← All events
family · Friday 3 July 2026 · 12:30pm 
Summer Movie Magic - Lisburn Market Square 2026
At Market Square · Market Square, Lisburn, Co. Antrim BT28 1AG
At Market Square · Market Square, Lisburn, Co. Antrim BT28 1AG
Every Thursday in July 2026, Lisburn city centre turns its main square into an open-air cinema for families. Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council runs Summer Movie Magic as a free, no-booking, turn-up-and-enjoy afternoon - the kind of thing that is easy to make into a proper summer outing without spending a penny. The face-painting from 12:30pm gives younger children something to get stuck into before the film rolls at 1pm, and there is plenty of time to lay out a blanket and settle in. It suits families with young children especially well, and dogs are welcome too.
A large screen is set up in the open air at Market Square in the centre of Lisburn. Films are family favourites - the kind of animated features children already know and love - though specific titles for 2026 have not been announced in advance. Previous years have included Pixar and Disney classics, so that gives a fair idea of the tone.
Face-painting runs from 12:30pm to 1:30pm for younger children, and the film begins at 1:00pm, running through to around 3:00pm. Bring a picnic, a blanket or a folding chair. There is no ticket, no queue to pre-join, and no cost - just show up. The event runs on four Thursdays: 3rd, 10th, 17th, and 24th July. If one week is rained off or you miss it, the next is only seven days away.
The square has a long history as Lisburn’s civic gathering point - the Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum nearby has an exhibition covering over 400 years of life in and around Market Square - so there is a nice sense of the city using its oldest public space for something very current.
Lisburn is about 10 miles south-west of Belfast on the M1 and is straightforward to reach by road from most of Antrim and Down. Lisburn train station is a short walk from Market Square and is served by regular Enterprise and NI Railways services from Belfast Great Victoria Street and Portadown. Translink bus routes also serve the city centre. Street parking and multi-storey car parks are available within a few minutes’ walk of the square - the square itself is pedestrianised.
Lisburn has a compact city centre worth a look beyond the square - the Irish Linen Centre and Lisburn Museum is free to enter and tells the story of the linen industry that shaped the whole region. There is more to see in Antrim and across Co. Antrim.
Heading to Market Square in Antrim? Antrim has plenty more to see. Read the Antrim area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.