Kinsale Literary Festival starts October 2nd!
- Online Journalist
- 17 hours ago
- 3 min read
 The programme has been announced for this year's Words By Water, Kinsale Literary Festival, taking place from Thursday, October 2nd Sunday, October 5th 2025.
‘This year’s programme covers everything from Ireland’s fraught history to contemporary social issues, and all the stories and cultural touchpoints in between – we really have something for everyone’, says Festival Chair, Ruth McDonnell.Featured authors include recent Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year winner, Niall Williams, historians Diarmuid Ferriter, Peadar Thompson and Joachim Beug, readers’ favourites Marita Conlon-McKenna, Kit de Waal and FÃona Scarlett, acclaimed newcomers Catherine Airey, Patrick Holloway, Barbara Leahy and Louise Hegarty, with legal justice campaigner Harriet Wistrich, and social commentators Aoife Barry and Daragh Fleming.
The festival is particularly pleased to host Beckett with Gaitkrash as our headline Saturday evening event. Described by the Irish Times as ‘specialists in sorcery’, this montage of Beckett’s later plays, Footfalls and Not I, promises to be a unique experience.
On Friday, Niall Williams chats to Shane Coleman about his recent prizewinning novel, Time of the Child. Niall’s West Clare-set novels are beloved by readers for their recognisable characters, lyrical storytelling, and light-touch social context. Ireland’s history isalso the focus for the nation’s favourite historian, Diarmuid Ferriter, who together with Peadar Thompson will talk about their recent books charting turbulent times, both politically and personally.
Festivalgoers will also have an opportunity to share theirown remembrances at CuardaÃocht, Paddy Doyle’s ancestral storytelling ceremony.Local favourites return, with our poetry event on Thursday evening, curated by Matthew Geden, Local Voices on Sunday morning, featuring Afric McGlinchy, Katherine Boucher Beug and Matthew Geden, and Barry Moloney’s Kinsale Walking Tour for Children on Saturday afternoon. We are also delighted to announce what we hope will become a new favourite – our literary festival bookswap on Sunday morning – bring an old favourite with you and take a new favourite home!Book-ending our Saturday afternoon are Harriet Wistrich, Director of the UK Centre for Women’s Justice, talking about her legal career and Women’s Prize longlisted book, Sister in Law, while writers and social commentators Aoife Barry and Daragh Fleming join us to talk about the pervasive influence of social media on young people and on their own work and lives.
In between, Cork writers take centre stage, with Catherine Airey, Barbara Leahy, Louise Hegarty and Patrick Holloway sharing their experiences of publishing their debut novels. Kit de Waal and FÃona Scarlett then join Shane Coleman to chat about their recent novels and the influence of their own childhood and family experiences.
‘In our children’s programme, we are thrilled to feature Irish writing legend Marita Conlon-McKenna, both at our schools event and at a public event in Kinsale Library,’ McDonnell says. Children can also attend a Gratitude Workshop with Trish Hegarty, while the grownups can learn to write for young readers at a workshop with Amanda Neri.Other workshops include creative writing with local poet and memoirist Afric McGlinchy, calligraphy with Des Meade, and papermaking with Caroline Smith.‘We are committed to keeping things affordable,’ McDonnell says, ‘so our €60 festival pass is back to help you make the most of the weekend.’
Events take place at The Lord Kingsale, Methodist Church, Friar’s Lodge, OHK, The Post House and Prim’s Bookshop.The full programme is available at wordsbywater.ie, with all events now open for booking.For any further information, please contact Maureen Tierney at 086 289 5075.