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Scoil Scairte Previous Guides | SpIral 1

Úna-Minh Kavanagh

Úna-Minh Kavanagh is a journalist and multimedia content creator. She is the author of Anseo (2019) and eBook, DIY Gaeilge: 150 Irish Language Resources (2021). She edits the good news website WeAreIrish.ie and is a live Twitch streamer who broadcasts bilingually under the moniker ‘Yunitex’. Úna-Minh has a B.A. in Irish and Journalism (DCU).

 
 
 

Kneecap

Kneecap are a Belfast, Northern Ireland-based hip hop trio with the stage-names Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí. Merging Irish with English, satire with socially conscious lyrics, and reality with absurdity, theirs is a voice which comes screaming from the too-often deprived areas of the North of Ireland, speaking in a language which is too-often ignored, and it makes for suitably electrifying stuff. www.kneecap.ie

 

Peia Luzzi

Peia Luzzi is an American born song collector, writer and multi-instrumentalist based in the mountains of Southern Oregon. Like water from a deep well, she draws inspiration from her ancestral roots of Celtic and Old World European folk music. www.peiasong.com

 

Annemarie Ní Churreáin

Annemarie Ní Churreáin is a poet from the Donegal Gaeltacht. Much of her work interweaves landscape, Irish history, mythological stories and folklore. Her publications include Bloodroot (Doire Press, 2017) and The Poison Glen (The Gallery Press, coming very soon!). She is a recipient of The Next Generation Award Artist from the Arts Council and a co-recipient of The Markievicz Award. Visit studiotwentyfive.com

 

Woven Kin - Siobhán Moore & Aisling Urwin

Based out of Co. Kerry, Ireland and New Hampshire, USA, Ash and Siobhán come together for the harmony-centered melodies of Woven Kin. Their songs are dreamscapes and journeys, tradition and new ground. www.wovenkinmusic.com

 

Inni - K (Eithne Ní Chatháin)

Named by RTÉ.ie as, “One of ten fierce women defining Irish culture”, singer, songwriter & multi-instrumentalist Inni-K (Eithne Ní Chatháin) draws on her extensive background in folk and traditional Irish music even as she ventures into new musical territories. Her music combines ethereal vocals, deft musicianship, and evocative lyrics (bilingual at times). www.inni-k.com

 

Rising Appalachia

Rising Appalachia is an American folk music group led by multi-instrumentalist sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith. As world travelers for nearly two decades, Rising Appalachia have merged multiple global music influences with their own southern roots. www.risingappalachia.com

 

Timmy Creed

Timmy Creed is an actor, writer and yoga teacher currently based in West Kerry. He is interested in creating performance that mixes movement, documentary and personal storytelling to engage and activate new and broad audiences. He works bilingually, is currently developing a show about madness with his sister and is commissioned by the Abbey Theatre to create an outdoor performance around a fire about ‘The Burning of Cork’. www.spliced.ie

 

Róise Goan

Róise Goan works as the Artistic Director of Artsadmin in London. Prior to her appointment she worked as Guest Dramaturg at Vooruit in Belgium, and as a freelance arts programmer in Ireland. Alongside her work in the performing arts, she has written for television, most notably the TG4 series Aifric.

 

Ola Majekodunmi

Ola Majekodunmi is a gaeilgeoir, freelance writer and public speaker, and is a broadcaster with Raidió na Life. She is a writer, providing content for the Irish Times, journal.ie, RTÉ.ie and other platforms, and has also worked with TG4 discussing subjects such as politics, race and the Irish language. Ola can also be heard on the national radio stations RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta, RTÉ Radio 1, RTÉ 2FM and BBC Radio Ulster.

 

Louis de Paor

Louis de Paor is one of the most celebrated poets of the Irish language. A former editor of the acclaimed Irish language journal Innti, he is now the Director of the Centre for Irish Studies at the National University of Ireland, Galway. De Paor has worked alongside many of the giants of literature in the Irish language such as Sean Ó Tuama with whom he edited a twentieth century anthology of poetry in Irish.

 

Margaret A. Noodin

Margaret A. Noodin is a poet and the author of Bawaajimo: A Dialect of Dreams in Anishinaabe Language and Literature, Weweni: Poems in Anishinaabemowin and English, and What the Chickadee Knows. She teaches American Indian Literature, Celtic Literature, Indigenous Language Revitalization and Anishinaabemowin language at University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. Margaret is the editor of ojibwe.net and the Papers of the Algonquian Conference.

