01Feb
Liverpool Irish Festival is proud to present you with an array of St Brigid’s Day activities.
Taking place across the country, and from our archive, we hope you find plenty to engage in. Whilst Omicron continues to run rife, we are keeping these online in 2022. We sincerely hope to meet for something in person in 2023. Below we list our headline event, Women’s Voices in Arts and Media, followed by some key work from the Festival’s St Brigid’s and In:Visible Women archives, followed by a short listing of other events on offer for St Brigid’s Day.
Women’s Voices in Arts and Media
Originally premiered online (now available below), 7pm, Tue 1 Feb 2022
Key to our offer this year, is our engagement in the Women’s Voices in Arts and Media discussion, led by the Consulates General of Ireland in Cardiff, Edinburgh and Manchester (bookable using the ‘Book now’ button) or using this Eventbrite link. The speakers will discuss the importance of female voices in today’s world, linking with empowerment and -from the Festival’s point-of-view- the work we do via In:Visible Women.
The online discussion will feature a distinguished panel of women from the worlds of arts and media. The event moderator will be Ellen Coyne, news correspondent and columnist with The Irish Independent, author of Are You There, God? It’s Me, Ellen. Joining Ellen will be Sorcha Carey, Bethan Kilfoil and -the Festival’s own- Emma Smith.
Sorcha Carey is Director of the Edinburgh Art Festival, Chair of Festivals Edinburgh and incoming director of Collective – Centre for Contemporary Art in Edinburgh. Bethan Kilfoil is a Programme Editor for RTÉ AND former BBC Wales correspondent. Emma Smith is Artistic Director and CEO of Liverpool Irish Festival and former Executive Director of LOOK Liverpool International Photography Festival (2015).
Watch now: stories of strength; creative storytelling
The Widow’s Friend (3min film + background notes) – A song commisison from Cathy Carter based on the story of Kitty Wilkinson, a Derry-Liverpudlian who helped save the city -and country- from cholera in the 1800s.
The Art of Living: The Life and Times of Miss Amy June Furlong (30min film + article) – A pictorial, narrated view of a life through quotes; this film documents Liverpool’s acclaimed life model, Amy June Furlong, who was painted by the greats, incluing Lennon, Freud and Bacon. June’s life is presented by oral-historians, filmmakers and archivists, The Sound Agents.
Darluchdagh’s Song (3min film + background notes/lyric sheet) – Ciara Ni É and Aoife Ní Mhórdha present a poem, set to music, about St Brigid’s closest friend, companion and confidant, Darluchdagh. The poem helps us to understand the world Brigid inhabited and the love she shared.
In:Visible Women 2021: Mother and Baby Homes – In 2021, following the release of the Mother and Baby Homes Commission of Investigation Final Report, the Festival worked with National Univeristy of Ireland, Galway and the Tuam Oral History Project to learn more about the personal encounters and lasting effects of the Mother and Baby Homes. Enlightening, caring and generous, the series of six online presentations…
- see and bear witness
- hear and listen
- locate and learn
- interpret and express
- reflect
- hope
…on the experiences of those most affected. Before proceeding, we recommend reading In:Visisble Women: Today’s Care, an article we published to support the series. As anyone might expect, entering the world of the Mother and Baby Homes, can cause upset. Whilst we have been careful with our words, we ask you to be gentle with yourself and mindful that the topic is sensitive and emotive.
Enjoy for the day
- 29 Jan 2022: London Irish Centre St Brigid’s concert
- 30 Jan 2022: Hammersmith Cultural Centre Casey Sisters concert
- 31 Jan-14 Feb 2022: Look our for the Herstory lightshow (link) at sites across Dublin
- 1-28 Feb 2022: Irish Film London present a month-long programme of the best female-led short films
- 1 Feb 2022: If you are in Kildare, you may enjoy the activities of Solas Bhride.
You can also check on the To Be Irish website, for more Irish cultural activity listings, year-round.
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