Lurgan to host Apprentice Boys Easter parade

A large number of Apprentice Boys from all over Northern Ireland, Scotland and England along with 61 bands will parade through the town.

The event is hosted by a different area each year, and this year it is the turn of the Mid-Ulster Amalgamated Committee, assisted by local Lurgan No1 Branch Club, which also celebrates its 150th anniversary this year.

“A religious service conducted by Mr Roy Dreaning from Queen Street Methodist Church, Lurgan, will take place at 11am at Brownlow House,” the organisation said in a statement.

“This will include the unfurling and dedication of a new bannerette for the Mid-Ulster Amalgamated Committee.

“Following this, the parade will proceed to the Cenotaph in Church Place where a short act of remembrance will be held and a wreath laid in memory of all those who gave their lives in the service of their country in both world wars and in the more recent conflicts at home and abroad.”

The main parade, led by Clogher Protestant Boys Flute Band from Waringstown, will move off at 12.30pm from Russell Drive.

It will take the following route: Russell Drive, Mourne Road, Pollock Drive, Gilford Road, Flush Place, Queen Street, High Street, Market Street, Church Place, Market Street, Union Street and Millennium Way, where the parade will disperse at around 3pm.

Organisers said it will be the first major parade of the year and is now one of the largest on the parading calendar, enjoying increasing numbers each year.