Author: whatsonni

Digital Cities Virtual (DCV) is back on Tuesday October 12^th, Wednesday 13^th and Thursday 14^th October with a full and varied schedule of masterclasses, panels, skills and insight sessions for people working in or interested in a career in the creative industries. To see the full schedule and book a FREE place simply go to www.bbc.co.uk/digitalcities/

Sport is a big theme this month with two fantastic sessions to choose from. BBC Sport NI presenter Nicola McCarthy hosts a session on how they’ve been using the latest digital innovations, streaming and social platforms to provide more sports coverage than ever – whether its women’s international football matches streamed live on BBC iPlayer, or more analysis, interviews and issues being discussed on TV, radio or podcast, digital technology is helping to grow audience. Birmingham’s Create Central, BBC Asian Network’s Noreen Khan will be hosting their session on how you can be part of the Commonwealth Games in 2021 – definitely not to be missed!

Digital Skills sessions from The BBC Academy this month will focus on Everything you need to know about reaching audiences on: Facebook, Twitter & Instagram: Shooting and Editing on Tik Tok; and a deep dive into how BBC Sport has created engaging short-form over 2021’s Summer of Sport. The Academy team will also be bringing you the latest insights on shoppable TV when BBC Click’s Lara Lewington hosts the Digital Innovation: Shoppable TV with Love Island panel session and Radio 1’s Katie Thistleton will be full of Instagram insights in her session: Instagram – What it takes to make it – with Angels of the North.

Industry experts Screen Skills are backwith three great sessions including an unmissable round-up of the latest Jobs, Schemes & Opportunities for the creative Industries; an Insight session on How to be Set Ready; and an opportunity to find out about creating an eye catching portfolio in How to get your portfolio ready for jobs in screen. They’ll also be delivering a bonus event live from Leamington Spa on Saturday 16^th for those interested in careers in the games industry.

The BBC Academy Digital Cities Virtual is supported in Northern Ireland by BBC Northern Ireland, Northern Ireland Screen, Screen Skills, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast Media Festival, Film Hub NI, Into Film, The Royal Television Society NI, RTS Futures NI, Ulster University, North West Regional College, Belfast Metropolitan College and Belfast City Council.

Follow #digicities and @BBCAcademy on Twitter for updates.

Get your tickets for ‘Spooked Out ‘as it returns to V36 this Halloween, Sunday 31 October from 6-8pm.

Are you brave enough to join us for a line-up of ghoulish delights including a Cool FM roadshow, fancy dress competition, fire performers, bubble bikes, Halloween characters and a firework finale!. Tickets for this epic evening are available from Friday 1 October from 10am. Whilst the ‘Spooked Out’ event is free, a booking fee of £1.25 is applied to each ticket with all proceeds being donated to the Mayor’s charities.

More ‘trick or treat’ fun is happening throughout the Borough with the Pumpkin Patch at Threemilewater Park on Saturday 30October from 10am -4pm (hourly sessions from 10am-3pm) which will be fantastic family time to get creative and carve your best pumpkin!

For the more daring amongst us, there is also a chance to have the fright of your life at the Ghoulish Night Walks at the iconic Mossley Mill on Friday 22 and Thursday 28 October and Antrim Castle Gardens on the 27 and 29 October every hour from 6pm-8pm. This eerie setting is the perfect backdrop as you will be guided through the past with stories of ghosts, ghouls and everything in-between that still walk the grounds.

The Mayor of Antrim and Newtownabbey, Councillor Billy Webb said “I am thrilled at the fantastic line up of events happening over Halloween for all to enjoy. I would love to see the community come and enjoy all the ‘fabulously frightening’ things lined up as there is plenty for all ages, and what an amazing way to finish it off with a bang with a firework finale at the ‘Spooked Out’ event.”

For all Halloween events and bookings please visit antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk/events. Our new Arts and Culture Customer Hub service, which includes a live chat facility and direct telephone number (0300 123 7788 – calls charged at local rate) can assist with ticket queries if customers are unable to book online. The Customer Hub operates Monday – Friday 9am-5pm and Saturday and Sunday 10am-5pm. Pease visit antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk for more details.

