In the land of saints and scholars no-one is raising an eyebrow that Mullingar, County Westmeath will become the Left-handed Capital of the World this summer - it's one on the many events of The Gathering year of homecomings and celebrations of all things Irish.

After all, Mullingar, An Muileann Cearr in the native language, translates as "the Town of the Left Hand Mill", a name derived from a miraculous seventh-century encounter at a local mill.

The story goes that a miller refused to grind St Colman of Lynn's barley because he was already grinding wheat for the King. Local legend says Colman caused the mill to move anti-clockwise, grinding both the barley and the wheat and giving rise to the town's name.

It transpires that the poor southpaws of the country not to mention the entire world's population of 700 million lefties have no patron saint to bless and guide them along the path of er, lefteousness.

During research carried out for Mullingar's Left Hand Festival (9-13 August) it was discovered that a saint for left-handed people has never been thought of before - even though there are patron saints for everything and everybody from driving instructors to architects, animals and the internet, housewives and kings, tax agents and lawyers.

The Left Hand Festival organisers have come to the rescue. To the town's ancient name and to the remains of a fifteenth-century church still standing on the original seventh-century St Coleman monastic site in the area, they've added a modern campaign to give the local saint a permanent presence and have him accredited as the Patron Saint of Left-handers.

So Mullingar is going for it. Doors will be re-hung, cutlery reversed, tables re-set and the townspeople will be doing the right thing by left-handed people for five magical days of leftism.

Left-handed hotel bedrooms, sporting competitions including an Irish left-handed golf competition and a series of music events will all be on offer.

Visitors will be able to drink and play pub games with the left hand only and celebrate left-hand creativity, adaptability and sporting prowess in a classic recipe for loads of Irish craic.

The Left Hand Festival organisers hope nothing goes right for the five days and tongue in cheek they'll also arrange for left-handed visitors who normally drive on the right-hand side of the road to drive on the left. 

Right-handed people are more than welcome of course - this is Ireland; everybody's welcome. 'Righties' will be able to turn their life or their fortunes around by completing a left hand task at the Mill Wheel in Mullingar or trying out every day left-handed objects to experience just how awkward lefties can feel using the wrong equipment.

The Gathering event will also incorporate the International Left Handers Day (13 August), and some famous lefties will be among the festival-goers with the crowning event, the Left Handed Champion of Ireland who will earn the title after coming tops in a series of trials and tasks.

Famous left-handers:

Amazingly, five of the most recent American presidents have been both left-handed and of Irish heritage, including Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.Prominent musical left-handers with a strong Irish pedigree incluse Sir Paul McCartney, Elvis Costello and Noel Gallagher. Prince William, heir to the British throne and the UK's Prime Minister David Cameron are both lefties, as are Oprah Winfrey and teen heart-throbs Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga.

Many more details.