Petition launched to bring All-Ireland Fleadh back to Derry

A petition has been launched to demand that Derry City and Strabane District Council do all it can to secure a return of the All-Ireland Fleadh to Derry.

Almost 450,000 people took to the streets when the city hosted the eight-day event as part of its City Culture celebrations in 2013, the first time it was staged in the North.

Following its huge success, it was hoped it would return.

Since it was held in Derry, the event has been staged twice in Sligo (2014-2015), twice in Ennis in Co Clare (2016-2017) and twice in Drogheda in Co Louth (2018-2019).

It was not staged in 2020 and last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and returned earlier this month to be held in Mullingar in Co Westmeath which hosted the very first Fleadh in 1951.

The petition has been launched by local campaigner Steve Bradley who said the Fleadh was the 'standout event' in Derry’s 2013 City of Culture year.

He added: “The organisers of the 2013 Fleadh, Comhaltas Céoltoirí Éireann (CCE), were very cautious before that event, as it was the first time it was held either north of the border or in a city. As a result, whilst it was normal for host locations to be awarded the Fleadh for two years in a row, Derry only got it as a one-off.

“As soon as the Derry event was over, CCE realised that their concerns had been misplaced - and they spoke in glowing terms about what had been the biggest and most successful Fleadh ever.

"They, therefore, told the media that they would be happy to bring the Fleadh back to Derry again.

"But since then nothing has been done to make that a reality. Sligo, Ennis, Drogheda and now Mullingar have all had the chance to hold the Fleadh twice since then, with Wexford and Belfast now also bidding to hold it in future years.

Steve Bradley who has launched the petition

"So, the promise to bring the Fleadh back to Derry appears to have been quickly forgotten about.”

Mr Bradley explained the petition called on the council to bring together 'all appropriate stakeholders' to launch a successful bid for Derry to host the event 'at the earliest opportunity.'

He added: “The 2013 Fleadh in Derry was a huge success - with over 430,000 people attending, and crowds at many competitions significantly above usual levels.

"It was also notably the first time that the unionist musical tradition on this island was included in a Fleadh - an innovation that Comhaltas then continued. Our city, therefore, held a truly groundbreaking event, with the Fleadh being good for Derry and Derry being good for the Fleadh.

“In the decade since then, this city has become even more accomplished at running large-scale public events, as witnessed by Halloween and the Clipper Maritime Festival. So, I have no doubt that an All-Ireland Fleadh held in Derry today would be even bigger, better and more innovative than it was in 2013.

“Everyone I’ve spoken to locally has great memories of the event from 2013 and is very keen to see it return here. That’s why I’ve launched a petition so people can show the support that exists locally for the event, and to force the Council and our elected representatives to make bringing the Fleadh back to Derry a priority.”

The petition can be found at https://chng.it/QmfBn87QwZ or by visiting www.Change.org and searching ‘All-Ireland Fleadh Derry.’