RSPBANI and Mid Ulster District Council rescue 2024 Ulster Championships, now back on for August 3rd

After local funding had been cut for the Ulster Pipe Band & Drum-Major Championships earlier this year, the likelihood of the event happening in 2024 seemed remote.

But the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association’s Northern Ireland Branch pulled out all the stops and has now secured the event for August 3rd in Cookstown, Northern Ireland.

The branch worked with the Mid Ulster District Council to restore the event. It promises to see many bands from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland use it as a tune-up for the World Championships in Glasgow on August 16-17.

“Following our announcement earlier in the season that support for this year’s Ulster Championships had been withdrawn quite late in the day, we immediately started work to find a replacement,” said RSPBANI Chair Alastair Patterson in a statement. “With help from a number of Branch and Section colleagues we were able to secure a venue for this year’s event. It is great to be working in collaboration with our Mid Ulster Section and also with the team at Mid Ulster District Council in the delivery of this premier event within the Northern Ireland season for our bands, Drum-Majors and our avid followers.”

The competition will occur at Cookstown High School, a familiar and popular pipe band contest venue.

“I am pleased to see the return of the Ulster Pipe Band and Drum-Major Championship 2024 to Cookstown,” said Mid Ulster District Council chair Councillor Eugene McConnell. “Celebrating the 71st year of this championship competition, it is always a highly anticipated and successful event, bringing competitors and spectators from far and wide to Mid Ulster, and I look forward to welcoming them to our district.”

The development is one of many positive trends with the vibrant RSPBA’s Northern Ireland Branch as the group works to inject more life into the scene post-pandemic. The branch’s “Hear Ever Beat. Every Note. Every Flourish.” tagline has been taken to heart, with an even more inclusive and welcoming culture as the branch tries to build audiences for piping and drumming in Northern Ireland.

“This is guaranteed to be an excellent event and we certainly look forward to feeling every beat, hearing every note and seeing every flourish,” Patterson added.

Bands and drum-majors can find more information about and enter the Ulster Pipe Band Championships here.