Focussing on the key theme of this year’s festival, this event welcomes an esteemed panel of experts discuss the cause, effect and lasting influence of Irish migration.
The Liverpool Irish Festival celebrates the connections between Liverpool and Ireland. In so doing, it acknowledges that the one of the dominant strands in the formation of the city was and is Irish immigration. The Office of National Statistics estimates that 50% of the population of Liverpool has Irish heritage; whilst the Liverpool Echo puts the figure higher, at 75%. This ‘Irishness’ of Liverpool is often cited in accounts that try to explain Liverpool’s distinctiveness amongst English cities. The panel will discuss different aspects of the influence of Irish migration on Liverpool and the wider Irish diaspora – there will be plenty of time for discussion with the audience.
The panel consists of:
Dr Johanne Devlin Trew (University of Ulster), speaking about migration from Northern Ireland to Britain
Dr Gillian O’Brien (John Moores University, Liverpool), speaking about Irish in the USA
Greg Quiery (local historian and author), speaking about Irish in Liverpool
Prof. Mary Hickman (Liverpool Irish Festival Board member) and Chair of this panel.
This seminal event speaks to the very heart and theme of #LIF2018 and is a highlight of the programme in terms of thinking about Ireland’s influence on the city and the world. Being in the Global Village Theatre of the Museum of Liverpool is an important statement in embedding Irish culture in the fabric of the city. this is a must see event for anyone with an interest in Liverpool or Irish history, migration or diaspora studies or those with interest in local socio-geography.
Each day, #LIF2018 will bring you talent from the Liverpool Irish musical community in informal, play along sets.
If you have a bodhrán or a fiddle, a flute or a penny whistle and would like to play along, this is the place for you! Sponsored by Irish language television channel TG 4, and held in partnership with the Liverpool Everyman, this will all take place in the Street Cafe and Theatre Bar. It’s free to drop in to play (though not compulsory!) or you can stop in for a coffee, a pint or an afternoon snack, whilst soaking up the sounds of Ireland and skimming through our Materials Library.
This is an incredibly informal affair and times are loose and easy. If people want to come along and play a little in between or after we would welcome it, in the spirit of joyful exploration and pleasantly unwinding afternoons!
Approximate times and sets are:
Times
Mon
Tue
Wed*
Thurs*
Fri
2.15pm- 3pm
Karen Turley
Karen Turley
Simon Herron
Gerry Ffrench
Marc Vormawah
3.30pm-4.15pm
Charlie McKeown
Chris Kelly
Charlie McKeown
Marc Vormawah
Wee Bag Band
* These two events will also feature Jo Pue (fiddle/vocals) and John Walsh (guitar/vocals), a very talented Irish/Folk duo. musicians and audiences alike should makethemselves known to Jo and John!
We are so grateful to TG 4 for their input and support of these events and to the artists for taking part. We do hope you’ll come along for a toe tap and an enjoyable afternoon.
Seán Mac an tSíthigh travels from Glasgow to London to meet with many generations of the Irish community living in the UK.
Separated by only 60 miles of sea and sharing a complicated history the Irish are the single largest immigrant community in the United Kingdom. Seán meets with the many generations of Irish immigrants who now call the UK home, in a country where the immigrant community have assimilated into every aspect of life while also preserving their own very distinctive Irish identity.
Téann Seán Mac an tSíthigh ar chamchuairt ó Ghlaschú go Londain chun léargas a fháil ar shaol na n-imirceach as Éirinn atá ag cur fúthu i bpríomhcheantair na Breataine.
Níl ach beagán le cois 60 míle farraige idir Éirinn agus an Bhreatain rud a fhágann go bhfuil stair chasta eadrainn. Sa tsraith nua cheithre clár, tabharfaidh Seán léargas ar shaol phobal na hÉireann sa mBreatain, ar obair na ndaoine, ar spórt agus ar chaitheamh aimsire an phobail, agus go háirithe an comhluadar atá le brath i measc an phobail chun ceiliúradh a dhéanamh ar an stádas speisialta atá ag na Gaeil sa mBreatain.
This event takes place as part of the Liverpool Irish Festival’s Family Day, in partnership with Museum of Liverpool and is brought to us by TG 4 to whom we are extremely grateful.
Dr Claire Kinsella (Staffordshire University) considers the tensions and contradictions between Irish identity, migration and the high-rise built form.
Often viewed as a rural backwater, Ireland’s connectivity with low- and high-rise regeneration, global corporations and digital futures seems at odds with this potentially outdated reputation. Dr Kinsella posits the idea that urban, high-rise living did not migrate to the imaginations of most Irish politicians -or even the urban fabric- as Ireland currently struggles with urban sprawl. Challenging perceptions about Irish ruralism and shining a light on international examples, this talk reveals where Irish people have actively built such structures.
