Love Heritage NI

18/10/2026

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐒𝐚𝐲

The consultation on Northern Ireland’s first-ever Historic Environment Policy 𝐂𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐭 𝟏𝟏:𝟓𝟗𝐩𝐦 𝐨𝐧 𝟐𝟑 𝐎𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐫. Share your views today before time runs out.

We need you! 📢

Minister Gordon Lyons MLA has launched a public consultation on the first ever Historic Environment Policy for Northern Ireland.

This is your chance to help inform how we will protect, access, and use Northern Ireland's Historic Environment over the next decade.

👇 The deadline is 11:59pm on 23 October. Share your views today:

https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/consultations/consultation-historic-environment-policy-northern-ireland

17/10/2026

🏛 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐲 🏛

𝐀𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐛𝐲 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐲, 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐨-𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐂𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐔𝐥𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫.

Founded in 1193 by 𝐀𝐟𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐚 𝐝𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐲, wife of the Anglo-Norman knight John de Courcy, 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐲 was established as a daughter house of Holm Cultram Abbey in Cumbria.

The abbey is particularly significant for its early Gothic architectural features, introduced at a time when late Romanesque styles were still common in Ireland. Following the Bruce Wars (1315-1318), the abbey came under the influence of the O'Neills of Clandeboye and remained an important religious centre until its dissolution in 1541.

Although damaged during the Elizabethan Wars, the abbey was restored by Sir Hugh Montgomery in 1607, with the nave adapted for parish worship until 1778. Today, substantial remains survive, including the church, vestry, chapter house, day room and kitchen, providing a remarkable insight into medieval monastic life.

Together with 𝐈𝐧𝐜𝐡 𝐀𝐛𝐛𝐞𝐲 , founded by John de Courcy around 1180, Grey Abbey reflects the lasting influence of the Cistercian Order in medieval Ulster and remains one of County Down's most important heritage sites.

📍 Main Street, Greyabbey, Co Down BT22 2NQ

🔗 Historic Places to Visit:
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/articles/historic-places-visit

🗺️ Historic Environment Map Viewer:
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/services/historic-environment-map-viewer

𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬

16/10/2026

🏰 𝐅𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐂𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬🏰

Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has announced a further £200,000 funding to support the repair of listed church buildings.

The fund, which covers 2026/27 and is to be administered by the National Churches Trust, follows on from £200,000 funding for 2025/26 announced earlier this year.

Minister Lyons made the announcement at Bloomfield Presbyterian Church, where he saw work carried out thanks to his department which included repairs to the structure of a large arched stained-glass window.

Grant information is as follows:
• Medium grants: Up to £40,000 for works costing up to £80,000. Closing date is Tuesday 19 January 2027
• Large grants: Up to £50,000 for works costing over £80,000. Close date is Sunday 13 December 2026

Applications for funding are open now and can be made via the National Churches Trust website at: https://www.nationalchurchestrust.org/get-support/grants/northern-ireland

16/10/2026

🏛 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐭 🏛

𝐓𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐀𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐡 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐭, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 ‘𝐄𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐚’𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐔𝐥𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫.

Few places in Ireland combine mythology, archaeology and history quite like 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐭. Believed to have been a major ceremonial and power centre in prehistoric Ulster, this impressive earthwork crowns a drumlin overlooking the Armagh countryside.

𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐚𝐧 𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐭 is one of only a handful of sites identified in early sources as a prehistoric provincial capital, alongside Tara, Cruachan and Knockaulin. The site is thought to have served as an important pagan sanctuary and remains one of Ireland's most significant archaeological landscapes.

Nearby is 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠’𝐬 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬, another important archaeological monument within the wider Navan landscape, highlighting the exceptional heritage of this ancient complex.

Visitors can enjoy a woodland walk at the base of the hill, while the summit offers beautiful views across County Armagh. Please note that the grassy slopes of the fort may be challenging for wheelchair users and those with limited mobility.

📍 Navan Fort, 81 Killylea Road, Armagh BT60 4LD

🔗 For more information on this and other historic places to visit, go to: https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/articles/historic-places-visit

🔗Map viewer: https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/services/historic-environment-map-viewer

𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬

15/10/2026

⛰️ 𝐃𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐥𝐞, 𝐂𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐧 & 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭

𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐠𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐨. 𝐅𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐡 𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐫𝐮𝐦𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐲 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐥𝐞. 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐜𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝟏𝟑 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫, 𝐚 𝐬𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐜𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐧.

