Midlands food businesses selected for Grow with ALDI Competition
Three Midlands Producers have been selected among the 27 finalists for the Grow with ALDI Competition, 2024. Among this year’s finalists is Tullamore-based business BiaSol, Le Skinny Chef from Laois and Westmeath’s Sugar Plum Sweetery. Celebrating the launch of Grow with ALDI 2024. Photo: Leon Farrell / Photocall Ireland The 27 ambitious suppliers have earned […]
Midlands Companies for National Enterprise Awards, 2024
Four Midlands companies are going forward to the 2024 National Enterprise Awards, which takes place at the Mansion House in Dublin on May 23rd. 31 companies will be competing against eachother for a share of the €35,000 prize fund. The National Enterprise Awards are the highlight of the small business and enterprise calendar. Categories this […]
Local Enterprise Week, Midlands 2024
Local Enterprise Week is organised every year by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices across the country. This year Local Enterprise Week takes place from Monday, March 6th to Friday, March 10th! Check out some of highlights taking place in the Midlands region. Longford Highlights Join the Local Enterprise Office Longford, in conjunction with Longford Chamber, on Monday, 4th March 2024, […]
Fore Distillery, why not give it a shot!
Fore Distillery is a new craft distillery producing it’s own Golden Rum, White Rum, Poitin and Whiskey. Located close to the picturesque village and Fore Abbey in County Westmeath, they offer guided tours and tasting, with the ‘Barrel and Bean Cafe’ on site. Head Distiller & Founder, Oliver Guirke gives the guided tours and tasting, […]
Midlands allocated €15.5 million for Active Travel
The National Transport Authority (NTA) has allocated €15.5 million in funding to local authorities in the Midlands with a view to spending on walking and cycling infrastructure in 2024. This substantial investment will fund approximately 800 Active Travel projects throughout the country, with 1,000km of new and improved walking and cycling infrastructure between 2020 and […]
Fresh Milk from Boora Bainne in Offaly
“During covid, there were long queues for the milk and the conversation”. (Paul Molloy) Boora Bainne is a self service milk vending machine, situated beside Lough Boora Discovery Park, on the road between Blue Ball and Cloghan in County Offaly. Run by Dairy Farmer, Paul Molloy, he is an entrepreneur full of ideas. After the […]
Midlands Arts Grants for 2024
Here are a selection of the Arts Grant funding available now throughout the midlands. The funding is essential to ensure a standard of high quality art is produced by artists in the region. It serves It offers to support artists for a period of time, and in so doing responds to the needs of those […]
Lough Ree Distillery enters new phase
The family-run Lough Ree micro-distillery began in 2018 in Lanesborough, County Longford. Now entering Phase 2, a full-scale commercial whiskey distillery and visitor experience is about to begin construction on site. With sales and exports growing, a new site is required to enable greater production of it’s multi award winning whiskey, gin and vodka. Producers […]
O’Mimos Sauces a sizzling success
Mimo is adding fresh sage and plenty of it to her Apple Jam sauce mix when I arrive at her house in Portarlington, County Laois. With her husband Seamus O Flynn, she runs O’ Mimos sauces. They set up their successful Sauce business a week before lockdown making; ‘Not so hot’, the ‘Hot Hot’ and […]
Midlands Christmas Markets & Santa Visits
If you want to find out where your local Christmas Market is this year, have a look at our list of where and when they will be taking place across Laois, Longford, Westmeath and Offaly. Supporting local is the driving force behind many of our local Christmas Markets. It is an opportunity to meet old […]
Healthy ÍON oils produced in Laois
“I really love the Irish way of living, especially the magnetism of the Irish people” (Andrea Milley) It took Andrea and Markus Milley, both hailing from Germany, to return home to realise how much they cherished Ireland. Now settled back on their farm in Clonanny, Portarlington, they are producing their own edible cold pressed oils. […]
A look at Midlands Science Week
The Midlands Science Festival, supported by Science Foundation Ireland, as part of National Science Week, is taking place from 7th – 19th November. The theme for Science Week 2023 is Human, which asks people to consider what it means to be human in today’s world, and how the decisions we make today will impact the […]
Ballycommon Training Centre, where the heart is.