 
 
 

scoil scairte previous guides | spIral 3

 

Kathy Scott

Kathy is a cultural activist and creative entrepreneur dedicated to creating provocative experiences that animate the spirit of our times. Her greatest mission in this life is to nudge humanity forward by inspiring people to rise and lift each other up along the way. She is the creative director of The Trailblazery which was founded as a response to a need for deeper human connection and belonging in our world.

 

Manchán Magan

Manchán Magan writes regularly for The Irish Times, presents The Almanac of Ireland on RTÉ Radio 1 and has presented dozens of documentaries on issues of world culture for TG4 & RTÉ. His book Thirty-Two Words for Field explores the insights the Irish language offers into the landscape, psyche and heritage of Ireland. www.manchan.com

 

Billy Mag Fhloinn

Billy Mag Fhloinn is a native of Limerick, and lives in the heart of Corca Dhuibhne, on the Dingle Peninsula in western Ireland. He holds a PhD in Irish Folklore, and a B.A. in archaeology, from University  College Dublin. As well as working as a university lecturer, he is also a wedding and funeral celebrant, musician, and artist. https://tradition.ie/welcome/

 
 
 

Emma Dabiri

Emma is an Irish-Nigerian broadcaster, historian and bestselling author. Her work focuses on race as seen through the prism of class, capitalism and colonialism. She is the author of two highly acclaimed books and has fronted numerous documentaries, including Hair Power: Me and My Afro (2020) for Channel 4 which won the Cannes Lion Silver award for entertainment. Emma is a teaching fellow at SOAS, University of London.

 

Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh

A renowned artist with a proven record of performance, recording and innovation, Muireann Nic Amhlaoibh is a multi-award winning traditional singer, musician and broadcaster from Corca Dhuibhne, West Kerry. Muireann is a leading exponent of the sean nós style, and loves to engage with audiences to share her love of the Irish song tradition.

 

Cian Ó Cíobháin 

Cian Ó Cíobháin grew up in the Corca Dhuibhne / West Kerry Gaeltacht in an Irish-speaking household. A music fanatic, he was drawn to the club scene, where he DJs and promoted famous Galway club nights such as 110th Street and Boogaloo and has lived in the city for almost three decades. He has been presenting alternative music radio show 'An Taobh Tuathail' (The Other Side) on RTÉ RnaG since 1999 and continues to champion new, underground music, both national and international, on his show five nights a week. https://cianociobhain.com/

 

Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh 

Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh is a fiddle player and sean-nós singer from the Gaeltacht of Gaoth Dobhair in County Donegal. She is passionate about preserving the traditional music from her area. She is also a composer and has been commissioned to compose music for various projects over the years. She is a founding member of the renowned traditional music group, Altan. www.mairead.ie www.altan.ie

 

Brian Crosby

Brian Crosby is a piano player, performer and film score composer. He was a founding member of Bell X1 and creator of The Cake Sale. In 2008, Brian moved to Berlin where he converted an old factory in Kreuzberg to a modular studio complex where he collaborated with fellow studio residents Dustin O’Halloran, Hildur Guõnadóttir and the late Jóhann Jóhannsson on numerous Film and TV scores. His latest album Imbrium, a spacious collection of pared back piano recordings was described by The Sunday Times as “nine unadorned piano instrumentals capture the stillness of life suspended, each piece as delicate and moving as it is restrained”. www.briancrosby.coml.

 

Lara Campbell

Lara Campbell is a multi-disciplinary artist working as director, actor, drama teacher, costume designer and has had a long and varied career on both the national and international stage.

