeses” (Return to Innisfree & Other Irish Short Stories).

Author Chesús Yuste will talk to poet and translator Keith Payne about his last book and his passion for Ireland.

Admission is free.

The next talk in the RDS Library Speaker Series is Robert D. Marshall about “Law and Insurgency: the Irish Experience of 1916”.

On the 100th anniversary of the execution of Patrick Pearse, Thomas MacDonagh and Thomas Clarke, this talk will examine the legal framework available to the British army in the aftermath of the 1916 Rising and how it was applied.

Admission is free, but booking is required via the website below.

A new weekly Board Games night is taking place in the Black Sheep Pub. Lots of games are available and you can also bring your own.

Admission is free.

The Irish Wildlife Trust (IWT) continues to bring you Dublin Green Drinks on the first Tuesday of every month in J.W. Sweetman’s. Green Drinks is a monthly event in 711 cities around the world to bring people with an interest in green issues together.

“Hedgehog Rescue” is this month’s topic. Yvonne McCann from Hedgehog Rescue Ireland will talk about the how the organisation got started, the threats facing wildlife (both natural and human caused) and the trials faced by wildlife rehabbers in Ireland. Practical advice will be given about what to do if you come across a hedgehog casualty with added insights into the rehab process.

Meet up on the top floor of J.W. Sweetman’s. Doors open at 18:30 and the talk is at 19:00. Admission is free.

Rumours have it that the Bluegrass Collective will perform in Sin É on Tuesday and there might even be an open Bluegrass Jam! Admission is free.

Every Tuesday an informal sing along with Ukulele and Toy Musical Instruments takes place in the Stag’s Head. Just bring your instrument and come along. Beginners are welcome. Admission is free and further details (and a big book of songs) are available on the Facebook Page below. The get-together meets in the “snug” in Stag’s Head.

Live sessions with the Blue Moon Folk and Blues Collective are taking place every Tuesday at the Beerhouse. Admission is free.

The Comedy Crunch is a free Stand Up comedy event every Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Every week different comedians entertain and on top of good comedy you will get free ice cream. Admission is free. The line-up can be found via the Comedy Crunch Facebook Page (see link below).

The Lounge Quintet plays this gig every Tuesday: Jazz Standards, Latin and Bebop. Often guest musicians and singers join them. Admission is free, donations are welcome.

Every Tuesday and Thursday the International Bar invites to a Jazz night in the Lounge.

Groups led by Cote Calmet, Sean Maynard Smith, Dominic Mullan, Paddy Groenland, Georgia Cusack & Alex Mathias are performing regularly with occasional guest players, but there are also other bands from all over.

Admission is free, with a suggested donation of EUR 5. The website clearly says that there is no entry fee, but – and that makes a lot of sense – that your donations are very much appreciated (Musicians need to pay for rent and food too!) Be generous after the gig if you liked it, but if someone wants to charge an admission charge, please point out that the “rules” as described on their website are like I have explained.

Entry charges at nearly all OPW Heritage sites are waived once a month, on the “First Wednesday”. The Office of Public Works (OPW), who looks after the state owned heritage sites, wants to encourage people to visit the historic sites that it manages and has therefore started this great initiative in 2011.

Most OPW managed sites can already be visited for free (e.g. Farmleigh House, Phoenix Park, National Botanic Gardens, Pearse Museum, etc), but the sites that normally charge a fee will be free every first Wednesday as well. In the (extended) Greater Dublin Area this means you can visit the following sites for free:
+ Dublin Castle, State Apartments
+ Kilmainham Gaol
+ The Casino, Marino
+ Rathfarnham Castle
+ Brú na Bóinne Visitor Centre at Newgrange
+ Glendalough Visitor Centre in Wicklow

As you can imagine, this event is very popular and therefore it is strongly recommended to arrive early at the venues. Once the day’s tickets are given out, you will not get access anymore. Most venues start handing out tickets in the morning for visits throughout the day.
Dublin Castle facilitates continuous access for self-guided tours, so you might have to queue a bit and at some stage the queue will close, but you don’t have to “fight” for tickets.
———
Last month at the April First Wednesday quite a number of people were surprised or even shocked that Kimainham Gaol did charge the usual entry charge. This happened because they were told by the OPW that they are NOT taking part in the “First Wednesday” system anymore with immedaite effect. Many people told me about their experience and I contacted the OPW and sent them a submission asking for the restoration of the free access to Kilmainham Gaol from the May Wednesday. I am very happy to say that the OPW listened to the input they got. The Kilmainham Gaol is added to the list of free sites again!
——–
Please note: If you book tickets for Kilmainham Gaol online for that day, the tickets will NOT be free, but if you go to the Gaol tickets are free as long as they are available.

