The Mother Summer Block Party was a triumphant return to live gigs on Saturday, September 18th. Held in the grounds of the National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks, and hosted by the Queen of Ireland herself, Panti, The Block party saw a beautiful sunny day with a gorgeous LGBTQ+ audience in attendance.

All of the images in this piece are from GCN & Mother fam, Babs Daly.

Our cheeks are still sore from smiling all day and all night.  The sun shone long into the evening, there was so much dancing, drag, glorious live music sets, and some of the best DJs in the country keeping us moving into the night.

Packed with Queer Irish talent, Mother’s Summer Block Party was the first big bash of 2021 and really the first real chance for our community to be together, to see one another, and generally bask in the glory of sharing a dancefloor with our gorgeous LGBTQ+ family once again.

Both the mainstage and the Courtyard stage of the Block Party hosted a talented array of live acts, spectacular drag, and delicious DJs.

Some highlights included an insanely perfect live set from Elaine Mai who was joined by MayKay and Ailbhe Reddy.

The hotly anticipated live headliner of the evening, Denise Chaila took to the stage at 9 pm with a beaming full moon smiling down on them and their crew. The set was immense and they had the whole crowd in the palm of their hand.

Closing out the evening on the main stage was the Mother DJs who had everyone dancing with the LGBTQ+ abandon that we all deserve!

The Courtyard square stage hosted emerging queer talent like Elkae, Viscose, and St. Bishop and a steady stream of veteran DJs through the day including Billy Scurry, KellyAnne Byrne, DJ Karen, and the delightful Conor Behan closing out the evening with the juiciest pop hits we’ve all missed in the last 18 months. We were living.

Speaking of the Courtyard, Clarke Square as it’s officially called, had it all. Food, drink, seats and dancing. Speaking of drinks, we were so thankful for the frankly massive bar that meant there was never a queue for drinks. We may have had one or two Absolut’s!

The triumphant return of Mother Block Party was celebrated gloriously across social media on the day and after with lots of folks sharing their feelings about the gig.

Pal of Mother & GCN and all-around badass photographer, Ruth Medjber explained in a gorge Twitter thread that Mother had “created a very safe & welcoming space, something I haven’t felt for a long time now. I was surrounded by supportive & loving people. Strangers who turned into new friends. Mother is more than an event, it’s a sanctuary.”

Well done to all of the organisers, crew, and performers who made the first live queer gig one to remember!

For more of Babs Daly’s stunning imagery of the Mother Block Party return, keep an eye on Mother’s Instagram in the coming days.