I’m ending the Ulysses 100 year with two NORA events in New York city.
8th December, 6pm to 8pm – Screening of the film ‘The Tale Behind Ulysses’ (which I’m in) at Jefferson Courthouse Library & after-film discussion panel with Producer Jane Applegate and author Kerri Maher, whose book The Paris Bookseller is being celebrated at the same event.
9th December, 6pm to 8pm – James Joyce Society: Finding Nora event. More here.
With thanks to Culture Ireland for the financial support.
I will appear at the following festivals/conferences/venues in the next few months:
Llangwm Literary Festival, Wales (with Culture Ireland support) – 12th and 13th August – reading and flash workshop. See here.
Drumshanbo Written Word Weekend, Leitrim – 27th August – reading and short fiction workshop. See here.
Telling Stories, Centre for Public History conference, Queens Uni Belfast – 15th September, 3.45pm – panel on bio hist fiction. See here.
Clifden Arts Festival, Galway – 18th September, 3pm – reading and discussion with Ray Burke. More here.
Culture Night – Town Hall Theatre, Ballinasloe – 23rd September, 7pm – Group 8 exhibition. More here.
Write by the Sea, Kilmore Quay, Wexford – 25th September, 11.45am – reading/discussion with Prof. Derek Hand. More here.
Moli, Dublin – Ulysses for the Rest of Us – 29th Sep., 5pm – discussion with Conner Habib. More here.
Bray Literary Festival – 30th Sep., 7.30pm – One Dublin One Book event with Rónán Hession. More here.
Echoes Festival, Dalkey, Dublin – Past Lives event – 1st October, all day – More here.
ICI, Berlin – 7th oct, 7pm – After Joyce event, with Adrian Duncan. More here.
Seamus Heaney Homeplace – 16th October, 2pm – Imagined Lives event with Martina Devlin. More here.
A Very Special Launch Event – 19th October – more to come!
Irish Writers Weekend, London – 26th & 27th November – my event is on the 27th – more here.
New York – two events on 8th and 9th December – more to come!
I have a raft of events for Bloomsweek. I’d love to see some of ye out and about across the week in Dublin:
June 11th, 2.30pm – speaking at opening of Ulysses Imagined exhib, Graphic Studio Gallery, Temple Bar, Dublin. More here.
June 11th, 6.20pm IFI – premiere of BBC Arena documentary, James Joyce’s Ulysses. I’m part of discussion after the screening. More here.
June 12th, 7.30pm – I’ll be online at The Glue Factory with Rónán Hession talking about One Dublin One Book and James Joyce. To join us via Zoom, DM @DavidCollard1 on Twitter with your name and email address.
June 13th, 6pm – chairing a panel about Ulysses at Hodges Figgis, for the new Cambridge ed. of Ulysses with Fintan O’Toole, Frank McNally, and Catherine Flynn. More here.
June 15th, 6pm – NORA event at Alliance Francaise: More here.
BLOOMSDAY:
June 16th – reading/discussion at TCD Ulysses 100 Symposium with Mary Morrissy about Nora Barnacle. See here.
June 16th – interviewing David Collard in Hodges Figgis at the launch of his book Multiple Joyce. More here.
DALKEY BOOK FESTIVAL:
June 18th – Dalkey Literary Award reading event. NORA is shortlisted for Novel of the Year. See here.
June 19th – Dalkey Book Festival event on NORA. 3.30pm. Book here.
The whole month was a blast, from my first stop in London, on to Galway, then lots of events in Dublin, and finally to Monaco. It was exhausting and educational, a pleasure and a privilege. Thanks to Anne-Marie Kelly and Jackie Lynam of the Dublin Unesco City of Literature office in Dublin City Libraries, all the hosts and partners, and every person who came out to listen to me and to discuss Nora Barnacle and James Joyce. Buíochas ó chroí.
While I’ve been busy with One Dublin One Book, NORA has been shortlisted for two awards which, obviously, is thrilling.
Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year at Listowel and Irish Novel of the Year at the Dalkey Literary Awards. How is that for fancy? Delighted!!
I’ll be taking part at events at both festivals in June.
