The Market Place Theatre in Armagh is set to send little imaginations soaring with two enthralling kid’s performances.

‘The Elves & The Shoemaker’ is a fantastic blend of immersive storytelling with music and unbelievable aerial circus for children aged between 4-8yrs and their families. There is no stage. Instead you will join the shoemakers inside their workshop and actually help them to make the best pair of shoes ever made. Herman, Daisy and the Elves need you! They want to make shoes for your feet. But they owe so much money they barely can eat. Don’t worry though, because magic is always just around the corner. The Elves are here to help! And sometimes the answers are literally right above your head.

‘The Elves & The Shoemaker’ will be staged as part of the Family Super Saturday on Saturday 9^th May at 11am and 2pm. Tickets are priced £6 each which includes an hour of post-show family fun including themed crafts, face painting, balloon modelling, and a fancy dress competition. The show will also be staged solo on Friday 8^th May at 6.30pm. Tickets for this performance are priced £4.

As if that’s not enough excitement, in ‘The Adventures Of Robin Hood’, the audience is transported back in time to the days of legend and heroes. In Sherwood Forest, Robin must team up with Friar Tuck, Will Scarlett and Little John to defeat his enemy – the evil Sheriff Of Nottingham. He steals from the rich, gives to the poor, and wins the heart of Maid Marion. With exciting swordplay, fast action, catchy brand new sing-along songs, puppets and humour, ‘The Adventures Of Robin Hood’ will delight all children aged 4-9yrs.

‘The Adventures Of Robin Hood’ will be staged on Thursday 21^st May at 7pm. Tickets are priced £6 or £4 (concession), with a family special price (4 tickets) of £20 or £12 (concession). Schools performances of both shows are also available. Tickets can be booked through the Box Office on [028] 3752 1821, or online at www.marketplacearmagh.com

And to keep up-to-date with the latest news at the Market Place Theatre, you can follow us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/marketplacearmagh) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/mptarmagh) where you will find all the latest information, special offers and video previews.

To celebrate the 70^th Anniversary of Victory in Europe, Ards and North Down Borough Council will be holding a series of commemorative events, which will take place on Friday 8 and Saturday 9 May.

Joining the National Commemoration Programme, the events will give people the opportunity to reflect and remember this momentous date, marking 70 years since the end of the Second World War in Europe.

On Friday 8 May there will two commemorative Beacons lit, one in Bangor and one in Ballyhalbert. The programme will consist of a fanfare to announce the start of the lighting ceremony, followed by a short tribute led by a veteran and member of the Clergy. In conjunction with the national programme, the beacons will be lit at 9.30pm. The beacon in Bangor will be lit on the Central Pier, Bangor, which can be viewed from the Eisenhower Pier and Pickie Pier and the one lit in Ballyhalbert, will be at the Harbour car park. The Mayor of Ards and North Down, Alderman Alan Graham will officiate in Bangor and the Deputy Mayor Councillor Carl McClean, will officiate in Ballyhalbert. Over 100 beacons will be lit across the UK to mark Victory in Europe on the same date.

On the following day, Saturday 9 May, a Wreath Laying Ceremony and Service will take place at 11am at the War Memorial, Ward Park, Bangor, led by Reverend Charles McMullan.  Also at 11am in Bangor, in keeping with the national celebrations, listen out as church bells ring out across the town to mark this momentous time in history. A wreath laying ceremony will also take place at 12.30pm at the Cenotaph, Newtownards.

At 2.30pm on the same day, a VE Commemoration Parade in conjunction with The Royal British Legion will leave The Town Hall, Bangor, and will include a mixture of approximately 500 veterans and serving officers led by the Band of the Royal Irish Regiment.   A salute will be taken at Trinity Presbyterian Church on Main Street.   The parade will then continue down Main Street, proceed back around to High Street, past the back of The Flagship Centre and will finish at The Royal British Legion on Hamilton Road.

Speaking about the VE Day events: The Mayor of Ards and North Down, Alderman Alan Graham said: I am extremely proud to be part of these events, remembering such an important date in the history of our nation.  I look forward to joining with the many veterans and serving officers who will be on parade on May 9 and hope that the people of The Borough will come out to support them.”

Walk Enniskillen is a new way to discover the many gems and facets of the history of Ireland’s only Island Town. The guided walk is accessible through an innovative web based App, which you can access from your smart device.

Simply go to www.ekn.guide there are 30 stops along the way; each one with a story to tell whether it is a church, a pub or a convent! You can follow the route as you wish and pick it up at any of the stops; imagining the footprints and echoes that have been before.

Enniskillen with its many splendid architectural gems is a town with a remarkable past; a past which continues to define its present.  The new ‘Walk Enniskillen’ App will allow visitors to explore and uncover Enniskillen’s fascinating past and architectural beauties.

The town has many captivating beauty spots; with its own Victorian secret garden-once Commons Hill, Cammomile Hill-now the Forthill. Standing tall on the west of town are proud reminders of grand Georgian architecture at Willoughby Place.  St Michael’s church  is celebrating its 140th year in a grand gothic renaissance style; while Blake’s of the Hollow has been described as a “cathedral of a pub” ,“Coming into Blake’s you leave the twentieth century behind.”

Enniskillen has been 400 years in the making. The town has seen many changes over the last 400 years witnessing periods of extensive growth-particularly in the latter part of the nineteenth century. While much change has occurred there is much in Enniskillen today which would be familiar to a traveller from times gone by. There is much still to celebrate in terms of the architectural heritage of Enniskillen and ‘Walk Enniskillen’ is the perfect means to do so!