Creative Places & Faces

Today's guest is Byddi Lee - an Armagh based author, who has lived in Canada, South Africa, Paris and California before settling back in her home town of Armagh in Northern Ireland. 

Her first novel, March to November, was written while in California and helped ease her homesickness.

Byddi's Rejuvenation Trilogy has been rated one of the best lockdown reads of the year by the Belfast Telegraph. She has also published flash fiction and short stories and is the co-founder of the spoken word event - Flash Fiction Armagh.

Byddi has co-written the play IMPACT - Armagh’s Train Disaster - with Malachi Kelly and Tim Hanna. Plus she teamed up again with Tim and Malachi to write and stage on Zoom – Zoomeo & Juliet – and – Social Bubble, Toil & Trouble.

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

Today's guest is Seán Mackel, who writes fiction and poetry as well as being a visual communicator. He won the Kanturk Flash Fiction Prize in 2019, for his first flash fiction, The Silent Mouth. 

Seán has been lecturing and working in graphic design for decades in Australia, Germany and Ireland. 

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

Today's guest is Seán Mackel, who writes fiction and poetry as well as being a visual communicator. He won the Kanturk Flash Fiction Prize in 2019, for his first flash fiction, The Silent Mouth. 

Seán has been lecturing and working in graphic design for decades in Australia, Germany and Ireland. 

Here is one of many classic quotes from this part of Seán's interview: "So I remember that sort of aspect of Belfast, it’s the intimacy of it, the small houses, the tiny spaces, but it was great craic. I mean, Belfast people, I find very creative wisecrackers, you know? Specific to Belfast in particular."

And another wonderful one about Donegal: "Donegal would have been perceived as like nirvana because of- it’s Gaelic there. And also, it was- in those days, when you cross the border, you know, it was almost like a sense of relief, you know, you’re in the promised land. Even if it was- you know what it’s like, didn’t you? You know it was- like, oh my God, we’re in Donegal."

This multi-talented man has so many interesting perspectives to share. Don't miss out on the places or the face!

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

Today's guest was described as a “force of nature” by the journalist who nominated her to be a guest. This force of nature is the award-winning author and poet from Belfast, Maeve O'Lynn.

Amongst her many achievements, Maeve has won the TU Short Story Competition at Red Line Book Festival, Dublin., in 2019. She was also longlisted for the Seamus Heaney Award for New Writing in 2019.

Maeve O’Lynn has published short fiction and poetry in Banshee, The Stinging Fly, Fallow Media, The Honest Ulsterman, Abridged, and The Tangerine. 

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

In this second part of our conversation, Susanne talks about how she first came to Ireland and how the country makes her feel alive. We explore The Troubles through her own thoughtful perspective.

Through her life and creativity, we travel to Bath and various places in Northwest Ireland that are so obviously integral to her life.

Susanne writes beautifully in English and her insightful mind and creative output are intricately connected to parts of Ireland, especially the Northwest, where she has lived since 2000.

Susanne's interview is punctuated by thoughtful commentary about the impact of history, family, environment, water and creativity.

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

Imagine being born and living as a sensitive child in Nuremberg in the 1980s who thoroughly absorbed the second-hand trauma of World War II. Add into the mix the fact that your Father is entirely deaf as a result of an air raid. So you learn to communicate with him by writing notes; a formative experience that Susanne Stich is sure contributed to her becoming a writer in her adult years.

Susanne's youth and creativity were deeply affected by her immediate city environment but also by frequent trips to the German forests and the Alps. Yet her coming of age experiences found her in my home town of Dublin, Ireland.

She writes beautifully in English and her insightful mind and creative output are intricately connected to parts of Ireland, especially the Northwest, where she has lived since 2000.

Susanne's interview is punctuated by thoughtful commentary about the impact of history, family, environment, water and creativity. 

In this first part of our conversation, Susanne talks about her childhood in Nuremberg, how she came to write, and her time spent in Dublin and Galway, and more.

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

Stained glass artist, Ann Smyth, has been commissioned by a number of establishments including the BBC. Her stunning stained glass works can be seen in various locations in Northern Ireland.

Ann also works on smaller pieces that are deeply connected to Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland, where she lives and works. Feathers are a regular motif in her jewellery.

Travel virtually with Ann as she spends time in California in a world-renowned stained glass studio, and finds her spectacularly special place later in Strangford Lough.

To enjoy Ann's photos and the transcription while listening, head over to Strangford Lough with artist Ann Smyth

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

Originally an archaeologist, Emma Thorpe, now makes stunning silver jewellery that is very much inspired by her surroundings of Portstewart and the Causeway Coast, Northern Ireland.

Emma's environment has a real sort of sense of wildness about it, but not a terrifying wildness. It’s a wildness that when you come, you just feel free. 

Emma’s bonds with the land that embraces her link to childhood and her career in archaeology. Her silver jewellery collections are inspired by The Causeway Coast.

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

For much of her week. visual artist, Helen Sharkey, lives and works on one of 70 small islands dotted along the coast of stunning Strangford Lough. She is based beside a monastic site called Nendrum, which is 5th century, and about four metres from the water up a slight hill on the hill of Nendrum.

When there is a full moon, it creates these amazing, polarised shadows which are one of the many aspects of the environment there that Helen uses in her work.

From Thursday to Saturday, Helen is deep in running her gallery at St. George's Market in Belfast, and this place brings out a different aspect of Helen's energy.

Helen uses art to create her own world, It is a world that fascinates her and makes her feel safe  She likens Belfast of the 1970s to be its own form of lockdown.

Discover more about how the magical environment of Strangford Lough influences Helen's creative output.

This episode is sponsored by Property Insurance Centre.

The transcription with images can be seen at Travel Inspires - Strangford Lough and Belfast with artist Helen Sharkey

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre

The third and final part of our interview with Malachi O’Doherty brings us back to Belfast as Malachi becomes well-known and respected for his work. 

Another fascinating conversation with a man who loves to spin a yarn.

We end up discussing destiny, karma & baloney! Along with writing and photography and Malachi’s book, Terry Brankin Has A Gun.

This episode is sponsored by Property Insurance Centre.

See the transcription with images over at Travel Inspires at Back to Belfast with Malachi O'Doherty.

Podcast website:
https://creativeplacesandfaces.com/

Credits:
Host: Jackie De Burca
Sound engineer: Newton Samadder
Music: No.4 Piano Journey by Esther Abrami
Voice over: Mike Payne

Sponsor Series 1:
Property Insurance Centre