Ballycommon Training Centre is not just a training provider hub in County Offaly, it has become the beating heart of the community there. Situated just ten minutes from Tullamore, Geashill and Daingean. According to Manage,r Deirdre Arnold, Ballycommon Training Centre was established by the community for the community; “this is the absolute heart of the […]
Music in the Midlands
Whether you prefer the cosy surrounds of a local pub, or the massive arena of the Electric Picnic, the midlands has become a great space to host large and small events. Also included here is the Music Generation in the Midlands which has three strong groups of music educators across the region.
Rothar Rogues from Durrow, Laois
“Rothar Rogues are a mens shed on wheels,” according to founding member Hughie Shepherd. ‘Mary’s Kitchen’ in Ballyragget is a meeting point and pit stop for Laois’ Rothar Rogues. Drinking tea and eating cake is certainly an important part of the daily routine for it’s members. Hughie tells me with a laugh, they are a […]
Klaaskickz, Mullingar leaps into success
“50% of Primary School Kids in Ireland, can’t kick a ball correctly.” (Belton, 2020) What are Klaaskickz colour coded boots? A Mullingar based company ‘Klaaskickz’ has created and developed colour-coded football boots to help children under 10 to learn the basics of kicking through colours and development of the fundamental movement skills. Klaaskickz is named […]
Local Enterprise Village showcases Midlands Companies at the Ploughing Championships
Spotlight on Four Midlands Businesses at the Local Enterprise Village Year on year, the Local Enterprise Village proves to be one of the most popular destinations for visitors to the Ploughing Championships. This year, over 30 small businesses from across the country will get an opportunity to sell and promote themselves to crowds of almost 300,000 […]
National Ploughing Championships, the Statistics
The National Ploughing Championships has grown to be Europe’s largest outdoor agricultural trade expo, with approximately 300,000 attendees over three days. We are taking a look at the statistics behind the larger than life event which runs next week from September 19th to 21st. From 25 to 1,700 stands “There were 25 stands at that […]
May the force be with Anna May McHugh
As I approach the IPA (Irish Ploughing Association) Headquarters in Ballylinan, County Laois, I realise I am not entering an office but a home. Anna May’ McHugh’s house is of course the home of the Ploughing, only a few kilometres from Ratheniska where the Championships take place. There are scores of people upstairs and down, […]
Dream comes true for Stradbally singer
“It’s a dream come true to be able to play at one of Ireland’s biggest music festivals” (‘Just Alice’ winner of Electric Youth) Stradbally singer Alice Laffan (Just Alice) has just won the Electric Youth Competition and will now perform on the Hazelwood Stage at the Electric Picnic this weekend. With great excitement she said, […]
The new Portlaoise Library
Aoife Moore, librarian, walks with a spring in her step as she shows me around the stunning new Portlaoise Library. The brightness and vast space are the first things that catch your eye. The high walls and open plan of the building create an atmosphere ideal for calm and concentration. The front lobby offers a […]
A look inside Charleville Castle
For Heritage Week, Charleville Castle opened it’s door to the public and thanks to Offaly based photographer Kenneth Smyth you can see it in all it’s glory. Charleville Castle was located 3km southwest of Tullamore, look out for the huge ancient oaks. Charleville was the family seat of the Burys, who commissioned the design in […]
Carrigmeal is Laois’ Tir na nÓg
New Outdoor Classroom There’s a reason why the looped walk in Carrigmeal in County Laois is called Tir nÓg. Named after the land of eternal youth, landowner James Deegan has dedicated 70 acres of his land to his beloved children and grandchildren. Next month when the schools reopen, a beautiful outdoor wooded classroom will be […]
Veteran Offaly Inventor returns to Tullamore Show
Veteran Inventor, Tony Bergin will be at the National Inventions competition segment of the Tullamore Show this Sunday. The renowned 93-year old inventor from Cooleshall on the Offaly/Tipperary border shows no signs of slowing down as he will take part in the Tullamore show for the 26th year. Only last year, he won an award […]
Midlands Events for National Heritage Week
