The big nights return to the Fethard Ballroom

A night of celebration will take place in Fethard to mark the reopening of the legendary ballroom venue in the town.
Significant renovation work, including the provision of a new roof, combined with the Covid pandemic, meant the ballroom lay idle for the last two years.
Social dancing has resumed but the first big night to be held at the ballroom takes place on Saturday, March 19.
Ronan Collins will bring his Showband Hits and Stories to the Fethard Ballroom to kick off a new era in entertainment at the popular hall.
“It will be a celebration to mark the reopening of the ballroom. We are all delighted that the big nights are back in Fethard,” said Sean O’Donovan, one of the team of locals behind a fundraising campaign to fund the new roof and the renovation project.
Sean said that the building was now in top shape and he thanked everybody involved in creating an opportunity for the major entertainment nights to return.
“The new roof and securing funding to back it up was a huge task and we are thrilled that the venue is now set up for the future,” said Sean.
The show is a huge event for Fethard Ballroom as it is the first major gig to be held at the venue for some years.
Covid and the significant renovation work carried out to the building brought an enforced period of inactivity for the venue.
Now it is all systems go and for the showbands extravaganza.
Ronan Collins will be making a return to Fethard after a long number of years.
He appeared at the Fethard Ballroom years ago as a guest with Gina & The Champions and also when he was a drummer with the Dickie Rock band in the mid seventies.
The show, as the name suggests, is a night of nostalgia with songs and memories of the great showband stars like Butch Moore, Joe Dolan, Dickie Rock, Brendan O’Brien, Sean Dunphy and many more.
Ronan’s interest in showbands goes back to about 1967 when he saw Dickie Rock and The Miami in the Adelphi Cinema in Dublin and his fascination with the bands began when he started playing drums with various bands in Dublin which led to Ronan getting a job with Dickie Rock’s band in 1976.
After over three years on the road however Ronan left the touring and travelling and started a new career as a radio presenter with the new RTE 2 radio, the beginning of nearly forty three years of broadcasting.
But the love of playing and performing never left Ronan’s heart and in 2008 he returned to the stage with the Ronan Collins Showband Show which was followed by the acclaimed Ronan Collins Reeling in the Showband Years show.
Now in 2022 Ronan is back on the road with Showband Hits and Stories with the Sugarcubes band featuring Karen Black of the Nevada and Musical Director Eugene McCarthy leading a five piece band
You can sit and relax and listen or you can get up and dance the night away as Ronan has asked that there be some floor space available for dancing.
And unlike the old days in the ballrooms there will be a bar with refreshments available, and a bar extension, and of course tea, coffee and minerals.
So make it a date - Saturday, March 19 for the long St Patrick’s Day weekend.
The show is on at 8pm and tickets are available at Fethard Post Office.(052 6131217).

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