Miriam O’Callaghan, Carole Coleman, Jon Kenny, Mary McEvoy, Brian Murphy, Lol Tolhurst, Sinead Gleeson, Declan Burke, Conor Farnan, Louise Philips and Chris Kent will all be in town very soon as part of Boyle Arts Festival, which runs from July 20th to 30th and as always, there will be a strong emphasis on spoken word events.
(By Brendan McGee)
The Spoken Word events will start with a discussion on Ireland’s first President, Douglas Hyde, presented byDr. Brian Murphy. Brian is a former speech-writer for two Taoisígh and he will discuss his recent book ‘Forgotten Patriot’ in King House on July 21
Undoubtedly, one of the highlights of BAF 2017 will see RTÉ news journalist and author,Carole Coleman in conversation with Miriam O’Callaghan. Carole has held positions as RTE’s Education and Environment Correspondent and Washington Correspondent, where she covered the 9/11 terrorist attacks and interviewed many names including President G.W Bush. Miriam O’Callaghan is a household name and presenter of the RTÉ programmes Prime Time and Saturday Night with Miriam. Carole has interviewed Presidents in the past but this could be the first time that she interviews a future President!! This unique event will take place at 8pm in the Church of Ireland on Monday July 24th and it is not to be missed.
Philip James will conduct a walking tour of Carrowkeel on July 22nd. Over the course of a 10km walk, he will discuss the Carrowkeel megalithic site, the history of this period and the geology of the area. There is a bus to and from Carrowkeel, for this event. Also on July 22nd the Crime Writers Panel of Declan Burke, Arlene Hunt, Louise Philips and Andrea Carter will discuss the dark and atmospheric world of crime writing and their respective novels. This event will take place in Boyle Family Resource Centre.
Rockingham House, near Lough Key was burned exactly sixty years ago and Triona Mullaney-Dignam and John Clapison will discuss what happened on that night in 1957 and the lasting legacy of the great house, on July 23rd in King House.
Any self-respecting ‘Curehead’ – and there are still among us – will not want to miss ‘Cured – The Tale of Two Imaginary Boys’ by Lol Tolhurst. Lol is a founding member of the The Cure, having being their drummer and later their keyboard player up until the classic ‘Disintegration’ album in 1989. He will discuss the bands formation, early days and ground-breaking albums such as ‘Seventeen Seconds’, ‘Faith’ and ‘Pornography’ during a special presentation in King House on July 24th.
Also , look out for a fascinating discussion, ‘Paul Durcan’s Odyssey – half a century of love, loss and laughter’ by Conor Farnan. 2017 marks fifty years of Paul Durcan in print. Both mischievous and wise, Durcan has entertained, enraged, consoled and uplifted throughout his long career to date. Conor Farnan’s talk will offer a whistle-stop tour of the poet’s career-long preoccupations and approaches, infused with his mischievous humour. July 25th in King House.
Hear about the amazing women who inspired some of Ireland’s great love songs, with Gerard Hanberry, author of ‘On Raglan Road’ in King House on July 27th. Gerard is an award winning poet, author and musician from Galway.
Writers, Sinead Gleeson, Christine Dwyer-Hickey and Núala Ní Chonchúir will read excerpts from their novels and short stories in King House on July 28th and sportswriter Gerard Siggins, who has written five fantastic sporty and supernatural mysteries, will read extracts from these books to children aged 10+, in King House on July 29th.
The spoken word events will conclude with ‘An evening with the Moylurg Writers’ in King House on July 30th. The evening will consist of members reading from their own works in poetry, prose, memoir and maybe a song or two!
The Drama programme will jump into action with two children’s presentation by Custard Pie Puppets on July 22nd in St. Joseph’s Hall. ‘Badger’s Birthday’ is at 12:30pm and ‘Punch & Judy’ at 3pm.
We are delighted to welcome back Jon Kenny and Mary McEvoy to BAF and they will star in ‘The Successful TD’ in St. Joseph’s hall on July 29th. Based on John B. Keane’s ‘Letters of a Successful TD’, the play follows the trials, tribulations, misadventures and hilarious antics of Tull McAdoo, as he seeks re-election to the Dáil.
Beezneez Theatre’s presentation of John McDwyer’s ‘Turning Mammy’ in St. Joseph’s Hall on July 26th, tells the story of sisters Mary & Martha and their lovelorn neighbor Ambrose. Featuring Eileen Murphy, Valerie Traynor and Peadar Conway, this promises to be an evening of joyous theatre and should not be missed.
Comedian Chris Kent brought the house down when he played support to Deirdre O’Kane at BAF 2016 and we are delighted to welcome him back. This is his 5th solo show, entitled ‘Moving On’ and it will feature more of his charming and surreal style. See him at King House on July 27th.
Full details of all the events are in the festival programme. For booking and further information, call to the Festival office in Bridge St., beside Marian’s. Open every day (except Sundays) until July 29th. Also go to www.boylearts.com Online booking for most events at www.eventbrite.ie Email [email protected] Tel. 071 9663085 or follow us on Facebook.
For health and safety reasons, please note that there are capacity limits at most of our venues and in the event of sold out performances, only ticket holders will be admitted.
Boyle Arts Festival is supported by The Arts Council, Fáilte Ireland, local businesses and Roscommon Co. Council.