Causeway Coast and Glens Policing and Community Safety Partnership is urging people to be on their guard against High Street Voucher scammers.

There have been reports about people calling to front doors offering to help with applications for the ‘Shop Local’ voucher scheme.

ScamwiseNI said they’re aware of the issue, which has been reported to police in recent weeks.

Chairperson of Causeway Coast and Glens PCSP, Councillor Darryl Wilson said: “I know how eager members of the public are to avail of the High Street Voucher scheme, however, as a community we must remain vigilant towards scammers and criminals who will use this opportunity to gather personal and financial information for their own gain and your financial loss. 

“Please be on your guard and remember that applying for your card should only be done through the dedicated online portal on NI Direct which is open now or by the telephone application process from October 11th.”

Supporting this message, PSNI Superintendent Gerard Pollock, Chair of ScamwiseNI partnership, said: “I urge everyone to be vigilant and to follow official advice on registering for the scheme. It’s important to know this will never include cold calls to your house or to your telephone.

“Never disclose your personal or banking details to anyone over the phone or online, no matter how convincing they may seem, and never allow an unauthorised person to have access to such details.  Guarding your personal and banking details is essential.”

For further general advice and information on scams visit www.nidirect.gov.uk/scamwiseni or the ScamwiseNI Facebook page @scamwiseni. If you have any concerns about unsolicited calls, emails or letters then please report it to Action Fraud via their website www.actionfraud.police.uk or by phoning 0300 123  2040.  You can also call police on the non-emergency number 101.

ENDS

Armagh Observatory and Planetarium is on a quest to help your little ones experience an out of this world Christmas. Its ‘Mission Santa’ adventure is ready for launch.

Returning for its second year, this enchanting space panto has been created by BNL Productions, especially for guests who visit the Planetarium this festive season.

Visitors will have the chance to help save Santa inside mission control during an immersive and theatrical show, with the assistance of his side kick Marzipan the Elf to help complete Mission Santa! Enjoy a visit from the man himself in his custom-built spaceship sleigh!

This curious adventure will include the unique dome show, “The Alien Who stole Christmas” showcased in the star dome theatre. Each child will receive a present and a printed family photography keepsake.

Sinead Mackle, Education and Outreach Manager at Armagh Observatory and Planetarium said: “Due to the demand and sell out shows in 2019, we are delighted that ‘Mission Santa’ is returning for a second year. It’s a truly magical experience that brings the wonder of Christmas to life in a way that we didn’t know was possible. Incorporating the marvels of space into the theatrical show gives children and families a memorable experience. The festive season is synonymous with an annual outing to the Panto or a show, and Mission Santa is something unique.”

Sinead adds: “There was such a high demand for the shows in 2019 that we had to put on extra dates which was very encouraging. We were unable to run the show in 2020 due the pandemic, but this year, the show is bigger and better than ever!”

Each mission will last up to 90 minutes, every Saturday and Sunday from 20 November – 23 December 2021. Pre-Booking is essential as places are limited. Tickets can be purchased via www.armagh.space

As the nights draw in, Dyad Productions return to The Market Place Theatre in Armagh with three lost, gothic spine-tinglers from the great Victorian female writers.

An artist, gripped by the clutching fingers of a dead past; a scientist, defying nature in the dark realm of the senses; an expectant father, driven mad by creeping shadows…

In the unquiet darkness between life and death, a lone, haunted woman tells chilling tales of the macabre and terrifying, illuminating the curious frailties of human nature…

The Victorian fascination with tales of mystery and the supernatural created an enduring legacy of Gothic fiction; but it is often the male writers that we remember. Many thrilling and eerie stories from the great female writers of that era have gathered dust and been forgotten. Until now.

This dark celebration of the female gothic writers is adapted and performed by Rebecca Vaughan [Austen’s Women, I, Elizabeth, Dalloway, The Diaries of Adam and Eve]. The show is directed by Olivier Award winner, Gus Masterson [Morecambe].

