With all the ingredients for the perfect seaside day out; superb local food, live music, celebrity chefs, street theatre, a tall ship, fun for kids and lots more, Sea Bangor is a highlight on Ards and North Down Borough Council’s events calendar and won’t disappoint!

Sailing into Bangor for the event is the impressive tall ship “The Mercedes” which will be moored alongside The Eisenhower Pier and open to the public for both days of the festival. Tickets are currently on sale for sailings on The Mercedes and are available on both the morning and evening of June 4 & 5. There will be morning sailings at 9am on both days, and then Saturday at 7pm and Sunday at 8pm. Tickets cost £15 each for the morning sailings and £20 for the evening and are available now at Bangor Visitor Information Centre, Ards Visitor Information Centre and North Down Museum. Tickets are also available online at www.visitardsandnorthdown.com

The event will heat up this year, when the festival will hold its very first “Big Green Egg BBQ Comp” where contestants will pitch their talents against each other on top of the range Egg Barbeques kindly provided by The Stove Yard. The competition will be fierce and entertainment value high! Members of the public are invited to take part in the competition to showcase the best local food from the best local BBQ chefs. Contestants can prepare their best chicken dish, pork dish or beef dish which can be as wide ranging and diverse as pork ribs, chicken wings, beef burgers, chicken tikka skewers, pork chops or steak. The aim of the game is to have fun, cook some amazing food and win great prizes! If you would like to take part in the competition, please visit www.thestoveyard.com to download an entry form. The closing date for entries is May 29.

In keeping with the carnivorous theme, look out for “Bangor’s Best Banger” competition and sausage making challenges, just a taste of the action-packed Sea Bangor Kitchen programme which will feature local chefs, butchers and catering students showcasing their skills and competing in cookery challenges over both days of the festival.

The festival will play its part in Northern Ireland’s Year of Food and Drink with celebrity chef Paula McIntyre who will hold dairy-based cookery demonstrations to mark June the “Month of Dairy.” For more information on a series of Year of Food and Drink events in Ards and North Down see www.visitardsandnorthdown.com/food.

Gastronomic and culinary treats galore are in store for visitors to the event with local restaurants and food producers selling their wares in the Sea Bangor Cafe each day. Run by SERC, this year’s food tent will feature local food providers serving locally produced, delicious food. Why not come down and have your lunch with us?

Programed by Open House, The Shanty Shack features a lively mix of eclectic music including such gems as Dolbro Dan, a local folk singer/songwriter, Wookalily, an all-female Americana folk band, Les Petits Hardchargers and loads more! The Shanty Shack will be a hive of music and entertainment for the duration of the festival so pop in and check it out!

Over in the kid’s tent “Tiddlers,” Cahoots NI will be performing their specially-created show “The Great Carmo”. Children will be mesmerised by the show which is an exciting blend of circus, cabaret, theatre, commedia, music, magic and illusion, jam packed with all the thrills and spills you’d expect from such a cocktail of art forms.

“The Dockside Emporium” which is being hosted by local artists promises to be a world of entertainment and wonder with demonstrations and crafts and lots to see and do! Let the kids get messy in the kids crafts area, watch artists at work, or try out some yoga!

There’s lots happening on The Eisenhower Pier too, which will be animated with fantastic street-theatre; look out for Maynard Flip Flap, with his coat hanger antics and legendary egg catapulting stunts and Gareth Jones who will be performing his strait jacket and escapology show. Beach Patrol will be guarding the waters with their special brand of life saving skills and so much more! Also, on The Pier, Armed Forces Activities and Jetlev Flier Demonstrations will entertain the crowds and look to the skies for aerial demonstrations from the Twister Aerobatic Display Team!

Speaking about the event; Ards and North Down Borough Council’s Event Officer, Wendy Smith said: “This year’s Sea Bangor programme is so exciting. I’m particularly looking forward to seeing the first BBQ Competition and the Jetlev demonstrations.”

Sea Bangor will be open from 10am to 6pm on Saturday 4 June and Noon to 6pm on Sunday 5.

So whatever floats your boat, come along to Sea Bangor for a great family day out! This is a FREE event.