It’s just over two years since Bruce Springsteen shook the foundations of Kilkenny’s UPMC Nowlan Park to its core, for a second time (third, technically, when you consider the Wrecking Ball Weekender in 2013).
In May 2024, The Boss, along with The E Street Band, entertained the masses for nigh on three hours, leading off with A Rainy Night In Soho as a tribute to the late Shane MacGowan before blasting through hits from Hungry Heart to Darlington County, Wrecking Ball to Born To Run and beyond.
It was five years before that when Bob Dylan, Neil Young and Glen Hansard took to the stage in July 2019, Rod Stewart three years before that again.
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Then, of course, you had the Source years with Dolly Parton, Andrea Bocelli, James Taylor, Shania Twain, Paul Simon, and a wealth of support acts in between the big names.
As conversations on the ground go, there’s always a question about when the next big gig in Nowlan Park is, or even if Bruce Springsteen is coming back again.
It turns out we might not have to wait too long to find out.
Ireland’s Katie Taylor was in Kilkenny this past Saturday, on her promotional tour ahead of September’s Croke Park showdown with Flora Pili, making a stop for the afternoon at local radio station, KCLR.
Joining the entourage was Peter Aiken, of Aiken Promotions, who has been behind most, if not all, of those Nowlan Park gigs over the past 25 years.
“I think it’s going to be – as the bus says – history-making, you know?” said Aiken when asked about Taylor’s final professional bout, from an events point of view,
“You’ve seen today how she composes herself; she’s an extraordinary Irish woman. It’s events like this – Bruce Springsteen, Garth Brooks, this is just the same. You love being involved in these big events – with really good people, which makes it even nicer.”
“People will remember it. Where were you the day Katie Taylor fought in Croke Park? They’ll remember it forever.”
However, when quizzed directly on whether the concert promoter has any big names coming to Nowlan, or any further concerts, his response should get music fans talking.
“I’m working on something for next year, I am”, he told KCLR’s Edwina Grace. “I’m working on something good.”
What that “good” turns out to be remains to be seen.
Care to venture a guess?