Tickets are priced £13.50 each, and can be booked through the Box Office on [028] 3752 1821, or online at www.visitarmagh.com/marketplacetheatre All performances will adhere to current social distancing requirements, and with full safety measures in place, you can sit back and relax.

As the darker evenings draw in and autumn leaves begin to fall, it is time to embrace the spooky season and enjoy the wide array of eerie entertainment on offer for families across Northern Ireland this Halloween.

For families with young children looking for traditional Halloween fun, there are plenty of Instagram worthy pumpkin patches scattered through NI where your little monsters can design their own spooky jack-o’-lanterns or take part in fun seasonal games.

And for the older kids who are feeling brave and fancy something a little more spook-tacular, why not explore a haunted woodland in search of ghostly beings, or listen to spine-tingling tales on a scary storytelling trail?

There is so much to choose from, but fear not, as Discover Northern Ireland has rounded up a list of fang-tastic activities to sink your teeth into and help you plan your perfect family-focused Halloween adventure.

Derry~Londonderry

One of Europe’s largest Halloween parties is set to return to Derry~Londonderry this year, as the city gears up for a thrilling extravaganza of outdoor events.

The ‘Awakening the Walled City’ programme, which runs over three evenings from Friday 29th October – Sunday 31st October, will feature illuminations, animation and installations across key locations stretching beyond the city’s historic walls, guaranteed to bewitch and enthral.

Taking place over an extended area this year to create a safe and welcoming environment for visitors, the celebrations will spill over into four worlds, in Derry~Londonderry, Strabane and Donegal, each featuring a cast of creepily curious characters here to recapture the spirit of Samhain.

Prepare to be scared as the apparitions of the underworld return, with appearances by the chilling Cailleach, the mischievous shape-shifting goddess Morrígan, the fearsome Red Branch Knight, and of course Walter the Skeleton from Derry’s own coat of arms.

Some of the other highlights visitors can enjoy include a food and drinks trail, tours in spooky locations around the city, live music, a fun fair and a fireworks display over the River Foyle to cap off the festival.

Derry Halloween 2021

Antrim Castle Gardens, Co Antrim

Explore haunted historic places in the dark this Halloween, as you take part in spine tingling walking tours in the grounds of Antrim Castle Gardens. Storytellers will guide you on an eerie and bone-chilling journey through the past, with tales of ghosts, supernatural sightings and horrors from history. Tours are family friendly but the provider recommends young people taking part should be aged 12 or over, however this is at parent’s discretion. To help chase away any shivers, warming refreshments will be available after your walk and a hot drink is included in the ticket price.

Events | What’s On – Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council (antrimandnewtownabbey.gov.uk)

Jungle NI, Co Londonderry

Some spectacularly spooky activities await young kids and their families at Jungle NI, Magherafelt this Halloween. The popular ‘Hallowee’uns’ event returns, filled with wicked, weird and wonderful activities. Little monsters can enjoy some pumpkin picking and carving, a haunting haycart ride with a wicked witch who will tell spooky stories along the way, and a mysterious trek around the Maize Maze, among a host of other adventure activities. Prizes for the best costumes are also up for grabs. This event will run every day from Monday October 25 – Saturday October 30 from 11am -3pm.

Hallowee’uns – The Jungle NI

Ulster American Folk Park, Co Tyrone

Enjoy some ghoulish tales and learn about some fascinating folklore at the Ulster America Folk Park’s Jack O’Lantern Halloween Festival. Meet the creepy characters like the ship’s captain cleaning the decks, and the last emigrants who survived the arduous journey across the Atlantic to the New World of frontier America. Have your fortune told, take part in seasonal games, and taste some apple tart, pumpkin pie or fresh soda bread straight from the open fire griddle.

Jack O’Lantern Hallowe’en Festival (nmni.com)

Don’t miss the chilling torchlit tours. Visit the wake of ole Ma MacMaster, the local fortune teller, and hear her terrifying tales of evil fairies and banshees.