Where history comes alive… The theme for National Heritage Week 2023 from August 12th– 20th is ‘Living Heritage’. This theme is centred around the practices, knowledge and skills that have been passed from one generation to the next and are still in use today. Let’s look at activities taking place in Laois, Offaly, Westmeath and Longford […]
5 Midlands Festivals for the August Bank Holiday
With a series of highly anticipated gatherings, including the renowned Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann 2023, the Midlands solidifies its position as Ireland’s premier events destination. Here are 5 things to do for the weekend. 1: Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann The Fleadh Cheoil is back in Mullingar this August bank holiday weekend. With an estimated half […]
Dove House are ready for the Scarecrow Festival
Meet the All-Ireland Scarecrow reigning champions from Tús Nua, Dove House, Abbeyleix. They have just delivered their latest creation ‘The Capitalist Pig’ to The Scarecrow Festival in Durrow which kicks off this weekend in Laois. Dove house are going for three in a row! Fifteen members of Tús Nua in Abbeyleix have been working together […]
July Festivals in the Midlands
July is always a good month for the smaller festival, the calm before the storm perhaps. Ahead of the big Summer festivals like the Electric Picnic and Fleadh Ceoil na hEireann in Mullingar, let’s take a look at what the smaller festivals are doing across the midlands for the month of July. From Forest Fest […]
Bowes celebrates 10 years in business
This week, Bowes Foodhall & Café In Durrow County Laois, celebrates it’s 10th birthday. In July last year, Food Critic, Tom Doorley stopped off on his trip from Dublin to Cork and wanted to start a campaign for more ‘Boweism’ when he entered the foodhall. In his Daily Mail article, he had high praise “Bowe’s […]
Behind the Scenes at Durrow Scarecrow Festival
What happens when you walk into a room and find 40 mammies staring back at you? Worse still, ‘40 Scarecrow Mammies’, showing all sort of expressions, from anger to kindness and the one we fear the most, the mammy with the ‘disappointed stare’. Let’s go behind the scenes at this year’s Durrow Scarecrow Festival in […]
Emo Court most visited OPW site in the Midlands
The Office of Public Works (OPW) have announced that 2022 was another successful year for visitor numbers at its heritage sites. The number of recorded visitors last year exceeded 15 million, up by 2.3 million on 2021, an increase of 18%. In the Midlands alone, over half a million people visited OPW heritage sites which […]
RiverFest, the Midlands newest music festival
Where does Éanna Ryan find the time to hold down a full-time job, while running Lukers in Shannonbridge, a pub/restaurant/venue with his two brothers John Joe and Tomás? If that’s not enough, they are putting on a Music and Arts Festival called RiverFest in just under two weeks. 33-year-old Éanna, who works full-time for a […]
Dreamspace becomes reality in Longford
“The best way to predict the future is to build it now, and that’s exactly what we’re doing here today” – Danny Lynch, Head of IT, Longford County Council Microsoft and Ericsson team up with Longford County Council Over 300 local students converged on the Edgeworthstown Community Centre last Friday for a Coding Competition as […]
Biodiversity week, Midlands
Biodiversity Week takes place from Friday, May 19 to May 28 with free events and workshops and aims to engage the public in a range of nature-related activities, from bat walks, to dusk choruses, plant identification events and much more. Let’s have a look at the events taking place across the midlands. Biodiversity week, Westmeath […]
Midlands festivals this May Bank Holiday
The Midlands comes alive this weekend! In the aftermath of the very successful Granard Booktown Festival last weekend in Longford, the midlands really is the place to be this May Bank Holiday with the amount of festivals happening across the region. From the mountain Biking Blitz to Portlaoise Tradfest , the All Ireland Drama Festival […]
Nuts & Grains, Mullingar
“The thing about a health shop, like any local shop, we have to stock every little thing from toilet cleaner to face cream, but natural” (Marion Moffat, owner of Nuts & Grains) There’s something comforting about ‘Nuts & Grains’ on Friars Mill Road Mullingar. Maybe it’s the yeasty, herbal, soapy smell that permeate the shop […]
Fraynes Home Bakery, Mullingar
