The St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Bray made a spectacular return today. From 2 pm local residents, along with many visitors lined the new parade route to catch a glimpse of the 1,500 strong participants.
Thousands took advantage of the spring sunshine as they were treated to the sights and sounds of marching bands, majorettes, local community groups, businesses, clubs and schools as they weaved their way through the town in a remarkable fashion.
RTÉ News Parade Round-up
Bray’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade features 1.50 seconds in:
In Kilkenny, today's #StPatricksDay parade was the main event in a week-long festival celebrating Irish music, culture and creativity. In Waterford, dozens of members of the Ukrainian community drew warm applause | https://t.co/LM9SLA5myA pic.twitter.com/RfdHDUwo3u
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) March 17, 2022
Over 30 groups took part in the parade which featured a large multicultural element, music, dance and entertainment all celebrating the spirit of St. Patrick.
President of the Bray & District Chamber of Commerce, Sarah Finnegan said, “It’s fantastic to be back as the return of the St. Patrick’s Festival to Bray is of huge significance for the town and its community. I have to say that the feel-good atmosphere at today’s parade was electric. The parade participants wowed the strong crowd which was great to see once again. The festival continues until Sunday with some incredible free family fun events taking place throughout Bray. Check out bray.ie/stpatricksfestival/ for all the details”.
A big thanks to everyone who participated in today's #BrayParade… And the awards go to… Watch parade MC Adam Burke announce the 2022 parade winners. #StPatricksFestivalBray info ➜ https://t.co/nRtnGc8C7y #PaddysBray #SpringInBray pic.twitter.com/c9ZxX2Uac0
— bray.ie (@bray_ie) March 17, 2022
This year’s St. Patrick’s Festival Bray has something for everybody. Look at the highlights:
Events/activities running throughout the festival until Sunday, March 20th, 2022:
- Enjoy all the thrills and spills of the Bird’s Euroshow Funfairdaily from 12 noon to 10 pm until Sunday, March 20th, 2022.
- At your leisure grab the family or a bunch of friends for an adventuresome day out with our new Family Treasure Hunt Experience where you could win a voucher for The Dough Box, Bray.
- Throughout the festival watch as iconic Bray District landmarks including the Town Hall, Civic Offices & The Bandstand #GoGreen in celebration of our National Day.
- Join Susie from White Doodle Workshops by celebrating St. Patrick’s Day by learning multiple ways to create your own shamrock! Watch the workshop on bray.ie/stpatricksfestival at your own pace and then share your shamrock photos using the hashtag #PaddysBray.
- There’s some cracking live music throughout the town’s many venues. Full music listings can be found at https://bray.ie/events/.
Friday, March 18th, 2022
- The Bray Head Walk is back again this year with Bray Adventures at 10 am. This event is fully booked.
- Join the Boomerang Brass Band (UK) live at the clocktower in Enniskerry Village for an afternoon of big band music at 12:30 pm.
- The Bray Cualann Historical Society will be reeling in the years with a historical talk about Bray at 3 pm. This event is fully booked.
- Watch the very talented Shauna McGauran School of Irish Dance wow audiences as they showcase their dancing skills with music by The Boomerang Brass Band on the bandstand from 4 pm.
- Celebrate Ireland’s oral traditions with poetry, storytelling and songs from Len Graham, Theo Dorgan and Jack Lynch at the Mermaid. See http://www.mermaidartscentre.ie to book.
Saturday, March 19th, 2022
- Watch some spectacular outdoor circus performances including handstands, magic, juggling & escapology routines at the Civic Plaza on Saturday, March 19th at 2 pm and at the Holy Redeemer on Main Street at 4 pm.
- The Bray Vintage Car Club will be showcasing some of their member’s beautiful classic and vintage cars from 2 pm to 4 pm opposite the Bandstand.
- Enjoy a spectacular performance from Scoil Rince Fáinne as they showcase their Irish dancing skills on Bray’s iconic bandstand at 4 pm.
- Watch Ireland take on Scotland in the ultimate Celtic clash on the open-air big screen opposite the bandstand at 4.45 pm.
Sunday, March 20th, 2022
- From 11 am at the boathouse beside the coffee dock why not let the brilliant Suzie create some cheeky face painting designs and then learn how to Irish dance with the Shauna McGauran School.
- To finish the weekend off why not enjoy live music from Jamie Duff on the bandstand at 4 pm.
You can read more about the festival, register for free walks, talks, sign up for competitions, access the treasure hunt questionnaire and watch the shamrock workshop by visiting https://bray.ie/stpatricksfestival/.
“We would like to extend a big thanks to the many volunteers, An Garda Síochána, The Order of Malta, service providers, sponsors, local businesses, artists, community groups and clubs who helped to make the festival and parade return seamless. We could not have done it without you all and to show our appreciation our parade prizegiving ceremony will take place towards the end of March”, concluded Sarah.
Bray’s St. Patrick’s Festival is proudly brought to you by Bray & District Chamber of Commerce, Wicklow County Council and Bray.ie. Bray.ie is a trading name of Bray Tourism.
Be sure to stay up to date with Bray’s St. Patrick’s Festival event news and updates by following bray.ie on Twitter, Facebook or on Instagram.
The event hashtags are #StPatricksFestivalBray #PaddysBray #BrayHeadWalk #HistoricalTalkBray #Bray #LoveBray.
