Dingle Literary Festival highlights

Dingle Literary Festival returns from Friday to Sunday, November 20th to 22nd, bringing together celebrated authors, emerging literary voices and broadcasters for three days of conversations, readings and events in the heart of west Kerry.

With ticket sales performing strongly and several events already sold out, the festival is looking forward to welcoming audiences to Dingle for its 2026 edition.

“We are delighted with the response to this year’s programme. It is wonderful to see such enthusiasm for literature, and we look forward to welcoming audiences to Dingle,” said Sheila O’Reilly, co-founder of Dingle Literary Festival.

The programme features acclaimed novelist Sebastian Barry in conversation with Martin Doyle, alongside Booker Prize-longlisted authors Djamel White and Natasha Brown. Other fiction highlights include Liz Nugent discussing The Truth About Ruby Cooper alongside fellow crime author William Shaw, as well as Christine Dwyer Hickey, Danielle McLaughlin, Lana Bastašić, Juliano Zaffino and Doireann Ní Ghríofa.

Broadcaster Joe Duffy will discuss Talk to Joe, reflecting on almost three decades presenting RTÉ’s Liveline, while Miriam O’Callaghan, Mary Kennedy and Katriona O’Sullivan are among the other familiar names appearing at the festival.

The Irish-language programme celebrates the literary heritage of Corca Dhuibhne, with events featuring Micheál Ó Conghaile, Michael Cronin and Ailbhe Ní Ghearbhuigh. Úna Nic Cárthaigh will chair Painéal Cainte ar Scríobh na Gaeilge, exploring writing in Irish across different genres.

Poetry features Victoria Kennefick, Enda Wyley, Sarah Clancy and T.S. Eliot Prize-shortlisted Billy Ramsell. Other highlights include Writing and Resistance with Tolka Journal, Refugee Chronicles with Evgeny Shtorn, the Kerry Writers Showcase and The Cookbooks that Shaped Us.

Creative workshops and events for children and young readers complete the programme. Full programme details and tickets are available at dinglelit.ie.

In The Irish Times tomorrow, Booker Prize winner MJ Harrison talks to Laura Slattery about his award-winning novel. Philip Taylor writes about his new biography of neglected Antrim author Ian Cochrane. And there is a Q&A by Jessica Doyle with Nick Harkaway about taking over his father John le Carré’s spy franchise.

Reviews are Robert Gerwarth on Great Powers: Britain and Germany from 1714 to the Present by Jan Ruger; Donald Clarke on Dustin Hoffman’s Look at Me, Michael Gambon: the official biography by Jasper Rees and One Helluva Ride by Michael Douglas; Martina Evans on the best new poetry; Julia Kelly on Still Here by Ann Ingle; Carol Ballantine on The Refugee Chronicles by Evgeny Shtorn; Sinéad Gibney on The Fight Back: A Citizen’s Guide to Standing Up to Dictators by Maria Ressa; Catherine Higgins on Snow Birds by Roisin Maguire; Michael Cronin on An Saol Bocht by Brian Ó Conchubhair; Henrietta McKervey on Lessons in Harmony by Jonathan Coe; Oliver Farry on Sacred Betrayal: How the French Catholic Church Broke Its Pledge to Protect Jews During the Holocaust by Eliza Luft; Daniel Geary on Grandmaster Flash, Birth of a Culture; and Vic Duggan on Anti-Fascist Economics by Isabella Weber.

Irish Writers Centre rebrands

The Irish Writers Centre has unveiled a striking new brand identity as it celebrates its 35th anniversary.

Developed following an extensive strategic and creative collaboration between Brandcentral and the Irish Writers Centre, it has been designed to reflect the organisation’s standing as a leading national cultural institution, while capturing the creativity, diversity and accessibility at the heart of its work.

Brandcentral also commissioned portraits of acclaimed authors who serve as ambassadors for the Irish Writers Centre, placing writers themselves at the heart of the brand’s visual storytelling, including Joe O’Connor, Djamel White and Jan Carson.

Michelle McGuire of Brandcentral said; “The Irish Writers Centre has an extraordinary story to tell, but we felt there was an opportunity for its brand to better reflect the scale of its influence and the important role it plays in Ireland’s cultural landscape.

“What made this project particularly special is that the Irish Writers Centre is not simply about writing. It is about people, creativity, opportunity and community. We wanted to ensure those qualities were reflected in every aspect of the new identity.”

The new identity’s first public appearance in print will be on Anthology 35, a special anniversary publication featuring the work of 35 writers, published by Walsh Publishers to mark the centre’s milestone year.

It will be officially launched at the Irish Writers Centre on Saturday, November 14th.

Over the coming months, the new identity will be introduced across the Irish Writers Centre’s website, digital platforms, marketing and promotional materials, publications and other brand communications, creating a consistent and contemporary presence across its activities.

