Market Place Theatre in Armagh is preparing for a busy October 2026, with a programme spanning stand-up comedy, folk, country, rock, theatre, tribute shows and supernatural storytelling.

The month opens on Saturday 3 October with Teresa Livingstone: Nice Lady. The 8pm performance costs £16.50 and combines stand-up comedy with original songs as Livingstone explores what happens when a forty-something Northern Irish woman stops being “nice” and starts telling the truth. The show is suitable for audiences aged 16 and over and contains strong language.

Livingstone recently appeared in her own BBC Sounds series, Tell Teresa, which was nominated for an ARIA comedy Award. She is also known for the Scundered comedy podcast and appearances on The Blame Game, Soft Border Patrol and Late Licence. The performance will be staged in the studio theatre with unreserved, tiered seating.

Music arrives in several styles

Thursday 8 October brings two contrasting shows. Scottish singer, songwriter and accordionist Calum McPhail performs at 8pm, with tickets priced at £25. His music combines traditional Scottish folk and Irish influences, and he will appear with his band following the release of his album Highlands to Heartlands. The studio-theatre concert will use an unreserved cabaret-style layout.

Also on 8 October, Coldplace will present a tribute to Coldplay at 8pm. Tickets cost £28.50. The production promises songs including Yellow, Paradise, A Sky Full of Stars, Higher Power and My Universe, alongside lasers, confetti, a video screen and Xyloband LED wristbands.

Country music takes centre stage on Friday 9 October when Soul Street Productions brings Made in Tennessee – A Night of Country Music to the theatre. The 8pm show costs £26 and covers country music from its origins in the southern United States through to contemporary performers. The programme includes music associated with Johnny and June, Dolly, Hank, Garth Brooks, Carrie Underwood, Kacey Musgraves and Chris Stapleton.

The 4 Of Us follow on Saturday 10 October at 8pm. Tickets are £27. Brothers Brendan and Declan Murphy will perform highlights from their award-winning career, as well as new material from their album Crescent Nights. The group’s sound draws on rock, folk and pop and the band has been performing for more than three decades.

The Legends of the 60s Show arrives on Friday 16 October. The 8pm performance features musicians and singers Stephen, Raymond and Chris, with tributes to acts including Elvis, The Beatles, The Monkees, The Rolling Stones, Roy Orbison, Tom Jones, Cliff Richard, The Beach Boys and the Drifters. The show includes more than 40 songs and is priced at £26.

On Saturday 17 October, The Pat McManus Band returns to The Market Place at 8pm. Tickets cost £17.50. Former Mama’s Boys and Celtus guitarist Pat McManus performs with Paul Faloon on drums and Plunkett McComb on bass. The set will combine blues rock and Celtic influences, with older favourites and newer material. The studio-theatre event uses unreserved cabaret-style seating.

Stories, songs and theatre later in the month

Lauren McCrory presents An Evening With The Voice Of Lauren McCrory on Thursday 22 October. The performance brings together Irish country favourites, folk, musical theatre and acoustic music, with a live band and special guests. McCrory is a former Young Vocalist of the Year at the Irish Entertainment Awards and won TG4’s Glór Tíre in 2017.

That same evening, Eerieland: Ghost Stories of the North of Ireland begins at 8pm. Tickets are £15, with concession tickets costing £12. Dark historian Andrew Johnston of Alternative Ulstours will share supernatural stories from Northern Ireland and the Irish border counties, including tales of a poltergeist, a cursed mansion, failed exorcisms and a haunted hotel. The event is suitable for those aged 12 and over and contains distressing or potentially triggering themes. It will use unreserved, tiered seating in the studio theatre.

Folk singer Ralph McTell brings Somewhere Down the Road to Armagh on Friday 30 October. The performance forms part of his final national tour and follows more than five decades of songwriting. The programme is linked to his album The Timedrift of the Road, which includes songs with Irish connections reinterpreted by Irish artists alongside new material. McTell is the Ivor Novello Award-winning songwriter behind Streets of London.

The final listed October event is The Trouble With Tommy Rafferty, also on Friday 30 October, at 8pm. Tickets cost £15, with concessions at £13. The play follows Deputy Principal Peter McGee as he separates two pupils who are fighting, while the consequences of past events emerge through their relationships, ambitions, decisions and futures. The production is described as combining humour and poignancy, with unreserved, tiered seating in the studio theatre.

Tickets and further information are available through Market Place Theatre’s event listings.