Event type: Comedy

Over the last couple of years, Liverpool Irish Festival has been working on revitalising the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail, which includes the Irish Famine Memorial. ❤️??

Today, the Liverpool Great Hunger Commemoration Committee, Conradh Na Gaeilge Learpholl and Liverpool Irish Centre, in partnership with the Festival, lead a Famine Memorial Service to mark the seven-years of An Gorta Mór (the Great Hunger) across Ireland, lasting 1845-1852. 

Along with speeches, and a minute’s silence, we’ll reveal a new song, The Ullaloo. commissioned especially for the Irish Famine Memorial and shared with the Liverpool Irish Centre choir, by local musicians Ian Cantwell and Marty Snape. 

Everyone is welcome. Nevertheless, please note that this is an outside event, and we may have difficulties with sound if it is rainy or windy. We recommend dressing for the weather and bringing seats or walking aids as needed. This is a standing service of roughly 30-minutes. We won’t have chairs available for everyone. People may gather in advance of the service.

These activities have been made possible with funds from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

For more on the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail, use this link.

A Festival-staple and family must-see; we invite you to pop-by — or indeed, spend the day with us — at the Museum of Liverpool (Pier Head). ❤️??

There, we’ve a veritable array of activity to entertain kids (and adults) of all ages.

The Armagh Rhymers return with their (exclusive to the Festival) Liver Bird story. We’ll introduce visitors to Little Globy, a carbon boffin-extraordinaire and a global ambassador for green action. The Bolger-Cunningham Dance School will give it their all in the morning, before the George Ferguson School for Irish Dance will produce junior and senior dance sets, whilst Melody Makers and Comhaltas will bring their intergenerational group to play in the space.

There’ll be craft workshops in education spaces and Irish Trails through the Museum’s collections, led by volunteers from the Liverpool Irish Famine Trail.

The day puts the Irish of Liverpool at the heart of everything; the programme, the Museum and the city. 

Atrium schedule (subject to change):

11-11.30am Bolger Cunningham Dance School
11.35-12.20pm Armagh Rhymers
12.20-1.05pm Melody Makers
1.05-1.15pm Little Globy poetry
1.30pm-2.15pm Armagh Rhymers
2.15pm-3pm TBC
3.15-3.45pm George Ferguson Dance School
4pm Little Globy poetry.

The Family Day is sponsored by Tourism Ireland and held in partnership with National Museums Liverpool. As part of the Family programme, you might also like the Samhain Céilí (Sun 27 Oct).

On this 2-hour walk you’ll discover Irish connections to many of the historic Hope Street and Rodney Street buildings, hearing from some of the colourful characters who populated them. ❤️??

Led by historian Greg Quiery, early booking is recommended to avoid disappointment.

Anyone interested in this may also like the in-person Scotland Road walk (see event listing and book early to avoid disappointment) or the self-guided Liverpool Irish Famine Trail, accompanied by the Festival’s book Liverpool Irish Famine Trail: Revive, available online.

This in an outdoor walk in October; please be weather prepared, comfortable and hydrated. 

My Truth and Yours is the fifth in The Suicide Chronicle series, a project led by artist Mark Storor which aims to develop a collective, creative language to share the infinitely complex experience of suicide. ❤️?

 “Acknowledging the truth
I meet my core.
Whose truth?
Mine”.

This film was made with 23 residents of Tallaght, Dublin, many of whom connected through NINA For Life, a suicide awareness support group.

Mothers, sisters, friends, fathers, uncles, neighbours, daughters and sons, impacted by suicide offer us a vivid view into their truths and give space for the truths of others. These may not always sit comfortably alongside one another, but they are undeniable in their honesty. 

A poetic visual journey without a clear beginning, middle, or end, it captures the personal experiences of a community, departing from over-simplified explanations to instead show tender, intimate, and sometimes deeply private moments.

We are invited to keep vigil with those on the screen, and to share in the experience with one another as an audience. Together we witness a series of actions that give voice to feelings and experiences often unseen or unheard. The film offers us a portal into another place, giving us a different sense of time and space for contemplation and reflection.
Mark Storor
Mark Storor is an award-winning artist with an international reputation and extensive experience of working collaboratively with a wide range of organisations and communities, including work in hospitals, prisons, schools and housing estates. Working in the unique space between live art and theatre, he has been described in the British press as: ‘a genuinely visionary theatre maker’, ‘an alchemist’ and ‘one of the most distinctive voices in British theatre’.
Access

My Truth and Yours references suicide, experiences of bereavement by suicide, and miscarriage. Includes swearing and nudity
This sharing will begin with an in-person, spoken introduction and we will hold space for conversation after the screening with those who have been a part of making it
Ground floor, step free access
Accessible toilets and baby changing facilities available on the ground floor
Disabled parking spaces close by on Wood Street and Bold Street and to the rear of the building
Nearest railway stations are Liverpool Central (a three-minute walk away) and Liverpool Lime Street (a 12-minute walk away).

