National Heritage Week is an annual celebration of all that Ireland’s heritage has to offer, spanning the country’s natural, built and cultural heritage. From art and architecture, to flora and fauna, to music, sport and beyond, Ireland’s heritage is rich and varied, and ripe for exploration.
As Ireland’s most popular cultural event, the week is an opportunity for heritage novices, enthusiasts and experts alike to come together and engage with all aspects of Ireland’s heritage. It also offers people a chance to learn more about the value of heritage and the importance of its conservation, a timely endeavour, now more than ever.
The theme of this year’s week is ‘Pastimes | Past Times’, reflecting the way in which Ireland’s pastimes today have been shaped by hundreds of years of storytelling, craft, sport and music. During the week, groups and individuals the length and breadth of the country are encouraged to take a stroll through history and explore how our free time has evolved in often fascinating ways.
This year’s Heritage Week programme features events for all ages and interests, most of which are free to attend. Below, we’ve compiled a selection of highlights taking place across the capital:
1. A History of Madness in Ireland
Join CoMORBID Productions who invite you to explore and question, with both solemnity and playful curiosity, some of the darkest hours in this island’s story and its psychiatric heritage.
Saturday, 17th August at 7pm
Friends Meeting House, 5 Eustace Street, Temple Bar, Dublin 2.
Free. Booking via Eventbrite.
2. A Modern Eye: Helen Hooker O’Malley’s Ireland
Celebrate the work of American artist, Helen Hooker O’Malley with music and readings of her unpublished poetry and take in the exhibition of her photography presents an outsider’s fascination with Irish people and Irish life.
Wednesday, 21st August at 1.45pm
National Photographic Archive, Meeting House Square, Temple Bar, Dublin 2.
Free. Booking not required.
3. Irish LGBT Activism in the USA
Join activist Brendan Fay and learn more about the roles Irish emigrants and those of Irish descent have played in campaigning for LGBT recognition in the United States.
Saturday, 17th August at 2pm
EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum, Custom House Quay, Dublin 1.
Admission: €2.50. Booking via Eventbrite.
4. Maeve Binchy & Irish Writers Walk
Take a walk through Dalkey and enjoy snippets from the work of Maeve Binchy, James Joyce, GB Shaw, Hugh Leonard, Jennifer Johnston and Flann O’Brien.
Thursday, 22nd August at 6.30pm.
Meet at Dalkey Castle & Heritage Centre.
Free. Booking via info@dalkeycastle.com.
5. Wild Child Day: Seed Bombs
Come along and make your own seed bombs filled with Irish wildflower seeds – brilliant for encouraging bees, butterflies, birds, moths and other precious Irish pollinators into your own garden.
Wednesday, 21st August from 11am
National Botanic Gardens of Ireland, Glasnevin.
Free. Booking not required.
6. The Hammer and the Pen
Join Royal Irish Academy member and historian, Catriona Crowe for an engaging lecture on the Development of the First Wave of Irish Feminism.
Thursday, 22nd August at 7pm.
Tallaght Library, Tallaght.
Free. Booking via Eventbrite.
7. Wikipedia-edit-a-thon
Help record aspects of Irish heritage that are not prominent online and may otherwise be lost in years to come at this tutorial and editing session.
Saturday, 24th August at 2pm
National Gallery of Ireland, Merrion Square, Dublin 2.
Free. Booking via library@ngi.ie.
8. The Port Line Tour of Dublin Port
Trace the history of Dublin Port form 1708 to 2019 on this tour of the historic parts of Dublin Port.
Friday, 23rd August at 11am
Port Centre, Alexandra Road, Dublin Port.
Free. Booking via Eventbrite.
9. Fireside Tales / Seanchais Cois Tine
Celebrate lesser-known gems from the rich heritage of Irish language literature, from the earliest times to the present, at this bilingual event.
Thursday, 22nd August at 4pm
Maxwell Theatre, Hamilton Building, Trinity College Dublin.
Free. Booking not required.
10. Explore the Trees of St Anne’s Park
Meet and greet the trees in St. Anne’s Park; discover the stories and benefits from our native trees, and help us plant more trees.
Saturday, 24th August at 12pm
St Anne’s Park, Clontarf (meet in the courtyard of the Red Stables).
Free. Booking not required.
National Heritage Week 2019 takes place between Saturday, 17th August and Sunday, 25th August. Find the programme of events in your area at www.heritageweek.ie
