The historic site of Slane Castle is gearing up to welcome a new generation of concertgoers this weekend.
Construction work is underway on the stage, which will be converted into Harry’s House by Saturday for Harry Styles’ Love on Tour concert, reports RTE.
The global superstar has drawn 1.5 million fans to venues around the world in 22 months, and this Saturday it’s the Irish fans’ turn.
More than 80,000 people will attend the sold-out performance in the Co Meath village of Slane. This is the first show there since Metallica in 2019 and the first show since the pandemic.
The organizers predict that the audience at this concert will be the complete opposite of 2019 and previous rock performances at this venue.
Fans are expected to be 90-95% women, mostly between the ages of 16 and 28, reports RTE.
Alex Conyngham, Earl of Mount Charles, said he was delighted to be able to bring a new generation of fans to Slane in what he described as a “rite of passage”.
He thanked the local community in Slane for their continued support of concerts at the historic site.
Speaking about Harry Styles’ performance this weekend, Mr Conyngham said the family did not want the venue to “get boxed in with any genre” and that they have always liked to “push the boundaries”.
“We’ve had the queen of pop Madonna, and Robbie Williams. Harry Styles is one of the most exciting artists in the world at the moment, as shown by how quickly this sold out. It’s another chapter in the history of Slane and it will bring another generation of fans to this venue,” he said, reports RTE.
The Conyngham family thanked the Slane community for their continued support of the concerts there.
Eamonn Fox, event controller at MCD, said the goal is to get everyone to Slane safely, have fun and get home safely.
Concert-goers are asked to wear appropriate footwear and bring clothes for the evening when it gets cooler.
There will be airport security but reusable bottles are allowed.
Some 30,000 fans will travel to Slane on private buses on Saturday, but many services are already sold out.
There will also be four parking spaces that can be booked online.
Admission on Saturday at 14:00, first act on stage at 14:30, reports RTE.
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