News & Events

Happy World Digital Preservation Day! The theme for this year is Why Preserve? 

Why do we Preserve?

From the earliest evidence of human activity, humans have sought to preserve. This impulse ranges from the preservation of cultural meaning through cave paintings and petroglyphs, to the use of clay tokens for accounting and administration, to the later development of cuneiform as the earliest known writing system. All shared a common purpose: to store and communicate information outside limits of a human mind - interpretable long after their creators’ deaths. 

Digital information is the modern heir to this long lineage of human preservation, and it is incumbent upon us to approach it with the same care and foresight as our ancestors did. What we preserve is far more than a storage medium - hard-drives, servers, or cloud platforms - or the specific file formats we use, such as Microsoft Word documents or PDFs. At its core, what endures are the ideas, insights, knowledge, and creative expression encoded within these digital forms - the thoughts, intentions, and imagination of the human mind, preserved so that future generations can encounter, interpret, and be inspired by them. Just as cave paintings, clay tokens, and cuneiform carried meaning across millennia, today’s digital artifacts hold the potential to communicate, inspire, and bear witness to our time long into the future. Preserving them is not merely a technical task; it is an ethical, social, and cultural responsibility to safeguard the intellectual and cultural legacy of humanity.

Just as our ancestors carefully chose which marks, objects, or records to leave behind, we must be thoughtful and considerate about what digital traces we protect. Unlike physical artifacts, digital information is fragile in ways our predecessors could not have imagined: it is subject to obsolescence, corruption, and the pace of technological change. Yet, it offers unprecedented opportunities for longevity, through replication and migration, as well as through careful metadata documentation, ensuring that meaning and context endure even as technologies evolve. Digital preservation is always ongoing and never a finished task; materials are never preserved, rather they are always in the process of being preserved. The key to digital preservation is active stewardship over time.

Recent Digital Preservation Activities at The Library of Trinity College Dublin 

We are actively involved in numerous digital preservation activities. In recent years we have acquired archival collections of global significance which contain born-digital artefacts, engaged in e-mail preservation, preserved both parts of the University website and project-based websites through web archiving; and are currently undertaking a pilot programme with a digital preservation system.

E-Mail Preservation

E-Mail is one of the most common forms of communication today. They document conversations, decisions, and relationships and will be essential source material for future researchers seeking to understand our world. To enable their future study requires us to begin preserving them now. We have acquired numerous e-mail accounts and preserving them often requires carefully migrating them to formats that are more sustainable over the long-term, creating multiple copies, and ensuring we can demonstrate the integrity and authenticity of what we are preserving. We also need to be conscious of privacy concerns given the sensitive content that is often contained within e-mails. As a result, most emails we are preserving are not yet available to researchers but ensuring that they can be available in the future necessitates us preserving them today to make future discovery and access possible.

Web Archiving

Websites are a key source for documenting life in our digital age. They can capture how institutions such as Trinity College, Dublin present themselves to the world, providing future researchers with evidence of how they expressed their identity. Websites can also be used to present the outputs of academic projects that need to be sustained beyond their funding cycle. Archiving them can preserve the context, legacy, and intellectual impact, of projects long after their conclusion. However, anyone who has tried to revisit an old website link knows how often the content is no longer accessible. The web is constantly changing, with content created and then deleted in quick succession, essential updates not being funded, or hosting costs not being available, ensuring that content will not be available in the future. Without active preservation, future researchers will be faced with digital gaps instead of the stories and content these records hold. To combat this, the Library has engaged in web archiving, a series of steps to allow future users to interact with a website as it looked on the day it was archived and when the website may no longer be available on the live web. We have captures of some of the Library website and some of the University’s website. We have also helped to sustain project websites which were no longer being actively managed. We plan on building on this work in the coming year, capturing more content and ensuring that more of our digital presence can be preserved for the future, while also providing access to some content. 

Pilot Programme

We have also recently embarked on a pilot programme in partnership with the digital preservation company Preservica. This initiative will help us refine our technical requirements, ensuring that our future approach is aligned with the diverse needs of stakeholders across the University. The lessons learned will inform future planning, helping us establish a sustainable framework for safeguarding the University’s growing body of digital heritage. The pilot will also provide a valuable opportunity to develop and test new workflows for managing digital content, and, for the first time, to provide secure access to born-digital material. This is a significant development for the Library, and we will have more exciting digital preservation announcements over the next year!

Rare 16^th century sea maps of Ireland, Cromwellian-era land surveys and 19^th tourist maps feature in a new exhibition in the Old Library, Trinity College Dublin.