One Dublin One Book is in full swing – I started in London at the Irish Literary Society at the end of March, and, on the 1st April, we had our inaugural Irish event at St Nicholas Collegiate Church in Galway – both nights word- and music-filled, and wonderful.
Thanks to all the organisers – Gavin at the ILS, Jo Vahey of Galway Libraries, Jackie Lynam and Anne Marie Kelly at Unesco City of Literature, and all the artists who took the stage with me: Emily Cullen, Ray Burke, David Collard, Tomás Mannion and all the musicians.
Yesterday I spoke with Miriam O’Callaghan (who was v nice, as expected) on Sundays with Miriam on RTÉ Radio 1, you can listen back here.
Tonight the Book on One starts with NORA, for 2 weeks, featuring Galway actress Cathy Belton, who is a personal fave, so I’m delighted!
Onward! The programme is here and all events are FREE but booking is advised.
I’m taking part in a roundtable for NEI in Brazil (online) today as part of Ulysses 100. Join us on YouTube here. Discussion of Joyce’s family, life and work in contemporary literature, film, radio drama, and exhibition with me, Alan Gilsenan, Áine Stapleton and Colin Murphy. With thanks to Beatriz Kopshitz Bastos for having us!
This event is part of a UFSC and NEI project Ulysses100 Through Brazilian Eyes, launched by the Embassy of Ireland in Brazil and the Consulate General of Ireland in São Paulo, to celebrate the centenary of the publication of James Joyce’s Ulysses.
I’m busy, naturally, as we get closer to the Ulysses 100 anniversary on 2.2.22, so here are a few of the events & things you can catch me at:
22nd January 2022 – I have a piece about the background to writing Ulysses – how life was for Nora and Joyce – in the Irish Independent. Read it here.
Saint Brigid’s Day / Lá ‘le Bríde – 1st Feb. – I’m talking live to Ambassador Eamon Hickey at the Embassy of Ireland, Bern, in Switzerland. 5pm Irish time. More here.
Saint Brigid’s Day / Lá ‘le Bríde – 1st Feb. – I’m taking part in the celebration of Ulysses at Embassy of Ireland Paris, with Ambassador Niall Burgess. Time tbc. Watch back here.
2nd Feb – Ulysses 100 day – the exhibition I’ve curated at MOLI – ‘Love, says Bloom’ – opens today. So exciting! Sadly, Covid restrictions mean we won’t be having a shindig, but please visit the museum to see this immersive audiovisual presentation, where I took the love between the four Joyces – and their love of music – as inspiration. It includes some magnificent performances from artists including Julia Spanu of Moxie, Ian Lynch of Lankum, and Lisa O’Neill. More here.
2nd Feb – Ulysses 100 day – I’ll be on RTÉ’s Arena talking Ulysses with Sean Rocks and a panel of Joyce fans. 7pm. RTÉ Radio 1. You can hear this here.
2nd Feb – Ulysses 100 day – I am giving away a signed copy of the One Dublin One Book edition of NORA (out Feb. 24th from New Island Books). Enter until midday 2nd Feb! See my insta for details.
4th Feb, 6.30pm – I’m launching the new edition of Ray Burke’s wonderful book, Joyce County – Galway and James Joyce, in Galway city at Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop. Illustrated by Joe Boske. Published by Artisan House in Connemara.
4th Feb, 10.45pm – I’m on BBC Radio 3, on The Essay, concluding a week of Reading Ulysses, with my thoughts on the Penelope episode. Other essayists include Mary Costello, John Patrick McHugh, Colm Tóibín and Anne Enright. Listen here.
I’m very pleased the New York Times names my novel NORA among the 10 best historical novels of 2021. ‘A lively fictional rendition of Nora Barnacle, the minimally educated, blue-collar woman who propped up one of literature’s most challenging highbrow writers.’ Huge thanks to Alida Becker. Lovely to be in there with personal faves Alison MacLeod and Colm Tóibín.
More here.
I had a fab time at Westival in Westport, this weekend gone by. My event was hosted by the magical Tertulia Books, run by Bríd and Neil, and they gave me such a warm welcome to their beautiful shop and town. They are up for a book award at the APIBAS (as is NORA!), and you can vote for them here. Big thanks to the Tertulia crew, to the yoga boys for the gorgeous venue, and to Caroline Healy for the interview on the night.
