Sharon Shannon has joined forces with Fáilte Ireland and TG4 for a four week series which begins on Wednesday (August 11th).
Ruan native Sharon will showcase Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands across the River Shannon in ‘Heartlands’ alongside her niece Caoilinn Ní Dhonnabháin. The series will encourage and remind more Irish people to discover the joy of holidaying in Ireland.
Sharon and Caoilinn will slowly cruise the River Shannon discovering Ireland’s hidden gems while catching up with a host of musical friends, such as Liam O’Maonlaoi (Hothouse Flowers), Steve Wickham (The Waterboys), Eleanor Shanley, Nathan Carter, The Henshaws, Seamus Begley, Mundy, Gerry ‘Banjo’ O’Connor and Susan O’Neill.
Building on Fáilte Ireland’s current domestic marketing campaign, ‘Keep Discovering’, the new TG4 series ‘Heartlands’ will air from Wednesday 11th August at 8.30pm running each Wednesday for four weeks. The series was supported by TG4, Fáilte Ireland, Waterways Ireland and all nine Local Authorities along the Shannon from the Shannon Pot to Lough Derg (Cavan, Roscommon, Leitrim, Longford, Westmeath, Offaly, Galway, Clare and Tipperary).
Viewers will have to wait until the final episode (September 1st) for Sharon to visit her native county. She will stop off at Derg Isle and Holy Island in East Clare before having a chat and a tune with Susan O’Neill in Killaloe.
“It’s only when you get a chance, like I have, to explore what’s on our doorstep, that you truly realise the wonderful gems we have around Ireland, and in particular along the River Shannon in Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands,” Sharon said of her involvement in the programme.
She added, “It’s been such a joy to be involved with this wonderful programme ‘Heartland’, combining my great love of Ireland and music with Fáilte Ireland and TG4 and I truly encourage everyone to go and explore for yourself the host of things to see and do along our very own River Shannon”.
TG4 Commissioning Editor, Proinsias Ní Ghráinne explained, “Heartlands is a highly entertaining and visually rich series which literally goes to the heart of Irish music and storytelling on the shores of the Shannon. TG4 is delighted to package such top-class musical content into four half hours to be broadcast in our primetime schedule”.