——-

IMPORTANT Update on 03 May:

The OPW changed the First Wednesday PDF document on the front page of their website www.heritageireland.ie on 26 April and in the new version of that document it said that Kilmainham Gaol will be free when you arrive at the site, but not for on-line bookings. This is understandable and no problem and luckily a clarification was provided. On Tuesday (03 May) I checked again and all was still the same, but to be on the safe side, I rang the Dublin sites and to my surprise, I was told that Kilmainham Gaol was taken OFF the list of free sites on “First Wednesday”. When I pointed out that the Heritage Ireland website clearly said something different, I was told that only on Friday, the arrangement was changed and the website would be updated during the Tuesday. At around 12:00 that finally happened and the new document now does not list Kilmainham Gaol anymore.

After that experience I also rang Dublin Castle and Rathfarnham Castle. The people at Dublin Castle told that they are NOT admitting people continously anymore, but instead hand out a small number of free tickets for the timeslots throughout the day. Not sure if that is a better solution! If you arrive at 09:00 you might be happy to queue for a while, but getting a ticket for 15:30 is not necessatily the better way of doing it.
Rathfarnham Castle also confirmed that they will waive the admission charges this Wednesday, but they told me that this will be the last First Wednesday for them.
I get the impression that this all has to do with the new or to be formed government. First Wednesday was introduced by the minister who was in charge of the OPW and since there is no full minister (only an acting minister) and a future minister might have different plans, the OPW is going back to their default position, which means that admission is NOT free in these sites.

It’s a big pity, but it might be worth lobbying the next minister with responsibility for the OPW in the new cabinet to continue the First Wednesday!

Did you ever want to give drawing a go? Or maybe you are a budding artist looking for like-minded people to draw with? The Creative Den in Rua Red runs free weekly drawing sessions on Wednesdays at 11:00.

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

Archive at Lunchtime screenings take place Saturdays (Double Bill), Mondays and Wednesdays. The programme is changing weekly now (instead of monthly as in the past). To find out what film(s) will be screened go to www.ifi.ie/whatson/now-showing-coming-soon/ and look for “Archive at Lunchtime” on the right. Admission is free.

If you regularly or occasionally buy books online, you can help the Dublin Event Guide hugely even without having to pay cent directly. In fact you even save money this way:

Buy your books from The Book Depository and get better prices and free (!!) delivery for all orders independent from the volume and when you click on the picture here before you buy, then 5% of what normally The Book Depository would get, they give back to the Dublin Event Guide. Everybody wins!

www.bookdepository.com?a_aid=dubevg

If you prefer Amazon to buy your books (for free postage you need to order a minimum of GBP 25), then use this Amazon link to help the Dublin Event Guide. Thanks!

“The Academy in a decade of revolution” is a lecture by historian Dr Mary Daly.

She will look at the membership of the Academy c.1910, its current research projects and intellectual interests and how this evolved over the decade. She will also discuss the decision to expel Eoin MacNeill from the Academy and his reinstatement.

Admission is free.

The “Havana International Language Exchange” is taking place every Wed from 16:30-19:30 in Havana Tapas Bar in George’s Street. There are many Spanish speakers and English-speakers are explicitly invited, but everyone else is certainly very welcome too, to meet for a chat to improve your Spanish or English.

Dublin PubhD or “PhD in the Pub” is an event where once every month three postgraduate or postdoctoral students will share the content of their PhD in under ten minutes and without the help of Powerpoint or other visual helps.

The event is open to all and welcomes presenters at any stage of their research degree, even those who have submitted their thesis and can offer insight into life after the PhD. Talks last ten minutes with an additional twenty minutes allocated for questions and answers.

The next Dublin PubhD event is on Wednesday. The details about the speakers and their topics are on the Facebook Page below.

Admission is free.

This is an open mic night every Wednesday. Arrive, sign up and play. Admission is free.

The guys behind the French Friday, are inviting to a French Fanfare Party with brass band ”La Mort Subite” from Grenoble in France. I am told that it will be some heck of a party! ;-)

Admission is free.

“The Indignant Muse – Poems and Songs of the Irish Revolution” is a talk by author and archivist Terry Moylan.

Based on his recently published book of the same title, he will discuss how the material in the book shows the responses of the song-maker and the poet to events of the revolutionary period.

Admission is free.