Entitled ‘The Island of Ireland in Maps’, the exhibition and accompanying online exhibition celebrate the extensive cartographic holdings of the Library of Trinity College Dublin in its Glucksman Map Library, with particular focus on maps from the 16^th century to the mid 20^th century.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to explore some of the beautiful and intriguing maps held in the Glucksman Map Library, which is dedicated to the care and consultation of over half a million maps. Some 150,000 of Trinity’s maps relate to Ireland, making it home to the largest printed map collection in Ireland,” the Librarian and College Archivist, Helen Shenton said.

The exhibitions include rare 16^th century maps of Ireland developed by navigators exploring the Atlantic world, detailed land surveys undertaken as part of the Cromwellian conquest of Ireland as well as sea charts, atlases, relief models, aerial views, globes, and tourist maps.

Highlights from the two exhibitions include:

• The oldest map of Ireland in the Glucksman Library, a 1561 engraving of Ireland and Great Britain.
• A 1689 map detailing parishes, baronies and counties drawn from the Down Survey which mapped all the land to be confiscated and redistributed following the Cromwellian conquest.
• A 1611 coloured map of Leinster which includes an inset containing the earliest surviving plan of Dublin.
• An 1839 geological map across six large sheets originally made for planning the railway network in Ireland.
• A foldable pocket-size map of Dublin Ordnance Survey produced in 1902-1906 was designed to meet the growth of the tourist and leisure market.
• An Irish-language school atlas of Ireland dating from 1948 with placenames written in Gaelic script.

Map Librarian Paul Ferguson, curator of the exhibition, explains: “The first printed maps of Ireland were developed by navigators and traders operating in what they understood at the edge of the Atlantic world. Later maps were compiled by surveyors as part of the confiscation and transfer of land from Irish landowners to English and Scottish settlers. Completed just before the Great Irish Famine, the first Ordnance Survey mapped the landscape in amazing detail”.

As a legal deposit library for Ireland the Glucksman Library continues to receive approx. 900 new map titles annually. Its collections are an important resource for students, researchers, and professionals, as well as local and family historians.

The physical exhibition is on display in the Long Room of the Old Library and runs until early February 2026. It forms part of the Book of Kells Experience. See here to book tickets. The online exhibitions can be viewed on the Library’s website.

About the Glucksman Map Library

The Glucksman Map Library was established in 1987. It holds over half a million maps and is the largest collection of printed maps in Ireland, including rare older material as well as modern mapping. The map library was named after benefactors Lewis and Loretta Glucksman when it moved into purpose-designed premises in the Ussher Library in 2003.

The Map Library serves students and staff of Trinity as well as students and researchers from other institutions. It also responds to map enquiries from professional and business people as well as from the general public interested in place, local studies and the changing Irish landscape. 

Images:

1. A map of the Ulster counties / Francis Jobson. [c.1598].

Join the Library for a special Ecological Emergency Book Club Collaboration on Wednesday 22nd October, 2-4pm in the North Training Room of the Eavan Boland Library.

Together with Adam Kelly, Associate Prof of English in UCD, we’ll discuss Playground, the new novel by Richard Powers (author of The Overstory). The novel is many things - an ode to the ocean and the wondrous things that live there, a consideration of colonialism and neocolonialism, a reflection on friendship, and a provocation on what generative AI means for memory, reality, and the future of life on earth. Despite these vast and profound themes, this book is a lot easier and quicker to read than Powers’ other recent novels! 

Adam Kelly recently authored an op-ed in the Irish times on the topic of Playground, its central theme - generative AI, and what genAI means for the university. He wrote “LLMs are the most effective tool ever created to curtail the traditional work of universities, the cultivation of critical individual minds". Members of the Book Club also authored an op-ed arguing that the university should resist generative AI. The book club discussion will bridge from the themes explore in the novel to these broader themes of what generative AI means for higher education and the world beyond.

The book is widely available in paperback and as an audiobook (just short of 14hrs). Four copies of Powers' 'Playground’ will be available from the Trinity Library by the end of this week, and you will find it at your local library too.

The Book Club meeting will be in person and is open to all members of the College community (students, staff - professional, research, academic), so please spread the word!

The Library had the pleasure of welcoming members of the Muslim Sisters of Éire for a special tour this week. The visit offered an opportunity to explore the Library’s rich heritage, from the Old Library and the Book of Kells to the thought-provoking De-naming and Renaming Exhibition in the Eavan Boland Library.

