Happy Birthday GUINNESS: Celebrities set to raise their glasses to Arthur

The Black Eyed Peas will join the 250th birthday celebrations

At 5.59pm on September 24th 2009, the world will raise their glasses in a truly remarkable toast honouring the exact moment that Arthur Guinness brewed his first pint.

Dubbed as ‘Arthur’s Day’, the 250th birthday celebrations of GUINNESS beer will kick off in Dublin, with internationally renowned music acts and local talent performing in locations around the city, from pubs, bars and music venues to the St. James’s Gate brewery itself.

Simultaneously events will occur across Africa and then onto New York at 5:59pm local time, wrapping up 24 hours after they began with celebrations in Kuala Lumpur. 

The birthday celebrations will feature performances by The Black Eyed Peas, Kasabian, David Holmes, The Undertones, D’Anj, Reverend & The Makers, Mongrel, Noah & The Whale, Mystery Jets, Johnny Flynn, Estelle, The Wombats, The Enemy and Soul II Soul.

Celebrities including Sir Bob Geldof, Guy Ritchie, Carson Daly, Jerry Hall and Sophie Dahl will also be raising a GUINNESS to Arthur, the man who signed the 9,000 year lease on the St. James’s Gate brewery in 1759 and whose legacy gave us GUINNESS beer.

The toast will also recognise the philanthropic achievements of Arthur Guinness and his family, who were responsible for some of the most well known acts of philanthropy in Ireland.

To honour and continue this legacy GUINNESS will establish the Arthur Guinness Fund to enable individuals with skills and opportunities to deliver a measured benefit to their communities. 

The Guinness Company will donate £5 million to the Arthur Guinness Fund, which will be active from September 2009.

GUINNESS STOREHOUSE, the ‘Home of Guinness’, Dublin and Ireland’s top visitor attraction, will be joining in the birthday fun with a summer festival of music, lectures, tours and demonstrations. 

With over 90 events planned, the GUINNESS STOREHOUSE 250 Summer Festival will kick off on the 1st June 2009 and run until the 30th August 2009.