Nearly 40 years ago, cinema goers were greeted by the now-famous rolling titles on a black, starry screen that announced the arrival of Star Wars.
In the time since, the Star Wars saga has gone from strength to strength. What started as a cult classic has grown into a global phenomenon, as successive generations of film watchers and science fiction fans have fallen in love with George Lucas’s epic interplanetary tale of good and evil.
The original film, which blazed a trail for Hollywood special-effects-led blockbusters, launched the careers of Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamil, inspired a generation of film makers to try to emulate Lucas’s success, and was followed by six more feature films, including last year’s ‘The Force Awakens’, and numerous spin-offs such as cartoon series such as ‘The Clone Wars’ and ‘Star Wars Rebels’.
For Star Wars fans in Ireland and around the globe, the month of May is particularly significant. It was in this month in 1977 that the first Star Wars film was released, and it is also the month of George Lucas’s birthday. So it has become a tradition on May 4th every year to celebrate International Star Wars Day.
How you choose to celebrate it is up to you. There will be Star Wars themed events in most towns and cities throughout Ireland: everything from Star Wars quiz nights to Star Wars costume competitions. Some fans may visit the Skellig Islands, County Kerry, where some scenes from ‘The Force Unleashed’ were filmed, and there are sure to be Star Wars marathons showing at cinemas all over Ireland. So if you’re a Star Wars fan, take the chance to dress up as your favourite character and celebrate International Star Wars Day on May 4th, 2016.