Step back in time at Cork town's Medieval Festival this weekend

The annual Youghal Medieval Festival is set to return to East Cork this weekend.

The festival, hosted at St Mary’s College Gardens and Collegiate Church, will take place on August 3 from 11am to 5pm. Presented by Cork County Council and delivered by Living Youghal, the festival is supported by The Irish Walled Towns Network, and continues to be one of Ireland’s leading heritage events. The event celebrates Youghal’s medieval history, offering the chance to step back in time in one of the country’s best-preserved walled towns.

VIKING

This year’s programme will give attendees the opportunity to explore a medieval village complete with viking warriors from the White Horse Living Society, who will recreate everyday life in the viking camp, including live cooking demonstrations and battle re-enactments.

The School of Irish Archaeology is also inviting children to try their hand at an archaeological excavation in “The Big Dig”, mint their own viking coins, craft medieval beads and pouches, and personalise a viking dagger with ancient runic inscriptions.

The Mayor of the County of Cork, councillor Mary Linehan Foley, said that an economic evaluation of the festival has shown an impact of more than €80,000 for the local economy.

“It is a great pleasure to welcome the much-anticipated medieval festival back to Youghal,” said Ms Linehan Foley.

 “It holds a special place in the town’s calendar and is a driver of local tourism and economic activity.

“An independent evaluation has valued its economic impact at over €850,000, which speaks volumes about the scale and significance of what this one-day event brings to the town.