Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Bealtaine Festival of Outdoor Science at Lismore Heritage Centre


The Bealtaine Festival of Outdoor Science is dedicated to celebrating our living earth in the southeast of Ireland. On Tuesday 21st May, as part of Bealtaine, Lismore Heritage Centre welcomed three primary school groups to the Millennium Park to try out the centre’s new Maths Trail activity.


The pupils of Lios Mor Mochuda NS, 3rd and 4th class from Bunscoil Bhothar na Naomh and the boys from Stradbally NS all proved that sums can be fun! With rulers at the ready they turned themselves upside down to measure, estimate and count their way around the park. Working in teams in the glorious sunshine the groups raced to complete challenges and solve problems.

Maths Trail is just one of the activities available as part of the Lismore School Tour Experience. If you would like to find out more please call Alice on 058-54975.



Monday, May 20, 2013

Robert Boyle Summer School July 2013


Faith healers, feeding the masses and the secret of eternal youth…not what you would typically expect from a scientific gathering but it is far from stuffy conferences that the Robert Boyle Summer School was conceived.

The second annual Robert Boyle Summer School will run in the great scientist’s charming birthplace, Lismore, Co. Waterford from 4th-7th July, 2013.

This exciting event is a fledgling on the Irish festival landscape, in just its second year.  It consists of talks by world leading thinkers from Irish, British and American universities, walks through one of Ireland’s most charming small towns and tours of the beautiful and varied surrounds and costumed re-enactments of experiments that changed our understanding of the world forever.

Topics up for discussion this July include:
1. Valentine Greatrakes
Born in Affane, Co Waterford  Valentine Greatrakes was better known as “The Stroker”. His powers as a faith healer caused a sensation in Restoration England.  Boyle himself watched as Greatrakes cured a small boy of blindness and a woman of deafness by stroking the afflicted parts in what one contemporary pamphleteer likened to the miracles of Christ and the apostles.

2. Food production
Professor Liam Dolan is Sheradian Professor of Botany at Oxford University and Co-Director of the Plants for the 21st Century Institute. As the earth’s population grows and many of the world’s people struggle without enough to eat Professor Dolan will introduce ongoing scientific work with the potential to solve the global food crisis.

3. Eternal youth
 Professor Rose Ann Kenny, Trinity College Dublin, Director of the new Centre for Successful Ageing will look at what progress has been made in successful aging and what promise lies ahead.

Robert Boyle himself, his life and works will be discussed by Dr Bill Eaton of Georgia Southern University and Dr Anna Marie Roos of the University of Lincoln.

Further details are available on www.robertboyle.ie or you can view the Robert Boyle Summer School programme here. Event tickets can be booked by calling Eleanor at Lismore Heritage Centre on 058-54975.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Lismore Antique & Fine Art Fair


The first Lismore Antique & Fine Art Fair will be held in The Lismore House Hotel as part of The Lismore Music Festival:

Thursday 30th May from 6pm - 9pm including opening ceremony.

Friday 31st May from 12am - 8pm

Saturday 1st June from 12am - 8pm


Admission for Adults is €3.50. Children are very welcome and free.


We have a fantastic line up for the fair including the following.

Weldon's Dublin  Silver & Jewellery IADA

Vanessa Parker Rare Books Co.Mayo IADA

Roger Grimes Prints Engravings Maps and 17th 18th Century Furniture Co.Mayo IADA

Jonathan and Alison Ackroyd Jewellery Lismore.

Chris & Karen Southgate Oriental Antiques Lismore IADA

Moycullen Antiques Co Galway Furniture & Objet D'art IADA

Edward Guiney Antique Furniture Buttervent Co.Cork

Marie Curran Silver & Jewellery Dublin IADA

Treasures Irish Art Athlone Co.Westmeath

Eily Henry Vintage Fashion and Accessories Stradbally Co.Waterford

Sandra Hogan Silver and Objet D'art Cork

Jimmy Hennessy China & Porcelain Co.Tipperary

Eileen McCarthy Coins & Banknotes Tallow Co.Waterford

Walk St Declan's Way this July


A pilgrimage walk along St. Declan's Way from Cashel to Ardmore will take place over five days this year from Wednesday July 24th to Sunday July 28th. The event is being organised by Knockmealdown Active and follows on from a successful 3-day walk from Ardfinnan to Ardmore last year, which had almost 60 participants.

The schedule is as follows: Day 1 - Cashel to Cahir; Day 2 - Cahir to Ardfinnan; Day 3 - Ardfinnan to Lismore; Day 4 - Lismore to Knocknaskagh; Day 5 - Knocknaskagh to Ardmore.  The walk will finish in Ardmore on the final day of Ardmore Pattern Festival.  

Full details of the event, including an online booking system, are available on the Knockmealdown Active website.  Participants have the option of taking part in the entire walk or for between 1 and 4 days. There is a fee to take part which will cover transport, light refreshments, insurance, first aid costs etc. 

The event is also listed on Discover Ireland and on The Gathering website. 

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Brand Lismore



Minister of Transport, Tourism, and Sport Leo Varadkar arrived in Lismore on Monday 6th May to launch the new Brand Lismore Logo. The new logo was the brain child of the Lismore Marketing Group, a competition was held earlier this year where third level students were asked to design a logo and develop a brand to represent the town. The winner Laura Keane, a student at WIT received her prize from the Minister at an event in Lismore Heritage Centre during the 400th anniversary celebrations on Monday.

The Minister was welcomed to the town by town Mayor Julie Landers and County Mayor Billy Kyne, the County Manager Denis McCarthy introduced the Minister and stated how "Waterford has so much to offer tourist and visitors, from Dunmore East to Ballyduff, mountains to the sea.  Lismore has been very important to tourism in County Waterford in the past and with the new brand uniting all the visitor attractions and amenities under one banner this will continue into the future."

Minister Varadkar launched the brand and presented the winning college WIT with a cheque for €3000.00.  Laura Keane the winner designer accepted the prize and was thrilled to see her work on mugs, bags and t-shirts.  It was a very proud moment for Laura and her family.

The Lismore Brand will be administered from Lismore Heritage Company and anyone wanting to use the logo or get involved in the brand can contact Mealla Fahey at Lismore Heritage Centre, on 058 54975 or e-mail:meallafahey@lismoreheritage.ie

Brand Lismore Caption Competition



As part of Lismore’s 400th anniversary celebrations on 6th May WIT student, Laura Keane, was presented with her prize for designing the winning Brand Lismore logo by Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport Leo Varadkar.

This lovely relaxed shot of Laura and Minister Varadkar chatting with three costumed beauties (Becky McCloskey, Ellen McCloskey and Sarah Nugent Shanahan) in the background really caught our eye here in Lismore Heritage Centre. We want a caption for this great photo. We are running a competition on our Facebook page to find a winning phrase. You can enter simply by commenting on the picture which is pinned to the top of our page. Our favourite caption will win a voucher for The Craft Shop and you can enter as often as you like!

Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Storytime Sessions at Lismore Library

Summer Season now underway!

The popular Storytime Sessions will continue to take place on the first Friday of each month at Lismore Library.  Sessions start at 2.15pm (3&4yr olds) 3.15pm (5&6yr olds) & 4.15pm (7-10yr olds).

We are delighted to announce that Storytime will take part in this year’s Immrama Festival of Travel Writing. This special session will take place from 2pm-5pm on Friday 14th June at Lismore Library, and has been designed for children aged 7-11 years old.  To book a place, please contact Lismore Library on (058) 21377 or e-mail: mia.houlihan@gmail.com

All Storytime sessions are FREE and remember Open Books, Open Minds!