Exploring the Old Library & the Book of Kells

The tour began with a walk-through Trinity’s most iconic spaces, the Book of Kells exhibition and the Old Library’s Long Room. Visitors were introduced to the history, artistry, and global significance of the Book of Kells and other treasured manuscripts. The Long Room, with its soaring barrel-vault ceiling and intriguing busts of significant figures, provided the backdrop for the group as they learned about the Library and its role in housing so much knowledge and history.

Engaging with the De-naming and Renaming Exhibition

The group also visited the De-naming and Renaming Exhibition in the Eavan Boland Library, which explores how names, histories, and identities shape the spaces we inhabit. This exhibition prompted rich discussion about heritage, representation, and inclusion, themes central to both the Library and the work of the Muslim Sisters of Éire.

Building Connections

It was wonderful to see how the tour fostered dialogue about culture, history, and belonging. Sharing Trinity’s collections and exhibitions with community groups like the Muslim Sisters of Éire helps us build bridges between the University and wider society, reflecting our commitment to inclusive heritage and learning.

“We are grateful to the Muslim Sisters of Éire for visiting and for bringing their perspectives and curiosity to the Library. We look forward to welcoming them – and many other community groups – again soon,” said the Library’s Educational Outreach and Civic Engagement Manager Seán Adderley.

Dear students and staff,

A very warm welcome to the new academic year, especially to first-year undergraduates, new postgraduates and new members of the Trinity community.

Library Supports & Services

Every student has access to a dedicated librarian who is available to support you throughout your academic journey at Trinity. If you have not already met your Subject Librarian you will meet them at a Library class or workshop.

All Library staff are here to assist you. Ask any member of the helpful team at Library counters, email your Subject Librarian or library@tcd.ie. 

The Library HITS (Helpful Information for Trinity Students) programme will also help you with a wide range of skills workshops relevant to your studies.

UK Electronic Legal Deposit 

Electronic Legal Deposit (UK) is available again on dedicated terminals in the Library. Access to the electronic Legal Deposit (eLD) content was disrupted due to the major cyber-attack of the British Library at the end of October 2023. Following a large-scale exercise to confirm the eLD content was free of malware, a new secure interface was developed and is now available in all Trinity’s reading rooms, as well as the other five UK legal deposit libraries. 

Digital Collections and Open Scholarship

In a significant step for the Library’s contribution to Open Scholarship, the Library’s digitised content can now be made available for re-use under an open licence on the Library’s Digital Collections platform. This is in line with the new ‘Policy on Open Licensing of the Library’s Digitised Content’. Here are details of the Creative Commons Attribution licence to use. 

New search and discovery platforms 

The Library launched two new search and discovery platforms to replace Stella Search at the beginning of September. They are the ‘Library Catalogue’ for Library holdings; and ‘Articles and More’ for subscribed e-resources and database content. Some technical issues have arisen with the ‘Library Catalogue’ therefore Stella Search has been temporarily reinstated as the primary catalogue for Library holdings. You can find further information and updates in our Library Guide and Library home page. 

The Eavan Boland Library

The Library is holding an outdoor exhibition on Eavan Boland for those who may wish to find out more about the acclaimed Irish poet. The former Berkeley Library was renamed the Eavan Boland Library last year.  There is a display about the denaming and renaming process in the foyer and it also featured in an hour-long RTÉ Nationwide programme RTÉ player.

Old Library Redevelopment Project

The major conservation programme is well underway of the Old Library’s 18th century building.  Three quarters of a million of the most valuable and vulnerable collection items have been safely transferred, security tagged and catalogued as part of the major Decant of the Research Collections from the Old Library last year. This timelapse gives a sense of all that it involved. The Research Collections Study Centre is now in the Atrium of the Ussher Library. A new integrated Design Team is on board with McCullough Mulvin as the architects. The Old Library is anticipated to remain open until the end of 2027 at which point the Book of Kells will transfer to the beautifully restored Printing House, adjacent to the ‘Book of Kells Experience’ red pavilion. 

Later this semester, a temporary display of Cuala Press material from the Library’s collections will open in the newly conserved Printing House, to pilot its use as a display space; more details to follow. 

A reminder also that Trinity staff and students can continue to visit the Old Library and the new ‘Book of Kells Experience’ in New Square for free through this link (by using Student/Staff ID number in the promo code box). 

