The quintet behind Ed Sheeran’s ‘Galway Girl’ are bringing their comeback album ‘Phases’ to Dolans Warehouse before embarking on a year-long stadium tour. Niamh Dunne of Beoga spoke to Eric FitzGerald.
AFTER a four-year hiatus, Irish traditional music innovators Beoga are making a triumphant return to Limerick, the city where their journey began. The five-piece will perform at Dolans Warehouse on Thursday November 13, as part of their UK and Ireland tour for new album ‘Phases’.
The homecoming concert holds special significance for Beoga’s Niamh Dunne, who spent their formative years at the venue whilst studying at the University of Limerick.
It was in those late-night sessions that the group honed their distinctive sound—a fusion of traditional Irish music with contemporary influences that would eventually capture global attention.
“Dolans was our second home,” recalls Dunne. “We were there all the time. There was always plenty of craic and plenty of tunes. It just deserves a tune for all the memories.”
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That sentiment lives on in ‘Dolans 6am’, one of the band’s most-streamed tracks and a nightly fixture in their live sets—a musical love letter to those formative years.
The timing of Beoga’s return couldn’t be more momentous. Fresh from releasing ‘Phases’ in June, the band have just been announced as special guests on Ed Sheeran’s 2026/2027 world tour, a partnership spanning nearly a full year across Australia and the United States.
It’s a collaboration born from the phenomenal success of ‘Galway Girl’ and ‘Nancy Mulligan’, tracks the band co-wrote with Sheeran for his record-breaking ‘÷’ album. ‘Galway Girl’ alone has amassed over 1.4 billion streams on Spotify, proving that Irish traditional music could command a global stage.
The connection came through Belfast singer-songwriter Foy Vance, a mutual friend who introduced Beoga’s music to Sheeran when he wanted to explore his Irish heritage. “When Ed wanted to write some stuff about his Irish roots—his grandparents are Irish—we got the call,” Dunne explains.
Niamh is eagerly anticipating a year-long adventure as the Irish folk band tours Australia and the United States with Sheeran throughout 2026.
“We’re really looking forward to that. We’re long-time pals with them,” she said.
“We’re going to do some of our own shows and meet up with a lot of different artists along the way, and maybe do some recording. We’re hoping to have our own album at the end of it.”
The tour features several Irish acts in support slots, including Amble. “We’re great pals with the Amble lads, we did a great session with them a few months ago, they’re brilliant, fantastic,” Niamh noted.
Reflecting on the scale of an Ed Sheeran tour, she acknowledged the rare opportunity. “It’s a buzz, an amazing experience.
Beoga will perform songs from Ed’s latest album, titled ‘Play’, having contributed to a couple of tracks.
“I would imagine we’ll be raring to go to try and do some new music as well – we’re going to be around for the year. It’d be mad not to. And he loves the sessions.”
“Ed loves sessions. We love to get together in an old pub and belt out a few songs” she explained.
“That’s his absolute favourite thing to do. And shure, all of us in Beoga were reared to do that and we still do it. That’s maybe why Ed’s gathering so many Irish acts for his tour, because he really wants to have this as a feature of the show for himself.”
Beoga’s new release ‘Phases’ marks a deliberate return to basics for the quintet.
After years of high-profile collaborations and diverse solo projects, they’ve stripped back to focus on what the five of them can create together.
“We’ve had such a run in the last 10 years, which opened a lot of doors with different types of producers and guest stars,” says Dunne.
“But on this record, we really wanted to just sit around the five of us and see what we can make happen.”
The enforced break, she suggests, was exactly what they needed. “Everybody was doing other things, and I think that gave us a chance to breathe and get the creative juices flowing.
“We’re like homing pigeons—we’re drawn back to Beoga. It’s pretty special.”
The Limerick show offers fans a chance to catch them in an intimate setting before they head to stadiums across the globe.
“It’s not lost on me that not so many people actually get to do shows like this,” Niamh reflects on the Ed Sheeran tour’s scale.
“Like when we did the shows with Ed in Thomond Park—to get to do those kinds of shows in your own country is a really special thing.”
Beoga plays Dolans Warehouse on Thursday November 13. Tickets available at www.dolans.ie
Also for your diary:
Amble will headline A Night For Palestine, a fundraising concert at Killarney’s Gleneagle Arena on Friday, 19th December. The bill also features Beoga, traditional duo Lumiere, and singer-songwriter and fiddle player Clare Sands. All proceeds will support ACLAÍ Palestine, a community gym in the West Bank’s Aida refugee camp, and food distribution for displaced families in Gaza. Tickets are available at www.ticketmaster.ie