‘Fraynes Home Bakery and Coffee shop’ is a family-run business located on Mount Street, Mullingar since 1971. A framed news article on the wall reads; ‘Mullingar’s Oldest Bakery still thriving’. Fraynes is certainly withstanding all the new coffee chains and trendy barista cafés that have opened up over the last decade. Maybe it is the […]
Workshops at Coolamber, Westmeath
There will be an array of lifestyle and workshops held at Coolamber over the coming months. See details about the different workshops available below. Coolamber Garden, Westmeath is a hidden gem. Built in the 1800s, the house and garden has been restored to it’s former glory by Ann Marie Durkin and her husband. Originally from […]
The future is ‘Greenaer’
What is Greenaer, Mullingar? “It could be one of the most transformative purchases in your life” (Alan Maye, Greenaer) In the heart of the midlands, at Lough Sheever Business Park, Mullingar, you will discover ‘Greenaer’ and a glimpse in to the future. ‘Greenaer’ are part of the mobility revolution. Greenaer was set up by Olivier […]
Longford celebrates multicultural Ireland
Longford author and photographer Shelley Corcoran’s is releasing a new book called ‘The Most Irish Person‘. It celebrates the beautiful multicultural society Ireland has become over the past decade, featuring children from all different cultures. Because after all, we are all Irish! Shelley’s work has been published in many poetry anthologies and journals and her […]
Friends keep café open in Athlone
Have you ever wanted to purchase your local café because you loved it so much? When ‘Fine & Wine Food Company’ in Athlone, closed it’s doors, a group of friends got together and decided to buy it themselves. “If we didn’t do it, it would have been closed” explains Ciaran O’Connor, who runs the new […]
Garryhinch Wood Exotic Mushrooms
Garryhinch Wood Exotic is a long-standing family-run farm by Joe & Dolores Gorman, on the banks of the river Barrow on the borders of counties Laois and Offaly. They started off with 2 tunnels in 1989 successfully growing ‘button white mushrooms’ until July 2016 when their business collapsed due to Brexit. At the time, they […]
‘Hummingbird’ Portarlington, a home away from home.
“I do believe, we are being guided” Gillian Treacy Gillian Treacy and her husband Ronan took over ‘Mooney’s Drapery’ in the centre of Portarlington in 2019. Now a thriving cafe and interior design shop, Hummingbird Interiors, is a buzzing hub of activity. Gillian was severly injured in a car accident in 2014 which took the […]
Midlands Win Big at the Pride of Place Awards
A massive Congratulations to 2 Midlands groups, Mullingar and Geashill Tidy Towns on winning top place in their categories in the IPB National Pride of Place Award 2022. The Pride of Place awards, in it’s 20th year, were established to recognise the selfless efforts of people who make their local neighbourhoods better places to live, […]
Laois filmmaker needs your help!
A young up and coming filmmmaker, Reuben Harvey from Abbeyleix, County Laois is certainly one to watch. Just 22 years of age, he is shooting his final graduate film for Dun Laoghaire National Film School IADT, at the end of January in his hometown of Abbeyleix. Last year, he won a Royal Television Society Undergraduate […]
Family walks in the Midlands over Christmas
Fancy walking off the Christmas turkey, taking a little breather from the in-laws or just dragging your child away from their brand new Nintendo Switch over Christmas? Here are the ‘Midlands Walks of Christmas’, both forest and trail ways, to help you shake off the cobwebs. So lace up your boots, get your scarves ready […]
Brewing up a storm!
Breweries in the Midlands There is no better time of year than Christmas to support your local brewery. Beer consumption in Ireland can often lack variety, as it is often the same beverages that are sold in the majority of pubs. This may be due to demand and lack of knowledge of what else is […]
The Midlands Science Festival is back!
The Midlands Science Festival is back in person this year and it’s all free! There’s a wide range of activities happening in schools and clubs all over the midlands, from Forensic Science to the secret science of Golf, discover the night skies over Lough Boora Parklands and Pete the Vet is even here to explore […]
Destination Midlands
As the National Ploughing Championships announce that they’re on their way back to Laois for 2023, let’s look at the many festivals that are making the Midlands ‘the home of events’ in Ireland. Over 1 million people visited the Midlands region in recent months, attending a packed calendar of many of Ireland’s top Summer Events, […]
