Around The Town Festival

27/08/2026

Around the Town happens because so many local people are part of the planning, delivery and preparation of the festival.

This year we had a fantastic team of volunteers from our regular events team, returning members and staff from YMCA Carrickfergus and family who get roped in!

This year we introduced a media team - Sophie Hamilton Mark Robinson Hmooreflix & Connie Taylor

We also worked with a great list of local suppliers who made our job so much easier. Forfey Ltd. Assure & Secure AB Hawthorne St John Ambulance Signscript Signmakers & Digital Print. KDM Hire Eco Rangers NI as well as lots of local individuals who provided services.

Get in touch if you'd like to be put in touch with any of our teams or suppliers 🌟

26/08/2026

Around The Town isn't just a festival; it's local people celebrating our town together. Thank you for coming out, supporting local talent, and doing your bit to make Carrickfergus a great place to live!

The festival is organised by Lynn McKenzie as part of her Positive Carrickfergus role and Bill "The Thrill" Buchanan of Déjà Vu Promotions who receives a small fee for his services. Ashley William Hamilton supports us with organising and takes care of the PA at events for a small fee also.

The organising and planning begins in September and doesn't end until the last person leaves the finale!

The rest of the events are staffed by a passionate volunteer team lead by Ruth Turkington and Gillian Courtney - we couldn't run the festival without our amazing volunteers.

“It was great to see something positive like this in Carrickfergus that the whole community can find something that interests them”

“Felt good not to have to travel to Belfast to see quality entertainment”

With feedback like this from our audience we are already excited to start planning 2027 ❤️

25/08/2026

The star of the show💫🤣

25/08/2026

Fab photos from the Around the Town Festival as over 2000 people attend Carrickfergus events.

25/08/2026

Around the Town 2026 cost £28501 to put on and we are grateful to our sponsors for supporting the events.

We wanted to share some information with the community so that everyone can get a glimpse into what it takes to put on a festival and program of events that are fuelled by passion over profit.

Mid and East Antrim Borough Council £4500 events grant
Carrickfergus Literary & Scientific Society £4000 sponsorship
Fonacab Mahoods £3000 sponsorship
Carrickfergus & District Mencap £2000 sponsorship
MEA Events Team £500 event performer fee
Carrickfergus & Greenisland Community Cluster Cluster £200 volunteer expenses

Our main evening events were ticketed at £10 each with the Finale in Shaftesbury Park offering early bird tickets of £10 and general sale tickets of £15, under 16s £5.
The cost for the Finale event alone was just over £14000.

Grant and sponsorship total was £14,200 and alongside £7199 tickets & merch sales brought our total income to £21399.

This leaves us with a shortfall of £7102 which will have to be paid from our limited reserves at Positive Carrickfergus

24/08/2026

Around The Town Loves Local: How We Made Space For Carrickfergus to Thrive Together

At Positive Carrickfergus, we believe that a strong, active community where there is room for everyone is essential for our town to thrive. Delivered in partnership with Deja Vu Promotions, Around The Town Festival was created with a simple belief: no local artist, musician, or performer should have to leave town just to be seen, heard, and celebrated.

When local people gather in local places to have a great time, incredible things happen. Here is a look at what we achieved together during our latest festival run

Check out our festival stats below 👇👇

21/08/2026

Around the Town is managed by Positive Carrickfergus in partnership with Déjà Vu Promotions.

Check out Positive Carrickfergus’ newsletter all about our festival 🎶

Catch up on our post-festival newsletter 👇👇

https://mailchi.mp/5a7d24aea8db/fab-february-16565234

Around The Town Festival

20/08/2026

While the festival may be over, the fun isn't Déjà Vu Promotions are bringing The Big Carrick Colour Run to Carrickfergus Cricket Club on Saturday 12th September. Tickets are already moving fast so round up your posse and book your spot at linktr.ee/dejavupromos

19/08/2026

A new event for us this year was our blues cafe with the talented 🎸 and we’re absolutely hooked🎶🎤