scoil scairte previous guides | spIral 4

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

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.

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’!

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.

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.

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.