The Final Draft > Upcoming Festival in Kilkenny – The Cat Laugh’s Festival
Upcoming Festival in Kilkenny – The Cat Laugh’s Festival
Upcoming Festival in Kilkenny – The Cat Laugh’s Festival
As the days get longer, the weather warms and the outdoors invites us all to leave our homes and start hanging out again, festival season fires up again too, to keep us entertained over the Spring and summer months. From the country music meetup to the mouth-watering food festival, Kilkenny knows how to put on a great event! If you are looking for weekend activities in Kilkenny this blog is for you.
Of course, there’s one festival that Kilkenny is most famous for. Now in its 31st year, the Kilkenny Cat Laughs Festival is kicking off over the June Bank Holiday weekend and as always, there’s an incredible line up of worldwide names and up-and-coming talent all there for one reason - to get you laughing your whiskers off. Over the weekend the city is set to host some 30,000 people all flocking to the streets of Kilkenny to attend the annual “craic pilgrimage” that is Cat Laughs.
There’s a serious roster of 34 comedians gracing the festival this year, with a carefully put together bill that includes plenty of beloved Irish comedy household names, a dozen or so hand-picked newcomers from Ireland, Scotland and England making their Cat Laughs debut.
Jason Byrne, the king of unhinged, will be bringing his sharp-as-a-tack observational comedy with a healthy dose of absolute chaos for a couple of shows. Deadpan dote David O’Doherty is on the bill too, surely with some new bangers to sing for us. Deirdre O’Kane is returning again with her razor-sharp shenanigans, and Neil Delamere will be weaving stories that capture Irish life like only he can. You can also see Emma Doran, Chris Kent, Kyla Cobbler, Gearoid Farrelly, and Shane Todd, all of whom have been taking the Irish comedy scene by storm in the past years.
The guys at Cat Laughs have also carefully scouted and curated a selection of new acts this year who’ll be making their Cat Laughs debut. As brilliant as the Cat Laughs is for big names, it’s a fantastic place to have a first look at comedy’s future too.
Tickets are on sale now for all the weekend’s shows, and with a few events already sold out we recommend you get your hat in the ring fast to make sure you get to see the comedians of your choice.
Of course, we’re open for the entire weekend too, with tours running from 10:30am to 6:30pm every day - so in between comedy sets make sure you get your best brewery tour in as well. We promise our tour guides like to crack the odd joke too…
What other festivals in Kilkenny should I not miss?
Kilkenny is a vibrant city with a lot going on in terms of music, history and culture. For music lovers there is the Music Series at the Rose Garden at Kilkenny Castle on around March 9th -May 6. Also, there is the famous Kilkenny Arts Festival which is a must attend. More information on festivals happening in Kilkenny can be seen here.