 

Séamus Barra Ó Súilleabháin

Séamus Barra Ó Súilleabháin is from Lios Tuathail. Born in London, he was brought home, placed into a Gael-prefab at the back of the resource centre. Since then - he has wrestles constantly with the language of his region - Gaelainn Corca Dhuibhne, Sliabh Luachra Hiberno-English, Feale Drive Gammon, or the London Béarla of his cousins. While living in Galway he started to perform for the first time in the Slam Poetry scene, and went on to win All Ireland Slam in 2011. He published a collection of poetry 'Beatha Dhónaill Dhuibh' in 2016.  He has since undergone a lot of research on the folklore of the Blasket Island, sifting through 8000 pages of hand written material of Mícheál Ó Gaoithín and engaging in field research in Corca Dhuibhne relating to the elusive writer and artist son of Peig Sayers. He is currently gigging the five provinces of Ireland and releasing music for his hip hop project (Súil Amháin) - West Munster lyricism full of kaleidoscopic allusions to folklore, cryptic references to contemporary Gaeltacht society, grammar bending puns and flows influenced by the likes of GZA, Lord Infamous, Labhrás Mac Síthigh and Mo Chara. He teaches Irish language courses with Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne in Ballyferriter in the summer, and is co-organiser and judge for the yearly Irish language Liú Lúnasa poetry slam in the Cultúrlann on the Falls Road, the very place he took part in an Irish language writing workshop facilitated by Mícheál Ó Conghaile and Gearóid Mac Lochlainn at the age of 19. https://suilamhain.bandcamp.com/

 

Sarah Babiker

Sarah constantly craves embarking on yet another true journey of discovery, the kind which “consists not in visiting new landscapes, but in seeing through new eyes.” Her articles and talks invite you to join her as she strives to unearth the origins of the stories which nourish, defend and orient us. Sarah presented a TEDx talk in Trinity college in February 2019, entitled The Clash of Civilizations or the Clash of Narratives? In her article The Blue that Shines Through, she reveals a connection between the Irish term daoine gorma, and Arabic words referring to darker skin tones. A historical exploration of these expressions convinces her that such language has potential to elevate cross-cultural conversations and lead global discourse into the light.

 

Áine Uí Laoithe 

Áine Uí Laoithe is from Dùn Chaoin, i nGaeltacht Chorca Dhuibhne in Kerry. She is steeped in the tradition of sean nòs singing & trad music, which she inherited from her people who were born & reared on the Great Blasket Island. Áine won Fleadh Ceoil ná hÉireann in 1983 & recorded a CD with her cousin & friend Eilin Ní Chearna “Mná an Oileáin” in the late 90s. The two have performed at folk festivals & play regularly at the folk concerts in St. James’ Church Dingle, sharing their tradition with visitors to Corca Dhuibhne. While Áine is retired from the newsroom of RTÉ Raidio na Gaeltachta, she is now working part time with Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne, passing on the tradition of sean nós singing to the future generation.

 

Eilín Ní Chearna

I was born in Muiríoch Baile na nGall, one of five, to parents who moved from the Great Blasket Islands to the mainland in 1950. The background to their decision to leave the Island is recounted in the book Hungry for Home by Cole Morton. Irish was my first language both at home and in school until I was about 12. I am a traditional singer and musician and worked in Radio na Gaeltachta for almost 40 years, until I retired last August, 2021. I have shared a stage with many great musicians and traveled Europe. I also recorded a CD “Mná an Oileáin” with Aine Uí Laoithe and contributed to the CD “Mighty Session”. Since retiring I divide my time between my family and grandchildren and joining in the occasional traditional session.

 

Aoife Granville 

Aoife Granville is a flute/fiddle player & singer from Dingle who holds a PhD in Folklore/Ethnomusicology (Dingle Wren & European Carnival Cultures). She lectures in Folklore/Béaloideas at UCC and was appointed to the Board of the Arts Council of Ireland by Minister Martin in February 2022. 

 

Colm Ó’Snodaigh

Ceoltóir, cumadóir agus scríobhnóír is ea Colm. Ball den mbanna ceoil Kíla leis na cianta. Dhá leabhar gearrscéalta, novella, bailiúchán aisti, leabhar staire agus dhá aistriúchán curtha de go dtí seo. Cnaipí agus scéálta eile is ea teideal an leabhar is déanaí uaidh. Dhá albam aonair curtha de agus é ag obair ar chéad cheann eile faoi láthair. 

 

Ríonach uí Ógáin

Professor emeritus Ríonach uí Ógáin is former Director of the National Folklore Collection,University College Dublin. She has published on traditional music and song and has also produced a number of compact discs with accompanying booklets. Among her recent publications is The Otherword: Music and Song from irish Tradition edited with Tom Sherlock.

