A magical wrap at Lough Key as 10,000 people enjoyed Night & Day
10,000 festival-goers gathered across three days for the festival at Lough Key Forest Park. Pics: David Knight www.davidknightphotographer.com
The banks of Lough Key fell quiet today, Monday, as the gates closed on the most successful Night and Day Festival to date.
10,000 festival-goers gathered across three days (May 29th–31st) for the independent, artist-driven festival, transforming the historic 19th-century parklands of Lough Key Forest Park into a vibrant hub of music, art, and brilliant community connection.
Closing out the weekend on Sunday night, legendary rock icon Bob Geldof and his band, The Boomtown Rats, delivered an unforgettable, high-octane headlining performance that shook the North Roscommon woodland.
Playing to a packed, high-energy crowd of up to 5,000 fans on the main lawn, Geldof took the audience on a journey through the band’s historic catalogue, proving exactly why they remain enduring stars of the Irish rock movement.
Speaking right after coming off stage, Geldof praised the Roscommon crowd, calling them "fantastic" and expressing a deep desire to play the venue again. He fondly recalled his own childhood memories of visiting Lough Key Forest Park and joked about his younger days in the music scene: "Back in the day, we tried to get a gig in nearby Carrick-on-Shannon, but we were told to f off! It’s brilliant to come back all these years later to this magical setting."
While international stars illuminated the main stage, the true heartbeat of the 2026 festival was its profound celebration of local cultural heritage and youth engagement, driven by major community partnerships.
• The Carolan Collective on Tour: Honoring the legendary local legacy of harper Turlough O’Carolan, the Collective delivered an interactive weekend of traditional music. Showcasing Turlough OCarolans Harp music and other local composers created fresh interest in regional traditional music across all generations.
• Roscommon Installations & Craft: Local artists and creators brought the forest to life with striking visual art installations, heritage rope-making crafts, art-kite workshops, and circus skill zones constructed from locally sourced materials.
• Youth & Inclusive Stages: The festival proudly spotlighted rising regional stars through Music Generation showcases and collaborated closely with Our Voice FM to ensure the entire festival site remained accessible, community-centered, and deeply inclusive.
• The Carolan Collective ran by Mossie Martin and David Knight ran the Una Bhan stage in conjuction with Creative Roscommon which featured local musicians aand poets. The Carrick based BR Bistro art Gallery featured local artists Malachy Costello and Bashkin Berisha
From the stellar opening chords of Irish legends like The Saw Doctors and Hothouse Flowers to the final echoing cheers for Bob Geldof - intertwined with the timeless traditional melodies of the Carolan Collective - Night and Day 2026 solidified its position as a masterclass in how a major music festival can gracefully balance world-class headliners with authentic local soul.
Planning and early development for Night and Day Festival 2027 are already underway.
Night & Day is supported by Creative Ireland, Roscommon County Council, and local community broadcast partners.
