I had the pleasure of seeing The Waterboys at the Millenium Forum in Derry last night. Appropriately, when I was leaving the house, a full moon greeted me when I opened the door, shining down in all its glory, so I took it as a good sign for the night ahead.

Halloween is a big deal over here and Derry revived the spectacle a few years ago so it is the go to place now for Halloween. Halloween is the old pagan festival of Samhain which was a time to remember the dead, and signified the beginning of winter and the end of Bealtaine. If you have never been, you should make an effort to come at least once. You won’t regret it.  (See links below)

The streets of Derry were buzzing as the celebrations had all kicked off on Saturday and, luckily, I got a parking space quite close to the theatre.

The show itself was brilliant, the band were electric and so were the crowd. A special mention for Brother Paul Brown on keyboards who absolutely rocked with infectious joy. Mike Scott is not just a song writer and singer but has the soul of a poet. In a past life, he was probably Aengus, a mythic God associated with youth, love, summer and poetic inspiration, from the land of Tir na N’og which translates as Land of the Young or Eternal Youth. WB Yeats also wrote a poem about him, Wandering Aengus.

The Waterboys has to be one of the best shows I’ve been to and I will certainly make an effort to see them again. They will be playing around Ireland this week and, if you get a chance, go see them but, if you can’t, they are headlining the Sign of the Times Festival next year in Hertfordshire, England from 5-7 July.

Ancient Samhain (Halloween) Celebration & Traditions In Ireland (yourirish.com)

Derry Halloween

Aengus Óg: The Irish God of Love (brehonacademy.org)

Tír Na nÓg - The legend of the land of eternal youth (irishcentral.com)

A very busy weekend,  I was at a friends surprise birthday party on Halloween night before we all headed to Voodoo in Letterkenny for the revelry, which is a sort of open mike night.  Some of our friends were doing the Rocky Horror Picture Show, which was brilliant, and a great night was had by all!  Halloween is a big night here, it originates from the Celtic tradition, where it was believed the spirits of the dead came back on this night to revisit all their old 'haunts' although i think we have more to fear from the living when full of spirits than the spirits of those we loved and lost.

Then on Saturday i had another party to attend but this one was the EGM of the Green Party, in Bangor.  I finally decided a few weeks ago to get involved in politics instead of just sounding off on the blog, so I joined the Green Party which was the only party I could join in good conscience.  So, i am now officially the only Green Party member in town, for now i might add!  I'll be doing my best to recruit new members and the party in enjoying a surge in membership at the moment, let's hope it continues.