The 58th Mary From Dungloe International Arts Festival 2025 is back from July 26th to August 4th, bringing ten days of vibrant cultural, family, musical events to the heart of Dungloe, County Donegal.
The Mary From Dungloe International Arts Festival is a celebration of Irish Culture, Arts, Music, Song and Dance held every year in July/August . The 10 day festival culminates in the crowning of the Mary From Dungloe who, for the next year, will take on an Ambassadorial role in promoting the Festival and County Donegal at home and throughout the world.
The festival takes it’s inspiration from the song written in the early 1930’s and recorded in 1967 by the Emmet Spiceland Ballad Group. The idea of a Festival, to attract more visitors from the UK in July-August, originated with a group of local people chatting one evening in Sweeney’s Hotel and someone suggested “a Mary Festival”
The central theme of the Festival has always been to welcome visitors and our Irish Communities from around the world back to Donegal, the Rosses and the Donegal Gaeltacht. Within months Donegal Associations across the UK and USA and Ireland promoted the idea and selected their first “Mary” representative. A young lady from County Galway, Celine Powell, representing Dublin won the 1st Mary From Dungloe in 1968. We are so pleased to still welcome Celine and her Family to Dungloe annually.
Great credit must go to the voluntary festival directors and committee members, who, for almost 60 years, have inspired a wonderful Community spirit which goes into the organisation of the Festival events.
Whilst many of the Festival events have remained with us there is now a greater emphasis in the festival programme for Arts, support for the skills and talents of our younger generation, and bringing our Irish Language to the fore at all events.
The Festival programme, as Gaeilge agus Béarla, encourage the visitors to immerse themselves in many activities throughout the week. To quote the late Gay Byrne in a TV interview “ The Mary from Dungloe Festival is a unique attraction for all visitors and emigrants who can experience the cultural wealth of this Community in West Donegal and a wonderful opportunity to explore this truly beautiful County.”
The 10 day Festival programme covers everything from the Street Music, Vintage Car Show, Fashion Show, Childrens sports and entertainment, Daniel’s Country Sunday, Showband Night, Lá Gaelach, Gala Ball, Crowning Cabaret, the Gay Byrne Walking Trails, the Carnival Parade etc.etc. We welcome a new event in 2025, the Food & Drinks Fayre which will give Donegal food and drinks producers, together with five top Donegal chef’s, a wonderful opportunity to showcase their products and culinary skills.
This is a festival not to be missed!