Cork City’s St Patrick’s Festival of music, fun, and food kicks off today in a three-day spree expected to attract 100,000 spectators.

There will be such a thing as a free lunch at the St Patrick’s Festival in Cork, as the city will be serving free vegetarian curry to up to 5,000 hungry visitors as part of a sustainable eating initiative.

The mayor of San Francisco Edwin Mah Lee served as grand marshal at the Cork St Patrick’s Day parade yesterday, making his first return visit to Leeside, having initially toured the city in 1969 as a high school student.

*It’s a typically seasonal forecast for St Patrick’s Day — cold weather with sunny spells and showers — but that won’t stop tens of thousands of people from taking to the streets for celebrations this weekend.

Donal Hickey previews the events set to mark St Patrick’s Day