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heritage · Saturday 3 October 2026 · 7:30pm 
3rd Brigade Commemorative Concert
At Simon Ryan Theatre, Tipperary Excel · Mitchell Street, Tipperary Town, Co. Tipperary
At Simon Ryan Theatre, Tipperary Excel · Mitchell Street, Tipperary Town, Co. Tipperary
The Simon Ryan Theatre at Tipperary Excel hosts a commemorative concert on Saturday, 3 October 2026, marking the history of the Third Tipperary Brigade, the IRA unit that fought through south and mid Tipperary during the War of Independence. Tickets cost €10. The brigade is remembered locally for the Soloheadbeg ambush of January 1919, widely regarded as the opening action of the war, and for commanders including Dan Breen, Seán Treacy and Séumas Robinson.
The Third Tipperary Brigade was one of roughly 80 IRA units active during the War of Independence, and was rated by IRA leader Ernie O’Malley as the best brigade in the Second Southern Division. It drew its members from battalions based in Rosegreen, Cashel, Dundrum, Tipperary town, Clonmel, Cahir, Drangan and Carrick-on-Suir, and ran flying columns under commanders including Dinny Lacey and Seán Hogan. A concert in this format typically brings together choral and instrumental performers with readings or narration tying the music to the period, giving the evening the feel of a community remembrance event rather than a straightforward gig. Given the venue, expect a full-length staged programme in the Simon Ryan Theatre auditorium rather than an informal gathering. The concert sits within a wider pattern of local commemoration events tied to the revolutionary period, which remains a significant thread of south Tipperary’s identity given how much of the period’s history played out across the county.
Tipperary Excel is on Mitchell Street in the centre of Tipperary town, close to the main square and the town’s bus stop on the Cork-Dublin road corridor. Tipperary town’s rail station, on the Limerick Junction line, is a short drive from the centre.
Tipperary Excel itself holds a family history research centre and heritage exhibits, so it is worth arriving early to look around before the concert, or staying on afterwards in the town centre. There is more to see in Tipperary Town and across Co. Tipperary.
Heading to Simon Ryan Theatre, Tipperary Excel in Tipperary? Tipperary has plenty more to see. Read the Tipperary area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.