Hallowe’en Torchlit Tours: The Curse of Johnny MacMaster (nmni.com)

Visitors can also check out the beautiful display of traditional handmade dolls made from apples and pieces of left over fabric, and hear all about turnip lanterns which would have been carved in times gone by, long before pumpkins.

Streamvale Farm, Co Down

Family fun for the little and big kids! Come collect your mini wheelbarrow and pick your very own pumpkin, with thousands to choose from. Then let the experts design your spooky lantern before you carve it out. Visitors can also enjoy barrel and tractor rides, animal shows, a Broomtastic disco and – if you are feeling brave – follow the Spooky Trail and meet real life characters.

Halloween Pumpkin Patch – Streamvale Open Farm

Fermanagh Fun Farm, Co Fermanagh

The popular Pumpkin Carving Festival is back for another year. This interactive experience offers an array of fun activities for all the family. Hop on board the beautifully decorated ghost train, which will take you out to the field to choose your own pumpkin. Bring it back to the carving marquee and come up with your own creative design. Then its time to grab a treasure map and seek out the ghosts that lurk on the grounds. Check out every dark corner of the farm, if you dare, and you could be in with a chance to win a great prize. And don’t forget to feed and pet some of the farm animals before you go.

BOOK A VISIT – Fermanagh Fun Farm

Crumlin Road Gaol, Belfast

Come and explore the child friendly Halloween tour around Crumlin Road Gaol. Encounter the friendly ghost and ghouls telling stories of their time at the Gaol. Followed by a search for the perfect pumpkin at the outdoor Pumpkin patch before bringing it to the carving station to create a one of a kind masterpiece. 

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween Tour – Crumlin Road Gaol Experience, Events, Weddings & Venue Hire

Galgorm Fairy Trail & Halloween, Co Antrim

Situated on the grounds of Galgorm Castle, adventure awaits as the Fairy Trail is transformed into a Halloween Spooktacular, with ghosts and ghouls returning to the woodland area surrounding the castle. Fun for everyone, this experience is available for both daytime and evening thrill seekers, booking is essential as there is limited availability.

Galgorm Castle Fairy Trail | Things to do Ballymena | Family day out NI

For more information on great places to visit and for things to see and do this Halloween – check out  www.discovernorthernireland.com.  

Libraries NI has a full programme of events taking place this week as part of the Turning Heads Project exploring the theme of hair as an important part of our identity, culture and expression.

On Tuesday 21 September, join Ulster University Lecturer Dr Leanne McCormick, from 12:30pm – 2:00pm via Zoom for a Women and hair: shame and punishment in Irish history talk. Dr Leanne McCormick will deliver a lecture on how cutting hair has been used to shame and punish women in the past with a focus on Magdalene Laundries in Ireland. This event may not be suitable for young children.

A very special panel event led by Beyond Skin in partnership with House of 4c Salon and Lush UK Belfast, Roots: An Afro-Caribbean Hair Conversation Q & A Panel Event will take place in Ormeau Road Library on Wednesday 22 September at 7:00pm.

Stephanie Laird-Arnold, a Community worker, artist and founder of ethnic minorities families club Jam ‘n’ Irè, Magne Raissa Makougang a Hair stylist at House of 4C Salon and musician Rwanda Shaw will make up the panel for the evening. During the discussion they will focus on the cultural significance, heritage, sensitivities, and social pressures around hair for people from Afro-Caribbean communities.

On Thursday 23 September from 12:30pm – 2:00pm, Dr Andrew Sneddon, lecturer at Ulster University will deliver a free Zoom event about The Supernatural History and Folklore of Hair, Magic, Charms, and “Superstition”. Dr Sneddon is a social and cultural historian, whose latest research explores Irish witchcraft, magic and the supernatural from the medieval to the modern period. He is the author of ‘Possessed by the Devil: the Real History of the Islandmagee Witches’ (2013) and ‘Witchcraft and Magic in Ireland’ (2015).

