Lisdoonvarna Outing to attract the pink euro

Lisdoonvarna is going pink this September, as a new gay and lesbian weekend will become part of the village’s annual matchmaking festival.

The Outing will be marketed as the world’s largest gay and lesbian matchmaking event and is the brainchild of local hotelier, Marcus White.

He has enlisted Eddie McGuinness, organiser of the Dublin Pride Festival, to manage the event.

“At the end of the day it’s about love — that what the matchmaking festival has always been about,” said Mr McGuinness.

“Ireland is leading the world on a lot of gay issues and hopefully we will have gay marriage soon, so the time is right for something like this to take place.

“We have a five-year plan for this event. This year we are looking at attracting people from Ireland and Britain but this is going to become a very big international event.”

The Lisdoonvarna Matchmaking Festival has been in operation for over 150 years and attracts singles from all over the world to North Clare each year.

It is not yet clear if Ireland’s last matchmaker, local man Willie Daly, will be directly involved in the gay and lesbian festival.

“We are trying to put a different twist on the festival. It is going to be same as any other matchmaking weekend — we will have entertainment, music and dancing — but this will be a gay and lesbian weekend,” said Mr White.

The Outing will run from Aug 30 to Sept 1.