Jackie De Burca Today’s guest is Byddi Lee, an Armagh-based author who’s lived in Canada, South Africa, Paris and California, before settling back in her hometown of Armagh in Northern Ireland. Her first novel March to November was written while she was living in California and actually helped her ease her homesickness. Byddi’s Rejuvenation Trilogy...
Jackie De Burca Today’s guest is Sean Mackel, who writes fiction and poetry as well as being a visual communicator. He won the Kanturk Flash Fiction Prize in 2019 for his story, The Silent Mouth. Sean has been lecturing and working in graphic design for decades in Australia, Germany and Ireland. Sean, you’re very welcome...
Jackie De Burca Today’s guest was described as a “force of nature” by a BBC journalist This force of nature is the award-winning author and poet from Belfast, Maeve O’Lynn. Amongst her many achievements, Maeve has won the TU Short Story Competition at Redline Book Festival in Dublin in 2019. She was also long-listed for...
Jackie De Burca A very warm welcome to Susanne Stich who’s a wonderful writer, and all-round creative who hails originally from Bavaria in Germany. But she’s actually been living in the North of Ireland between Derry and Donegal. Welcome, Susanne. Susanne Stich Hello, Jackie, I’m so delighted to be here. Thank you for having me....
Jackie De Burca Today’s guest is Emma Thorpe. Emma makes stunning silver jewellery inspired by the outstanding natural beauty of the magnificent Causeway Coast of Northern Ireland. Other important influences are Emma’s late grandmother, Rose, her 10-year career in archaeology, and her Belfast roots. Thank you so much for joining us today, Emma. Emma Thorpe...
Back to Belfast with Malachi O’Doherty Destiny, karma & baloney, writing, photography and Terry Brankin Jackie De Burca Do you think at all, Malachi– just something that comes into my mind- I’ve been- I haven’t done anything like the years you did obviously in an Ashram, but I’ve been on retreats and healing situations. I...
From Donegal to Belfast and India with Malachi O’Doherty Jackie De Burca So going back to Donegal, Malachi, you said in our sort of preparation for today’s chat, you said, “I always had a sense that it was an ancestral homeland. It seemed a place where law was less rigorous, where one might be settled...
Photo Flickr user Bruce Durling Episode 1: From Muff to Ballycastle and Belfast with Malachi O’Doherty Jackie De Burca A warm welcome to the Creative Places and Faces podcast– the podcast that explores places that help to inspire creativity. Some are local, some even formative and others are far away and sometimes rather exotic. Today’s...
Jackie De Burca Today’s guest is Andrea Spencer, who makes beautiful works of art from glass to quote Andrea, I find much of my inspiration in nature investigating natural forms that are either transformed into symbolic objects or abstracted to create images. Thanks so much for joining us, Andrea Andrea Spencer Hi. Thank you so...
Jackie De Burca Today’s guest, Helen Sharkey, is a visual artist, independent socio-cultural academic researcher and arts manager, whose current research is focused on pop up arts programmes centred in non-traditional public spaces. Helen’s art is deeply inspired by Strangford Lough, an incredibly beautiful place in Northern Ireland. In fact, the Telegraph newspaper included it...
Jackie De Burca Jan, going back to your time in East Belfast and of course, you travel a lot then you’re going back, that’s your—that’s been your base now for quite a number of years. Why do you love that environment so much? Because obviously, you do. Jan Carson A couple of reasons. I love...
Photo Courtesy of Bradley Quinn Jackie De Burca Today’s guest is the acclaimed author Jan Carson from Ballymena in Northern Ireland. In 2019, Jan won the EU Prize for Literature for her second novel, The Fire Starters, which is one of the best books I have ever read. Set in East Belfast, The Fire Starters...
All photos by Ann Smyth unless otherwise indicated Today’s guest on the Creative Places and Faces podcast is Ann Smyth. Ann is an International Stained Glass Artist living and working in Northern Ireland with over 40 years experience in her field. Ann works from a beautiful rural studio situated on the shores of Strangford Lough...
I’m in love with this city. It’s our go-to city whilst living in Ireland. We tend to stay in the Salthill Hotel when we visit because I’m drawn to the peace of the beach and the buzz of the city which is within walking distance, the best of both worlds. I currently miss Galway, due...
Most of Ireland outside of Dublin and Belfast is sparsely populated but these parts of the Emerald Isle offer visitors peaceful, green landscapes of unrivalled beauty, beautiful monuments and geological wonders. Road trips are a great way to reach such remarkable places in Ireland. Below are 3 route suggestions to explore the green island. The...