 

Siobhán O’Kelly 

Siobhán O’Kelly trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Theatre work includes All My Sons, Of Mice and Men, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Fiach, Flare Path, Lipstick a Fairytale of Iran, Cogadh na Saoirse, Private Ear/Public Eye and Twelfth Night. She has appeared in TV shows like Eastenders, Jack Taylor, Call The Midwife, Casualty, An Klondike, London Irish, Raw, Inspector George Gently, Paddywhackery and Na Cloigne.  Her film credits include High Rise, Arracht, Sophie At The Races, Treasure Island and The Daisy Chain. In 2015 Siobhan won Best Actress at the European Independent Film Festival for her role in Sophie At The Races and in 2016 was nominated for an IFTA for her work on the TV series An Klondike. Having lived in London for many, many years Siobhan is delighted to be back in Ireland reconnecting with its people and language.

 

Rising Appalachia

Rising Appalachia is an American folk music group led by multi-instrumentalist sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith. As world travelers for nearly two decades, Rising Appalachia have merged multiple global music influences with their own southern roots.

 
 

scoil scairte previous guides | spIral 4

 

Kathy Scott

Kathy is a cultural activist and creative entrepreneur dedicated to creating provocative experiences that animate the spirit of our times. Her greatest mission in this life is to nudge humanity forward by inspiring people to rise and lift each other up along the way. She is the creative director of The Trailblazery which was founded as a response to a need for deeper human connection and belonging in our world.

 

Manchán Magan

Manchán Magan writes regularly for The Irish Times, presents The Almanac of Ireland on RTÉ Radio 1 and has presented dozens of documentaries on issues of world culture for TG4 & RTÉ. His book Thirty-Two Words for Field explores the insights the Irish language offers into the landscape, psyche and heritage of Ireland. www.manchan.com

 

Mairéad Ní Chonghaile

Mairéad Ní Chonghaile was born and raised in the Conamara Gaeltacht and is a native Irish speaker. Her career in the Arts spans over 25 years, during which time she has presented television programmes with TG4 (Charts i gCeart, Síbín) and acted on stage, television and film (Ros na Rún, Aifric, The Royal, Jonathan Creek).

 

Siobhán O’Kelly 

Siobhán O’Kelly trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Theatre work includes All My Sons, Of Mice and Men, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Fiach, Flare Path, Lipstick a Fairytale of Iran, Cogadh na Saoirse, Private Ear/Public Eye and Twelfth Night. She has appeared in TV shows like Eastenders, Jack Taylor, Call The Midwife, Casualty, An Klondike, London Irish, Raw, Inspector George Gently, Paddywhackery and Na Cloigne.  Her film credits include High Rise, Arracht, Sophie At The Races, Treasure Island and The Daisy Chain. In 2015 Siobhan won Best Actress at the European Independent Film Festival for her role in Sophie At The Races and in 2016 was nominated for an IFTA for her work on the TV series An Klondike. Having lived in London for many, many years Siobhan is delighted to be back in Ireland reconnecting with its people and language.

 

James Riordan

James (he/him) is an interdisciplinary theatre maker and artistic director of Galway based Brú Theatre, creating bilingual performance at the intersection between contemporary theatre practice and the languages, landscapes and literatures of the West of Ireland. His practice plays with narrative form through a variety of disciplines including virtual reality, drag, lament, mask and ensemble.

 

Delta Kay

Delta Kay is an Arakwal Bumberbin Bundjalung woman, proud mother and grandmother passionate about sharing culture and protecting Country. She is committed to working in genuine partnership with the local community to promote awareness, understanding and mutual respect between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.

 

Seán Ó Coistealbha

Seán is a teacher, poet. theatre- and filmmaker from the Gaeltacht village of An Spidéal, Galway. The former Language and Cultural Officer for Údarás na Gaeltachta has published two books of poetry, Dídean and Stadhan. He has been CEO of Muintearas, the Gaeltacht Educational Project, for the past 27 years.

 

Eithne Verling 

Eithne Verling is director and curator at Galway City Museum since 2013. She has been working in cultural infrastructure and exhibition and programme curation for over thirty years. In her mid-twenties she was curator of the Donegal County Museum. Following this, her work included the establishment of two theatres in Galway (Town Hall and Black Box); eight years with the Heritage Council, during which she led the establishment of the Museum Standards Programme of Ireland (MSPI) and associated training programmes.

