It is as the ad says, ‘Our Time and Our Place’, the year we get to show off what we in Northern Ireland do well.

That’s why the famous Belfast Continental Market is delighted to be celebrating the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee as the highlight of its successful Spring Tour, which has brought culinary delights to towns and cities through out Northern Ireland.

After a wonderful Spring tour across Northern Ireland including Bangor, Downpatrick, Newcastle, Lisburn and Derry with record-breaking visitor numbers, the Continental Market returns to its home in the grounds of Belfast City Hall. Arriving in Belfast on Friday 1 June, the Market will be concluding its tour in joint celebration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee in the City Hall Gardens until Monday 4 June. Trading from 10am-10pm on Friday and Saturday, 1-6pm on Sunday, and 10am-6pm on Monday, this is your chance to experience the cosmopolitan atmosphere of the famous Belfast market in royal fashion.

Prepare yourself for the novelty of stepping back in time to the good old days, with market traders serving your favourite culinary delights, while dressed in vintage 1950’s fashion, as the extra icing on the cake during the celebratory weekend.

We’ve teamed up with local and visiting traders to create tea for two fit for a Queen. The first 25 customers will also have the chance to get a free copy of Glenn Patterson’s The Mill for Grinding Old People Young served alongside their cuppa as we’ve joined forces with the Arts Council of Northern Ireland to support the final weekend of their literary initiative One City One Book.

Noirin McKinney, Director of Arts Development at the Arts Council, commented: “What better occasion to take some time out and immerse yourself in a good book than on a long bank holiday weekend. The Jubilee celebrations at the Continental Market will be the last chance for members of the public to get their hands on free copies of the book chosen to front Northern Ireland’s first One City One Book campaign. This initiative is all about celebrating local writing talent and we believe Glenn Patterson’s The Mill for Grinding Old People Young is a story which will resonate with local people, who find familiarity in the many landmarks, street names and local characters referenced.”

Running every hour on the hour from 11am-2pm each day, visitors will be offered an assortment of naughty-but-nice treats to enjoy such as macaroons; French tarts, cup cakes and Belgian chocolates sourced from the markets very own traders and tea from the cities leading tea company Suki Tea.

Suki Tea founder Oscar Wooley said: ‘ We are delighted to be involved with the Continental Market on its Spring Tour to mark such a momentous occasion like the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. What a perfect way to pay homage to our traditional heritage, with tea as it should be.’

Sponsored by Stena Line, the award-winning Belfast Continental Market has been an annual fixture in the grounds of the Belfast City Hall for the past seven years. With traders from 26 countries as far afield as Morocco, India, Belgium, France, Russia, Tanzania, Spain and China, the tour has visited a number of towns and cities across Northern Ireland, providing a colourful shopping experience. The Market’s on-going commitment to local business means indigenous traders have also been seen offering the finest local produce alongside the amazing mix of International stalls, helping to attract visitors to town and city centre’s throughout the four week tour.