Due to budget cuts by the Irish Government, the Winter Solstice illumination at Newgrange will not be streamed live on the internet this year. Access to the chamber at Newgrange for the solstice illumination has been decided by lottery, however all are welcome to gather outside the entrance to the mound on each of the mornings from December 18th to December 23rd inclusive, Sunrise is at 8.58 am.
     On Sunday the 20th of December there will be a free concert at 3.00 pm in the Bru na Boinne Visitor Centre featuring The Tredagh Singers. The same day a Winter Solstice Conference will take place at The Newgrange Lodge. Martin Brennan returns to Ireland after 25 years to headline the conference.
     Martin Brennan wrote The Boyne Valley Vision and The Stones of Time, two books which radically altered thinking about Stone Age monuments and which challenged the widely-held academic view that Newgrange, Knowth and Dowth were just tombs. The author, who is living in Mexico where he is currently working on concluding his next book, will reveal the resonance and the synchronicity between his discoveries in Mexico and those he made in Ireland in the 1980s.
     Brennan will be joined at the conference by two members of his research team who helped him with his major discoveries - Toby Hall and Jack Roberts. Also speaking will be Anthony Murphy, author of Island of the Setting Sun - In Search of Ireland's Ancient Astronomers, who is a great admirer of Martin Brennan's work. Speaking directly to Anthony Murphy of Mythical Ireland, Martin Brennan said he was excited about coming back to Ireland and delighted to be giving his first talk here in over 25 years. The Boyne Valley Revision will take place on Sunday, December 20th, at The Newgrange Lodge. Tickets are on sale now at 65 euro for the day, and can be booked by emailing sara@ebc.ie or by phoning The Newgrange Lodge on +353 41 988 2478.

Source: Newgrange.com (8 December 2009)