Eminem has arrived at Punchestown Racecourse in Co Kildare ahead of his headline set which will close this year's Oxegen music festival.
Concert promoter MCD, which was quick to scotch internet rumours suggesting the rapper would not appear, said he had arrived at the venue and requested a a bag of festival mementos to take home with him. He is scheduled to play the main stage at 10.20pm. Other acts performing later include Faithless and The Prodigy.
The third and final day of the festival got under way at 2pm with Echo and the Bunnymen kicking off the action on the main stage. They were followed by funk veterans Earth, Wind and Fire, Kate Nash, Bell X1 and The Temper Trap.
The sun greeted the 60,000 weather-beaten campers at the festival this morning. Clouds gathered during the afternoon but the rain has so far held off.
The music may have to play second fiddle for a period later this evening as the World Cup final is broadcast at the festival on a giant tv screen. Scottish crooner Paolo Nutini will go head to head with the game.
Muse headlined main stage last night with a explosive light and sound show highlighting their festival credentials.
Drummer Dominic Howard said he had been told Oxegen had been on the receiving end of bad weather for five years in a row. “I feel sorry for the people who are getting rained on all day,” he said. “Normally, spirits are pretty good even though it is raining - you have to make it a good time, and the will and spirit of the people make it a positive experience.
“It is a shame because it has been so beautiful recently. Unfortunately, the weather makes a difference because at Glastonbury you get jaded when it is raining, but this year everybody was in a good mood,” he said.
The band opened up with the popular Plug In Baby, which Howard said was chosen because it was an upbeat number that he hoped would cheer the crowd up.
Bass player Chris Wolstenholme moved with his wife and four children to Dublin at the end of April. They are currently living in a rented house in Foxrock and are looking for something more permanent. They are also expecting a fifth child.
He said people had warned him about the weather in Ireland but it had been sunny since they arrived. “Then you do a gig here and it pisses down with rain.” Wolstenholme said the family had moved to Ireland because he needed to be nearer a major airport and they did not want to move to London.
A huge crowd also turned out for the Black Eyed Peas last night, one of the biggest draws of the festival. Other acts who played included Florence and the Machine and Dizzie Rascal.
A Garda spokesman said there had been a number of arrests at the festival for public order and drug offences but that there was little in the way of “major incidents” to report.