May - From Roots to The Boss - they came from far and near to rock Kilkenny city

Diarmid Lyng introduced ‘wild hurling’ to the Callan Open Doors festival Picture: Harry Reid

To mark the 10th anniversary of the disappearance of Kilkenny man Dean Roche, a new documentary was aired on TG4. Further developments in the search were to take place later in the year.

There was a rare and special experience for locals this month, when the Northern Lights were visible in the night sky! A powerful solar storm was credited with allowing the natural phenomenon to be seen far from its usual home of Iceland, Greenland and Northern Scandinavia.

Pedal power replace horse power on Kilkenny City’s High Street when a new bike lane was installed. Running from The Parade to Parliament Street, the new lane was an instant hit with cyclists.

This month ground was broken on the new €4.6 million library complex in Thomastown, while the Urlingford ‘Exit 4’ remote working hub was opened by Minister Heather Humphreys.

In May the city rocked to the tune of the ever-popular Roots Festival which would later prompt one festival-goer to pen a letter to this newspaper saying: ‘If Kilkenny was heaven, I would be cool with it’.