Horde of Halloween scarecrows descend on New Inn village

A skeletal DJ spinning discs, pumpkin head surgeons clad in full PPE gear and an eerie earth princess have set up camp in New Inn along with country star Garth Brooks and Tipp comedians the Two Johnnies.
They are among a colourful and often ghoulish horde of scarecrows that has descended on the village over the past week in time for Halloween.
The invaders are hanging around every street corner, landmark and vantage point in New Inn in the hope of being selected winner of the community’s third annual Spookfest Scarecrow Competition.
Competition organiser Anita O’Dwyer said they have received about 60 entries for the competition with the first scarecrows appearing in the village on Sunday, October 17 and many more popping up there over the bank holiday weekend.
The Spookfest scarecrows are a truly eclectic bunch. There are macarbre skeletons, witches and other gruesome Halloween spectres mingling alongside children’s book and movie characters from Stickman and the Gruffalo to Minions and Spiderman.
Climate change is referenced with the Going Green scarecrow, an imposing dark goddess who looks like she dressed herself with the flora of the forest.
New Inn’s Scarecrow Competition entrants are vying to outdo Brian and Jayne McConnon, who have won the contest for the past two years. Their entry this year is Garth Brooks dressed head to toe in black complete with stetson and guitar on a stage outside Rockwell Rovers GAA grounds where he hopes to gig instead of Croke Park.
New Inn’s army of scarecrows has made the village a tourist attraction with many visitors stopping off in the village over the bank holiday weekend to view the locals’ creativity.
“I met two families from Kerry who came to see the scarecrows. They were staying in the Clonmel Park Hotel and the hotel sent them out to New Inn.”
She points out there are other reasons this year to stay around New Inn if you come to visit the Halloween scarecrows over the next few days. A new shop has opened in the village and there is a new open farm called Marlhill Farm with lots of attractions for children just down the road.
Anita said New Inn’s Spookfest reaches its climax this weekend. The action kicks off with a live music event at Barron’s Pub on Saturday night where a pig will be cooked on a spit.
Local children and their families will take part in a Halloween Zombie Walk through the village starting at 4pm on Sunday.
This event will be followed by a Spooky Olympics for Kids at Rockwell Rovers GAA Club grounds organised by local parish priest Fr Bobby Fletcher, who is a noted athletics coach.
The winners of the scarecrow contest will be announced at the Spooky Olympics.

You can view more photos of New Inn's Halloween scarecrows in this week's edition of The Nationalist now in shops

Picture below: Ella Gayson and Isabelle Harnett and a dragon scarecrow that is hanging around New Inn this week in the hope of winning a prize in the village's Spookfest Scarecrow Contest. Picture John D Kelly