£5.
Delivered in partnership with RIBA North.
Image: Dublin, Redevelopment at Capital Dock (detail only) (c) David Dixon under CCL.
The Liverpool Irish Festival is proud to support a number of seisiúns/sessions running across the city.
Hosted by local pubs and taverns, this is where many of the Festival regulars, founders and Board have cut their teeth and continue to play. You’re welcome to join them at any of these, too!
Regular seisiúns/sessions also occurring during #LIF2018
8pm, Thurs 19 and 25 Oct, The Old Bank seisiún, Aigburth
9pm, Fri 19 Oct, Trad session at PKs (Peter Kavanagh’s)
9pm, Mon 22, Trad at The Eddie (The Edinburgh)
10pm, Fri 26 Oct, Trad session at the Liverpool Irish Centre
7pm, Sun 28 Oct, Trad session at Kelly’s Dispensary.
Cheerful brilliance from this County Clare band as part of #LIF2018.
Having gained a fan-base gigging around the west of Ireland, this exciting three-some –Shane Hayes, Aodán Coyne and Fiachra Hayes- have recently started touring further afield and have been well received for their modern traditional style and energetic approach to music. This, combined with an acoustic musical interplay, three-part harmony and an obvious love for live performance, compliments the traditional essence of both tune and songs in a fresh and entertaining way.
Supported by Wet The Tea.
£15.
Walk though Liverpool’s historic Rodney and Hope Street areas, discovering colourful characters and long-lost histories.
Who was the White Angel and where is she now? Who came for the weekend and stayed for 20 years? And, did a Bishop really get stoned? These ever popular tours are led by historian, author and former Headmaster Greg Quiery (Newtownards, County Down).
£6/£4.
Liverpool author, Carol Maginn (Daniel Taylor, Ruin), turns her sights to the 1830s and Derry woman Kitty Wilkinson.
Please note: The actual performance date is Thurs 25 Oct – not Wed 24 Oct – as outlined in the #LIF2018 brochure and some listings. We are extremely sorry for any confusion.
Commemorating the significant influence Kitty played in Liverpool by helping to turn the tide on an epidemic spreading through the city; cholera. Echoing many of the class and gentrification issues still at large today, Kitty’s indefatigable work to help the poor of Liverpool in the face of terrific adversity continues to show how migrants help their destination cities, sometimes in unimaginable ways.
This play takes place in the same space at Responding to Robert Tressell: A Panel, an intriguing set of short talks that look at the social conditions followings Kitty’s watershed moment. Why not book both?
£5.
Image (c) Andrew AB Photography.
Returning for the second year, the Celtic Animation Film Festival celebrates and encourages new and emerging Celtic and international animators to forge an ongoing global community to share practice, tell stories and reflect on Celtic culture and concerns.
Awards are offered for Best Celtic* Short Film, Best International Short Film and Best Student Short Film, judged by an elite industry panel. Curated by CAFF Directors Kate Corbin and Eleonora Asparuhova this is an incredible event in which to witness diaspora stories, contemporary approaches to animation and the preoccupations of the industry.
*Please note, the category is best Celtic not best Professional Short Film (alongside Best International Short Film and Best Student Short Film). Liverpool Irish Festival apologise for any confusion.
Additionally, times have altered since the publication of the brochure to 1pm-5pm, from 11am-6pm.
£5. Free tickets for students. Student ID will be required on entry.
Image: Still from Myth (detail only).
Dedicated “to everyone struggling for a world free from exploitation, injustice, and oppression” The James Connolly Reader chronicles one of the leading figures in Ireland’s 1916 Easter Rising against British rule.
Join editor Shaun Harkin to discover Ireland’s greatest revolutionary.
Widely recognised as one of the most significant and innovative thinkers and activists in the socialist tradition, Connolly played a significant role in the Irish independence movement, which is recognised across the political spectrum, and internationally, due to Connolly’s unparalleled contribution to working class politics in Scotland and the United States. This is the most extensive collection of Connolly’s writings and speeches available, which Shaun Harkin (Editor) places within their historical context to draw out Connolly’s contemporary relevance.
5 June 2018 marked the 150th anniversary of Connolly’s birth and so, as a migrant who has left a continued mark on the world, we honour him with this event.
£5 (redeemable against the purchase of The James Connolly Reader on the day). It doesn’t say this on the Ticket Quarter page, but it will be deducted if buying a book at the event.