Virtual Trinity Library

The Library is currently hosting an exhibition in the Long Room ’The Island of Ireland in Maps’, showcasing maps from the 16th century onwards. The exhibition highlights the Library’s extensive cartographic resources. This will be followed in February 2026 by an exhibition on the founder of the Irish National Land League Michael Davitt, whose papers are being conserved and digitised as part of the Virtual Trinity Library. 

New Research and Innovation Laidlaw Library at Trinity East 

The first ‘digital first and foremost’ Research & Innovation Laidlaw Library is planned as an anchor to the growing campus at Trinity East, on Dublin’s Grand Canal Quay, with its anticipated opening at the end of 2027. The Laidlaw Library is being created from the refurbishment of an existing building and adjoins Trinity’s Portal Innovation Hub. Consultation across the University reinforced the need for different sorts of library spaces and surfaced many creative ideas for this first new library in the 21st century. 

Library Educational Outreach and Civic Engagement

The Library is developing a programme of activities and supports that will further promote equality, diversity and inclusion. The aim is to create more opportunities for people with intellectual disabilities, physical disabilities, students from overseas and non-traditional user groups to engage with the Library collections. 

As part of becoming a ‘Green Library’, the Library is hosting a Climate Café, which is an opportunity for staff and students to discuss climate related issues. Supported by the Global Room, and Trinity Sustainability, it will include book discussions, talks and visible mending workshops among other activities every month.

Libraries and Democracy

Finally, Libraries have been called ‘the last bastions of democracy’. In a world of malinformation, misinformation and disinformation, the value and values of libraries and archives have never been so important. In today’s geo-politics, libraries are increasingly politicised, as articulated in his article in the Observer ‘There is no political power without power over the archive,’ by Bodley’s Librarian Richard Ovenden, in which he outlines how the banning of books and deletion of data represent a fundamental threat to democracy. Libraries are not only safe spaces conducive to study and thought, but are guardians of knowledge, potential refuges for threatened research data and endangered archives, and trusted transmitters of information for our current communities and for the future. 

With warmest good wishes for the forthcoming semester,

Helen Shenton 

––––––––––––

Helen Shenton FRSA, FIIC
Librarian and College Archivist
The Library of Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin 

Update: Library’s new search platforms (17/09/25)

The Library launched two new search and discovery platforms to replace Stella Search at the beginning of September. They are the “Library Catalogue” for Library holdings; and “Articles and More” for subscribed e-resources and database content. Some technical issues have arisen with the “Library Catalogue” therefore Stella Search has been temporarily reinstated as the primary catalogue for Library holdings. You can find further information  in our Library Guide and regular updates on Library home page.

Library launches new search platforms replacing Stella Search (03/09/25)

The Library is launching two new search and discovery platforms to replace Stella Search, which will be switched off after 26 October 2025. The search tabs on the Library home page will direct you to the new platforms from Wednesday, 3 September: 

• “Library Catalogue” for Library holdings, such as print books, e-books, journal and e-journal titles, as well as manuscripts and archives; 
• “Articles and More” for subscribed e-resources and database content, such as full-text e-journal articles and some e-books. 

The new platforms include improved user experiences, for example: 

• Cleaner, more intuitive platforms, including modern accessibility features; 
• Improved discovery across the breadth of our print collections; 
• Fully responsive design to support mobile devices; 
• Click and Collect service expanded to open shelf books in the reading rooms. 

Stella Search will remain available from the Library website until Sunday, 26 October. Most of the saved content in your Library Account in Stella Search will automatically transfer to your account in the new Library Catalogue when you log in. 

You can find further information in a new Library Guide which will contain the latest updates. 

Library staff are available to provide assistance with the new platforms “Library Catalogue” and “Articles and More” and can be contacted in the reading rooms, by the chat service via the home page, or by email: library@tcd.ie. 

One of the most important surviving medieval manuscripts written in Irish, the Book of Leinster, goes on display as part of a new exhibition in the Library of Trinity College Dublin following a major conservation project. Funding for this conservation was generously provided through a grant from Bank of America’s Art Conservation Project

Written in Old and Middle Irish in the 12th century, the Book of Leinster, or Leabhar Laighean, is an important source of Irish literature and history from the medieval period. 

It contains historical and genealogical information, mainly on Leinster kings and heroes, mythological and historical accounts of invasions and battles, descriptive prose and verse and the history and etymology of nearly 200 place-names.

The manuscript came to Trinity in 1786 in an unbound state. For some time the fragile condition of its 400 vellum pages prevented it being put on public display or being consulted by researchers. 

But now, thanks to painstaking conservation, the manuscript has been cleaned, stabilised, extensive tears and losses have been repaired and the different sections re-assembled. 

