Belfast Book Festival 2016 | Page 42

Blood On The Rose /Fuil Ar An Rós Nobody Told Me: Poetry And Parenthood Noir At The Bar Evan Marshall Curated By Gerard Brennan Spirit Of ’58 With Adrian Logan The Poems Of 1916 With Chelley McLear Cultúrlann Mcadam Ó Fiaich Wednesday 15 June – 7.30pm Tickets: £8/£6 Crescent Arts Centre Wednesday 15 June – 8.30pm Tickets: £8/£6 The Errigle Inn Wednesday 15 June – 8:30pm Tickets: £6/£4 Crescent Arts Centre Wednesday 15 June – 8:30pm Tickets: £6/£4 The Blood on the Rose/Fuil ar an Rós recording came about when Gabriel Rosenstock had the idea of celebrating the artistic contribution of many of the signatories of The Proclamation, and Tristan Rosenstock had the idea to record poems and songs of 1916. With Kate Tempest describing her poetry as welcoming, galvanising and beautiful, her fans range from Robin Ince, to Marian Keyes to most of the UKs midwives. Hollie McNish is a poet whose readings are not to be missed! Literary history is littered by wasted writers. The pen and the bottle have gone hand in hand since the first scribble. The Northern Irish crime fiction set embody this spirit. Join Brian McGilloway, Stuart Neville, Steve Cavanagh, Kelly Creighton and Gerard Brennan as they trade harsh words for hard liquor. In the summer of 1958 tiny Northern Ireland stood just one game away from a semifinal appearance in the World Cup against the mighty Brazil. The heroic story of this uniquely blessed squad of players, led by the peerless Danny Blanchflower, takes in the Munich Air Disaster, a fight against Sabbath Observers within the IFA who tried to stop them going to the tournament, and a violent win-or-bust struggle against Italy to qualify. And yet it has almost been forgotten. Together with Artistic Director Cathal Quinn, they thrashed out the content of the CD. It was recorded in December 2015 in Stoneybatter, mixed in January 2016 and launched February 2016. Three tracks were premiered in Pearse St Library as part of the launch by Dublin City Council of its 1916 commemorations: The Watchword of Labour by James Connolly Easter 1916 by WB Yeats I see his blood upon the rose/ An fhuil is léir dom ar an rós by Joseph Plunkett, translated into Irish by Gabriel Rosenstock. This staged performance of the CD should be an event not to be missed! 42 Hollie McNish In partnership with Creative Centenaries She is an Arts Foundation Fellow in Spoken Word, has garnered over two million YouTube views for her online poetry performances and was the first poet to record at Abbey Road Studios. The book is a unique blend of poetry and storytelling, taken straight from Hollie’s personal diaries. As she states herself it is not a polished collection; rather, it is a very candid, at times gutting, at others hilarious, look at her experiences from pregnancy to the pre-school drop off. Expect strong language as she talks colours, cravings, politics, transformers, sex, tree climbing, feeding, train journeys, lots and lots of love and occasionally locking herself in toilets to cry a little. This is Noir at the Bar. Spirit of ‘58 tells the story of how Northern Irish football came of age under the management of Peter Doherty, and the team’s journey from also-rans to being two games away from the World Cup final of 1958. Including interviews with all the surviving players, the book finally tells the full story of Northern Ireland’s greatest ever team. A gripping rollercoaster of a story brought to you by Evan Marshall that will thrill football and sports fans. belfastbookfestival.com 43