Céad Míle Fáilte
Hello fellow Celtophiles I is your intrepid editor, Todd, once again. Don't forget to back the Celtic Podfest and Arts Market! In this issue we have a new issue there are new episodes of our own Irish & Celtic Music Podcast and Pub Songs & Stories. The other featured podcasts are Traveling in Ireland and Celt in a Twist. We have a list of new Celtic albums as well. The articles spotlighted are about Jane Gormley's book A Seat by the Fire, the Truro Food Festival, and an interview with Irish singer Susi Pagel. The festival highlighted is Colorado Highland Games taking place September 26 & 27, 2026 at the Denver Polo Club in Sedalia, CO. We hope you enjoy this issue. Until next time, Sláinte mhaith!
KICKSTART THE CELTIC PODFEST
The 2027 Kickstarter for the Celtic PodFest and Nerdy Arts Market is now live. We need you to make this a successful event. All you have to do is a make a pledge to support the festival. Any amount is great and will help us reach our goal. But you can get some great rewards when you pick a reward level.
As soon as we hit our goal, I will confirm with the artists I picked for this latest festival.
IRISH & CELTIC MUSIC PODCAST #775: SPIRITS OF THE HIGHLAND ROAD
TEUD: The Hebridean Fiddle Project, Juha Rossi, McFloosey, Jared Bogle, Jesse Ferguson, Celtic Underground, Caitlin Finley & Will Woodson, MacCumhaill and the Gang, Blackwillow Starling, Christine Collister, Bang on the Ear, Blaggards, Boiled In Lead, The Elders, Bill Mullen
A big thanks to our newest Patron of the Podcast: Jeannie Flannery
CAST YOUR VOTE IN THE CELTIC TOP 20
Every year, I publish the Celtic Top 20. This is your pick of the best, most-popular songs of the year. But to make the show great, I need you to vote for your favorite songs in each episode.
Just list each of the bands performing those favorite songs to quickly and easily cast your vote.
WHAT'S NEW WITH CELTIC MUSIC
& CULTURE ONLINE?
PUB SONGS & STORIES #317: BRING ME HOME, BOYS
A question about AI music. A debate over CDs, vinyl, and album pins. And a sci-fi drinking song that carries you home. Pub Songs & Stories returns with the tales behind the tunes, from the Celtic pub scene to a Celtic Invasion of Galicia. Music from Tara's Folk, Heather Dale, and Marc Gunn. This is Pub Songs & Stories #317.
NEW CELTIC ALBUMS
Lynnhaven Bay - by Itinerant Band
On a Quiet Street Where Old Ghosts Meet - by Jay Michaels
In Other Words - by Clay Babies
Celtic Fantasy: Midnight Rain at the Skyport - by YUNOKIA
Attn Bands: Go to 4celts.com to submit your band to the podcast.
TRAVELING IN IRELAND - LEAP CARD IN IRELAND: WHAT VISITORS NEED TO KNOW
One of the easiest ways to save money during your Ireland vacation is to use public transportation whenever possible.
I outlined the multiple ways to get around Ireland here, and in this article I'm focusing on the Leap Card, a reusable travel card that can be used on many public transportation services in Dublin and other cities and towns across Ireland.
While a Leap Card can make public transportation easier and less expensive, choosing the right card for your vacation depends on where you are traveling and how often you will use it. Both the standard TFI Leap Card and the Leap Visitor Card are useful for tourists, they work differently and neither is a nationwide transportation pass.
JANE GORMLEY BRINGS IRISH VOICES TO THE PAGE
FROM dairy farmers to mischievous 80-year-olds, Kildare writer and Craicly founder Jane Gormley has gathered the stories of ordinary Irish people in her new book, A Seat by the Fire.
Due out on October 26 through Cork-based publisher Mercier Press, the book brings together 22 stories from the people who have taken part in Craicly events over the past three years, alongside Gormley's own writing.
As Gormley discovered while building Craicly, you don't need to be a professional storyteller to be a very good one…
To read more, go here!
CELT IN A TWIST: SEPTEMBER 15, 2026
So, that was Labour Day. We relish the last Summer Scraps from Alba's Edge, Open the heavens with a Summer Storm from Patrick Mangan, tipple some Celtic Creole and Scottish Celtronica. You'll even hear sounds from Finland and Galicia when you've got yer Celt In A Twist, this week with Patricia Fraser!
TRURO FOOD FESTIVAL RETURNS WITH MICHELIN-STARRED CHEF AND NEW EVENING FEASTS
More than 30 chefs, live music, street food and a series of new intimate dining events are heading to Truro this month as the city's popular food festival returns.
Truro Food Festival will take over Lemon Quay from Wednesday to Sunday (September 23 to 27), promising five days of food, drink, live cooking and entertainment - with the main daytime festival free to attend…
To read more, go here!
BEHIND THE MUSIC - SUSI PAGEL
Northern Irish singer Susi Pagel has released her new EP, Worry Dolls, and the single Part Of Me'. We asked her the BIG questions . . .
To read more, go here!
COLORADO HIGHLAND GAMES
The Colorado Highland Games (formerly known as the Colorado Scottish Festival) is returning to the Denver Polo Club. Join us Saturday and Sunday, September 26th & 27th! Our Games is hosted by the St Andrew Society of Colorado where "the Scots are a Mile High" with 2026 celebrating our 62nd annual Highland Games!
Since 1963, the Games has brought traditional Scottish Heavy Athletics, piping and drumming, Scottish Highland and Country dancing, as well as lively and fascinating Celtic culture to our Colorado friends and neighbors. Enjoy Celtic music and entertainment, Dogs of the British Isles, British Car Show (Sunday), Celtic food and merchandise, historical re-enactment with the Renaissance Scots, research your Scottish heritage and find your Clan!
On Saturday, don't miss the Bonnie Knees contest, and a 7pm concert (artist to be announced). For the very best Games VIP experience, join our Thistle Club! And be sure to try a bit of haggis and whisky tasting! Enjoy a day of Scotland in your own backyard!
Some of the entertainers performing are Skean Dubh, Indigent Row, Old Blind Dogs, Seven Nations, Cask & Chisel, Once Upon A Tune, and more!!
WHAT ARE YOU DOING WHILE LISTENING?
You can send a comment or a picture of what you're doing. You can also send a photo from one of your trips to a Celtic nation or anywhere around the globe.
Slainte!
Todd Wiley (he/him) & Marc Gunn (he/him), The Celtfather
September 17, 2026
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