Also on Thursday 23 September, the whole family is invited to grab the hairbrush and sing along with singer Siobhan Brown and musician Rwanda Shaw for a Hair Brush! Singing Workshop from 7:00pm – 8:00pm via Zoom. As part of Good Relations Week 2021, Hair Brush! The Singing Workshop will focus on the cultural significance, heritage, sensitivities and social pressures of hair for people from African and Caribbean communities or of African descent.

In this fun but powerful virtual workshop Siobhan Brown (Singer, radio presenter, founder of Manukahunney & Cairde Community Choir) and Rwanda Shaw (Musician & Songwriter) will talk about how to overcome fears, peer pressure and cultural differences while learning how to show the world your authentic self. Those attending under 18 must be accompanied online by parent/guardian/youth leader

Finishing the week is a fascinating talk by Dr Declan McKenna, Ulster University on Ginger Genetics: a celebration of red hair taking place via Zoom on Friday
24 September from 12:30pm – 2:00pm. Dr McKenna will discuss the ‘ginger gene’, explaining how it affects hair colour and why it is so common in Northern Ireland. He will explore the cultural significance of red hair throughout human history, discuss ‘gingerism’ and explain why red hair is now an object of desire.

All Turning Heads events are free to attend, simply visit www.librariesni.org.uk to secure your place. 

The Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council is asking people to help save lives by speaking to family members about organ donation.​

The appeal to ‘Leave Them Certain’ comes as part of Organ Donation Week, which runs from Monday 20th September until Sunday 26th September 2021.

Council’s civic headquarters at Cloonavin will light up in pink in support of the annual seven-day campaign to encourage more people to sign the Organ Donation Register and ensure family members discuss decisions with each other.

In Northern Ireland there are approximately 115 people on the transplant list and every year around 11 people die while waiting for a life-saving operation. One donation can save the lives of up to eight people.

The Mayor, Councillor Richard Holmes recently met with Northern Trust Specialist Nurse for Organ Donation Mary McAfee in Ballycastle to show his support for the initiative.

Councillor Holmes said: “Families can find themselves facing a difficult decision about organ donation following the death of a loved one. This year’s campaign encourages us to have this vital conversation, and ensure that we ‘Leave Them Certain’ about our thoughts around organ donation.

“By ensuring your family is certain about your choices, you could help save the life of someone’s mother or father, son or daughter.

“I hope that by showing our support for Organ Donation Week we encourage more people within Causeway Coast and Glens to sign the register and speak to their family about their choice.”

Describing organ donation as a ‘precious gift, Mary McAfee added: “No lifesaving transplant would be possible without the generosity of every donor and their families who gave their support and say ‘yes’ to organ donation. Here in Northern Ireland, 51 families have shown great courage and kindness by thinking of others at a time of huge emotional distress, made even more difficult by Covid restrictions within our hospitals.

“This past year has been unprecedented in the history of the NHS and wider society and we would not have achieved this success without their support for organ donation or the commitment of our clinical teams. 113 people received a lifesaving transplant because of our local families brave decisions.

“There are still many people waiting for a life-changing transplant across Northern Ireland. We know that most people would accept an organ transplant if they need one, yet at present only 49% of us have signed the NHS Organ Donor Register.

“If you want to make your decision known the best way is to record it on the NHS Organ Donor Register and tell you loved ones as well.”

You can find out more about organ donation and sign the register online now by visiting www.organdonationni.info.

The impact of COVID-19 and the current environmental crisis are the themes of two new exhibitions opening at Flowerfield Arts Centre this month.

In her exhibition ‘The Warp and the Weft’, Cushendun-based artist Katy English explores the fragile threads which hold our world together.

Through a series of large-scale atmospheric drawings, the artist reflects on the sense of loss of control and isolation felt by many during the pandemic as well as capturing the sense of fragility of the natural world.

Susan Mannion’s exhibition ‘Beyond Darkness’ includes a large enamel work depicting a figure contained in a small space whilst reaching towards the external environment for solace and consolation. Like Katy, Susan is influenced by landscape and patterns in nature, distilling a sense of place, time and memory.

Both artists have exhibited widely and their work is held in international collections.

