So summer 2008 is over. Yes we still have Electric Picnic and the one guaranteed period of good weather still to come, when the kids go back to school, but really the summer’s over.

Not to worry though Summer 2009 is coming and while it may not a Dark Knight for us it’s going to bring us big blockbusters all the same.

I’ve never seen any of The Fast and the Furious films. They just don’t strike me as being very good. This trailer is fun though so you never know I might go root out the first film some day.

It amuses me that Vin Diesel is back. He wanted $20m for the sequel so they wrote him out. Now he needs them and they need him. How nice!

UPDATE - Time Change to Twelve Midday!

Electric Picnic TweetUp!
12.30 just before lunch
12 midday at the “Casino Royal Boat” (also known as the Pink Boat) on Saturday at Electric Picnic.

You can see where the Casino Royal Boat is by going to the Art Trail section on Electric Picnic site and downloading the PDF map. It won’t be hard to find, it’s a Pink Boat near enough to the main stage!

Salutes to Peter Donegan for kicking this off - if you’re coming leave a comment on Peter’s post about the TweetUp

Peter donated the boat to Electric Picnic and it’s now featuring as a central meeting point!

Help spread the word so we get a crowd of us! Twitter it to your friends, blog about it, RSVP to the Facebook event and invite your Facebook friends!

On Twitter, I’m frankiep and Peter is peterd.

Come along and say hello! If you’re reading this, and you’re going to be at Electric Picnic, that means you’re invited! Just turn up and eavesdrop, as soon as you hear someone say ‘Twitter’, ‘Facebook’, ‘Internet’, ‘blog’ or somesuch, you’ll know your in the right place. And don’t worry you don’t have to talk about nerdy things. Peter looks like this.

NAYD’s production of Midsummer Night’s Dream opens in the Peacock Theatre, Dublin next Monday. Among the cast is Cork actress Mary-Louise Mc Carthy, who you might remember was in Aifric last year. Mary-Louise is part of a cast of 20 young people from youth theatres all over Ireland - Cork, Dublin, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Sligo and Wicklow – who could be the theatre stars of the future.

Escaping the Athenian court to marry, Hermia and Lysander take refuge in a nearby wood. There too are Helena and Demetrius and the King and Queen of the fairies, Oberon and Titania. Oberon orchestrates a series of mischievous and magical tricks by which love is transformed, misplaced, deceived, revealed and finally, restored.

Starring: Lutz Biedinger, Kevin Corcoran, Alan Dalton, Brian Devaney, Barry Lenihan, Eoin Lennon, Mary-Louise McCarthy, Christina Matthews, Barry Morgan, Kiefer Moriarty-Short, Grainne Moriarty, Katherine Murphy, Luke Naessens, Roxanna Nic Liam, Jessica O’Driscoll-Breen, Mary-Rose Phipps, Paul Tansey, Roisin Watson, Barry Whelan, Darren Yorke

Director Gyorgy Vidovszky
Assistant director David Kelly
Set and costume design Diego Pitarch
Lighting design Eamon Fox
Sound design Samuel Gryllus

25 - 30 August
Preview Monday 25 August
Matinee Saturday 30 August
Peacock Theatre
Nightly at 8.15pm, Saturday matinee 2.45pm

Tickets: €18 (€14 concession Mon-Sat)
Preview/Matinee: €14
Youth Theatre members: €10
Booking: 01 87 87 222

Check out www.nayd.ie and www.abbeytheatre.ie for more information.

Blood+Bandage is a new festival designed to support and foster new plays and new forms of theatre emerging in Cork. Based in the Granary Theatre, this first annual festival features work by Meridian, Granary Theatre and Be Your Own Banana and showcases three Cork pieces developed in the city in the past two years.

In addition to the productions, the festival will also include workshops and readings of works in progress. These will continue after the festival with the intention of developing projects for future festivals.

Granary Theatre & Studio
8 September – 4 October 2008
Booking: 021 490 4275
Or in person at Granary Box Office
Ticket Prices: €15 & €10 conc.

Festival Special Offer: €20 for two shows, €30 for three shows - special offer tickets must be purchased in a single transaction.

This, and more, information available on the Blood and Bandage Facebook group. So if you’re on Facebook, go there and join the group! Or see the Granary website for more details.

This could be an exciting new project for Cork, with the festival including workshopping new pieces from up and coming talents with a view to developing them further.

Watch this festival closely, some exciting work could grow from it.

See below for details of the three main shows being put on in the Granary.

BE YOUR OWN BANANA in association with MERIDIAN PRESENTS:
THAILAND:What’s Love Got To Do With It?
By Máirtín de Cógáin & Brian Desmond
Directed by Brian Desmond.
Featuring: Máirtín de Cógáin in a knock-out, stand-up performance.

Granary Studio
10 - 20 September, 9.30pm nightly
Previews 8 & 9 Sept

Booking: 021 490 4275
Or in person at Granary Box Office

Ticket Prices: €15 & €10 conc. (All Previews €10)

GRANARY THEATRE PRESENTS:
BEATEN
by Ailis Ni Riain
Directed by Tony McCleane-Fay

Granary Theatre
10- 20 September, 8pm nightly
Previews 8 & 9 Sept

Booking: 021 490 4275
Or in person at Granary Box Office

Ticket Prices: €15 & €10 conc. (All Previews €10)

MERIDIAN THEATRE COMPANY PRESENTS:
THERE ARE LITTLE KINGDOMS by Kevin Barry
Directed By Brian Desmond

Granary Theatre
24 September – October 4, 8pm Nightly
Previews 22 & 23 Sept

Booking: 021 490 4275
Or in person at Granary Box Office

Ticket Prices: €15 & €10 conc. (All Previews €10)

If I win the lotto this weekend I’m going to buy this beauty.

This is the best Batmobile ever made! I’ve dreamt of owning this car ever since I saw the 2nd best Superhero movie ever made.

For anyone who doesn’t need to win the lotto first, it’s for sale here.