Mags McLoughlin, CEO of the Irish Writers Centre, said; “As we celebrate 35 years of the Irish Writers Centre, it feels like exactly the right moment to introduce a new identity that reflects both how far we have come and where we want to go next.”

Edmund Burke Lecture

Louise Richardson, president of the Andrew Carnegie Foundation, will deliver the 2026 Edmund Burke Lecture on the topic of Reading Between the Battle Lines: The Place of Libraries in a Time of Conflict next Tuesday, November 17th, at 7pm in the Public Theatre (Exam hall), Trinity College Dublin.

The annual lecture celebrates Trinity’s strong connection with the 18th-century philosopher, historian and politician. This event is organised by the Trinity Long Room Hub, Trinity’s Arts and Humanities Research Institute. See here for further information.

Galway Poetry Trail

The latest addition to the Galway Poetry Trail – a plaque containing a poem by Sister Finnín Concannon of the Mercy Order, Ar Bhruach na Coiribe – will be unveiled at the new Woodquay Park in Galway city on Monday, November 16th, from 11.30am. All are welcome.

The poem is an ode to that beautiful calm of Waterside just opposite the Bish Boat Club and reflects the sense of peace and calm one gets sitting there watching the ducks swimming and the river slowly in front of one. The plaque will be unveiled by Patricia Forde, distinguished author and playwright, former Children’s Laureate and an ex-pupil of Sister Finnín’s. Sister Finnín is a published poet who has spent her life teaching in the Mercy Convent School where she was much loved and respected.

The Galway Poetry Trail is a series of limestone and bronze plaques dotted around Galway City, each featuring a piece of writing about the place in which they are situated. The Trail was launched 20 years ago with the unveiling of a poem entitled Girls Bathing by Seamus Heaney on the Prom. These plaques van be found in various parts of the city including The Claddagh, Long Walk etc and feature the work of W.B. Yeats, Pádraic Ó Conaire, Moya Cannon, James Joyce and Rita Ann Higgins among others.

Each plaque offers the viewer a moment of quiet contemplation, with words to lift the soul in a busy urban environment, and at the same time, celebrate Galway and its people. Sister Finnín’s poem will be the 31^st plaque on the trail, and a full list can be found on kennys.ie/galway-poetry-trail.

The new park at Woodquay will be formally opened by the Mayor of Galway, Councillor Helen Ogbu, and Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke TD, on November 16th at 11.30am.

Himalayan Literature Festival

Kathmandu will welcome an international gathering of acclaimed writers, poets, novelists, journalists, filmmakers and literary scholars for the Himalayan Literature Festival & Writers’ Workshop from May 29th to June 6th, 2027.

Organised by White Lotus Book Shop in collaboration with New York Writers Workshop, the festival will explore Nature Writing, Travel Writing & the Spirit: Writing the Earth, Mapping the Soul, bringing together literary voices from North America, Europe, Asia and beyond for nine days of creative exchange, workshops, readings and cultural encounters.

The 2027 faculty features an impressive international gathering, including Colm Tóibín and Michelle Gallen, American novelist and memoirist Joyce Maynard, celebrated poets Victoria Chang and Ann Hood. alongside prominent Nepali writers and participants from across South Asia.

Ukraine and European Modernism

Dr Katia Denysova of the University of Tübingen will give a lecture titled Ukraine and European Modernism at MoLI on Monday, December 7th, at 7pm, as part of a Research Ireland funded lecture series – Modernism and the Making of Contemporary Europe – which explores what European modernism was and what it is today.

Tickets are free but seats are limited. Please register using this link.

Festival of Writing & Ideas 2027

Tickets for the 2027 Festival of Writing & Ideas are now on sale.

The full line up will not be announced until the new year, but the following writers are confirmed for the weekend of June 11th to 13th: Margaret Atwood, Sebastian Barry, Michael Chabon, Damon Galgut, Ben Macintyre, Kiran Desai, Marcus de Sautoy, Mary Gaitskill, Misha Glenny, Olive Heffernan, Patchen Barss, William Dalrymple, Yasmin Zaher, Fintan O’Toole, Philippe Sands, Louise Kennedy, Roisin Ingle, Ruby Wax. Book here.

There are a few tickets remaining for Michael Lewis in conversation with Mark Little on Saturday, November 14th, in the Mansion House in Dublin.

The Border in Mind

In The Border in Mind: Identity, Trauma and the Path to a Shared Ireland (Oakleaf Press), psychiatrist and former peace activist Dr Declan Lyons explores the psychological legacy of the Troubles and the emotional barriers that continue to shape attitudes towards Irish unity. Looking beyond the political and economic opinions, Lyons examines identity, historical criticisms, memory, forgiveness, reconciliation and asks whether Ireland is psychologically ready for a shared future. He argues that meaningful dialogue, healing and reassurance for different communities must begin long before any constitutional vote.