Annual Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Long Tower Church

What to Expect

St Columba’s Long Tower Church, one of Derry’s oldest Catholic parishes and built on the site of the medieval Teampall Mór, holds its annual novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help on the nine Sundays running up to Christmas. Each Sunday evening the programme centres on the Rosary and a Eucharistic Healing Service, with congregational hymn singing and a guest speaker reflecting on prayer and devotion. The nine-week structure is unusual among Derry’s parish devotions, offering a slow build through autumn and into Advent rather than a single concentrated week. Working back nine Sundays from Christmas Day 2026 (a Friday) places the opening Sunday on 25 October, with the novena continuing weekly through late November and into December. This is a long-standing fixture in the Long Tower parish calendar rather than a one-off event, and it draws parishioners and visitors from across Derry’s Catholic community each year, alongside those with a personal devotion to Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Long Tower’s wider parish life includes the regular weekday and Sunday Mass schedule, but the novena is treated as a distinct, additional evening service each week rather than a replacement for ordinary Mass times.

Good to Know

• Begins Sunday 25 October 2026 and runs on the nine Sundays before Christmas
• Weekly Sunday evening service, cadence is confirmed but the exact start time for 2026 was not published at time of research, so check the parish bulletin or Facebook page nearer the date
• Rosary, Eucharistic Healing Service and hymn singing each week, with a different guest speaker most Sundays
• Free to attend, no booking required
• Confidence: likely, based on the church’s established annual pattern; confirm the 2026 start date with the parish office before travelling

Getting There

Long Tower Church sits just south of Derry’s city walls, close to the Bogside and a short walk from the Bishop Street and Foyle Street areas. On-street parking is limited near the church itself, but the Foyleside and Quayside car parks are both within a 10 to 15 minute walk. Regular Translink and local bus routes serve the wider Bogside and Bishop Street area from Foyle Street bus station, and the church is within easy reach on foot from most of Derry’s Cityside.