Thank you for the music, and the joy you’ve given - The Irish News view

For the past unforgettable week, Belfast has danced with a new rhythm.It was there in the music on the streets, in the fiddle and flute, in the beat of dancing feet and the voices raised in song. It was in the crowds spilling from venues and gathering in squares, in old friends meeting and new friendships being made, and in the unmistakable sense that something special was happening in the city.Hundreds of thousands of people came from every corner of Ireland and from across the world for Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann 2026, bringing with them the extraordinary richness of Irish traditional music, song, dance and language. And forged within the festival over seven days was a sense of joy and possibility. Optimism and excitement. Togetherness.Belfast opened itself to something bigger than a fest