Remember Monday is a busy day with loads of events scheduled.

Check out here for more info.

Venue: Bookworm

Time: 6.30pm

Cost: Free

Mary O Rourke

 Mary O’Rourke is known as someone who always speaks her mind. This forthright approach has made her one of Ireland’s best-loved public figures and is very much in evidence in her highly anticipated memoir, Just Mary, published by Gill & Macmillan on 19 October.

Beginning with the February 2011 general election, the day her active political career ended, she reflects on key events in her working life, including her brother Brian Lenihan’s bid for the presidency, the Eircom sell-off, the infamous ‘St Valentine’s Day Massacre’ when Albert Reynolds took power, and party tensions in the run up to the most recent election.  She is frank about the characters she worked with, many of whom defined an era, among them Charlie Haughey, Garret FitzGerald, Pádraig Flynn and Bertie Ahern.

She describes life as a woman in the male world of politics, the sexism she sometimes had to deal with, and the difficulties of balancing her busy career with raising a family. She also talks for the first time about her struggle to have children and her battle with post-natal depression, although it was not recognised as such at the time.

Devastated as she was by her defeat in 2011, losing an election does not compare with losing loved ones and Mary has had more than her fair share of tragic losses over the years: the untimely death of her beloved husband Enda, her brothers Brian and Paddy, and more recently her nephew and former Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan—all of whom she remembers here.

Although they have become more frequent in recent years, Irish political memoirs are still relatively rare.  Even rarer still are political memoirs that are frank, newsworthy and fun, like this one from Mary O’Rourke.

Mary O’Rourke is a former deputy leader of Fianna Fáil, who has held a number of senior Cabinet positions. She has also been Leader of the Seanad and is a frequent guest on radio and television. 

Michael John is a graduate of the Cork School of Music where he performed, with the CSM Symphony Orchestra and the Cork Symphony Orchestra. He was awarded a Danish Government Scholarship and studied at the Royal Danish Conservatory of Music, Copenhagen. He played with the Conservatory of Music Symphony Orchestra, and performed in the Tivoli Concert Hall and the Royal Danish Opera House.

Livia Nagy is a Hungarian cellist, living in Tipperary, Ireland. She holds a degree from the prestigious Liszt Academy in
Budapest, and also a graduate of M.A. in Classical String Performance from the University of Limerick. She has performed as a soloist, chamber musician and orchestral cellist both in Ireland and Hungary.

Arkadia are a lively and unpredictable 5-piece International Cork band with the county’s finest line up of phenomenal musicians: Mike Maher, Stef Rossi, Colette Forde, George MacDonald and Owen Twomey playing a core-rockin, foot-stompin and head-thrashin set of classic rock, soul, R&B and modern hits soon to be spiced up with collaborations between themselves.

Awards: Honorary Mention Award (Colette Forde with Funky Love: American Songwriting competition).

Tuesday 30th October

Time: 10.00am to 5.00pm

Venue: Bookworm

Admission: €5 per hour

This community themed project is open to all children aged between 5 and 10. It involves an open day of various Halloween themed workshops and activities and children can come and go as they like and stay for as long as they like. This fully supervised interactive arts space will bring your childs imagination to life through their eyes and is a wonderful way of bringing out their artistic abilities.

Workshops included:

• Scarecrow making
• Lantern making
• Spider & web making
• Halloween mask making
• Special effects / Halloween make up    

Venue: Bowes Pub

Time: 9.00pm

Admission: Free

Thurles Arts Festival in conjunction with “ Whistle This “ are delighted to host a night of song, poetry and performance art in an intimate surround. This is a platform for both local and national talent to showcase their remarkable work. Hosted by local musician Tom Lyons the line-up will include performers such as Adela Meally & The Meanits, Eoin Ryan, Larry O Sullivan, Shane Lyons and more to be confirmed.

Venue:Liberty Square

Time: 2.30pm

Admission: Free

Come and be amazed by some of Ireland’s best cyclists who will be competing for the very first Thurles European Town of Sport Cycle Classic. Watch cyclists whizzing by at speeds of up to 60 kph around the streets of Thurles in what promises to be an amazing spectacle for the town.

Route circuit –Liberty Square, Parnell Street, Cuchulainn Road, Rossa Street, Slievenamon Road, Thomond Road, Emmet Street and Liberty Square

Time: 6.00pm

Route:Parnell Street Car Park,Liberty Square,Cathedral Street,Mitchel Street and finish at Rugby Club in time for Fireworks night.

The theme of this years street parade is “ Community Participation “ and we want as many families and community groups to dress up in Halloween costumes and walk the route of the parade with us.  We would encourage all schools, clubs and organisations to get involved in making this event a truly all inclusive community driven spectacular.

Time: 8.00pm

Venue: Thurles Rugby Club

Admission: Free

Come along and enjoy our annual Fireworks spectacle that will finish off this years festival in its usual unique style. Entertainment will start at 6.30pm so please arrive early

Venue:  Thurles Rugby Club Grounds

Time: 7.15pm

Admission: Free

Embrace the Fire rewrites the conventional fire show employing unique fire techniques and a fantastic soundscape. A mesmerizing combination of Circus Skills, Theatre, and Music create an amazing Fire spectacle