Summer Madness (festival)

Last updated

Summer Madness is Ireland's largest Christian festival. [1] It usually takes place over the first weekend in July. Beginning with the 2022 iteration, the festival site has been in lands adjacent to Portglenone Abbey.

Contents

The festival has been notable for its venues hosted by a number of nationwide and international charities, including Tearfund, Youth for Christ, International Justice Mission, 24-7 Prayer, Corrymeela Community, and Church of Ireland and Methodist Chaplaincy, Belfast, and for helping bring to prominence international musicians such as Rend Collective and Foy Vance.

Origins

The festival was commissioned thirty years ago by the Church of Ireland Youth Department. The first iteration of the festival was held at Castle Archdale, Lisnarick, County Fermanagh, then in Gosford Forest Park, County Armagh. Due to the foot-and-mouth crisis in 2001, the festival relocated to the King's Hall, where it remained until 2011. After relocating to Glenarm Castle for the 2012 festival, the event moved again to the current site in Portglenone in 2022.

Target audience

The festival is aimed at young people, and consistently targets those aged 15–25, and also caters for ages 5–11. The festival expects at least 1,700 people camping on site for the duration. [2]

Amenities and facilities

In 2008, a similar programme under the banner of 'Urban Soul' began in Dublin. In January 2008, Summer Madness started in Australia.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belfast</span> Capital of Northern Ireland

Belfast is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 10th-largest primary urban area in the United Kingdom and the second-largest city in Ireland. It had a population of 345,418 in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enniskillen</span> Town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland

Enniskillen is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of 13,823 at the 2011 Census. Enniskillen Castle was built in the 15th century as a stronghold of the Maguires, before coming under English control in the early 17th century. The castle and town were expanded during the Plantation of Ulster. It was the seat of local government for the former Fermanagh District Council, and is the county town of Fermanagh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Downpatrick</span> Town in Northern Ireland

Downpatrick is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about 21 mi (34 km) south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Its cathedral is said to be the burial place of Saint Patrick. Today, it is the county town of Down and the joint headquarters of Newry, Mourne and Down District Council. Downpatrick had a population of 10,822 according to the 2011 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Strabane</span> Town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland

Strabane is a town in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peel, Isle of Man</span> Human settlement in the Isle of Man

Peel is a seaside town and small fishing port in the Isle of Man, in the historic parish of German but administered separately. Peel is the third largest town in the island after Douglas and Ramsey but the fourth largest settlement, as Onchan has the second largest population but is classified as a village. Until 2016 Peel was also a House of Keys constituency, electing one Member of the House of Keys (MHK), who, from September 2015, was Ray Harmer. Peel has a ruined castle on St Patrick's Isle, and a cathedral, seat of the Diocese of Sodor and Man.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donaghadee</span> Human settlement in Northern Ireland

Donaghadee is a small town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies on the northeast coast of the Ards Peninsula, about 18 miles (29 km) east of Belfast and about six miles (10 km) south east of Bangor. It is in the civil parish of Donaghadee and the historic barony of Ards Lower. It had a population of 6,869 people in the 2011 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Royal Hillsborough</span> Human settlement in Northern Ireland

Royal Hillsborough, more commonly known simply as Hillsborough, is a village and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland, 19 km (12 mi) from the city of Belfast. It is within the Lisburn and Castlereagh District Council area. The village is noted for its Georgian architecture. It is home to Hillsborough Castle, the British royal family's official residence in Northern Ireland, and residence of the British Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballymena</span> Town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Ballymena is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 29,551 people at the 2011 Census, making it the eighth largest town in Northern Ireland by population. It is part of the Borough of Mid and East Antrim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ballymoney</span> Town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Ballymoney is a town and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is within the Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council area. The civil parish of Ballymoney is situated in the historic baronies of Dunluce Upper and Kilconway in County Antrim, as well as the barony of North East Liberties of Coleraine in County Londonderry. It had a population of 10,402 people at the 2011 Census.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Methodist College Belfast</span> Voluntary grammar school in Belfast, County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Methodist College Belfast (MCB), locally known as Methody, is a co-educational voluntary grammar school in Belfast, located at the foot of the Malone Road, Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1865 by the Methodist Church in Ireland and is one of eight Northern Irish schools represented on the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference. It is also a member of the Independent Schools Council and the Governing Bodies Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dromore, County Down</span> Town and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland

Dromore is a small market town and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland. It lies within the local government district of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon. It is 19 miles (31 km) southwest of Belfast, on the A1 Belfast–Dublin road. The 2011 Census recorded a population of 6,003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenisland</span> Human settlement in Northern Ireland

Greenisland is a town in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies 7 miles north-east of Belfast and 3 miles south-west of Carrickfergus. The town is on the coast of Belfast Lough and is named after a tiny islet to the west, the Green Island.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portglenone</span> Village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Portglenone is a village and civil parish in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies 8.5 miles (14 km) west of Ballymena. It had a population of 1,174 people in the 2011 Census. Portglenone is beside the smaller village of Glenone, from which it is separated by the River Bann.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenarm</span> Village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland

Glenarm is a village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It lies on the North Channel coast north of the town of Larne and the village of Ballygalley, and south of the village of Carnlough. It is situated in the civil parish of Tickmacrevan and the historic barony of Glenarm Lower. It is part of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council and had a population of 568 people in the 2011 Census. Glenarm takes its name from the glen in which it lies, the southernmost of the nine Glens of Antrim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raphoe</span> Town in County Donegal, Ireland

Raphoe is a small town in County Donegal in the north-west of Ulster, the northern province in Ireland. It is the main town in the fertile district of East Donegal known as the Laggan, as well as giving its name to the Barony of Raphoe, which was later divided into the baronies of Raphoe North and Raphoe South, as well as to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Raphoe and the Church of Ireland (Anglican) Diocese of Derry and Raphoe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moira, County Down</span> Human settlement in Northern Ireland

Moira is a village and civil parish in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is in the northwest of the county, near the border with counties Antrim and Armagh. The M1 motorway and Belfast–Dublin railway line are nearby. The population was 4,591 at the 2011 Census.

Culnady is a small village near Maghera in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. In the 2001 Census it had a population of 144 people. It is situated within Mid-Ulster District.

The National Scout and Guide Symphony Orchestra (NSGSO) was formed in 1976 by George Odam and Sue Stevens as a joint youth orchestra of The Scout Association and Girlguiding in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glenarm Castle</span>

Glenarm Castle, Glenarm, County Antrim, Northern Ireland, is the ancestral home of the Earl of Antrim.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harold Miller (bishop)</span> Irish Anglican bishop

Harold Creeth Miller is a retired Irish Anglican bishop. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Down and Dromore in the Church of Ireland. Coming from a Methodist background, he was elected bishop in 1997 and was considered to represent an evangelical position within the Church.

References

  1. "Sumer Madness, Ireland's largest Christian Festival".
  2. "Summer Madness Christian youth festival underway". Belfast News Letter. 27 June 2014. Retrieved 10 March 2017.