IRELAND: A major concert scheduled to happen jointly in Dublin and Belfast this May was cancelled yesterday due to concerns about traffic disruption.The free event, called Beautiful Night, was due to be presented and broadcast by RTÉ and the BBC to coincide with celebrations of the enlargement of Europe on Saturday, May 1st, writes Fiona Tyrrell
Ten thousand free tickets were available for the concert in Dublin and national and international stars including Alanis Morissette, Katie Melua, Divine Comedy, Dolores O'Riordan, plus The Chieftains, Kila and Moya Brennan, were expected to perform at the two sites, O'Connell Street in Dublin and Donegall Square in Belfast.
According to a spokeswoman from RTÉ, the Dublin event became "untenable when the extent of the difficulties in staging the concert became apparent" last week.
Restricted traffic flow for nine days prior to the concert as well as the closure of streets for five days were cited as major stumbling blocks.
The Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, Mr O'Donoghue, said he appreciated the reasons why RTÉ was unable to proceed with the concert. However, he pointed out that the "Day of Welcomes" would go ahead, with a series of events planned for around the State to celebrate the accession of the 10 new member-states to the European Union.
The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Mr Royston Brady, said the cancellation would not stop Dublin celebrating on May 1st. He has called on RTÉ, TV3 and TG4 to consider using their resources to stage a concert at an alternative venue, such as the Phoenix Park.
"Clearly, closing a large section of the city centre for five days would cause disruption on a major scale to the business and social life of our city. Despite the setback I remain determined that May 1st will be a day of celebration which will be beamed worldwide and will promote Dublin as a major tourist destination."