If you have any access requirements, questions about My Truth and Yours or the screenings please do be in touch: emily@heartofglass.org.uk
Full credits
The Suicide Chronicles: Chronicle Five, My Truth and Yours (2023): Amanda Ellis, Annie, Carol, Daniel, Danny Haas, Fergal Feeney, Glynis, Jean Haas, Jenna, Jenny, Joan, Kelly, Linda Bridgeman, Lorraine Morris, Martin, Michele Donohoe, Noeleen Fulham, Pat, Patricia Cooke, Sami Corcoran, Sharon Doyle and Tracey with Mark Storor.

Cinematography by Chris Keenan
Music composed and performed by Jules Maxwell
Mise en scène by Tadashi Kato
Lighting by Ian Brown
Photography by Stephen King
Narration by Veronica Dyas
Poem written and voiced by Daniel
Foreground and background shadow by Christian.

Gratitude
Co-commissioned by Tallaght Community Arts and Heart of Glass. Supported by Creative Ireland and Arts Council England. Produced by Heart of Glass. With special thanks to NINA For Life, Kingswood Community Centre and Kingswood Community College. Filmed at Mill Studios.

Liverpool Irish Festival is proud to partner with Heart of Glass to present The Suicide Chronicles, Chronicle Five: My Truth and Yours.

The event will also to be run at 6pm, Wed 23 Oct at Lucem House Community Cinema (St Helens), Free (spaces limited), book online.

The Legacy of the Piper is a unique and in-depth feature-length documentary film. ❤️??

The focus and ethos of the film captures the growth of Irish traditional music from the mid-sixties to the present day.

The Legacy of the Piper explores the legacy of Willy Clancy via the growth of Scoil Samhraidh Willie Clancy/Willie Clancy Music Week in Miltown Malbay (Co.Clare, Ireland). Willie Clancy (1918-1973) Within the documentary we consider the festival’s impact on Irish traditional music, language and culture. The film is a valuable contribution in capturing the ethos of Irish Traditional Music in Ireland and internationally. Interwoven with a wide range  interviews, including family and friends of Willie Clancy, it involves some of the island’s most legendary traditional musicians, music and more!
 “This documentary is a fantastic initiative, [reflecting] more than 50 years of heritage and tradition. It’s a chance to tell the story of traditional music to other generations and to the world”, Pàraic Mac Donnchadha-Trad musician.
Yuvi Basanth — director, cinematographer and editor — of The Legacy of the Piper has been living in Ireland for the past twenty years. Originally born in South Africa, Yuvi has produced several documentaries on social and cultural issues with the vision of raising awareness using this visual medium. He’s active in community development in Ireland, especially in establishing and supporting diverse organisations.

The film is available for purchase on DVD (€20) or USB (€25). Please email: rrf67@proton.me to order or for more information.

Yuvi will be on hand for a post-screening interview. After, people are welcome to stay for a seisiún in the Centre. We encourage people to bring an instrument, ready for a tune.

This 2-hour walk through the former heartland of Liverpool’s Irish community considers schools, statues and graveyards. ❤️??

It explores what remains of the area’s rich heritage, rousing some old ghosts along the way.

Led by historian Greg Quiery, this walk explores the dense history of a world-famous district. Featuring stories of heroic men and women; footballers and rock stars; two hidden statues; a graveyard and the legends of ‘Dandy Pat’ and James Carling. The walk ends at St Anthony’s Church, a short bus ride from town.

Those interested in this walk, may also be interested in the in-person South Liverpool walk (see event listing and book early to avoid disappointment) or the self-guided Liverpool Irish Famine Trail, accompanied by the Festival’s book Liverpool Irish Famine Trail: Revive, available online.

This in an outdoor walk in October; please be weather prepared, comfortable and hydrated.

Ticket holders should join Greg outside Liverpool Central Library ready for the walk start time.

Cancellation announcement
We are sorry to announce this event will not be taking place in 2024. We hope to bring it back for #LIF2025. The Liverpool Irish Festival team are very sorry for any disappointment caused. The Armagh Rhymers will be involved in our Family Day and Samhain Céilí.

Original event text
The Armagh Rhymers will take you on ‘The Wren’s Journey’ to seek wisdom and aid from the Choctaw Eagle through poetry, theatre, music and song.

“Bear in mind these dead, I can find no plainer words I dare not risk using that loaded word remember”, John Hewitt. ️❤️??

A commemoration of those lost and those who gave themselves in friendship.

The Rhyming tradition is a celebration of the ‘theatre of the people’ and has inspired many poets such as Seamus Heaney, Brendan Kennelly, John Montague and John Hewitt. The Armagh Rhymers are one of the most celebrated theatre ensembles on the island of Ireland. Through storytelling, music, and incredible costume, they evoke a sense of tradition and history. They encapsulate the spirit of ‘The Wren Boys’ and the ancient house visiting traditions of Ireland, where the kitchen floor became the stage.

“Symbol of the mystic people is the wren, and this is the truth of the Wren Boys and we must pass it on in the carnival of darkness, singers of the Sun”, Gabriel Fitzmaurice.

You can also see The Armagh Rhymers at our Family Day at Museum of Liverpool,  26 Oct 2024. Those interested in the First nations story, might also be interested in our event on Mon 28 Oct: The Poor Helping the Poor.

