When the avowed theme of an artistic extravaganza is ‘having a laugh’ there must be sarcasm there, somewhere…
But with Galway Cartoon Festival – set to celebrate a decade in the city next month – organisers really do just want participants to have fun. Don’t they…?
The full programme for this 10th annual celebration of cartoonery will be unveiled next Tuesday, September 8, from 5pm, at the Kombu Japanese street-food bar on Druid Lane.
This festival of the so-called “ninth art” of comics, caricature and cartoons will run from Thursday, October 1, to Tuesday, October 6, in venues across Galway city, and on Inis Oirr, for aspiring artists and audiences seeking fun.
To mark the passing of the Phoenix magazine, which closed earlier this year, the 2026 festival will host a special panel discussion on the newspaper which was a source of satire in Ireland for 43 years.
A special celebratory exhibition at Galway City Museum is set to look back over highlights of the first ten years of the festival, as it grew from just a single exhibition into hosting a feast of activities, events, and extraordinary guests. It is the only event of its kind in Ireland.
Coming to the festival is the brilliant Glenn Marshall of Private Eye, who will recreate the Wooden Horse of Troy; Galway’s favourite Guardian stalwart Martin Rowson returns with one of his great stand-up performances; and there will be expert drawing workshops for adults and children.
This 10th festival is also bringing guests from Belgium, Europe’s spiritual home of comic art. The European Cartoon Centre will present a history of Belgian art told through cartoons, while leading French satirist Nicolas Vadot – who contributed to the very first Galway Cartoon Festival poster design – will talk about his career in television, animation, and editorial cartooning.
The featured Irish artist this year will be Fergus Boylan, creator of the hit ‘Catholics and Protestants’ card game.
As well as the usual main exhibition that brings top new cartoons from around the world to Galway, there will be a new ‘Bookshop Trail’ featuring the work of invited artists – among them Mick O’Hara of Zig and Zag fame, who recently returned to cartooning life.
Alongside all this, there will be cartooning coffee mornings, the Freedom Wall, Irish language workshops, a dedicated exhibition of cartoons as Gaeilge, games, films, and the now-notorious annual trip to Inis Oírr. Everyone is welcome to come along and join in.
The 2026 Cartoon Festival programme launch next Tuesday is open to the public, and all are welcome for an evening of drinks, speeches, photos, and drawing.
See www.GalwayCartoonFestival.ie or follow #GalwayCartoons2026 on social media