The RDS Rising Stars Concerts showcase new talent in Irish classical music – usually talented third-level music students – to help them gain valuable performance experience. The Rising Stars Concerts take place twice a year in spring and autumn and admission is free, booking is required via the website below.

The list of performers and the programme is also on that website. A Solo Pianist, Soprano, Cellist will perform in addition to the DIT Harp Ensemble.

The Roots Band “Brand New Switcharoo” will perform in the Harbour Bar. Admission is free.

The King Kong Club is a weekly music game-show in Whelan’s.

Each week 6-7 bands/solo artists play three songs each. At the end of all the performances a clap-off with the King Kong Club Clap-o-Meter takes place and the winner goes through to a semi-final and it all culminates after six months of competition with The Grand Final, held in front of a panel of celebrity judges.

Check the Facebook Page below for the line-up. Admission is free.

The Anseo Comedy Club takes place every Wednesday in Anseo (upstairs).

Admission is free, donations are welcome.

“The Song Room” is another open mic event. It takes place in The Globe in George’s Street at 20:30 every Wednesday.

“The Zodiac Sessions” is a regular open mic event from 20:30 in Bruxelles (between Grafton Street and Westbury Hotel) for unsigned musicians. Admission is free and there is a different line-up every week.

Bad Boy Jake are every Wednesday in the Gypsy Rose Rock & Blues Bar playing their rock, blues and American.

Los Paradiso are playing Rockabilly, Tex Mex, Western Swing, Surf in the Leeson Lounge. Admission is free, but donations are appreciated.

Traditional Irish Music Session in Hedigan’s (The Brian Boru) in Phibsborough from 21:30 every Wednesday. If you play an instrument you are especially welcome (all levels are welcome).

The National Gallery Curators appraise paintings, prints and drawings brought into the Gallery at this “Picture Clinic”. It takes place on the first Thursday of every month (except August and January).

Admission is free and no appointments necessary.

Creative journaling is a combination of drawing, painting, writing in a journal and using different art therapy techniques. Liz is a qualified art therapist and practising artist.

This is a four week course on Thursday 05, 12, 19 and 26 May. It will take on Level 5 in Room 4.

Admission is free, but booking is required via dlrlexiconlib@dlrcoco.ie

Every Thursday a free tour of Grangegorman Military Cemetery on Blackhorse Avenue takes place. Meet inside the Cemetery Gates. Admission is free and everybody is welcome. Ring 01-6770095 for more information and to check if the tour is going ahead.

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

Learn to play the Bodhran at this workshop for adults. Participants will be brought from being complete novices to being able to accompany a polka, a reel and perform a medley of rhythms.

Admission is free, but booking is required via 01 6269324.

The Green Door Market is a new indoor food/Farmer’s Market that takes place just a few doors down from the Dublin Food Co-op at Newmarket in Dublin 8. Admission is free.

Opening hours are Thu-Fri 12:00-19:00 and Sat 09:30-16:00.

Judit Mate is performing an organ concert at the Unitarian Church and admission is free.

The programme is listed on the website below.

The Studios 5,8,9 and 10 in the IMMA will host the exhibition “Stable Immages”, an exhibition of research and development from the IMMA onsite project by first year students in Art at the IADT.

The exhibition will be on show until 10 May.

Admission is free.

Elsbeth Hayes voice, Mary Scarlett piano and Meadhbh O Rourke flute,Tara Viscardi harp will perform at this DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama concert. They will play music by Grandval and Sweeney.

Admission is free.

The In Focus Tour “Lapis and Gold: the Story of the Ruzbihan Qur’an” with Dr Elaine Wright (Curator of Islamic Collections, Chester Beatty Library) will take place on Thursday.

Admission is free and no booking required.

A monthly public tour of the exhibition “Yeats: The Life and Works of William Butler Yeats” will take place on Thursday.

The tour will introduce the life and work of the poet and following the tour you can listen to a selection of voices speaking some of his best loved poems, including Easter 1916.

Admission is free.

Learn to play the Bodhran at this workshop for adults. Participants will be brought from being complete novices to being able to accompany a polka, a reel and perform a medley of rhythms.

Admission is free, but booking is required via 01 8482833

A weekly Forro Night (Brazilian Dance) with a Forro Live Band takes place in the D-One Bar & Brazilian Grill every Thursday.

Admission is free.

Join the conversation and explore the complexities of what, why and how we use our land and designate it to specific farming activities.

According to reports on climate change agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) is responsible for 24% of all greenhouse gas emissions, compared with 14% from fuel burned for transportation. Unsustainable use of land can affect our health, decrease biodiversity, and impact water, air and soil quality.

