Month: May 2011

Glengormley’s Uptown Hoedown returns on Saturday 11 June with a fun-packed day of entertainment for all the family in Glengormley Park.

A free family funzone with bouncy castles, face painting, arts & crafts and dance workshops will take place from 12-6pm. Younger kids will love the teddy bears’ picnic and kids games from 1-5pm – don’t forget to bring your picnic!

Stall holders from Newtownabbey’s Speciality Market will display their wares in the park and you can take your chance on the Kentucky Derby and rodeo bull.

Citybeat will also host the Glengormley heat of the Newtownabbey’s Next Big Thing talent competition. The winners of this heat will compete against the winners of August’s Shoreline Festival heat at the finale which will take place at the Big Busking Bonanza in September in Ballyclare.

The musical entertainment will start at 3pm with “Shine” performing favourite songs for all the family. Garth Brooks and Eagles Tribute acts will take to the stage for an evening concert at 7pm. The bouncy castles will stay into the evening, so if mum and dad want to listen to the concert, kids can play away in the background!

So get yourself down to Glengormley Park on 11 June for some toe-tapping fun.

For more information see www.newtownabbey.gov.uk/hoedown or follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/uptownhoedown or call 028 9034 0000.

Northern Ireland families needed now to star in new TV Health show

Does your family have the wrong diet and wrong attitude? Do you do enough exercise? Do you shop badly and can’t cook? If the answer to these questions is ‘Yes’, don’t worry, as help is on the way.

A new BBC NI television series is giving you the chance to help change your family’s life forever.

Tern Television is creating a new television series for BBC Northern Ireland called Fat Chance. We are looking for three families (mums, dads and children) with weight issues to take part in an intensive, expert-led weight loss programme this summer which will take stock of their health issues and give them a real chance to change their lives forever.

In this series, the three families will spend one week in a secret location where some of the nation’s best experts in Nutrition, Health, Psychotherapy and Fitness will help set them on the road to recovery. In a course of specialist treatments they will be given the chance to change. Then in the following weeks, they will be sent home to put what they’ve learnt to the test.

We’re looking for outgoing families with weight issues that are making them unhappy and unhealthy but who most of all want the chance to change.

If you and your family are Overweight and potentially putting yourselves at increased risk of Diabetes, Heart Disease and a variety of Cancers, we want to hear from you. We want people who are willing to share their stories with the nation to ultimately show us all how we can tackle our growing obesity problem.

The treatment programmes our families will undergo would normally cost thousands of pounds, but for the people who take part in the show it will be completely free.

For further information on how to take part, contact the Fat Chance team, Peter or Gohir at fatchance@terntv.com

Or Tel:- 02890326038

* All enquiries will be dealt with in the strictest confidence*

The Ulster Festival of Art & Design has commissioned the Belfast band, And So I Watch You From Afar to write and produce a unique 30 second track.

In an innovative move, the Festival is using the special one-off piece entitled “Confident Human” as part of its radio advertising……….a bespoke track written specifically for this purpose. The track will air on Cool FM and U105 from 20^th May – 11^th June.

In addition, to complement this enterprising stroke of creativity, the Festival also commissioned filmmaker and artist Seamus Harahan to make a short film to accompany the track.

More info: Tim Kerr | t.kerr@ulster.ac.uk | 028 9026 7286
www.ulsterfestival.com

You won’t be angling for something to do over the next two weeks if you catch some of the exciting events taking place during the South Antrim Fishing Festival!

Organised by Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Councils, the event runs from 21 – 28 May.

On Saturday 28 May, a flagship event will take place at Mossley Mill, from 11am to 5pm.  Jenny Bristow, Ireland’s Good Food Ambassador, celebrated chef and author will be showcasing her skills in the marquee at 12 noon, 2pm and 3.30pm as she demonstrates how after you’ve hooked it, you can cook it. Along with fly tying demonstrations, fish stalls, arts and crafts and children’s entertainment, it promises to be a brilliant day for all the family to enjoy.

Throughout the course of the festival week, seasoned fisherman will have a chance to pit their skill against each other at the three competitions which are taking place at Straid Fishery on 22 May from 10am to 4pm; Craigmore Fishery, Randalstown on Thursday 26 May from 6 to 10 pm and Tildarg Fishery, Ballyclare on Saturday 28 May from 11am to 4pm. The winner of each competition will walk away with a prize of £200, second place with £100 and 3rd place £50. The person who hooks the heaviest fish over the course of the competition will take home the Allan Kirkpatrick Memorial Cup.

For those of you who would like to enter a fishing competition in the future, but have never tried the sport, the coaching sessions are just the ticket.  These free, one hour sessions will be led by professional angling instructors at Tildarg Fishery on Monday 23 May from 6-10 pm; Toome Linear Park on Tuesday 24 May from 6-10pm; Trout and About, Ballyclare on Tuesday 24 May from 5.30-9.30pm; Craigmore Fishery, Randalstown on Wednesday 25 May from 6-10pm, Straid Fishery, Ballyclare on Thursday 26 May 6-10pm and Creeve Trout Fishery, Randalstown on Friday 27 May from 5-9pm.

