TCD’s Oscar Wilde Centre Celebrates 10-years of Creative Writing with series of Trinity Readings

Posted on: 04 April 2008

The ten-year anniversary celebrations of the Oscar Wilde Centre for Irish Writing at Trinity College Dublin commenced this week with its highly successful first Trinity Reading, featuring poet, Derek Mahon, writer and current Irish Writing Fellow at the Oscar Wilde Centre, Mary Morrissy as well as the Anglo-Hungarian poet and former International Writing Fellow, George Szirtes. The event which was introduced by Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin attracted a packed audience of more than 200 people, including members of the general public, students and graduates as well as the writing community. The Director of the Oscar Wilde Centre, Gerald Dawe, was delighted with the response and success of the event: “I’m sure Oscar would have been pleased with the full house. The readings from Derek Mahon, Mary Morrissy and George Szirtes held the audience enthralled for what was one of the most memorable nights of literary gatherings in College”.

The Trinity Reading will be held every Tuesday this month and they include:
April 8, 2008 – Writer and former Irish Writing Fellow, Sebastian Barry, Poet and Professor in the School of English, the University of St Andrews, Douglas Dunn, and Creative Writing graduate and author of The Mushroom Pickers, Jacqueline McCarrick. Introduced by Deirdre Madden.

April 15, 2008 – TCD graduate and Man-Booker winning novelist, Anne Enright, former Irish Writing Fellow, poet and publisher Peter Fallon and poet, Bernard O’Donoghue. Introduced by Gerald Dawe.

April 22, 2008 – Former creative writing graduate and novelist, Claire Kilroy, playwright, actor and former graduate of the creative writing course, Gina Moxley and former Writing Fellow and writer, Andrew O’Hagan. Introduced by literary agent, Jonathan Williams. Time & Venue for all readings: 7.30pm, the Swift Theatre, the Arts Building. Contact Oscar@tcd.ie for further details.

TCD’s Oscar Wilde Centre for Irish Writing which is housed in the original Wilde family home at 21, Westland Row, was opened in 1998 as the teaching and research centre for both the long-standing M.Phil in Anglo-Irish Literature and the then newly established M.Phil in Creative Writing. Its Irish and International Writing Fellowship programme hosts well known contemporary writers from both home and abroad who live on the TCD campus for three months. It is these former fellows and graduates from the past decade as well as friends of TCD who opened the celebrations with the Trinity Readings.