The Museum of the Home (London) has recently opened its new period rooms. ❤️??

The rooms explore the diverse histories of the many communities that have made London home over the past 150-years. One of these new rooms is a co-curated display that recreates a 1950s rented room of two Irish newlyweds, getting ready for a night out at the Galtymore dance hall. The room examines the vital importance of Irish migrants in helping rebuild the country after World War II, as well as the difficulties and prejudice many in the community faced when they first moved to Britain.

Join curators from the Museum to get a behind-the-scenes look at how this display was created. Attendees will also hear some of the stories of home and migration, contributed by the London Irish community. 

The Museum wants to hear from you. What are your stories of making home in England? What are the most important objects in your home and what might be missing from our representation of an Irish home?

This event takes place in The Shed, 49 Jamaica Street, in behind 92 Degrees Coffee. Use this Google map. Open during building opening hours (subject to The Shed’s use). The building is open daily between 9am-6pm. To ensure the gallery is open, visit between 9am-5pm Fri 18-Sun 20 Oct or Fri 25-Sun 27 Oct. These times have been reserved for Festival visitors. 

Kieran Murray has spent a lifetime looking. ❤️?

His photographs show human agency in the things they leave behind. Whether shooting empty houses (such as in his #LIF2022 exhibition: Times Past), memorials or wells, Kieran collects stories.

In this online session, Kieran will focus on collections he has found by Irish wellsides — from rosaries and Marys to wrappers and stones — giving his take on the people who may have left them and the stories the objects might illicit.

For photographers and story collectors, this event offers a gentle roam through Ireland’s countryside and a view into the lives of others.

The event was hosted on Zoom and bookers were sent the link ahead of the event.
Recording
https://youtu.be/xxS8aj6c6rU

 

My Truth and Yours is the fifth in The Suicide Chronicle series, a project led by artist Mark Storor which aims to develop a collective, creative language to share the infinitely complex experience of suicide. ❤️?

 “Acknowledging the truth
I meet my core.
Whose truth?
Mine”.

This film was made with 23 residents of Tallaght, Dublin, many of whom connected through NINA For Life, a suicide awareness support group.

Mothers, sisters, friends, fathers, uncles, neighbours, daughters and sons, impacted by suicide offer us a vivid view into their truths and give space for the truths of others. These may not always sit comfortably alongside one another, but they are undeniable in their honesty. 

A poetic visual journey without a clear beginning, middle, or end, it captures the personal experiences of a community, departing from over-simplified explanations to instead show tender, intimate, and sometimes deeply private moments.

We are invited to keep vigil with those on the screen, and to share in the experience with one another as an audience. Together we witness a series of actions that give voice to feelings and experiences often unseen or unheard. The film offers us a portal into another place, giving us a different sense of time and space for contemplation and reflection.
Mark Storor
Mark Storor is an award-winning artist with an international reputation and extensive experience of working collaboratively with a wide range of organisations and communities, including work in hospitals, prisons, schools and housing estates. Working in the unique space between live art and theatre, he has been described in the British press as: ‘a genuinely visionary theatre maker’, ‘an alchemist’ and ‘one of the most distinctive voices in British theatre’.
Access

My Truth and Yours references suicide, experiences of bereavement by suicide, and miscarriage. Includes swearing and nudity
This sharing will begin with an in-person, spoken introduction and we will hold space for conversation after the screening with those who have been a part of making it
Ground floor, step free access
Accessible toilets and baby changing facilities available on the ground floor
Disabled parking spaces close by on Wood Street and Bold Street and to the rear of the building
Nearest railway stations are Liverpool Central (a three-minute walk away) and Liverpool Lime Street (a 12-minute walk away).

If you have any access requirements, questions about My Truth and Yours or the screenings please do be in touch: emily@heartofglass.org.uk
Full credits
The Suicide Chronicles: Chronicle Five, My Truth and Yours (2023): Amanda Ellis, Annie, Carol, Daniel, Danny Haas, Fergal Feeney, Glynis, Jean Haas, Jenna, Jenny, Joan, Kelly, Linda Bridgeman, Lorraine Morris, Martin, Michele Donohoe, Noeleen Fulham, Pat, Patricia Cooke, Sami Corcoran, Sharon Doyle and Tracey with Mark Storor.

Cinematography by Chris Keenan
Music composed and performed by Jules Maxwell
Mise en scène by Tadashi Kato
Lighting by Ian Brown
Photography by Stephen King
Narration by Veronica Dyas
Poem written and voiced by Daniel
Foreground and background shadow by Christian.

Gratitude
Co-commissioned by Tallaght Community Arts and Heart of Glass. Supported by Creative Ireland and Arts Council England. Produced by Heart of Glass. With special thanks to NINA For Life, Kingswood Community Centre and Kingswood Community College. Filmed at Mill Studios.

Liverpool Irish Festival is proud to partner with Heart of Glass to present The Suicide Chronicles, Chronicle Five: My Truth and Yours.

The event will also to be run at 6pm, Mon 21 Oct at FACT, Free (spaces limited), book online.