Come on ya boys and girls ya!! If you want an excellent alternative festival this summer then get your peepers round this article and set your sights on the grand old city of Cork, former European Capital of Culture and always the most friendly city in Ireland (sorry Dubliners, you're too rude) as the sixth year of the 'Live at the Marquee' festival has announced it's first participants.

The festival which began in 2005 in the Cork Showgrounds and has since moved to the more spacious Docklands has been host to some of the greatest artsists in the world, both current and vintage including Bob Dylan, Paul Simon, Meat Loaf, Neil Young as well as Jay-Z, Kanye West and Lady Gaga and this trend looks set to continue. With far more acts to be confirmed in the coming weeks the first draft including JLS (€33.60), Kenny Rogers (€40.00 - €65.70), Deep Purple (€50.00 - €65.70) and Irish legend Christy Moore (€35.00 - €45.00) is an excellent start. Add to that some top level comedy from Dara O'Briain (€33.60) and a fifteen show performance of behemoth musical Mamma Mia! (€44.20 - €65.70) over the duration of the festival and we can all agree that it is set to even outdo the previous years. Oh, and Tony Bennett's playing there too (€65.70). Hopefully the crooner, not the angry teen that once stole my football socks because I called him 'a spoon.'

The festival kicks off with JLS on the 16th and 17th of June and is running to 1st August so with plenty more talent ready to be lined-up it is worth a trip to Cork. Even if there's nothing going on it's still worth visiting wonderful Cork. I could drone on for ages about the place but you just check the links below to get all the gig and ticket info you need. And keep your eyes on this space for up to date announcements. Roll on summertime!

Update: More Acts Announced!

Keeping the 2010 event as diverse as ever, the line-up has just been expanded to include: Paul Weller, Madness, The Cranberries and Megadeth, with tickets for The Cranberries costing €54.80 and going on sale Friday 5th March at 9AM.