By Aisling Conneely Connemara is a destination situated on the west coast of Ireland with breathtaking beauty that is steeped in history and is a place where you feel most at home amongst true Irish heritage. Located in County Galway, when you visit Ireland you certainly shouldn’t miss this very special part of the world....
By Eimear Birch “We want to spotlight the culture, music, food and people as opposed to history and the landscape.” Hi, my name is Eimear and I’m delighted to give you a small insight into where I am from – Galway City, Ireland. I am a final year student studying International Tourism Management at Galway...
By Emma Collard On December 28th, 2019 I took the long 6.5-hour flight over from Toronto, Canada to visit one of the most raved about destinations in Ireland; Galway. I was aware of the historic aspect of County Galway but was more interested in the culture, music, locals, food, etc. Galway has a population of...
Containing a third of Ireland’s population, Dublin is a lively city packed with a rich art, music, and literary background. The friendly locals and bustling pub scene make the Irish capital an endearing spot where the people are great and the craic is even better. There are endless ways to spend your day along the...
When you think of Ireland, I imagine you might picture cute green leprechauns, rolling lush fields, fun friendly people who are always having the “craic*,” endless pints of Guinness and of course, a huge range of wonderful whiskeys to complete the story. And naturally enough there are some beautiful Irish girls dancing away in the...
For when it is safe to travel again or for local explorers when allowed – updated September 2020 Welcome to the Galway Gig Guide Here you will find up to date listings for gigs around Galway’s music venues. Featured Galway Gigs Galway Gig Guide
For when it is safe to travel again or for local explorers when allowed – updated September 2020 By Jackie De Burca – Follow Jackie on Twitter Chosen as one of the 17 coolest places in the world to go by National Geographic, in 2017, Donegal is a county that somehow feels undiscovered but promises...
For when it is safe to travel again or for local explorers when allowed – updated September 2020 – live music venues may not be operating as before COVID-19 – Please check with the venue By Jackie De Burca – Follow Jackie on Twitter Music loving visitors to Belfast are in for a treat! The...
My hometown of Dublin is not only a wonderfully friendly capital city, but it’s also a fantastic place to enjoy live music. In fact, music is a massive part of Dublin’s culture and history, which means that the choice of live music pubs in Dublin is phenomenal. The good thing is, however, that the city...
Hundreds of sidecars from all over the country would gallop up and down, night and day. The impact that the races had on Galway. You really couldn't knock on a door at all, in the old parts of Galway that doesn't have some association with the races. There was two events in Galway over the...
Go sightseeing in Galway with the lovely Madeline Hixon. Madeline named this video, "Our Favourite City in Ireland." She and her friend love Galway and it shows. I just love how natural Madeline is in front of the camera and her take on the Irish weather is hilarious ...but sadly correct. Welcome to the Galway...
Here are some great insider tips for spending 24 hours in Galway, or more time. Personally I think the city and the county deserves a good few days, but if you read some of my other articles you'll see that I am in love with Galway. Anyhow, I also love some of these tips as...
Of course I am bound to be biased with Dublin being where I was born! However the likes of Lonely Planet, TripAdvisor and so many more can't be wrong. Dublin was voted the world's friendliest city by Lonely Planet for a few years in a row. The Dublin vibe is a beautiful blend of art,...
Part and parcel of a trip to Galway is definitely seeing some live music in a great Galway bar. If you spend time in Galway without checking out at least one of Galway's best live music pubs, be sure not to tell anybody!! It is almost something to be ashamed of .... Galway is my...
Even the Irish themselves make their way to Galway if they want to have an especially good time!! Located on the west coast of the Atlantic, Galway city blends the best of Ireland's traditions and ambience. With its rich culture, history, craic agus ceoil (Irish style fun and music), Galway is the kind of city...
While Galway city is undoubtedly a gem, filled with colour, gorgeous buildings, culture, friendly people and lots of "craic agus ceol", the county of the same name has much to offer. It would be a shame to travel to the West of Ireland without exploring some of the beautiful towns and charming villages of County...
Galway Most Beautiful Places For when it is safe to travel again or for local explorers when allowed – updated August 2020 By Jackie De Burca – Follow Jackie on Twitter Galway’s wonderfully wild Connemara coast was the adored location of my childhood family holidays. The contrast with my hometown of Dublin was deliciously different...
The poet, William Butler Yeats, drew his artistic inspiration from his homeland Ireland, especially from Sligo and other parts of the west of Ireland. Often considered to be one of the 20th century's greatest poets. W. B. Yeats was born in Sandymount, Dublin on 13 June 1865. He was educated between Dublin and London, and...
