Keepin 'er Country

Over the past two decades, Ireland has become a destination for some of the best music festivals in Europe - Electric Picnic, Longitude and Oxegen have introduced a whole generation to the music festival experience. Now country music fans are saddling up for their own festival alternative! Held in the heart of County Leitrim, Cowboys and Heroes is a weekend of cowboys, horses, country music stars and mud! A little corner of the American frontier in the north west of Ireland. Organiser Simon Power saw the opportunity for a festival aimed at the country music fan, and the family ranch at Drumcoura outside Ballinamore seemed like the ideal location. With a huge amount of money invested, Simon is under pressure to pull in the country music loving public in their droves... he is also praying for sunshine! In this episode, we go behind the scenes of Cowboys and Heroes to meet the sheriff, the horses and the country music lovers who are blazing a trail to the biggest country music hoedown this side of Texas. So will the sun shine on the festival goers? Will Simon's dreams of a profit be realised? Will the line-dancing horses woo the crowds? All will be revealed. Welcome to the surprising world of Irish country music!

Country music has always been considered the domain of the older generation - until five years ago, when Nathan Carter, a young man from Liverpool, lit a fuse under the country music scene and kick-started a country music revolution for a whole new generation of country music fans. His signature tune Wagon Wheel has audiences in their thousands packing out venues across Ireland - from Ballynahinch to Ballykeefe. At only 25 years old, his career success has been meteoric, with three number one albums and thousands of obsessive fans who would make One Direction jealous. In summer 2015, 'Cartermania' reached fever pitch as he played a record number of gigs in the build-up to the biggest gig of his career at the Marquee in Cork. In this episode, we join Nathan over the course of two weeks in the nail-biting build-up to the Marquee. We get to know the man himself, and we meet the family of musicians and crew who keep the Nathan Carter machine running smoothly and pull out all the stops to make the Marquee gig utterly spectacular. We spend time up close and personal with the woman behind the superstar, Nathan's grandmother Anne, and we get on the road with the superfans who genuinely love Nathan - his music, his personality and the chance to meet him after every show. They will travel any distance to see Nathan again and again and again and again...! Join us behind the scenes of the phenomenon that is Nathan Carter!

In this episode, we follow the fates of some very competitive young dancers who have their sights set on the top prizes at the jiving competition at the Monaghan Town Country Music Festival - which attracts the top dancing talent in Ireland. We traverse the country roads of Ulster with jiving aces as they gear up for the big competition showdown.

With the resurgence of country music and country music dance nights, people from 18 to 80 can be found on the dance floors of Irish dance venues. With this multi-generational scene comes a certain old-fashioned charm where people can go out, even on their own, and they can easily make friends in a very safe environment because of the shared love for dancing and music. So, for so many people in midlife, country music has become a lifeline, a way to start again after divorce or separation. In this episode, we follow three middle-aged country music enthusiasts as they plot new life journeys on the country music roads of Ireland. We meet Kilkenny-born Ger Walsh, who has made her new life in Galway. Her passion for country music has saved her from loneliness after a difficult divorce, and has opened her up to a whole new set of friends with whom she travels the country to see her beloved Mike Denver. We see Fermanagh man Tommy Breslin at home playing music with his family before a night out to find love. Tommy's daughters pack him off to Lisdoonvarna to see if he can make a match at the big Robert Mizzell weekend. And we meet Cathy McGuigan from County Londonderry, whose love for jiving at country dances has helped her to lose six stone. We go on a journey of discovery with Cathy as she has a full makeover in her efforts to find the perfect companion on the dance floor, as she seeks to prove life does indeed begin at forty!

In Ireland, the further north you go, the hotter the passion for the new country music scene, especially amongst young people who specialise in the fast jive. Ulster is the place to be for all Irish country music lovers. One town is 'the Nashville of the North' - Bundoran. The once-beleaguered resort has been revitalised by country music - it is everywhere and the epicentre of all things country is the Allingham Arms Hotel. In this episode, we spend the busiest weekend of the summer behind the scenes at the hotel - meet the staff, the artists and the guests for a crazy weekend away! We meet Peter and his staff as they welcome their guests over this busy weekend. We catch up with chef Brian, who is poised to feed 800 hungry country fans with traditional fare, we try to keep up with the housekeeping staff as they speed to prepare the 132 rooms for Saturday check-in, and barmen Kamel and Dave keep the thirsty dancers happy - a double act with a difference! Amongst the guests, dance enthusiast Pat Fairon is making the journey from Armagh to test out the Allingham floor - one of the only dance floors in Ireland he hasn't danced on. While Mayo girls Sandra and Aoife are on a road trip to the Allingham in search of new friends and a fast jive.

Cameras follow the build-up to the nuptials of Crystal Swing's Dervla Burke, who has set her heart on a country music-theme for her wedding to Tim O'Connor