Dungiven features in new BBC Gaeilge music series Ceolta

Ceolta, a new six-part BBC Gaeilge series which explores the diverse musical landscape of Ulster will broadcast later this month.

Presented by Fiachna Ó Braonáin and Eve Belle, Ceolta, features live performances from a host of talent from the island of Ireland.

Filmed at six different venues, the series begins on BBC Northern Ireland and BBC iPlayer on Monday, March 17, and boasts a line-up which includes both familiar faces and emerging artists across a broad range of genres including trad, country, folk, punk, pop and jazz.

Each episode of the series, made by Sonas Productions for BBC Gaeilge with support from Northern Ireland Screen's Irish Language Broadcast Fund, celebrates the depth and diversity of local music.

Presented by Hothouse Flowers’ guitarist Fiachna Ó Braonáin and singer and songwriter Eve Belle, the first stop in the series is Dungiven, with performances by Mary Dillon, Neil Martin, The Paul Casey Band, Muireann Bradley, and Briana Corrigan.

Fiachna says: “Ceolta is a wonderful new series which has taken us all around Ulster to places that I have never travelled before.

“One of the amazing things about going to a lot of these venues, is that they are places where people gather. Generation after generation of music lovers have gathered there and you can really feel that history.” 

Eve says: “I’ve always been proud of the standard of local music, and it’s been such an honour for me to grow up as part of that Ulster musical tradition.

Briana Corrigan (centre) with fellow band members Mary Barnecutt and Colm McClean in Dungiven.

“I guess to see it week on week, evidenced over and over again while working on Ceolta has been such a gift.”

The presenters also take to the stage with performance from Eve in Forkhill, Co Armagh and Fiachna playing with his Hothouse Flowers bandmates in Bangor, Co Down. The pair also host intimate gigs in Moy, Co Tyrone, Boho, Co Fermanagh and Belfast.

Muireann Bradley with Ceolta presenter Fiachna Ó Braonáin

Later in the series there are performances from Cliona Hagan, North x North West, Clare Sands, Duke Special with the The Fews Ensemble, Brian Finnegan with Seán Óg Graham, Cathal Murphy, Winnie Ama, And So I Watch You From Afar, Houseplants, Seamie McPeake and his band among others.

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Ceolta is part of a wide range of content airing during March to mark Seachtain na Gaeilge. For more information visit BBC Gaeilge will mark Seachtain na Gaeilge, the annual international celebration of Irish language and culture.