History

The Phoenix Park is Ireland’s best-known park. Each day, hundreds of people come into the park to work within what is the largest walled park in Europe. Every night, the gas lamps that line the park are lit – a tradition passed down through generations of one family: the Flanagans. Join brothers James and Frank […]

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Starting off in the historic surrounds of Dublin Castle, join Pat Liddy or one of his expert guides on a tour of the city to learn about some of the most famous writers associated with Dublin, from the 18th century to today. You will receive a map of Dublin which is illustrated by Pat Liddy […]

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Join a unique walking tour of the historic neighbourhood of Dublin 8 led by Irish poet Julie Morrissy, which follows her work as the first Poet-in-Residence at the National Library of Ireland. Beginning at St James’s Church where Áine and Eamonn Ceannt were married in 1905, the tour will visit the historic neighbourhood of Ceannt […]

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Chris Morash’s book, Dublin: A Writer’s City (Cambridge University Press) asks what it means to live in a city like Dublin, where literary culture has so long been a part of its identity, and almost every street has layers of stories to discovered, from Swift and LeFanu to Joyce, Meehan and Boland. This walking tour […]

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Starting off in the historic surrounds of Dublin Castle, join Pat Liddy or one of his expert guides on a tour of the city to learn about some of the most famous writers associated with Dublin, from the 18th century to today. You will receive a map of Dublin which is illustrated by Pat Liddy […]

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Authors Hazel Gaynor, Liz McManus and Mary Morrissy will be in discussion with writer and critic Niall MacMonagle about their latest novels, bringing history to life through fiction. The Last Lifeboat (HarperCollins) by Hazel Gaynor explores the dramatic sinking of the SS City of Benares during WW2, and the days that follow. When Things Come […]

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Join author and Professor of Psychiatry Brendan Kelly in discussion about his latest book with writer and journalist Caelainn Hogan. In 1814, the Richmond Lunatic Asylum at Grangegorman started an extraordinary programme of asylum building across Ireland, resulting in a huge increase in ‘mental hospitals’ around the country. Through letters, medical records and doctors’ notes,  […]

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Join editor and writer Martin Doyle as he discusses his new book with broadcaster Joe Duffy. Written with a literary sensibility, Dirty Linen (Merrion Press) is a personal, intimate and revelatory history of the Troubles seen through the microcosm of a single rural parish, the author’s own, part of both the Linen Triangle – heartland […]

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Join writer, historian, artist and mapmaker Pat Liddy to discover his new book History of Ireland in Maps (HarperCollins), a history of Ireland with a major difference. A substantial hard-backed book about the main events, serious and sometimes quirky, in the long history of the island, even going back to Ice Age and beyond, each […]

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In John Hume – The Persuader (Gill Books) author and journalist Stephen Walker combines over 100 interviews with many of Hume’s colleagues, critics and family members, with never-before-published interviews with Hume himself to present a comprehensive portrait of one of the most significant political figures in Northern Ireland and around the world. Join the author […]

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Join us for a tour of Ireland’s first public library. Founded in 1707, Marsh’s Library has welcomed readers such as James Joyce, Bram Stoker and Jonathan Swift. Still an operating library today, you can see the original 18th Century interior, our bullet books from the 1916 Easter Rising and the cages where readers were locked […]

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Mount Pleasant Square is the most charming and sleepy of Dublin’s Georgian squares. Completed in the 1830s, this elegant refuge is within walking distance of Grafton Street. Author of A Little History of Dublin (Merrion Press) and museum founder Trevor White leads an exclusive walking tour for the festival. Discover the secrets of a great […]

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