 

Danny Teece-Johnson

A Gamilaraay man from Moree NSW, Danny has been a journalist for 20 years. After releasing his award-winning short film “Mah” Danny moved into documentary filmmaking working alongside some of the country’s best filmmakers and production houses, having also produced for ABC, SBS, BBC 4 and the Foxtel Network. Danny is driven to tell the real stories from Indigenous Australia and has worked right throughout Australia with Indigenous communities, organisations and Traditional Owners to tell unique and engaging Aboriginal stories through Aboriginal eyes.

 

Áine Tyrrell

Áine Tyrrell has built her international music career by thinking outside the box and saying it how it is. Her life, an inspiring journey in and of itself, is the canvas for the music, words and powerful performances that make her a thought provoking multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and an unmissable live act.

 

Darach Ó Tuairisg

With over 25 years experience in television, radio and theatre production, Darach is founder and CEO of Fíbín*, Ireland’s only theatre and television production company. Meangadh Fíbín develops, finances, and creates award-winning content targeted primarily at young audiences. More recently Fíbín has taken up residency in An Taibhdhearc, the national Irish language theatre and continue produce exciting and energetic Irish language theatre for audiences nationally and internationally. Darach is chairperson of Celtic Neighbours, an organisation promoting minority languages through Arts and Culture and is also a board member of the national broadcaster TG4.  *pronounced ‘Fee been’!

 

Síle Nic Chonaonaigh

From An Spidéal in Conamara, Síle studied drama at Trinity College, Dublin. Since then she has spent her life acting, directing, teaching, presenting programmes for TG4, and travelling. She is a wanderer by nature, rooted in story and in the poetry of the natural world.

 

Aindrias de Staic 

Aindrias de Staic is a storyteller, folklorist and musician from the West of Ireland. He is one a new generation of storytellers in Ireland today who works in both English and Irish Languages. He attended school in the Gaeltacht and grew up to embrace the language & music of South Mayo. He inherited much of his stories & storytelling ability from his late father Eddie Stack (storyteller/writer) As a graduate of Heritage Studies(GMIT) Aindrias was encouraged by Dr. John O'Donoghue (Anam Chara) to pursue his talent for Storytelling. Since taking over the family farm in Co. Clare, Aindrias has continued to work as a storyteller performing locally and internationally. Regularly contributes to Arts Programs on TG4 as a presenter, pundit and journalist.

 

Anna Mullarkey 

Anna Mullarkey is an award-winning composer and performer from Galway, whose music weaves electronics with piano and voice. Having grown up in the West of Ireland, Anna draws inspiration from the sea for her compositions.  Anna is currently working on scoring for theater and film blending electronics with classical music.

 

Bob Quinn 

Bob Quinn (born Dublin, 1935) is an Irish filmmaker, writer and photographer who directed Poitín (1978), the first feature film entirely in the Irish language. His documentary work includes Atlantean, a series of four documentaries about the origins of the Irish people.

 

Caitlín Ní Chualáin

Is as Baile an Tí Mhóir, Indreabhán Co. na Gaillimhe í Caitlín. Is amhránaí ar an sean nós í, bua a thug sí léi óna hathair Máirtín Pheaits Ó Cualáin. Tá duaiseanna náisiúnta go leorbuaite aici lena cuid amhránaíochta, Comórtas na mBan 2005, 2008, 2014 agus Corn Uí Riada 2016 ag Oireachtas na Samhna. Ceapadh ina hamhránaí sean nóis cónaitheach í in Ollscoil na hÉireann Gaillimh i 2019.

 

Padraig Jack

RTÉ Folk Awards nominee Padraig Jack writes and sings meaningful songs on guitar and piano in Gaelic and English. His debut album ‘Making Sand’ was named the RTE Radio Album of the Week garnering critical acclaim from Hot Press, Rock’n’Reel magazine (UK) and The Alternate Root (US).

 

Máire Ní Chonláin and Ronan Browne

From opposite sides of Ireland, Máire and Ronan have similar passions about life, language, history, music and Ireland. Máire was born into an Irish-speaking household, while there was only English in Ronan’s upbringing. Joining together in the year 2000, Ronan quickly played catch-up, to the point where their children spoke no English entering school. Máire began working as a teacher, changing to television in 1990; Ronan has been a professional musician all his working life. These days, they are often seen tootling along the inland waterways of Ireland on their 100-year-old barge, romantically-named, “34.M”

 

John Bhaba Jeaic Ó Conghaile

John Bhaba has fished the seas around Connemara for 60 years. He has been collecting lore and traditional items all his life. He is the curator of Ionad Oidhreachta Leitir Mealláin (Lettermullen and Gorumna Heritage Centre).

