Entertainment

It's not just about bikes !

Following last year’s record attendance at the Classic Bike Festival it’s all systems go for another “rockin’ weekend at the Bishopscourt venue.

Attendances were up throughout the weekend including those who arrive on the Friday night and camp until the event closes on Sunday afternoon. The fact that there’s music in the marquee has been found to be a major factor in achieving these early arrivals and they will not be disappointed this year.

But never known to sit on their laurels the organisers are complementing the musical offering this year with Chat Shows on both Friday and Saturday. This feature will take place in the early part of the evening and guests appearing will be announced shortly.

New for 2026 is live music on Sunday afternoon...

Live Music

The plan is that those attending will head straight to the giant marquee when racing finishes for a few early evening drinks (the event is fully licensed) and they can enjoy hearing the many colourful stories that their biking heroes will impart.

This years guest bands will perform with talented mid Ulster duo ATOMIC on Friday night and THE UNUSUAL SUSPECTS on Saturday. The latter are one of the busiest bands on the circuit and the Festival organisers were delighted to secure a date away from their almost nightly performances in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarters.

Acting as host and DJ and generally filling in the gaps will be the evergreen BrianMoore who lists the Classic Bike festival Ireland as one of his favourite events. It’s Brian’s role to ensure the music doesn’t stop and to provide the all-important party vibe to the Festival and he doesn’t disappoint! See festival listing for all timings..

A weekend of great entertainment

The new features don’t end with music, however, as the Sunday has also been given a distinct Family Day vibe. It didn’t go unnoticed that Sundays see an increase in kids and so, to add to the fun, they’ll have a massive award-winning Kite Display by KiteCrew Ireland to amuse and astound. And as if that’s not enough the NI Lawnmower Racing Association have added the Classic Bike Festival to their fixture list and will be setting up their own course for a very intensive series of races. “I suppose this is one of the advantages of having the tremendous amount of space at Bishopscourt.’ one of the organisers enthused, this year as well as face painting and Bouncy Castles Sunday afternoon will feature a Taylor Swift Tribute Act to further entertain the kids as part of the family fun day”. As a journalist said, it’s a great biking event that’s not just about bikes

Whats on in the Festival Marquee

Provisional listings

This year there’s also a charity element to the
proceedings with the opportunity to support the Joey Dunlop Foundation.