Several examples of newly-conserved pages from the Book of Leinster now form the centrepiece of a new exhibition entitled “The Book of Leinster − Preserving for the Future”. Curated by the Library of Trinity College Dublin the exhibition is being held to celebrate the completion of the conservation project. 

Also on display will be other significant Irish-language medieval manuscripts including Brehon law texts and the Yellow Book of Lecan (Leabhar Buidhe Leacáin). The exhibition forms part of the Book of Kells Experience and will run until August 12th, 2025. See here to book tickets for both exhibitions. 

Chief Manuscript Conservator Dr John Gillis, the Library of Trinity College Dublin, who has led the project, explained: “Over the past two years we have undertaken meticulous conservation of this extremely fragile and important manuscript. This involved replacing losses where necessary with new vellum, particularly the vulnerable backfolds, and reinforcing weakened areas and tears in the manuscript with a form of thin collagen.”

“We were successful in our efforts to stabilise this precious manuscript and now it can be safely handled, studied and displayed. We also recorded all evidence of sewings and other marks to help better understand the manuscript’s own past.”

Caoimhe Ní Ghormáin, Curator, Manuscripts and Archives, the Library of Trinity College Dublin, added: “The Book of Leinster provides us with an unparalleled snapshot of the Middle Ages in Ireland. It includes a significant version of the famous Irish saga Táin Bó Cúailnge, or the Cattle Raid of Cooley, which is the story of the warrior Cú Chulainn.

“Most famously, it contains the Irish ‘Book of Genesis’, Lebor Gabála Érenn, which establishes Ireland, the Irish people and their language in a biblical world setting. According to the manuscript, the Irish language was created after the confusion at the Tower of Babel thus avoiding all the shortcomings of other languages. This origin story was particularly relevant in medieval times when Irish was threatened by the enormous prestige of Latin.” 

Fernando Vicario, Chief Executive Officer of Bank of America Europe DAC and Country Head for Ireland said: “We are delighted that the conservation has been a success. It was an honour to be part of preserving this precious manuscript, with a grant from Bank of America’s Art Conservation Project. The initiative was established in 2010, with the purpose of preserving cultural heritage and to date, more than 275 conservation grants have been awarded in over 40 countries. We look forward to seeing the Book of Leinster and hope that many more people will now be able to enjoy this treasured work for years to come.”

Mícheál Hoyne, Assistant Professor, Department of Irish and Celtic Languages, Trinity College Dublin said:

“The Book of Leinster was rescued from possible oblivion by the Welsh scholar Edward Lhwyd at the end of the 17th century. At that time the native schools of history, poetry and law had collapsed and traditional Irish learning was in danger of being forgotten altogether. The manuscript then spent most of the 18th century inaccessible to Irish scholars in an English nobleman’s library. It was finally presented to Trinity College as a gift to the Irish people in 1786.”

“Since then it has been the responsibility of Trinity to preserve and study this vital source for Irish language, literature and learning in the Middle Ages. The conservation work now carried out on the manuscript is the latest chapter in that story. Scholars continue to explore the riches of this book, so it is vital that we preserve and protect this manuscript for future generations.”

A digital exhibition focusing on medieval Irish language manuscripts held in the Library of Trinity College Dublin can be viewed here.

ENDS

Note to Editors

More about the “The Book of Leinster − Preserving for the Future” exhibition:

Opening on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, the exhibition includes several examples of newly-conserved pages from the Book of Leinster and other significant Irish-language manuscripts from the early Irish period including the Yellow Book of Lecan (Leabhar Buidhe Leacáin) and a number early Irish law texts known as Brehon law. The exhibition forms part of the Book of Kells Experience and will run until August 12th, 2025. See here to book tickets for both exhibitions. 

More about the Book of Leinster: The Book of Leinster dates from the 12th century and it is a compendium of prose, verse, genealogy, mythology and place-name lore. Written by the “prime historian of Leinster”, Áed Úa Crimthainn, abbot of Tír-Dá-Glas (Terryglass) monastery in Co Tipperary, it was formerly known as the Lebor na Nuachongbála or Book of Nuachongbáil — a monastic site known today as Oughaval in Co Laois.

Six talented Trinity students have been named as the winners of a creative competition held to honour the legacy of Irish author, Christy Nolan, and to mark the 25th Anniversary of Trinity disAbility Service.

The competition, Perseverance Through Words: A Tribute to Christy Nolan, was open to all disabled staff and students in Trinity, with all art forms welcome, including literary, visual arts, film, and performance. It was organised by Trinity disAbility Service in collaboration with the Library of Trinity College Dublin.