 

Liz Coleman 

Liz Coleman is a lecturer and researcher in the university of Galway, specialising in atmospheric physics, climate modelling & air quality forecasting and whose research has recently focussed on broad scientific collaboration for the protection of the environment. Liz is strongly committed to broad science communication regarding environmental issues and has led a number of events engaging diverse communities in the west of Ireland with complex issues related to environmental change - from the local to global scales, combining scientific knowledge and data with storytelling and music.   She currently lectures Physics, providing courses through Irish and passionately promotes interdisciplinary collaboration and science public engagement, bringing the climate conversation to the communities, especially those marginalised and often omitted from the discourse. Liz is also a traditional fiddle player and music teacher, often participating in musical events in Galway and beyond.

 

Domhnall Ó Braonáin

Is fear óg bliain ‘s fiche d’aois as Cois Fharraige i gCo. na Gaillimhe é Domhnall Ó Braonáin. Ach an oiread lena sheanathair Máirtín Pheaits Ó Cualáin agus lena mháthair Caitlín Pheaits Ní Chualáin tá duaiseanna bainte amach aige ag Oireachtas na Samhna ag amhránaíocht ar an sean nós, Corn na bhFear (2022) ina measc. Bhí páirt aige i dtogra de chuid Johnny Óg Connolly, Fad Saoil (2019), inar cuireadh foinn le cuid de dhánta Joe Steve Ó Neachtain, a ndearnadh taifeada orthu agus a cuireadh amach ar dhlúthdhiosca.

 

Mairéad Hurley 

Mairéad Hurley is a musician, researcher and educator from Co. Sligo, now based in Conamara. She began her scientific research career with a PhD in astronomy, but in her current role as an Assistant Professor in Science Education in Trinity College Dublin, her research interests lie at the intersection of science education, communication and public engagement, with a focus on learning environments that connect science and the arts. Mairéad’s concertina playing is inspired by the rich musical tradition of her native Sligo. She has recorded, performed and taught nationally and internationally. She is a member of the Board of the Irish Traditional Music Archive, and in 2021 she was part of their 'Drawing From The Well'series alongside her sister Deirdre, in which they researched the connections between tunes, songs and stories associated with the famed “Petticoat Loose” of Co. Waterford.

 

Johnny Óg Connolly 

Johnny Óg Connolly is a traditional musician and composer from the Conamara Gaeltacht. He plays accordion and melodeon. His first solo album 'Aisling Yoshua' won Folk Album of the Year 2011. In his compositional work he engages a lot with Irish language poetry and has composed two song cycles, one of them based on the poetry of Máirtín Ó Direáin with Liam Ó Maoinlaí on vocals. His latest commision was to write a suite of music based on the life of his father, renowned melodeon player Johnny Connolly. An Cosán Draíochta (The Enchanted Path) has just completed a nationwide tour to great acclaim in late 2022. Johnny Óg is currently researching Conamara music. 

 

Rióna Ní Fhrighil

Professor Rióna Ní Fhrighil lectures in contemporary Irish-language literature in Ollscoil na Gaillimhe - University of Galway. She has a particular interest in ethics, ecology, and poetry and directs the research project Republic of Conscience: Human Rights and Modern Irish Poetry She is committed to bring Irish-language literature to a global audience. In 2020 she co-directed the project Aistrú: crossing territories, languages, and artforms a project that saw Irish literature on migration translated into over twenty languages and into different artforms.

 
 
 

Scoil scairte previous guides | spiral 5

 

Kathy Scott

Kathy is a cultural activist and creative entrepreneur dedicated to creating provocative experiences that animate the spirit of our times. Her greatest mission in this life is to nudge humanity forward by inspiring people to rise and lift each other up along the way. She is the creative director of The Trailblazery which was founded as a response to a need for deeper human connection and belonging in our world.

