It’s a pretty busy programme so here’s a rough outline of what’s on for the weekend that I’ve put together.

You can click here to download it as a PDF or big JPG if that’s your persuasion. The full festival website is here and programme PDF here.

One of the best things about the festival is that most events are FREE. Some are ticketed however so check the website or get in touch with the box office in advance to find out. You can get them at:

Temple Bar Cultural Trust Box Office (TBCT)
TBCT Box Office opens on 17th June
12 East Essex Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2.
01 677 2255
info@templebar.ie

You can keep an eye on what’s happening via Twitter at @tbct or even give me a shout at @cloudsteph.

For all the shutterbugs there’s a photo competition happening too. Here’s the details:

Capture culture in Temple Bar during The Summer Sensational and be in with a chance to win a four course dinner for two at La Dolce Vita, a delicious Italian wine bar in the heart of the Old City area of Temple Bar. Competition guidelines available on www.flickr.com/groups/templebarphotocompetition

Despite being a lover of all things artsy, creative and festivals (especially the free sort) it’s probably important to point out that I’ve agreed to help TBCT out with spreading the word about the festival this year best I can. Over the next few days I’ll be blogging, tweeting and telling whoever I meet what I think they might enjoy going along to but don’t worry, my judgement isn’t clouded by the chance of bagging a free phone. If I do win it, it’s a bonus and will be going to a good home.

Hopefully see you around Temple Bar this weekend!

“My body is a journal in a way. It’s like what sailors used to do, where every tattoo meant something, a specific time in your life when you make a mark on yourself.”

That’s Johnny Depp on his own ink and what caught my imagination when I read about an exhibition called ‘Ink‘ being organised as part of this year’s Bealtaine festival. Here’s the spiel:

Age & Opportunity has commissioned photographer Aidan Kelly to photograph and exhibit his images of the tattoos of older people. If, as novelist Jack London said, tattoos are a sign of ‘an interesting past’, then this exhibition attempts to capture the history that has been absorbed into a body.

I’m really looking forward to seeing the results. The exhibition runs at the Original Print Gallery in Temple Bar from this Sunday the 16th (opening at 2pm) and runs until the end of the month.

Ever fancied yourself as a tattoo artist?

Well then this might be your opportunity to give it a shot and maybe even unearth a new talent! DontPanic! are offering up quite a unique challenge in their monthly design brief with a ‘Skin Design Competition‘. Yes, you get the chance to design a tattoo and see it being worn on somebody’s skin. They’ve got a volunteer all lined up for the live tattooing of the winning design on July 22nd! Check the link for all the info.

Meeting Crystal Swing

St.Patrick's Festival Big Wheel

Bumper Cars!!!

The Leprechaun Museum - a work in progress

A Fez in the post from Morocco

Darragh as Zonad

Clark Kents is Supermans

So much fun was had last Saturday at the Tweasurehunt. Fair play to the organisers, it was great to get people out and (running) about on a gorgeous winter’s day instead of sitting on their bums in pubs playing with their iPhones (that came later, admittedly  )

(It's that kinda day)

Want to shape the next WordPress UI? Here’s where you need to go.

Twinnerparty is on and it’s going to be tasty.

The PhotoIreland Festival people are looking for volunteers.

Grab that Twitter username you’ve wanted all along.

Latest edition of DOCTYPE demos using the jQTouch jQuery plugin for mobile web app design.

Get voting for the Irish Blog Awards 2010. Look out Galway.

Quite proud that this shot made Pix.ie’s longlist for 2009 Photo of the Year. I took it with my compact while cursing and dreaming of a Canon 450D. Hopefully that dream will become reality this year.

2FM has a new schedule and Rick is slotted in from 12 till 3. So far so good, velvety voice.

The first Irish Stew Championships hits Sligo this March as part of the ‘SÓ Sligo‘ festival.

Andy Clarke on why ignorance is bliss and continues to sing the praises of designing ‘in the browser’.

I want to learn to dance this year. Just no idea what type. Dance Ireland kick off all sorts of lessons this month.

Mr. Mulley is giving an workshop in Online PR on Jan 23.

Got a good business development and online head on you? Come work at X Communications.

I thought I’d spread the cheer so I sent it off to Twitter via Pix.ie and I got some responses tagged #viewfrommyoffice…

From @sineadcochrane

From @christianhughes

From @anthonymcg

From @Poetryireland

And last by not least, my view at dusk…

Point Blank

A remarkable show centred around 19 year old Nada and her quest to find the path in life she wants to take. She travels taking photos of complete strangers observing them often for days to see what they do and if this might be the life for her. I’ve put a review up on Culch.ie and highly recommend you go check this out if you can.

Red Hot & Brass

Well it pretty much does exactly what it says on the tin – they were hot, sassy and very much brassy! I haven’t danced as much in a long time and they had everyone in the Speigeltent on their feet on Saturday night – a fantastic start to fortnight of some hopefully equally brilliant performances.

Check out www.fringefest.com for a look at what’s on over the next 2 weeks. See you out there!

I’m still reeling. I’m pinching myself looking at those photos, looking at videos on YouTube, wondering did I just dream I was there. I think I established over the past week on the blog that I’m not a U2 fanatic, not a die-hard lover of the lads (shoot I didn’t think their latest album was any good so I didn’t buy it!) but I am a fan of their music & their shows & my did Friday’s gig satisfy that.

While a healthy helping of the new album was dished out, a good selection of older songs including four from The Unforgettable Fire album made for a tasty setlist, in my opinion. For someone who didn’t warm enough to the new album to go add it to my record collection, I was quite impressed when I heard the songs live & could yet make the purchase! Personal highlights included really lovely semi-acoustic (if that’s a term!) renderings of ‘Desire‘ & ‘Stuck in a Moment‘, ‘Where The Streets Have No Name‘, ‘The Unforgettable Fire‘ & ‘With or Without You‘. Yet again I was hit with the realisation of just how big their back catalogue is & how many different setlists you could come up with for a 2 hour set. Not sure if that makes it easier or more challenging but it’s a credit to them either way!

The stage was a phenomenal sight – at times it looked like some kind of robotic crustacean that would start walking down the pitch at any given second, other times like some kind of crazy, sci-fi temple with the spire of mirrorballs pointing way up into the night sky. The vortex-like 360 degree screen was pretty breath-taking stuff, not quite PopMart now but bloody big & used to great effect! Bono’s LED-enhanced rig-out for Ultraviolet was pretty awesome, if a little Christmas-y

As with the last time, I left the place buzzing. Exhausted but buzzing. Hard to believe another 4 years has passed by. And it could well be another 4 before I get the chance to do it again if ever so I’m going to do my best to get another round in before they leave town. One of the most enjoyable & memorable events in a long time – well done guys, long may you do what you do & I think the 3 live U2 newbies I had with me would agree.

Lots of lovely videos on YouTube, setlists from Friday & Saturday here. Pix.ie has a great range of photos from the gig too. If you’re going Monday night, have a blast – fingers crossed I’ll be there too

*Note on the photos I took – none of them have been touched up or anything of the sort, they didn’t need it, the set was so fantastically photogenic! If only every subject was as easy…