FIRST TRAD FESTIVAL CELEBRATING A LIVING PERSON GOES AHEAD DESPITE PROTESTS

The world's first traditional Irish music festival to honour a living person is officially going ahead this weekend, despite protests from hard-nosed traditionalists.

The John Dwyer Trad Weekend promises to subvert the old view that you have to be dead before you can have a festival in your name by honouring the legendary musician through master classes and recitals in Co. Waterford.

But there have been detractors of this news in some quarters who have called the weekend 'a sham' and said that it can't be considered a real Irish music festival as there is no corpse involved. Leader of the protestors, Thaddeus O'Luanaigh spoke of his horror:

"It's an absolute disgrace! This monstrosity can't be allowed to happen! Festivals have always been named after people who have died, you only have to look the ones already there: The Willie Clancy Summer School, The Cooley-Collins Weekend, The Michael Coleman Weekend, etc."

"We plan to picket the festival this weekend and make sure people know that John Dwyer is still alive and playing music! I also want to dispel rumours that we have hired a hitman to assassinate Mr. Dwyer and restore order to the festival scene."

Protestors have been camped in the centre of Waterford for two nights and have said that the festival starts a dangerous precedent: "Sure if we start having festival honouring these guys then that will only lead to festivals named after every Tom, Dick and Harry! Sure little Johnny down the road will end up having his own festival!"

The group have said that they vow to stop the festival going ahead and that it's only right to start acknowledging people's talents and contributions when they're 6 feet under.