The Irish Itinerary Podcast

In her discussion with Marisol Morales-Ladrón, Irish-Canadian writer Emma Donoghue reads from her latest novel The Pull of the Stars (2020) and explores its themes of childbirth, motherhood, and lesbian love set against the backdrop of the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. They also discuss the setting in a maternity ward in Dublin, the challenge of examining and presenting Irish national history from a...

In her discussion with James Gallacher, Belfast playwright and short story writer Rosemary Jenkinson discusses her time in Europe, the continuing visibility of Northern Irish writers within European literature amidst the saga of Brexit, and gives her perspective on COVID 19’s impact on the arts in Ireland. She also discusses themes of poverty, death, and sex trafficking in her latest short story c...

In his conversation with Michael Lydon, Oein DeBhairduin reveals the pleasures of writing, explains the process of collating and transcribing folk tales, discusses the challenges and excitements of transmitting oral literature to paper, and comments on contemporary Irish Traveller identity, while also reading from his latest work, Why the Moon Travels. www.efacis.eu

In his conversation with Síle Ní Choincheannain, Irish novelist, playwright and translator Darach Ó Scolaí compares the contemporary Anglo-Irish novel and the Irish language novel; reflects on the European tradition of Irish writing and on his fascination for dark works and for historical novels; talks about his translations of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island and other English classics in...

In his conversation with James Little, Irish drummer and composer Matthew Jacobson discusses his new album Mere Nation, the plans for new-music label Diatribe Records, the evolving interrelationship between education and music performance in Ireland as well as the origins of his slightly weird obsession with palindromes. www.efacis.eu

In their conversation with Katarzyna Ojrzyńska, Petal Pillar and Charlene Kelly talk about the history of the Blue Teapot Theatre Company and the Blue Teapot Performing Arts School, about synergistic prompting and the Meisner technique, the arts and the decriminalisation of sex with people with intellectual disability in Ireland, challenges of performing on stage and in front of a camera for actor...

In his conversation with Pilar Villar-Argáiz poet, translator and novelist Theo Dorgan reads from his work and talks about the mysteries of love poetry, his translations of Frederico García Lorca’s poetry, the power of the Irish language with international audiences and about writing in Irish English, the figure of the rebel and class injustice, ways of transcending European borders, the abiding i...

In his discussion with Laoighseach Ní Choistealbha, Alan Titley talks about the significance of the Irish language in contemporary Ireland, takes a critical stance towards Europe, reflects on his experiences in Africa, on writing in different genres, an author’s inspirations, and the joys of writing provocative texts; he also discusses the longevity and social relevance of Irish language literatur...

In his conversation with Sylvie Mikowski, Paul Lynch discusses the significance of his childhood in County Donegal and how aspects of it resurface throughout his literary career, the use of historical material to comment on the present, the significance of plot and the depiction of character psychologies, philosophical novels and reader satisfactions, his reference to the Zen tradition in Beyond t...

In her conversation with Hedwig Schwall, Belfast artist Rita Duffy discusses art as a means of cultural and political expression in the age of Brexit and Trump, the significance of textiles, flags and home, the end of capitalism as we knew it, the intersection of art, poetry, and literature, and the importance of humour in art as a means of conflict transformation in Northern Ireland. www.efacis.e...

Belfast writer Jan Carson discusses art and politics, narrative and empathy, magic realism, masculinity and fatherhood in her novel The Fire Starters with EFACIS President, Katharina Rennhak of the University of Wuppertal. www.efacis.eu