It certainly promises to be week of fishy fun with something for everyone to enjoy.  Make sure you don’t miss out!

For further information visit www.southantrimfishing.com or contact Lisa O’Kane on 028 9034 0052.

The South Antrim Fishing Festival is being funded by ‘GROW South Antrim’ through the Northern Ireland Rural Development Programme and sponsored by Ulster Bank, AG Wilson, Barnabys Restaurant, Castle Mall, Six Mile Water River Trust, Straid Fishery and White O Morn.

Looking for a great local family day out in June? Then why not check out the Funtopia Family Fun Day, in aid of Foyle Hospice, on Saturday, June 4th from 1 p.m. This exciting event will be held at the new Funtopia Fun Centre, situated at the Three Rivers Centre, just behind the Eclipse Cinema Complex, Lifford, and will be packed with all the fun that Funtopia can provide from Games & Entertainment, face painting, Balloon moddelling and much more!

All in aid of the hardworking charity, Foyle Hospice, the Funtopia staff and management are planning a spectacular family event with “It’s a Knock Out”, games and inflatable fun throughout the afternoon. Children will be able to enjoy all the facilities of the fun centre, which is currently offering a packed programme of events for young people including a after schools club, drama classes, fashion and design classes, junior youth club and youth discos.

“Since we opened our after-school club and various evening clubs for children and young people in the Strabane and Lifford areas, we have been overwhelmed by the local support” commented Rose McCrossan from Funtopia.  “We therefore felt a great way to thank everyone would be to offer a truly magical fun day all in aid of Foyle Hospice, which will bring everyone together for such a hardworking charity, whilst letting everyone in the local area enjoy our wonderful facilities and services offered by the fun centre. For example little ones the fun day will be offering a magical fun day and balloon modelling, while older children can enjoy the pool and games room, karaoke and disco room and much more!”

The Funtopia Family Fun Day in aid of Foyle Hospice kicks off at 1 p.m and will run until 3 p.m, with all proceeds raised on the day from the fantastic Funtopia Face painting team and bouncy castle going towards Foyle Hospice. The Funtopia Fun centre has excellent parking facilities and is only a 1 min walk from the Eclipse Cinema, offering family’s the ideal opportunity to catch a matinee film after the fun day! For further information about the fun day, which is also open to community groups wishing to bring groups on a special day out, simply call Rose on the Funtopia hotline on 07821046036.

There’s something for everybody at this year’s Sea Bangor Festival; whether you’re into cooking, gardening, literature or live music, we’ve got it covered with a myriad of big names coming along to join in the fun on Saturday & Sunday, June 18^th & 19^th.

For the food lover, Matt Tebbutt, the Celebrity Chef will be wowing the crowds with his live cookery demonstrations in the Food Tent. Matt is a chef based in Wales and is a well-known food TV presenter. Matt’s first national TV appearance was competing on the Great British Menu on BBC2. He can currently be seen on Good Food’s daily show Market Kitchen, co-presenting with Amanda Lamb, Tom Parker-Bowles and Matthew Fort.  He is also a guest presenter for Saturday Kitchen on BBC1. Matt has more recently appeared on Flora’s Family Food Fight – a Channel 5 series in which he helps families prepare and cook healthy meals. He was also selected as one of the elite band of chefs to take part in BBC 1’s prime time smash, Great British Waste Menu, where his food attracted high praise.

On Saturday, 18^th June, Matt will be performing three live culinary master classes in the afternoon, promising to showcase his skills and offer tips and advice to spectators.  These events will be interspersed with demonstrations from a selection of Local Chefs.

Then on the Sunday, he will be a guest judge on Sea Bangor’s very own Masterchef competition where three catering pupils from three local SERC colleges will be pitching their talents against each other during three rounds. Based on the Professional Masterchef model, contestants will have to make the same seafood dish for round one, a dish for under £10 for round two and finish off with a signature dish. The competitors will all be competing for the highly-sought-after top prize of a half day’s work experience with Matt Tebbutt. The competition will be fierce and entertainment value high! Sunday afternoon will also see some well-known local business characters along with The Mayor battle it out in an Omelette Challenge.

Over in the Music & Yarns Tent on the Sunday, award-winning journalist and author of “Titanic Port,” Alf McCreary will be giving a talk on the history of Belfast Harbour, from a muddy inlet in the 17^th century to today’s modern, world-class seaport – guaranteed to be a highlight for all you history and literature lovers.

Following Alf’s talk on the Sunday afternoon, BBC Radio Ulster’s Cherrie McIlwaine will be introducing a special gardening segment, featuring some local experts with talks, demonstrations and a Q & A session afterwards. Afternoons in the Music & Yarns Tent will feature a line-up of top class live music acts, including local artists like Gareth Dunlop and Matt McGinn.

Gastronomic and Culinary treats galore are in store for visitors to the event with local restaurants and food producers selling their wares on-site each day from 10 – 6pm.

So whatever floats your boat, come along to Sea Bangor for a great family day out!

A full programme of events which will include children’s activities, local art-workshops & displays, talks, street theatre, live music and lots more will be issued soon.