Capital capers as Wren Boys’ Festival still in flying form after 20 years

TWENTY years a-growing, Dublin 4’s very own Wren Boys’ Festival lived up to its reputation for fun and divilment at Sandymount Green yesterday.

Some far-seeing people meeting in a pub, where else? rolled out the idea of taking the ancient countryside custom and reviving it in the capital city. Two decades later, the future of the suburban Wren pronounced Wran seems assured.

As in previous years, protocol was strictly observed for the latest edition. Before taking to the open air, or rather the draughty heights of the Guinness Rig, the main players paid the customary visit to Reilly's pub in the village. After a cultural diet of poetry and warming-up music, they set off in their eye-catching outfits to entertain the waiting crowds.