15 Years as a UNESCO City of Literature
This year Dublin celebrates 15 years since it was designated the 4th UNESCO City of Literature. Since 2010 the Creative Network of Cities of Literature has grown to 53 members spread across 6 continents. In celebration of this anniversary the Dublin UNESCO City of Literature office have put together some highlights from the last 15 years.
On the 26th July, a special celebratory launch of Dublin becoming a UNESCO city of literature was held at Grand Canal Theatre.
Watch back some highlights here on the RTÉ archive.
Joseph O'Connor's Ghost Light was selected as the One City One Book.
We hosted 'DublinSwell' over the St. Patrick's Weekend to celebrate the literary talent in Ireland. Writers Seamus Heaney, Roddy Doyle and many more were in attendance.
To celebrate Dublin’s designation as a UNESCO city of literature, a special show garden, Riverrun was commissioned for the Bloom Festival drawing inspiration from Joyce’s Finnegan’s Wake. You can still visit the garden in the grounds of Phibsboro Library today!
James Joyce's popular short story collection Dubliners was selected as the One City One Book
The first children's citywide reading programme took place with author Alan Early's Arthur Quinn and the World Serpent.
2012 marked the centenary anniversary of Bram Stoker’s death which was celebrated in St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Dracula fans enjoyed the inaugural Bram Stoker Festival.
One of Dublin’s most significant chapters in labour history, “The Lock-out” was commemorated with the selection of Strumpet City by James Plunkett for One City One Book.
President Michael D. Higgins launched a new stamp in honour of Dublin being designated a UNESCO City of Literature! Fighting Words student Eoin Moore's short story of 224 words was printed on the stamp!
To celebrate European Literature Night twelve well-known Irish personalities took part in “Words on the street”! Watch back some highlights here.
In 2014, If Ever You Go, a specially commissioned anthology published by Daedalus Press was chosen as the One City One Book. This collection of poems and songs, organised street by street was inspired by Dublin through the centuries.
Meanwhile Krakow, displayed poetry of 7 UNESCO cities of Literature in a special poetry projection entitled Multi-poetry. 11 poets work from Ireland were featured in this projection.
A highlight this year was our 'Celebrating Seamus Heaney' event to honour the late Nobel Laureate who had made his home in the city for nearly 40 years. The event featured both musicians and poets including Paul Simon, Lisa Hannigan, Liam O’Flynn, Paul Muldoon, Paula Meehan and Theo Dorgan. Listen back to the event that was broadcast on RTÉ Radio 1 here.
The One City One Book was the much loved The Barrytown Trilogy by Roddy Doyle. Events across the city celebrated The Commitments, The Snapper and The Van with the following:
a night of music at Vicar Street with Damien Dempsey , Aidan Gillen, Glen Hansard, Imelda May, Colm Meaney and Ger Ryan.
a plaque to commemorate the birth of The Snapper was unveiled at the Rotunda
and an event at the Aviva Stadium reflected on Ireland's exploits during Italia '90 with Eamon Dunphy, John Giles and Paul McGrath.
Dublin UNESCO City of Literature also partnered with Prague UNESCO City of Literature for an event as part of 'Prague Days in Dublin' with Madeleine Keane moderating a discussion between Petra Hulova and Louise O'Neill.
As part of the Centenary Programme in 2016 to mark the anniversary of 1916 Rising and Ireland's participation in the First World War, Lia Mills Fallen was chosen for the unique Two Cities One Book programme featuring events across Dublin and Belfast.
Popular author, Emma Donoghue took part in a special event to discuss her book The Wonder.
“Dublin in the Coming Times” was a collaborative project between Dublin UNESCO City of Literature, Dublin City Libraries and Fighting Words, DCC Arts Office and the Irish Times where Dubliners, young and old were invited to write about how they imagine Dublin will look like in the future.
The Dublin UNESCO City of Literature team organised the very first annual UNESCO Cities of literature conference to discuss programming, proposals and policies across the network.
Dublin read Joe Joyce's Echoland, the first in a trilogy about Ireland during "The Emergency" for the One City One Book programme.
'Knights of the Borrowed Dark' by Dave Rudden was chosen for the Citywide Reading Programme with the aim to encourage children to read for pleasure.
We even had a visit from Anthony Horowitz to discuss his writing life and influences.
In 2018 Irish writer Mike McCormack won the Dublin Literary Award for his novel Solar Bones
Poets Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin and Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill were part of an initiative by Heidelberg City of Literature and Fabriano Creative City for Crafts & Folk Art to produce a specially bound and printed anthology celebrating literature and its vital place in world culture.
Our One City One Book campaign celebrated the work and achievements of Irish women writers over the centuries with the anthology The Long Gaze Back, edited by Sinéad Gleeson and published by New Island.
In 2019 for One City One Book we honoured the remarkable Edna O'Brien and her ground breaking trilogy The Country Girls. Once banned in Ireland, this iconic work was rightfully celebrated in the heart of the capital for its lasting impact on Irish literature.
The popular genre of Crime was featured in a new festival: Murder One.
As part of the St. Patrick’s weekend celebrations, people got out and about on a specially commissioned poetry trail, 'The Words that Bind Us', supported by Dublin UNESCO City of Literature.
Christine Dwyer Hickey's Tatty a wonderful piece of writing on childhood in 1960s Dublin was selected as the One City One Book with much of the events happening online due to the Pandemic.
Northern Irish writer, Anna Burns’s Milkman won the Dublin Literary Award.
Things continued online for 2021 with many events over the month of April for One Dublin One Book. Ronan Hession‘s Leonard and Hungry Paul was the book everyone was reading.
Chris Morash, Séamus Heaney Professor of Irish writing writing & non-voting chair gave the annual UNESCO City of Literature Lecture in Pearse Street Library on the meaning of statues around the city.
In the centenary year of the publication of Ulysses, we celebrated the legend and muse of James Joyce, his wife and lover, Nora Barnacle, with Nuala O'Connor's book Nora for One Dublin One Book.
John Banville was interviewed by Niall MacMonagle on his recent book – The Singularities at the Dublin Book Festival for Dublin City Libraries’ Readers Morning.
Northside book clubs enjoyed hearing the Laureate for Irish Fiction Colm Tóibín discuss Kate O’Brien’s ‘The Ante-Room at Ballymun Library as part of the Art of Reading Book Club series.
Historical fiction set in 1800s Dublin was the subject of our One Dublin One Book this year with Andrew Hughes' The Coroners Daughter as the selected title. Watch back the events here.
Dublin was represented by slam poet, Leon Dunne at Slamovision in Nottingham. Leon came third that year with his poem, Toxic Masculinity.
Snowflake by Louise Nealon was the One Dublin One Book this year with plenty events taking place across the city to get the capital reading! Watch back the events here.
Rising Tide, a slam poet trio curated some slam poetry events at Pearse Street Library organising one in Irish to select an Irish Language poem for the 2024 Slamoivison competition. Cormac Mac Gearailt won the national heats and went on to win the Slamovision in Manchester! Watch back his performance here.
Our first Citywide Reading Programme for teenagers happened in 2024. Transition year students across the city read Helena Close's ‘The Gone Book’ and then attended writing workshops with the Limerick author.
Read, Watch, Listen
At Swim Two Birds
City Librarian, Mairead Owens on RTE Radio 1
