On 13 October we were privileged to welcome the Berkeley’s architect Paul Koralek to speak to a sell-out crowd in the Edmund Burke Theatre, to discuss the Berkeley Library with John Tuomey and other guests.
Luckily, we captured it all for posterity (with decent sound too, thanks to our expert cameraman) – so let’s allow all our guests to speak for themselves. Enjoy!
This shot is of just before the event began, when the Provost met the Architect:
Firstly, guests were welcomed by the Librarian and College Archivist, who gave us her experience of seeing the Berkeley for the first time, and how her attitude to the building has changed over the years since.
Then John and Paul began their talk. We had a few problems with sound, but we hope they didn’t detract too much from the fascinating conversation.
After about 30 minutes or so, during which slides played in the background (including many images of the Berkeley not generally seen before), three new guests were invited to the stage. Karen Latimer, Shane O’Toole and Róisín Heneghan gave a response to what they’d just heard and asked a few questions themselves.
As John summed up and led the thanks to Paul, something very special happened – the room rose for several minutes and gave Paul a thundering standing ovation.
There was just enough time for a few questions from the audience – the last one of which came from our old friend and former colleague, Trevor Peare.
A fantastic evening, and one of which we are very proud to have been a part.