{"id":25092,"date":"2026-05-06T12:04:45","date_gmt":"2026-05-06T11:04:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/?p=25092"},"modified":"2026-05-06T12:04:45","modified_gmt":"2026-05-06T11:04:45","slug":"the-stage-awaits-performers-invited-to-register-as-buskfest-2026-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/2026\/05\/the-stage-awaits-performers-invited-to-register-as-buskfest-2026-returns\/","title":{"rendered":"THE STAGE AWAITS: PERFORMERS INVITED TO REGISTER AS BUSKFEST 2026 RETURNS\u00a0\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

–\u00a0Call out for buskers to come along and be in with a chance\u00a0to win\u00a0a share of the \u00a34,500\u00a0prize pot –<\/h4>\n
<\/div>\n
Buskers of\u00a0all abilities\u00a0are\u00a0being\u00a0invited to sign up as Banbridge prepares for the\u00a0return of\u00a0its\u00a0annual music festival,\u00a0Buskfest, on Saturday 20 June 2026.\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
\"\"Shining a spotlight on\u00a0a wealth of talent, from solo acts to groups, and\u00a0with\u00a0the\u00a0introduction of a\u00a0new\u00a0youth category to enable younger performers to have their moment to shine,\u00a0both emerging and seasoned artists will join in this celebration of\u00a0live music and \u00a0compete for a chance to win a share of this year\u2019s\u00a0increased prize pot which now stands at\u00a0a fantastic total of\u00a0\u00a34,500.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Buskfest,\u00a0now in\u00a0its\u00a022nd\u00a0year\u00a0invites\u00a0all buskers\u00a0to showcase\u00a0their talents\u00a0to\u00a0hundreds of spectators each year,\u00a0offering\u00a0a unique\u00a0platform\u00a0for\u00a0performers\u00a0to hone their craft and\u00a0connect\u00a0new audiences\u00a0to their artistry\u00a0with\u00a0Banbridge\u00a0town centre\u00a0set to\u00a0transform into a\u00a0vibrant stage\u00a0on the day.\u00a0From singers and musicians to street entertainers,\u00a0enthusiastic performers\u00a0will\u00a0fill the\u00a0town\u2019s streets\u00a0ensuring\u00a0every corner is brought to life.\u00a0\u00a0With family entertainment including face painting and\u00a0puppet shows, the artisan market also pays a welcome return to the town centre. Taking place from12-5pm and located at Bridge\u00a0and Scarva\u00a0Streets, there will be a range of food and handcrafted goods all showcasing local businesses.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
The excitement\u00a0and animation will\u00a0continue into the evening with a\u00a0prize-giving and\u00a0concert\u00a0in\u00a0Banbridge\u00a0town centre, recognising the\u00a0day\u2019s\u00a0top performers and the\u00a0spectrum\u00a0of talent on display.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Tasked with\u00a0adjudicating\u00a0what\u00a0promises to be a fiercely contested\u00a0competition\u00a0are\u00a0a panel of 12 judges including\u00a0BBC Radio Ulster presenter Ralph McLean.\u00a0Commenting\u00a0on the event Ralph\u00a0said, \u201cBuskfest\u00a0is one of\u00a0the highlights\u00a0in both the Banbridge and local music calendar.\u00a0No matter what side of the performance\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0on, the\u00a0streets\u00a0are\u00a0immersed in an unmatched\u00a0environment\u00a0of musical creativity and community spirit,\u00a0making it a\u00a0fantastic day\u00a0out\u00a0for all. \u00a0It\u00a0also\u00a0provides a particularly important platform for\u00a0emerging local talent, introducing hundreds of individuals to their work. With awards\u00a0across an array of categories, the festival celebrates talent of all\u00a0kinds, recognising the outstanding array of performers we have right here at home.\u201d<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
One of last year\u2019s winners,\u00a0Luke Bell of the 4AM\u00a0Club spoke\u00a0about the crucial platform the event provides,\u00a0\u201cI know\u00a0firsthand\u00a0just how special an experience Buskfest can be for any\u00a0artist.\u00a0Music\u00a0as a medium\u00a0brings both\u00a0peers and the\u00a0wider\u00a0community together.\u00a0Winning last year gave us a real boost and\u00a0showed us that people continue to connect\u00a0with our music\u00a0and enjoy what we do. Even if\u00a0you\u2019re\u00a0not competing,\u00a0but\u00a0just starting out,\u00a0it gives you an amazing\u00a0opportunity to\u00a0expand\u00a0your\u00a0audience and gain some experience, so I\u2019d encourage any\u00a0musician\u00a0to sign up.\u201d<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
Registration to participate is now open at\u00a0www.buskfest.com<\/a>\u00a0and will close on the\u00a019\u00a0June\u00a0at 4pm.\u00a0The day\u2019s busking events are\u00a0set to commence at 2.00pm and\u00a0continue into the evening with\u00a0the\u00a0prize giving at 5pm,\u00a0and\u00a0the stage bursting to life with lively performances until 8.30pm<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
For more information and to register, visit\u202fwww.buskfest.com<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

–\u00a0Call out for buskers to come along and be in with a chance\u00a0to win\u00a0a share of the \u00a34,500\u00a0prize pot – Buskers of\u00a0all abilities\u00a0are\u00a0being\u00a0invited to sign up as Banbridge prepares for the\u00a0return of\u00a0its\u00a0annual music festival,\u00a0Buskfest, on Saturday 20 June 2026.\u00a0 Shining a spotlight on\u00a0a wealth of talent, from solo acts to groups, and\u00a0with\u00a0the\u00a0introduction of a\u00a0new\u00a0youth category … Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25092"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25092"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25092\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25094,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25092\/revisions\/25094"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/whatsonni.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}