 

Manchán Magan

Manchán Magan writes regularly for The Irish Times, presents The Almanac of Ireland on RTÉ Radio 1 and has presented dozens of documentaries on issues of world culture for TG4 & RTÉ. His book Thirty-Two Words for Field explores the insights the Irish language offers into the landscape, psyche and heritage of Ireland. www.manchan.com

 

Mairéad Ní Chonghaile

Mairéad Ní Chonghaile was born and raised in the Conamara Gaeltacht and is a native Irish speaker. Her career in the Arts spans over 25 years, during which time she has presented television programmes with TG4 (Charts i gCeart, Síbín) and acted on stage, television and film (Ros na Rún, Aifric, The Royal, Jonathan Creek).

 

Siobhán O’Kelly 

Siobhán O’Kelly trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Theatre work includes Fiach, Cogadh na Saoirse and Twelfth Night. She has appeared in TV shows like London Irish, Paddywhackery and Na Cloigne.  Her film credits include High Rise, Arracht and The Daisy Chain. In 2015 Siobhán won Best Actress at the European Independent Film Festival for her role in Sophie At The Races and in 2016 was nominated for an IFTA for her work on the TV series An Klondike. Having lived in London for many, many years Siobhán is delighted to be back in Ireland reconnecting with its people and language.
www.spotlight.com

 

Colm Mac Con Iomaire

Dublin born, Wexford based Colm Mac Con Iomaire is a well-known violinist, composer, film score arranger, and a founding member of hugely successful Irish bands ‘The Frames’ and ‘Kíla’. Colm has spent over three decades travelling the World playing music.

 

Michael Cronin

Michael Cronin is 1776 Professor of French and Senior Researcher in the Trinity Centre for Literary and Cultural Translation in Trinity College Dublin. Among his recent published titles are Irish and Ecology: An Ghaeilge agus an Éiceolaíocht (2019). He is a former Irish Language Literature Advisor to the Arts Council and Director of Poetry Ireland.

 

Irish with Mollie

Mollie, a visionary Irish language educator, weaves storytelling and etymology into her innovative teaching methods, celebrating and nurturing identity and heritage connections. She offers accessible, relatable resources with infectious enthusiasm. Mollie’s creative workshops and courses demystify the language and explore the healing and soulful path of effective learning. Rethink and revitalise Irish!

 

Fay'd 

Fay'd is a rapper and a musician from Tallaght. He writes lyrical and melodic music blending the two sharply contrasting phases of his life. His unique style mixes the traditional Irish sean-nós music with today's modern hip-hop.

 

Niall Morahan

Blue Niall, is an artist, designer and musician from Dublin. His sound blends traditional Irish music with bilingual rap and contemporary club music. Niall hosts a biweekly radio show called 'Athbheochan' on Dublin Digital Radio and is currently working on "Oisín," an audiovisual project which is a modern retelling of the legend of Tír na nÓg. In addition to his music career, Niall is a designer and social entrepreneur. He is a cofounder of Project UnBound, a partnership for systemic change in Ireland through design.

 

Roxanna Nic Liam

Roxanna is an actor and spoken word artist who has performed in English and in Irish for over 15 years. She has performed all over Ireland and the UK and is currently on Fair City. Her bilingual short film Siúcra went viral during the pandemic and is used in Irish classrooms all around the country.  

 

Tiokasin Ghosthorse

Tiokasin Ghosthorse seeds from the Mnicoujou and Itazipcola Lakota as an educator, musician, and international speaker on peace and the global issues facing Native people. Tiokasin is a 2016 Nobel Peace Prize Nominee of the International Institute of Peace Studies and Global Philosophy. He is also the Host and Executive Producer of “First Voices Radio National/International, a one-hour live weekly radio program he founded in 1992 and is now syndicated on 110+ public and community radio stations. 

 

Colm Bairéad 

Colm is a writer-director with a diverse filmography in both narrative and documentary film. Colm’s first narrative feature was An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl) which received two BAFTA nominations and an Academy Award nomination for International Feature Film. It is the highest-grossing Irish-language film of all time.

 

Cleona Ní Chrualaoi 

Cleona Ní Chrualaoi is a film and television producer, best known for the Irish-language film, An Cailín Ciúin (The Quiet Girl), which garnered worldwide acclaim and was nominated for two BAFTAs and an Academy Award in 2023. Cleona was selected as one of Screen International’s Stars of Tomorrow in 2022.

