Category: Blog

I am thrilled and very nervous to be launching the Representations of Jews in Irish Literature Exhibition in Waterford IT on February 1st. This exhibition from the Ulster University is touring the country and its February leg is in Waterford, where once there was a small Jewish population, which left their mark. I’m going to be […]

I was delighted to see Jewtown reviewed in the UK-based magazine, Jewish Renaissance, today. I was very pleased that the review was very positive about the collection. They also printed 3 of my poems from Jewtown: Tashlich, Chopped Herring and Weight. I also may have had the strangest headline written underneath a picture of me: “I thank […]

Happy New Year! I’m back on the road and off to Dublin to read at Staccato on Wednesday, 11th January. Staccato is run by writers, David Butler and Tanya Farrelly, and every month they bring together writers, poets, comedians and musicians to play in Toners in Baggot Street. It all starts off at 7:45pm and I’m […]

It’s traditional for anyone who runs a website or blog to reflect on the year sometime in December. Never one to rebel against tradition, these are my thoughts on 2016. It has been an exciting year for me as a writer: the highlight, of course, having my first collection published. I had been writing Jewtown for […]

The annual event of witnessing the 9th light , the shamash, light up in Shalom Park takes place on the last night of Chanukah. This is an art installation that pays tribute to the memory of the Jewish people who lived in Cork. The 9th light only lights up one day every year, on the […]

I was delighted to be interviewed by Don O’Mahoney again, this time on UCC98.3FM’s Art Beat programme. The interview mainly focuses on two poems in my collection, Jewtown: Preservation and The Last Sabbath at South Terrace Synagogue and the stories behind both of the poems. We also talk about Freddie Rosehill who passed away recently […]

As many poets know, there’s not a lot of money to be made in the art so when one receives the gift of travel expenses or a reading fee, it is really appreciated. In general, I have been treated well by the events and festivals where I have read. I am delighted that I have been […]

My trip to London in February for Jewish Book Week is coming closer and preparations are underway. The official announcement has been made on the Jewish Book Week website and I’m delighted to see it looking so well. The event is called Jews of Ireland and features me, Ruth Gilligan and Jonathan Self. Ruth Gilligan is […]

I was sad to hear of the death of Freddie Rosehill, who some would have described as the “last man standing” when the synagogue in South Terrace closed earlier in the year. Freddie will be remembered fondly by all of the Cork Jewish Community as well as the rest of the Jewish Community in Ireland. […]

Browsing my Instagram feed, I spotted Kerrie O’Brien’s post with a photo of her collection Illuminate in the window of Waterstones in Cork. I was delighted to see my own book on the bottom right of the display. Thanks for taking the photo, Kerrie, and I hope you don’t mind me stealing it!