Archaeological excavations revealed Neolithic pottery and flint scrapers, although the exact date of the monument remains uncertain, with evidence suggesting it could belong to either the Neolithic or Bronze Age.

While smaller in scale than the famous Beaghmore stone circles, Drumskinny is part of a wider concentration of prehistoric monuments preserved within the surrounding bogland, offering a glimpse into life and ceremony thousands of years ago.

📍 Address: Drumskinney Road, Drumskinny, BT93 1JX

🔗 Historic Places to Visit (DfC):
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/articles/historic-places-visit

🗺️ Historic Environment Map Viewer:
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/services/historic-environment-map-viewer

𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬

15/10/2026

A further £200,000 of funding to support the repair of listed church buildings has been announced by Minister Gordon Lyons MLA. ⛪️

The fund, which covers 2026/27 and will be administered by the National Churches Trust, follows on from £200,000 funding for 2025/26 announced earlier this year.

14/10/2026

⛪ 𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐂𝐇𝐔𝐑𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐒 ⛪

𝐇𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐏𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲, 𝐀𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐃𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐈𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝’𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐜𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐬, 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐒𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧, 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥.

Excavations in 1962 revealed that the two churches stand side by side just 22 feet apart, with evidence of an even earlier timber-framed structure beneath one of them. Archaeological discoveries included medieval pottery, bronze and iron pins, and fragments of decorative millefiori glass, helping to tell the story of the people who worshipped and were buried here centuries ago. A small early cross and carved stone can still be viewed within the larger church today.

📍 Cloughey Road, Portaferry, BT22 1JX

🔗 Historic Places to Visit:
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/articles/historic-places-visit

🗺️ Historic Environment Map Viewer:
https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk/services/historic-environment-map-viewer

𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬

14/10/2026

🎃𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔 - 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐲𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐀𝐭 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐮𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐞 👻

𝐇𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐫𝐞, 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐧 𝐚 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐓𝐲𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐃𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐮𝐥?

Do you have what it takes to hide in plain sight & be the ultimate Tyrant, getting away with murder through each elimination, right up to decision time at the final Square Table?

If you think so, then come along to our night of duplicitous goings on, challenging tasks & give it a go. We might not have Claudia Winkleman’s fringe or £100k prize pot but we will have tea/coffee etc, & guaranteed craic.

📍𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐮𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐥𝐞, 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐇𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐰𝐚𝐲, 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐤𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐮𝐬 𝐁𝐓𝟑𝟖 𝟕𝐁𝐆
⏰ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐮𝐧 𝐛𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝟕.𝟎𝟎𝐩𝐦 – 𝟏𝟎.𝟑𝟎𝐩𝐦 (𝐰𝐞 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐲 𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝟏𝟓 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞. 𝐃𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐝.)
🔞 𝟏𝟔+
📞 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 & 𝐩𝐚𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝟎𝟐𝟖𝟗𝟑𝟑𝟓𝟏𝟐𝟕𝟑

As it is October & elements of the event will involve being outdoors, we recommend warm clothing & appropriate footwear as some surfaces are uneven. The event will be spread across the Castle site including the entirety of the Keep so please bear in mind it will entail using steps/stairs throughout the evening.

𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐒𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞, 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬

13/10/2026

📬𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐍𝐈!📬

Want to be the first to hear about upcoming events, heritage news, and special behind-the-scenes stories from Northern Ireland's historic sites?

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Don't miss out on the latest opportunities to explore, experience, and celebrate our shared heritage.

12/10/2026

Each Halloween, the 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬, the largest monument in 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞, provide the dramatic backdrop to 𝐄𝐮𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞’𝐬 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐇𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐥.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐀𝐰𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐥

With over 50 performances and installations across the city, there is lots to be discovered! ✨ 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝟒𝟓 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐖𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐅𝐑𝐄𝐄 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐧𝐣𝐨𝐲 - 𝐍𝐎 𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐓𝐒 𝐑𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐑𝐄𝐃!

From soaring aerial acrobats, to Walter’s Wake, dazzling fire and light performances and theatrical characters, there will be something to see around every corner!

Wed 28th – Fri 30th Oct, 6pm – 9pm.

For more info visit https://derryhalloween.com/about/faqs/ -faqs.