Our own Folk Music Legend – Owen McBride

Owen inducted into the Mariposa Hall of Fame!!

Born in Ireland, Owen McBride arrived in Canada in 1963. Literally, within a matter of days he was performing at folk clubs and coffee houses in Toronto’s booming folk scene. As luck would have it, Estelle Klein, the artistic director of the Mariposa Folk Festival, saw Owen perform and was immediately captivated by the young musician/storyteller. From 1964 until the mid-eighties, he was a perennial performer at Mariposa, experiencing its moves from Maple Leaf Stadium to Innis Lake to Toronto Island and even to Barrie Molson Park. Then, in 2010 Owen returned for the fiftieth anniversary of the festival and appeared again 2011, 2016 and 2017.