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Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann: Huge festival kicks off in Belfast

A girl with long light brown hair and a boy with brown hair both holding musical instruments and wearing red t-shirts.

The festival is the world's largest celebration of Irish music, dance and culture

Do you like music, storytelling or dancing?

Well, a massive festival in Northern Ireland has all of that!

Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann is the world's largest celebration of Irish music, dance and culture, and this year is taking place in Belfast for the very first time.

It's running from 2 August - 9 August 2026 and about 800,000 visitors are expected to attend.

Read on to find out more about it and who's taking part!

Ed Sheeran standing smiling. He is wearing a pink jacket with a white t-shirt under it.Getty Images

You'll sometimes see a famous face or two!

What is the Fleadh?

Fleadh Cheoil is an annual Irish arts festival and compeition.

Each year lots of fleadhanna (festivals) are hosted across Ireland, at county and provincial level.

And the Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, often just referred to as the Fleadh, is one of the best known.

Thousands of people go and sometimes that includes celebrities... Just last year, when Ed Sheeran gave a special performance.

So what kind of events are there?

Three women in traditional Irish dancing dresses - green jewel toned velvet with Celtic embellishments. They are pictured dancing, mid leap in the air on a city street.Belfast City Council

As ever, there will be lots of music and dance competitions.

Niall McClean, co-chair of the organising committee, said the event was "essentially the Olympics of Irish traditional music".

There's loads of other things going on at the Fleadh, including:

  • Outdoor movies

  • Carnival games

  • Pop-up céilís

  • Food events

  • Live music

  • A Ferris wheel

  • Face painting

  • A trading card and pop-culture event

Who's been taking part?

A boy with short blonde hair, wearing a white shirt, red tie and black waistcoat. There is a boy and a girl sat behind him. He is holding uilleann pipes.

Seamus plays the tin whistle, piano, violin, flute, guitar and Uilleann pipes

Seamus is hoping to perform at this year's Fleadh - he's 14 and plays SEVEN musical instruments.

And he's not the only talented one in his family.

His siblings - Dominic who's 11, Mary Cait who's 9 and Orla who's five - and his mum and dad are musicians.

Two young boys are sitting on a yellow sofa. They are wearing light blue and white jersey-style tops. On the left the boy is playing a fiddle and the boy on the right is playing an accordion.

Ayman and Rayan rehearse together at home

Ayman, 12, and 13-year-old Rayan Morgan play the fiddle and accordion together, and are preparing to compete at this year's event.

Ayman says he started the fiddle four years ago and competed at the All-Ireland last year, while Rayan competed the year before.

Rayan says at the heart of their interest in music is "making new friends and meeting new people".

Four children dancing. They are wearing blue tops.

Max, Maisie, Cailha and Rory have been practising their dance steps

And Irish dancers Rory, Cailha, Maisie and Max have been perfecting their steps.

"It would mean a lot just to dance in the All-Ireland. It is a big deal and it's been a great way to make friends," said Cailha.