Entertainment

The Kids Zone is back at Castlebar 9s and it's bigger and better than ever! Running from 12pm to 3pm on both Saturday and Sunday, there will be fun and games galore for the little ones including facepainting and plenty of activities to keep them entertained. The highlight? A real fire engine will be on site for the kids to explore and look around — so bring the whole family and let the kids have the time of their lives while you enjoy the football and music!

Sandra Ganley is the founder of Jiving Juniors. She holds a BA in Irish music and dance from the Irish World Academy and her love for the Irish country music scene then drove her to create a dance school to teach children jive and social dance. Sandra will teach your children (and you!) how to jive, waltz, quickstep, foxtrot and line dance on Saturday and Sunday from 1pm and this will be the best fun you will have in a cowboy hat over the weekend! No special shoes, no dance items, just you , your children and a willingness to have a bit of fun to ‘Wagon Wheel’, ’Stop The World’, and whatever you’re having yourself! Sandra’s teaching style is infectious so we recommend you get the on time or you just might miss the fun!

Paddy Heneghan is a member of the Mitchels senior panel and missed out on playing on stage last year at the Mitchels ended up playing in the final, going on to win the competition. Paddy comes from a family deeply rooted in the musical heritage of the west of Ireland, and he is an All-Ireland champion singer, accomplished uilleann piper, skilled fiddle player as well as a powerful guitarist. Sean Loughran, also from Castlebar will make up this power-duo with Paddy. Sean is a multi instrumentalist too and a graduate from the BA in Irish Music at the Irish World Academy Limerick. They will kick off the music on Sunday.

Dan O’Donaghue is an award-winning corporate close-up and stage magician/mentalist that is widely recognised as one of the best and most professional performers in Ireland. Dan has over 50 years experience in the magic arts and spent a lot of his time in Las Vegas where he excelled giving poker cheating demonstrations. He is the creator of Dublin’s famous ‘Ghost Bus’ and has created many highly-acclaimed magic shows over the years. Originally from Tipperary, Dan now resides in Newport and is very busy performing at weddings, parties, corporate event, festivals, etc. He is truly magical. Dan performs like a man that holds a doctorate in deception! He ‘appears’ on Sunday at 3pm.

Daire and Tommy are a dynamic duo lighting up pubs and bars across County Mayo and beyond. Daire takes the lead on vocals and guitar, delivering crowd-pleasing tunes with heart and soul, while Tommy keeps things lively on bass and violin, adding rich harmonies that bring every chorus home. From rock classics to sing-along favourites, they serve up great music, good craic, and the kind of atmosphere that turns a quiet pint into a night to remember. If you hear cheering from down the street, chances are Tommy and Daire are in full swing. The lads will be performing from 4pm on the Sunday and really looking forward to their third year performing at the Castlebar 9s

Chris & Dave came to fame back in 2013 when they released their huge hit for the All Ireland Final that year, “Mayo For Sam”. With one half a million views and thousands of followers on Spotify, these guys know how to have fun. Always up for the craic, they have had many great events in their career including appearing on ‘Up For The Match’, regular tours of Germany, guests on radio shows and headliners for local festivals. They took a break from the music about 5 years ago but as both are keen GAA, they could not turn down the opportunity to play for Castlebar 9s. They take to the stage on Sunday at 6.30pm. Don’t miss this one-off, special appearance.

The Unusual Ramblers bring proceedings of the festival to a close on Sunday night. They brought the house, or the marquee!, down the last two years and the band is lead by Stephen Doherty from Foxford. Stephen is one of the best and most respected musicians in Ireland and recently just returned from a tour with Lunasa. He is a regular on TV and radio and also shared the stage with other artists like, Sean Keane, Dolores Keane, We Banjo 3, Dougie MacLean, Michael McGoldrick, Dermot Byrne, Slide,  Sharon Shannon, Tommy Flemming and more. In his band he has Jim Higgins (drums), David Doocey (fiddle), Ronan Brennan (guitar), Ken Campbell (bass) and will also be joined this year by Laura Jo. This promises to be a very exciting line-up of music!