The winners are:

• Anna Lopuchowycz, for a poem entitled ‘Notch’
• Aoife O’Donovan, for a musical composition inspired by Christy Nolan’s words which he used in his autobiography to describe the beginning of his venture as a Trinity student; ‘Zealous mercurial dreams were about to be realised’
• Ava Rose Beggy, for an untitled oil painting; inspired by the above quote
• Avantika Singhal, for an untitled personal essay, inspired by Christy words; ‘Now could he ever get his chance to let folk see what they thought never existed?’
• Claudia Clarke Gosalvez, for a charcoal drawing entitled, ‘Hearts’
• Holly Wolohan, for poem entitled ‘Private Piano Portmanteau’

The winners were announced at a ceremony in Trinity Library’s Long Room on Wednesday, May 7th, which included speeches from Yvonne Nolan, Christy Nolan’s sister, and Rosaleen McDonagh, author, playwright, and disability activist.

The overall winner, a musical composition by Aoife O’Donovan, will now form part of the current exhibition in the Long Room entitled "Zealous mercurial dreams were about to be realised: New treasures of the Old Library", which features archival material from the Library’s Christy Nolan archive. An online exhibition about the Christy Nolan archive can be viewed here.

Christy Nolan (1965-2009) remains a shining example of Irish creativity and literary talent. At just fifteen, he published his first poetry collection, Dam-Burst of Dreams, followed by his memoir, Under the Eye of the Clock, and later the critically acclaimed novel The Banyan Tree. During his time as an undergraduate at Trinity College Dublin, Christy's disability was secondary to the interactions he had with fellow students and his lecturers.

Declan Treanor, Director of Trinity disAbility Service, Trinity College Dublin, explained: “Christy Nolan once said that ‘nobody made him feel different’ at Trinity — a powerful reminder of what this university can be at its best: a place where disabled people are not only accepted but celebrated.

“As we mark the 25th anniversary of the Trinity disAbility Service, and honour Christy’s extraordinary legacy, we affirm that creativity and self-expression lie at the heart of both our history and our future. The development of the disAbility Hub has creativity embedded in its very foundations — a space where imagination, voice, and talent are nurtured. Through this competition, we celebrate the richness of disabled voices in all their forms, just as Christy once did.”

Laura Shanahan, Head of Research Collections, Library of Trinity College Dublin, added:  

"Partnering with the DisAbility Service on this competition project, using the Christy Nolan Archive and his published works as inspiration, has been a huge privilege for the Library. Christy's archive was donated to Trinity by his family, ‘in tribute to his bravery, and his exceptional body of work… and as a testament to what is possible through love and indomitability’.   In the act of preservation of the archive and through the re-promotion of his works in our exhibition, we are grateful to have played just one small part in ensuring Christy's legacy amongst the great Irish writers of the twentieth century.

“The Library feels strongly that what we collect now must contain diversity of voices and experiences. The history of Christy's experience has particular resonance in a University context because it demonstrates the role that science, technology, medicine and education had in in enabling the humanistic expression of his art."

The judging panel for the competition comprised: Sunniva Corr, Christy Nolan’s niece and a student on Trinity’s MPhil in Creative Writing; Dr Nick Johnson, Associate Professor of Drama; Eoin McNamee, Oscar Wilde Centre for Irish Writing; and Jen O’Connor, Disability and Inclusive Internship Programme Officer.

 Ends

The above image features overall winner, Aoife O’Donovan holding the score for her musical composition inspired by Christy Nolan

As part of a series of events celebrating the naming of the Eavan Boland Library, there will be a very special reading of her poems selected by poet and novelist, Colm Tóibín, Laureate for Irish Fiction 2022 – 2024, on Thursday 24th April at 7pm. The reading will take place at the Edmund Burke Theatre. The event coincides with the anniversary of Eavan Boland's untimely death in April 2020.

There will be an introduction and welcome on behalf of Poetry Ireland by Catriona Crowe and it will be Chaired by Professor Eve Patten, Director of the Trinity Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute.

Readers include the poet's daughters Eavan and Sarah Casey, poets Mary O’Malley and Nidhi Zak/Aria Eipe, poet and novelist Sebastian Barry and broadcaster and journalist Doireann Ní Bhriain.

The event is a collaboration between Poetry Ireland and the Library of Trinity College Dublin. 

The event is free  but booking is essential through Eventbrite.

All are welcome.