Pageants, Stalls-on-the-Walls and pop-up shopping and a Flower Festival in St Augustine’s Church on the city’s walls.It’s all happening this weekend at Footprints of St Columba Festival of Flowers in St Augustine’s Church, Palace Street. Known affectionately as “the wee church on the walls” it will be throwing open its doors to everyone from Friday 10th to Sunday 12th June for the special festival.
The Footprints of St Columba Festival of Flowers will be opened by Bishop Good of Derry and Raphoe, on Friday morning at 10am. The festival is open to the public and the members of St Augustine’s are keen to give a warm welcome to their neighbours across the city and beyond.
There are many special and unexpected features to the Flower Festival that will capture the history of the ancient church and make it an ideal place to visit this weekend. The church itself is reputed to have been built on the original site of St Columba’s monastery.
On Thursday 9th the Playhouse Theatre and Columban Society will be performing a pageant at the Guildhall Square. At approximately 5.30pm the children’s chorus from the pageant will wind its way from the performance along Old Pilgrims Way (Magazine Street) and onto the walls to pay ‘homage’ to Columba’s site at St Augustine’s.
On Friday and Saturday at 3pm the main characters from the pageant, in full costume, will perform extracts from the pageant in and around the church. Trish Deery’s book Miss Rosie Red – Let Me See What I Will Be will also be on sale at the pop-up shop.
The Rector of St Augustine’s is Rev Pat Storey. She said “Sometimes when we live so close to beautiful buildings and history we get so used to them that we never look closely. Our Footprints of St Columba Festival is a perfect opportunity for local people and tourists alike to visit, have a coffee and get a sense of the beauty and history of this place.”
As well as being able to view the beautiful floral decorations created by the Londonderry Floral Arts Society there will be an opportunity to have Morning Coffee or Afternoon Tea. There is also a pop-up shop where the visitor can buy a souvenir of their visit. The products show St Augustine’s history in an imaginative and contemporary way. The new St Augustine’s logo is tastefully put on everything from Mouse-mats made from recycled tyres to T-shirts, mugs and backpacks. Any of these products will make ideal keepsakes for any visitor.
The Festival of Flowers will take place from Friday 10 to Sunday 12 June. A warm welcome is offered by the parish to all their neighbours in every part of the city. It is advisable for groups that wish to visit to book in advance. They can do so by ringing 028 71301611