LoveHQ’s Mairead Loughman to be Cupid at Ardara Matchmaking Festival
Lead matchmaker of the Ardara Matchmaking Festival ‘can not wait’ for festival which returns in November after a seven-year hiatus
The lead matchmaker of the returning Ardara Matchmaking Festival told Donegal Live that she has some “very special clients in Donegal” and hopes to get as many matches as possible at the event designed to help singletons find love.
Mairead Loughman, a Mullingar-based professional matchmaker of LoveHQ, will be the lead Matchmaker at the Matchmaking Festival, taking place on the weekend of November 27 with the Nesbitt Arms Hotel acting as the base of the festival.
Organiser hope the festival will bring people together for the purpose of finding love in Ardara for the first time since 2019, creating unforgettable memories and proving there is still romance left in the world.
The return of the Matchmaking Festival, will allow the Ardara Town Traders to invest the proceeds into numerous local projects, including funding for Ardara’s Christmas Lights, the Christmas Kids Party, and Ardara’s St Patrick’s Day Parade.
Speaking of her excitement, Mairead said: “I can not wait. I am really excited. First of all, I love Donegal, and there is a very special place in my heart for Ardara. It is a very special place with very special people.
“I will say I have a lot of clients from Donegal, but in general I find it is harder for people in rural Ireland to find love.
“This brings a bit of fun and a bit of a lift to the people of Donegal looking for love. I have some very special clients in Donegal, so it will be great to get as many people up there as possible to get some matches.”
Mairead has been a professional matchmaker for the last decade. She stated: “I have close to over 12,000 people from all over Ireland from all age groups. There are no limits to love.
“We have lots of people married with babies and people engaged. So much so that I am training to be a wedding celebrant so I can marry couples as well. I also have two award-winning podcasts, called Tough Love and Would Like To Meet.”
Thomas McWhinnie, a committee member of the Ardara Town Traders who are organising the festival, previously said of Mairead: “She is a professional. She is going to promote us and she has a massive audience out there. She will be doing TV and radio interviews and has an online registration for the weekend.
“During the festival, she will be here herself, hosting people, hosting events, icebreaking activities, speed dating sessions, mocktail experiences, a tour out to the distillery, and a lot of local attractions.”
Mairead described to Donegal Live some of the events at the Ardara Matchmaking Festival, that could help facilitate new love. She said: “Friday night kicks things off with the registration, and we have the band for a bit of dancing.
“On Saturday, we have the 5km park run – a run or a walk. A lot of people already do the park run, and everybody is welcome. It can be a singles walk. Maybe people are not into drinking, or they are an outdoor person. They are all invited to come.
“Then on Saturday night, we are having two events, a speed dating event and a blind dating event in two different bars.
“Also, we are doing the distillery tour. The distillery is sponsoring dates as well. There is a lot going on for such a little town.
“Of course, we are matching consistently during the weekend, so we are supporting love. We are hoping to get as many matches as possible over the weekend.”