‘The Warp and the Weft’ and ‘Beyond Darkness’ are open to the public from Saturday 18th September and will continue until Saturday 30th October.

Alongside both exhibitions there will be a series of accompanying creative learning activities for both children and adults.

Please visit www.flowerfield.org for further details.

Immersive and thought provoking installation forms CNB21 offering

The creative team behind this year’s Culture Night Belfast installation have revealed ambitious plans to create a vast structural, lighting and sound show that will fill the Cathedral Quarter’s Writer’s Square.

Belfast artist Gawain Morrison and his team will turn Writer’s Square into The Ogham Grove, a monumental, immersive sculpture and accompanying digital trail which will create a whole new experience for Belfast. 

Susan Picken, director of Culture Night Belfast and the Cathedral Quarter Trust, said the plans Gawain has presented are “spectacular” and will “provide a very unique experience to each person who visits throughout the weekend”.

She added: “Gawain and his team of artists will transform Writer’s Square with a totally innovative and spectacular artwork that will invite visitors  to explore the relationship with our native woodlands and the environment. 

The Ogham Grove really tapped into our concern for the environment and the devastating impact of climate change. It also restates our commitment to support and work with our incredible cultural and creative sectors here in NI. 

This is a significant moment for CNB, not only is this our first large-scale artists’ commission but it also signals an exciting new format for the event as we move forward.”

The concept for The Ogham Grove takes inspiration from the ancient Celtic Ogham Tree Alphabet.

“Two monumental sculptures will be built in Writers’ Square, with themes drawn from our ancestral heritage and culture here on the island of Ireland” explained Gawain.

“The Tree Alphabet will act as the primer for learning about the Ogham characters, their meanings, and their tree associations while the Celtic Ogham Year Wheel signifies the links with our natural environment, living in harmony with it, and the awareness of our place in the universe, the lunar and solar cycles that drive the life on this planet of ours, and all of how life lives–in balance and together.

“The Ogham Grove offers a window into an alternative interpretation of the world around us, highlighting the importance that nature played in the societies of our ancestors, enabling us to reconnect with this heritage in a playful, thought provoking and visually stunning way, at a time when the natural environment and spending time outdoors has never been so important.”

Prior to the pandemic, Culture Night had been one of Belfast’s largest free events, a cultural celebration that attracted almost 90,000 local, national and international visitors to the Cathedral Quarter and Belfast city centre. The impact of COVID has led to a major review of the event however.

Susan said: “Culture Night 2021 will be much smaller in scale and scope and will take the form of an on-site installation that people can drop into and enjoy over the course of the weekend – this different format will allow us to focus on safety as well as making sure everyone has a great time.”

Gawain alongside his team, including artist and prop designer Dylan McCaughtry, designer, artist and engineer Neil Beattie, lighting designer Tomás FitzGerald and drum loop producer Damian Mills said the installation they are planing will leave visitors with “a monumental audio-visual experience that will be overwhelming both day and night.” 

He added: “The actual scale of the structure itself will be impressive. The fact that at night-time the lighting will come alive will give it a very different feel from the daytime and allow people to experience it in different ways.”

The 2021 edition of Culture Night will have a completely new format and a new approach designed for a COVID-safe, post-pandemic environment. A major difference this year is the decision to suspend the previous open submission programme and instead focus on creating one central experience working directly with artists.

“One of the biggest changes this year will be that we haven’t run an open programme for submissions as in previous years” said Susan. 

“There won’t be the usual on-street activity or pop-ups that people are used to. Instead, Writer’s Square will be transformed with an exciting monumental installation, The Ogham Grove, running from Friday September 17 to Sunday September 19. This extended running time will allow more time and space to visit and experience over the weekend.”

“This will be a unique and sensory experience for anyone attending and will make for great photo opportunities” added Gawain.

This year’s Culture Night Belfast is supported by Belfast City Council, Arts Council for Northern Ireland, Tourism NI, Belfast Harbour Commissioners and Translink.

To keep up to date with all the CNB Presents The Ogham Grove updates go to culturenightbelfast.com or follow #CNB21 on social media.