May Bank Holiday Weekend has something for everyone!

• The Summer Swing Series kicks off on Saturday, 30th May with free Family entertainment.
• Liner Visits:  There will be 2 liner visits over the weekend with the arrival of the  Celebrity Eclipse on the 30th April and the Independence of the Seas on May the 1st. 
• Guided walking tours of Spike Island commence this weekend and will take place on Saturday, Sunday & Monday, departing from Kennedy Pier at 2 p.m.
• Daily Titanic Trail Walking Tours 

Cobh to remember Titanic sinking

As the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic appears on the horizon the people of Ireland will remember those who died in the tragedy at a ceremony in Cobh on Sunday 10^th April 2011.

Just one day short of ninety nine years after the Titanic called to Cobh on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York all of those who died when the ship sank will be remembered at a commemoration to be held in her last port of call.

One hundred and twenty three passengers boarded in Queenstown, what was at the time the largest and most luxurious ocean liner afloat.

Three days later the ship struck an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sank with the loss of over 1500 lives, including 79 of those who boarded in Cobh.

  
The prayer, hymn and wreath laying ceremony at the Titanic Memorial in Cobh Town Centre will be followed by the ceremonial reading of the names of the 79 unfortunate Cobh passengers by schoolchildren from Cobh and the parish of Addergoole in Mayo. Fourteen men and women from Addergoole, in North Mayo, set sail from Queenstown for a new life in America. Eleven died in the icy waters of the North Atlantic.

Rural Ireland resounds with tales of emigration, steeped in the traditions of letting go. The people of Addergoole will never let go of the memory of eleven neighbours and friends who disappeared with that ship of dreams and the Addergoole Titanic Society will have a large representation at the Cobh ceremony.

The Mayor of Cobh, Cllr. Finbarr O’Driscoll will place a wreath in the sea in honour of all those who lost their lives when the Titanic sank.

The ceremony in Cobh is organised by Cobh Tourism and will start at 3 pm from the Old Town Hall at Lynch’s Quay when a Colour Party from the Cobh Branch O.N.E. will lead a parade of representatives from Titanic and Historical Societies as well as Civic leaders and the schoolchildren involved in the ceremony. Musical honours will be provided by the Commodore Male Voice Choir and Cobh Confraternity Band. The proceedings will conclude with a bugler playing the Last Post and Reveille. Members of the public are encouraged to attend.

Cobh Town Council has recently appointed Creating Shows Ltd as Project Director for the 2012 Titanic Centenary Commemorations in Cobh.  Work is underway to seek sponsorship and plan a memorable series of events for 2012 to mark the occasion. The series of events will be called Titanic 100, Cobh 2012. 

Titanic 100 Cobh 2012 will highlight Cobh’s unique connection with The Titanic as the ship’s last port of call in 1912.

The series of events will be held in a number of locations throughout the town of Cobh and the Port of Cork area. 

Events will range from special commemoration ceremonies, marine based activities and outdoor concerts, to Titanic talks, tours and exhibitions.

Further information on this year's ceremony from:

Hendrick Verwey

Chairman Cobh Tourism

Tel 087 2593850

Further information on the plans for 2012 from:

Marc Anderson

Creating Shows Ltd.

Tel 087 6801008

Image courtesy Titanic 100, Cobh 2012

Posted by Margot Mulcahy