Organised by the Christmas Day Dinner Committee and hosted by the Knights of St. Columbanus, we bring to all those in need the annual Christmas Day Dinner. Held at the Royal Dublin Society (RDS) in Ballsbridge every year, dinner is served to 550 guests, in addition to 5,500 meals delivered to individuals all over the greater Dublin area on Christmas Day.
History
The Christmas Day Dinner was originally set up to provide a warm and welcoming festive dinner for the poor and homeless of Dublin to enjoy in peace, and to help reduce the number of people spending it hungry or alone.
The first Christmas Day Dinner was held in 1924 at the Mansion House and continued there for 70 years. With the expansion of the event, and a desire to bring some Christmas cheer to those unable to make it to the event itself through collaboration with partners bringing dinner to people directly in their homes, the dinner moved to the RDS in 1974, where it remains today. Since it began, the event has received great support from some notable Irish people such as Mary McAleese, Brenda Fricker, Eamon Campbell, Brian Kennedy and many more, along with various Choirs and Dance groups from cultures all over the world. The Christmas Day Dinner has remained resilient over the years and has adapted to circumstances, to continue to provide for those who need.
2024
This year the Christmas Day Dinner is celebrating the centenary of the first dinner held in 1924. We don’t keep an accurate count of attendance (everyone is welcome without restriction), but we estimate that up to 40,000 guests have joined us over the years to celebrate Christmas Day. Every year we see many familiar faces and new ones – it’s our great pleasure to welcome and serve all.
The day itself is free of charge to all our guests, no booking required and we provide free transport to and from the RDS for those that are city centre based, a festive traditional three course meal, light refreshments, and much entertainment. For families attending there is a special section, with gifts also for the children. Each guest will also receive a gift bag full of festive treats as they leave.
Working with many of the agencies providing support to the poor, homeless and housebound throughout the year, we provide up to 5,500 meals for collection by volunteers at the RDS on Christmas Day. Volunteers from partners such as Alone, Simon Community, SVP, HSE, Dublin City Council, and An Garda Siochána distribute these meals and provisions bags throughout the greater Dublin area, but these meals need to ordered in advance through this website.
How we do it
The Christmas Day Dinner Committee is completely volunteer led, but the success of the event each year is hugely dependent on the small army of volunteers who sign up through the portal on this website to help out in the days running up Christmas and on Christmas Day itself. We work closely with key service providers, many of whom donate their services free of charge, and we depend on donations large and small to cover the provision of the meals themselves and the provisions bags. We are indebted, and extremely grateful to the President and Members of the RDS, who throw open the doors of this great institution the Christmas Day Dinner every year.
To find out more about attending, volunteering at, donating to, or partnering with the Christmas Day Dinner, please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for Guests, Partners, Meal Ordering and Donations.
Some key annual dates are:
1 September – Organising committee is formed.
1 October – Volunteer registration opens on this portal and remains open until capacity is reached.
1 December – Meal ordering opens
1st Sunday in December – Mandatory induction and health & safety briefing for all successful volunteers
25 December – Christmas Day Dinner and meal distribution
Thank you
The Knights of St. Columbanus and the organising committee are very grateful and wish to thank all those involved each year. Without you all, it would not be possible!