A panel of experts from a broad range of disciplines, including ecology researcher Dr Jane Stout, chef and restaurant owner Denis Cotter, sustainable farming expert Oliver Moore, and Agriculture Inspector from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, John Muldowney will try to predict what Ireland will look like in 2040.

Admission is free, but booking is required via the website below.

Girl Geek Dinners are a chance for ladies in technology to get together, enjoy some nice food and drinks and have fun meeting other women in their field. Agenda and details are here and you need to register for this free event there as well.

Orla McGann, Infrastructure Services manager in HEAnet Ltd., will speak at the event.

Men are allowed to come but only when invited by a woman, check the rules on the website below.

A remarkable event at London’s National Gallery assembled the largest ever collection of Leonardo’s surviving paintings for a unique exhibition “Leonardo da Vinci: Painter at the Court of Milan”.

The film captures the excitement of the opening night occasion and provides a fascinating exploration of Leonardo’s great works. Art historian and broadcaster Tim Marlow explains the great masterpieces. An biography and reflections on Leonardo’s influence since his death 500 years ago is also included in the film.

Admission is free.

On Thursdays from 18:00-20:00, the Little Museum of Dublin waives all admission charges thanks to sponsor Guinness.

Visit the museum and find out lots more about Dublin.

Dr Gonzalo Capellán de Miguel is the Spanish Education Advisor in the UK and Ireland and he will talk about “The Education in the 21st Century”.

The education system was designed over a century ago with fixed objectives and within a context completely different to the current one. How well has the education adapted to answer societal changes? How can a school get created that is suitable for the 21st century and considers creativity, emotional and social intelligence, the reading ability, teaching methods through new technologies and digital literacy and the potential of language learning?

Admission is free, but booking is required via bookings.dublin@cervantes.es or 01 631 1533.

The Gardening workshop “Easy Propagation for all” with Aoife Munn will take place and is part of the Bealtaine Festival.

Admission is free, but booking is required via dundrumlib@dlrcoco.ie or 01-2985000

“Artists’ Impressions of 1916 and the emergence of an Independent Ireland (1898-1928)” is a talk by Dr Marie Bourke (former Keeper and Head of Education at the NGI) as part of the Bealtaine Festival.

This talk will explore the period around the 1916 Rising and subsequent events through a range of images by artists including Seán Keating, William Orpen, Patrick Tuohy, Grace Gifford, Jack B. Yeats, Kathleen Fox, Edmond Delrenne and John Lavery.

Admission is free and no booking required.

Every Thursday, the Xchange invites to a Language Exchange (19:00-20:30). Admission is free.

And this is the third (!) Board Gaming night in Dublin! They are taking over! ;-)

It is a weekly event and on Thursday the focus is on Introductory Board Games, so if you haven’t for a while (or ever) played Board Games, this is for you.

Admission is free.

Dimestore Recordings run a weekly event in Sweeney Mongrel’s with a variety of bands and performers. It starts at 20:00, follow the link for the line up.

The Jazz Cafe has live Jazz, Blues and Soul music performances every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 20:00-22:30.

The line-up this weekend and in the coming week is:
+ Sat 30 Apr: Honor Heffernan (Vocals) and Trevor Knight (Piano)
+ Thu 05 May: Jess Kav (Vocals) and Stephen McHale (Guitar)
+ Fri 06 May: Brian Dunning (Vocals) and Myles Drennan (Guitar)

Admission is free.

Twsited Comedy is a free comedy night in the Liquor Rooms.

The line-up is Rob Coyle, Gary Lynch, Emman Idaman,

Admission is free, but tickets are required via the Eventbrite link below.

The next LOQ hip-hop & poetry showcase takes place on Thursday.

LOQ is Dublin’s only regular night dedicated exclusively to spoken word, poetry, hip-hop and storytelling. Hosted by Andre K’por and home to the finest local wordsmiths.

Admission is free.

Every Thursday a Singer Songwriter Night will take place in Mother Reilly’s in Rathmines. This is YOUR chance to show everyone what you can do, alternatively you can just listen to the talented Singer/Songwriters. Admission is free.

A Fun Pub Quiz takes place in Brady’s in Terenure on Thurs. The quiz will be on every Thursday night in the Lounge at Brady’s. Keith McLoughlin is the Quiz Master.

There will be six rounds of the quiz with picture questions, audio questions and general knowledge questions. Admission to the quiz is free and therr will be free drink vouchers for the winning and runner up teams. (No phones to get answers allowed.)