 

Jenny Ní Ruiséil

Jenny is an Irish speaker, musician and yoga teacher originally from Kildare who has spent years also working for Irish-language college Coláiste Lurgan (TGLurgan). She is committed to exploring, practicing and living a heart-based, creative life, using the traditional teachings of the Himalayan Masters combined with the deep roots of her Irish and Celtic lineage as guides and frameworks. Her fascination with all things music, sound, language and energy-based has led her to explore the connections between these ancient spiritual practices (particularly mantra) and their relation to the body, heart and mind of today's practitioner, and how rooting ourselves deeply in a practice, lineage or tradition can help to facilitate an even deeper sense of home.

 

Mícheál Ó Nualláin

Mícheál is the Director of Baile Átha Cliath le Gaeilge, a joint initiative between Conradh na Gaeilge and Dublin City Council with the mission of having Irish more seen and heard around the Dublin City. He is a founding member of Irish Speaking Dublin GAA Club, Na Gaeil Óga.

 

Mary Kennedy

One of Ireland’s most popular broadcasters, Mary Kennedy came to national prominence as an RTÉ Newscaster and presented the Eurovision Song Contest in 1995. Since then, Mary has presented many programmes including a successful six year run of Open House, People of the Year, Up for the Match, Nationwide, Guaranteed Irish and RTÉ’s Christmas Carols. She has published five books and writes a monthly column for two magazines, Ireland’s Own and The West Cork Opinion.

 

Deirdre Ní Chinnéide 

Deirdre Ní Chinnéide is a composer, singer, psychotherapist, spiritual director and workshop facilitator presenting throughout Ireland, the United States, Australia and Europe. The Aran islands off the west coast of Ireland provides a special setting for her retreat work and was the place of inspiration for her music. Her CD Celtic Passage won Celtic Album of the Year on its US Release.

 

Liam O’Connor

Liam O’Connor, one of Ireland’s leading fiddle players, was born into a musical family in Dublin. His father Mick O’Connor is a flute player and researcher of music who was a founder member of the Castle Céilí Band. During his youth, Liam was taught by Séamus Glackin and won several All-Ireland and Oireachtas fiddle titles. He was awarded TG4 Young Musician of the Year in 2002. He has performed as a soloist and in duets with Liam O’Flynn, Noel Hill and Harry Bradley among others. In 2009, he released a critically acclaimed CD entitled “Dublin Made Me” with uilleann piper Seán McKeon and in March 2017 he released this long-awaited solo album, “The Loom”.

 

Sinéad Ní Uallacháin 

Sinéad Ní Uallacháin is a radio and television broadcaster who hails from the West Kerry Gaeltacht. She presents the award winning podcast Beo ar Éigean with her friends and colleagues Siún Ní Dhuinn and Áine Ní Bhreisleáin. She recently presented the TG4 travel show, ‘Beidh mé ar Ais', with Osgur Ó Ciardha.

 

Macdara Yeates

Macdara Yeates is a traditional singer, cultural producer and filmmaker from Dublin, with an interest in folk music and its role in communities. Recent projects include: My Father’s Kind, a collaboration of traditional Irish music and poetry with poet Dermot Bolger; Sing a Song of Docklands, a songwriting and community outreach project celebrating the work of Dublin’s dock workers; and ABAIR, an annual programme of song, story and oral history at the St. Patrick’s Festival, drawing collaborations from artists in Ireland, Andalusia, Samiland and more.

 

Rising Appalachia 

Rising Appalachia is an American folk music group led by multi-instrumentalist sisters Leah Song and Chloe Smith. As world travellers for nearly two decades, Rising Appalachia have merged multiple global music influences with their own southern roots.

 

Osgur Ó Ciardha

Osgur Ó Ciardha is the general manager of Locke Hotels. With Peadar Ó Caomhánaigh, he founded Pop-Up Gaeltacht in 2017, a project to encourage Irish speakers to socialise in the community, in order to normalise the use of Irish in non-traditional settings.

 

Róisín Chambers

Róisín Chambers is a sean-nós singer and fiddle player. From a family of musicians, she grew up surrounded by Irish music, language and culture. Having lived in Glasgow for many years, she also played a huge part in the promotion of Irish culture in the city through teaching at Irish Minstrels Branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóiri Éireann and being an active member of Conradh na Gaeilge, Glaschú. Róisin has performed with many artists over the last 15 years including The Bonny Men, Gerry O’Connor, Salsa Celtic, At First Light and many more.