Frank Browne: A Life Through the Lens is the title of a book edited by David and Edwin Davison, published  by Yale University Press in 2014 and the basis for the magnificent exhibition of photographs taken by Fr Browne (1880-1960) on display in dlr LexIcon from August-October 2015. With wit and a sharp eye, he observed twentieth-century Ireland; life as a Jesuit priest; his experience as a passenger on the first leg of the voyage of the Titanic in 1912; his service as a chaplain in the First World War; and his later travels throughout Europe, Egypt and Australia. This talk, given by David Davison, who, with his son Edwin has been responsible for the conservation and cataloguing of more than 42,000 of Father Browne’s original negatives, gives context and background information to the life and times of one of the most significant photographers of the twentieth century. The podcast was recorded in the Studio, dlr LexIcon on Friday 11 September 2015.

dlr LexIcon was packed with Alex Rider, Sherlock Holmes and James Bond fans on Friday 11 September when Anthony Horowitz  chatted with Rick O'Shea of RTÉ 2FM about his new Bond novel. Trigger Mortis, is a thrilling tour de force, sure to delight fans of the original 007 novels and new readers alike. He recreates the golden age of Bond in this brilliantly authentic adventure packed with speed, danger, fiendish villains and beautiful and dangerous women. Horowitz has written extensively for television and he was the creator of the ITV series Foyle’s War, Collision and Injustice. His work for adults includes the novel and play Mindgame and two Sherlock Holmes novels, The House of Silk (2011) and Moriarty (2014). The podcast was recorded in dlr LexIcon, Level 4 on Friday 11 September 2015.

While researching material for his iconic biography The Boys (1994), author and playwright Christopher Fitz-Simon found startling and hilarious correspondence between Hilton Edwards, Micheál MacLiammóir and Orson Welles. It spanned thirty years  - too much to fit into the book but it formed the basis of this talk. Fitz-Simon, in addition to numerous other international appointments, was drama producer with RTÉ and literary manager and artistic director of the Abbey and Peacock theatres.

This podcast was recorded in the Studio, dlr LexIcon on 1 December 2015.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/christopher-fitz-simon-talk-on-orson-welles-and-the-gate-theatre

Ian Rankin is the creator of the hugely popular Inspector Rebus novels, as well as a string of standalone thrillers. Even Dogs in the Wild, the twentieth Rebus novel, brings back Ian Rankin’s greatest characters in a story exploring the darkest corners of our instincts and desires. Join fellow crime writer Declan Hughes for a highly entertaining and insightful conversation with one of the world’s greatest exponents of the genre.

This podcast was recorded in Pavilion Theatre on 26 November 2015.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/ian-rankin-with-des-hughes

10 November 2015

The poet and Professor of English at Trinity College Dublin, Gerald Dawe converses with novelist and former politician Liz McManus about his latest publication, Of War and War’s Alarms: Reflections on Modern Irish Writing. This important study highlights war and revolution and their impact on the writing lives of Irish poets and novelists from WWI and the Easter Rising through WWII and the Northern ‘Troubles’.

This podcast was recorded in the Studio, dlr LexIcon on 10 November 2015.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/gerald-dawe-of-war-and-wars-alarms

In the second part of his memoirs, Brief Candle in the Dark: My Life in Science, Richard Dawkins looks back on a lifetime of tireless intellectual adventure and engagement. Exploring the halls of intellectual inquiry and stardom he encountered after the publication of The Selfish Gene, Dawkins also looks at the events and ideas that encouraged him to shift his attention to the intersection of culture, religion, and science, captured memorably in one of the most audacious books of the twentieth century - The God Delusion. Here is a rare opportunity to hear the man Stephen Pinker called ‘one of the best nonfiction writers alive today’.

This podcast was recorded in dlr LexIcon, Level 4 on 30 October 2015.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/richard-dawkinsmp3

27 October 2015

Ten years on from her last novel, Edna O’Brien reminds us why she is considered one of the finest Irish writers of this and any generation. Her astonishing new novel, The Little Red Chairs is a book of enormous emotional intelligence and courage, written with a fierce lyricism and sensibility. Join Sinéad Gleeson in conversation with this fearless and captivating author.

This podcast was recorded in Pavilion Theatre on 27 October 2015.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/edna-obrien

30 September 2015

Described as ‘the outstanding novelist of our age’, Margaret Atwood returned to Dún Laoghaire to discuss The Heart Goes Last, her first new standalone novel in fifteen years with Irish arts journalist Paula Shields. It is a sinister, wickedly funny tale about a near-future in which the lawful are locked up and the lawless roam free. Listen to this wide-ranging conversation with Canada’s leading poet, novelist, literary critic, essayist and environmental activist.

This podcast was recorded in the Royal Marine Hotel on 30 September 2015.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/margaret-atwood-30-9-2015

Kathleen King (née Murphy) (1893-1978) of Mount Salus Road, Dalkey, wrote a diary of Easter 1916 entitled ‘Dublin’s Eventful Weeks as We Heard Them’. The Diary, written in a simple copy book was recently found by her family amongst her collection of photos, letters, playbills and memorabilia and forms the basis of an exhibition in dlr LexIcon during March/April 2016. Kathleen was involved in Dublin theatre life and she moved in the same circles as Thomas and John MacDonagh, Joseph Plunkett, Edward Martyn and Máire Nic Shiubhlaigh. Kathleen’s great grand-daughter, Joanne King followed her interest in theatre and is now a professional actress in London. She has recorded an audio podcast of her great grandmother’s diary which is available on 

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/grandmas-diary

The podcast was recorded in February 2016. 

The exhibition will travel to Dalkey Library for the months of May and June 2016.

Her debut novel A Girl is a Half-formed Thing took nine years to publish and earned Eimear McBride massive critical acclaim and a cornucopia of literary prizes including the Bailey's Women's Prize for Fiction, the Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year, the Goldsmiths Prize, the Desmond Elliot Prize and the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize.

The Lesser Bohemians is her eagerly-anticipated second novel and it’s a story of first love and redemption. One night in London an eighteen year old girl, recently arrived from Ireland to study drama, meets an older actor and a tumultuous relationship ensues. Set across the bedsits and squats of mid-nineties north London, The Lesser Bohemians is a story about love and innocence, joy and discovery, and the grip of the past.

https://soundcloud.com/dlr-soundcloud/eimear-mcbride-mp3