Every Tuesday and Thursday the International Bar invites to a Jazz night in the Lounge.

Groups led by Cote Calmet, Sean Maynard Smith, Dominic Mullan, Paddy Groenland, Georgia Cusack & Alex Mathias are performing regularly with occasional guest players, but there are also other bands from all over.

Admission is free, with a suggested donation of EUR 5. The website clearly says that there is no entry fee, but – and that makes a lot of sense – that your donations are very much appreciated (Musicians need to pay for rent and food too!) Be generous after the gig if you liked it, but if someone wants to charge an admission charge, please point out that the “rules” as described on their website are like I have explained.

Every Thursday “Left Right & Centre” play a mix of blues & soul with a bit of rock&roll.

Admission is free.

A weekly Trad Music Night is taking place in McLoughlin’s in Dun Laoghaire. It is an acoustic night and all musicians are welcome. Admission is free.

Every Thursday a free Trad Session takes place in McNeills and often there are high profile Trad musicians performing.

The Woolshed Karaoke is happening every Thursday from 21:30. Anyone can participate! Admission is free.

At this “Tai Chi for arthritis” course with osteopath Marion O’Connor and physiotherapist Barbara Mullan, you will learn how to improve your sense of balance, coordination as well as develop mindfulness and confidence.

It is a 6-week course on Friday 06, 13, 20, 27 May and 3 + 10 June and is part of the Bealtaine Festival.

Admission is free, but booking is required via dlrlexiconlib@dlrcoco.ie (Max 12, Ages 60+)

The National Gallery has an extensive programme of free talks, public tours and Art Documentary screenings focusing on highlights of the European and Irish Collection every day of the week. Check their website for details.

This is a fun and informative guided tour of the Hugh Lane Gallery, led by the gallery’s art historian panel.

Tours will focus on the centenary programme of exhibitions which reflects on the role of Artist as Witness, and includes exhibitions “High Treason: Roger Casement”, “The Best of Decades”, “1960s” and a re-hang of the permanent collection.

Admission is free and no booking required.

The Green Door Market is a new indoor food/Farmer’s Market that takes place just a few doors down from the Dublin Food Co-op at Newmarket in Dublin 8. Admission is free.

Opening hours are Thu-Fri 12:00-19:00 and Sat 09:30-16:00.

Get a cup of tea, gather the last bit of energy and then bring this work week over the line! And for next week, get some special teas via the ad below and help the Dublin Event Guide while you are doing that. ;-)

Click on the picture below or use this link and if you order any teas that way, you help the Dublin Event Guide because Twinings will pay a small reward if you order after clicking on the picture below or link above.

Orders over GBP 35 are free in the UK and if you use Parcelmotel’s Belfast to Dublin service, you can get it delivered for just EUR 3.95 of postage.

Cornucopia Café & Restaurant host live music three evenings a week (Thurs, Fri and Sat). The restaurant is a Wholefood & Vegetarian Restaurant and is open until 22:15.
+ Every second Thursday N.C Lawlor, a songwriter, session player and troubadour plays a mix of country, bluegrass & blues from 19:30-21:30.
+ Every Friday (19:30-21:30) Junshi Murakami plays Irish Harp.
+ Every Saturday (19:30-21:30) Nollaig Mann plays a collection of popular and jazz classics.

The Jazz Cafe has live Jazz, Blues and Soul music performances every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 20:00-22:30.

The line-up this weekend and in the coming week is:
+ Sat 30 Apr: Honor Heffernan (Vocals) and Trevor Knight (Piano)
+ Thu 05 May: Jess Kav (Vocals) and Stephen McHale (Guitar)
+ Fri 06 May: Brian Dunning (Vocals) and Myles Drennan (Guitar)

Admission is free.

The Logues are a band from Tyrone playing folk and “party music”.

Admission is free.

The Stillorgan Orchard has live music every Friday and Saturday. Many of the performers are established and very good bands. The upcoming gigs are detailed on the website below. Admission is always free.

“Ska ‘n’ Reggae” is the theme in the Dive Bar (downstairs in Turks Head) every Friday. The Bionic Rats play live. followed by DJs until late. Admission is free.

Rock Classics with the 3-piece band “Pulse”.

Admission is free.

Sweeney’s list an Open Jam in their events list. It will be on the first floor and the music style is Funk/Soul and R&B. All musicians are invited to join in.

Admission is free.

La Mort Subite is a French Brass Band and tghey will be in Whelan’s for a gig.

Admission is free.