The recent spate of good weather has gone to our heads here at ‘NewsFour’ and we wanted to devote our front page to news of some of the great Summer events that are happening right on our doorstep.

The Docklands are alive-alive-oh! The Docklands Development Authority has pulled out all the stops to ensure June is a special month for us all.

To be or not to be, that’s the question! The Docklands Shakespeare Festival is the perfect chance to get reacquainted with the work of the Bard without having to go too far. It’s a six week festival featuring French travelling theatre company Footsbarn which brings two Shakespeare works ‘Perchance to Dream’ and ‘The Tempest’ to a purpose-built 500-seater marquee theatre afloat in George’s Dock in the IFSC. The festival runs from June 14th to July 3rd and you can find out more about this thespian shin-dig inside ‘NewsFour’ on page 18.

Ship ahoy! The Maritime Festival is bound to be hugely popular because the last time the tall ships came to the docks they were a bigger hit than even the organisers could have imagined. During the festival the ships berthed on both sides of the quays and were open to visitors for tours. Sailings on the ‘Jeanie Johnston’ will be available on Friday, June 17th.

A food market and Art Exhibition on the Campshires will be held along the quayside. The market will hold over 40 stalls selling an array of fresh produce, breads, sweets, flowers, crafts, clothing and jewellery.

Other activities will include RNLI Sea Safety Show/ Demonstrations, children’s activities, face-painting, wall climbing and young pirate competition. It’s all happening from June 17th to June 19th.
Sink or swim! Two more water-based events are taking place on the Liffey this month. The traditional Liffey Swim (above) is scheduled for June 25th for all those brave enough to take the plunge.

The Docklands Liffey Challenge is a yacht racing contest which takes place on July 22nd.

For more information on all these events log onto www.docklands.ie or on 01 8183300.And don’t forget– from July the Docklands area will be even easier to access with the new Sean O’Casey pedestrian bridge.

Have a great Summer!