One of the many wonderful things about being Irish is, of course, St. Patrick’s Day – still undeniably the most successful national holiday anywhere in the world, and celebrated by more people across the globe than even the Chinese New Year.
While the occasion is commemorated from Los Angeles to Sydney, there’s no doubt that the best place to experience it is right here in Ireland. And, as ever, 2006 offers a mouth-watering menu of things to do and see on this most special of days.

ST.PATRICK’S FESTIVAL
This year’s Festival, running from March 15 to March 19, offers its most impressive programme of events to date. Space precludes us from listing all the attractions on offer, but here’s a taster of some of the highlights:-

MARTIN HAYES AND DENNIS CAHILL with IARLA O LIONAIRD:
Thursday 16, Vicar Street, Dublin, 8pm
Serving up an intoxicating brew of traditional Irish music, jazz and blues, Hayes and Cahill have long been recognised as geniuses in their field. Masterful sean-nos singer Iarla O Lionaird joins them for the night, making this an unmissable occasion. Tickets €25 plus booking fee, at www.ticketmaster.ie

ST. PATRICK’S FESTIVAL ANNUAL PARADE:
Friday 17, starting 12 noon at Parnell Square North
Still the pre-eminent event in the city on Paddy’s Day, televised around the world and regarded as an unmissable highlight of the year by young children especially, this has legitimate claims to be the most famous parade in the world. It snakes its way down the city’s main thoroughfare, O’Connell Street, and through the city centre, for three hours of diverse and vibrant sights and sounds. International and Irish bands join performers and street theatre companies to present wonderfully entertaining pageants. In order to secure the best view possible, you could watch the parade from the comfort of a sheltered grandstand seat: seats are available online at www.stpatricksfestival.ie.
The Parade this year will be led by a man who has a legitimate claim to be Ireland’s favourite Dubliner: the legendary Ronnie Drew, adored across Ireland and beyond for more than four decades now. Drew achieved prominence in the 1960s as lead vocalist of the Ronnie Drew Folk Group, who soon transmuted into The Dubliners and achieved critical acclaim (as well as considerable commercial success) for their gritty, realistic and spirited reinterpretation of traditional Irish folk music. Boozy, raucous anthems like ‘Seven Drunken Nights’, as well as more reflective, melancholic material like the elegiac ‘Dublin In The Rare Aul’ Times’ have touched the hearts of generations, and heavily influenced latter-day heirs such as The Pogues.
Ronnie, as he’s known to all, leads the parade this year as Grand Marshall, an honour bestowed upon him by Festival chairperson Mary Davis in recognition and appreciation of his unique contribution to Dublin and Irish culture. No better man...

THE 56th IRISH BOAT RACE:
Saturday 18, 12 noon-1pm, starting O’Connell Bridge
Yes, you heard right. It may not be as celebrated as its English counterpart, but for those of you with a bit of outdoor sporting blood, the 56th annual Boat Race is a must-see. Getting underway at Bachelor’s Quay Boardwalk, and working its way toward a gripping climax at Heuston station, the race between old adversaries Trinity and UCD will be, as ever, a fiercely-contested affair.

ST. PATRICK’S FESTIVAL COMEDY CIRCUS:
Saturday 18, Vicar Street, Dublin, 8pm
A night of laughter and high-jinks with Ireland’s premier comedians – Barry Murphy and Dave McSavage – with special guest appearances by Phil Kay, Tara Flynn and many more. There will also be other, as yet unidentified special guests: tickets are €25 plus booking fee, and are available at www.ticketmaster.ie.

FILM PROGRAMME:
Sunday 19, Irish Film Institute, Eustace Street, Dublin 2 (times tbc)
For those of you of a cinematic bent, the Festival in association with the IFI is proud to present an evening of films selected by the great Scottish novelist, Irvine Welsh. Though often derided as populist, Welsh is undoubtedly one of the most important writers of the age, and two of the films he will introduce are undisputably masterpieces: 1955’s Night of the Hunter, starring Robert Mitchum as a psychopathic preacher, and 2004’s unbelievably sad and beautiful Adam And Paul, the tale of two Dublin junkies strung out beyond the point of no return. If you can sit through this movie without weeping (and laughing aloud), your soul is probably non-existent. The films will be followed by an on-stage interview with Irvine Welsh. Ticketing and time information are available from www.stpatricksfestival.ie.

DONKEYS AT DOCKLANDS:
Wednesday 15-Sunday 19, 10am-6pm, George’s Dock, IFSC, Docklands
Visitors to Dublin’s Docklands will encounter an unusual and dramatic visual spectacle as 50 life-sized photographs of donkeys go on display at George’s Dock in the IFSC. The photographs have been taken by the acclaimed Italian photographer and designer Oliviero Toscani, who will be in Dublin for the exhibition’s opening on Tuesday 14th March. Toscani is globally renowned as the creative force behind some of the world’s most successful brands, including Esprit, Valentino and Chanel. He is probably best known, though, as the man who between 1982 and 2000 built ‘United Colours of Benetton’ into one of the world’s most recognised brands, creating the company’s corporate image, identity and communications strategy.
‘Donkeys at Docklands’ also provides an opportunity to highlight the work of Ireland’s Donkey Sanctuary, part of an international group which aims to alleviate and prevent the suffering of donkeys worldwide through the provision of high quality professional advice, training and support on donkey welfare.
Visitors to Docklands during the Festival will also be able to visit the Jeanie Johnston Tall Ship, berthed on North Wall Quay, which will be open to the public from 11am to 5pm from 15 to 19 March. Also, the Pallas Studios exhibition By Diverse Means We Arrive At The Same End, organised in association with the Docklands Development Authority, continues in the IFSC until 26 March.