Recorded February 2026.

In this in-depth conversation, historian and Director of the Trinity Long Room Hub, Prof Patrick Geoghegan, talks with Arthur Edward Guinness, 4th Earl of Iveagh, about his newly published book Guinness: A Family Succession: The True Story of the Struggle to Create the World’s Largest Brewery.

Lord Iveagh shares insights into the history and legacy of the Guinness family – from their humble beginnings in eighteenth-century Ireland to the creation of one of the world’s most iconic brewing dynasties. They discuss family archives, generational stories of ambition and innovation, and how personal history intersects with wider social and cultural change.

This conversation traces both the business and human side of the Guinness dynasty and is essential listening for lovers of Irish history, biography and cultural heritage.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded 29th January 2026.

Trinity College Dublin marks the 250th anniversary of the establishment of Modern Languages, a historic initiative that led to the creation of some of the oldest continuous Chairs of Modern Languages in the world.

This special event, hosted at the Trinity Long Room Hub and organised by the School of Languages, Literatures and Cultural Studies, officially launches a year-long programme of commemorative events celebrating the rich legacy and ongoing vitality of Modern Languages at Trinity.

The evening featured an address by Minister Thomas Byrne T.D, Minister of State for European Affairs and Defence, followed by an address from Pat Cox, President of the Jean Monnet Foundation and former President of the European Parliament. Also speaking at the event was the Provost Linda Doyle, Mary Cosgrove, incumbent 1776 Professor of German and Professor Michael Cronin, Chair of French 1776 at Trinity’s School of Languages, Literatures and Cultural Studies.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded February 11th, 2026

The recent moves on Venezuela and Greenland by US President Donald Trump have left world leaders once more questioning geopolitical norms and a decades-long alliance between the US and the EU.

A direct threat to the territorial integrity of the EU has confirmed for many a move away from a rules-based international order, with some questioning its existence in the first place. In our upcoming ‘Behind the Headlines’ discussion, we will bring together experts from history, law, environmental humanities and political science to discuss the implications of this latest political shock.

Panellists include:

Professor Daniel Geary, Mark Pigott Professor in U.S. History, Trinity College Dublin.

Mairéad McGuinness, Former European Commissioner (2020-2024), and Vice-President of the European People's Party (2025-present).

Michael A Becker, Assistant Professor of International Human Rights Law, Trinity College Dublin.

Poul Holm, Professor of Environmental History, Trinity College Dublin.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded February 11th, 2026.

Continuing our Bridging the Gap series, this seminar explores how researchers, policy-makers and members of the public can work together to translate scientific knowledge into practical, lasting action. Drawing on her experience chairing Ireland’s Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, and more recently her work as Chair of the Independent Advisory Committee on Nature Restoration, Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin will discuss what insights we can take from examples of deliberative democracy and public engagement. Named a European Young Leader for her work to promote equality, innovation and inclusion in mathematics education, and in light of Ireland preparing to take over the Presidency of the Council of the EU in July, Dr Ní Shúilleabháin will also explore how academia can best contribute to the development of public policy. The seminar will be of interest to researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and anyone interested in connecting research and public participation.

Dr Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin is an award-winning science communicator and educator and is Associate Professor in the School of STEM Education, Innovation and Global Studies at DCU.   She was appointed by the Taoiseach in 2022 to chair the Citizens’ Assembly on Biodiversity Loss, and in her role as chair of the Independent Advisory Committee on Nature Restoration is contributing to the development of Ireland's Nature Restoration Plan.  

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded January 27th 2026.

A lecture by visiting research fellow Dr Seçil Yılmaz (University of Pennsylvania) organised by the School of Histories and Humanities. 

Although syphilis had existed in Ottoman society since the sixteenth century, it became a significant public health concern in the latter half of the nineteenth century as a result of increased mobility, particularly among soldiers, Muslim immigrants, and seasonal workers traveling throughout the Ottoman countryside. The disease provoked fear, shame, and secrecy as Ottoman physicians devised socio-medical regulations and prescriptions that reshaped gender roles and sexual norms in the society. This lecture offers an insight into the perspectives of Ottoman physicians and psychiatrists who aspired to bring love, desire, marriage, and family under the aegis of a developing medical expertise and a vernacular form of sexology.

Seçil Yılmaz is Assistant Professor of History at the University of Pennsylvania. She will be based at the Trinity Long Room Hub during her visiting research fellowship in early 2026.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded 3rd February 2026.

On Tuesday, 3 February, the Trinity Long Room Hub will host a discussion highlighting Trinity's collaboration with Boston College's McMullen Museum of Art spring 2026 exhibition, "Collaborating in Conflict: The Yeats Family and the Public Arts". The discussion will also address the Cuala Press archives and other Yeats collections held by both universities.

 

Short panel presentations will be given by Angela Griffith, Principal Investigator of Trinity's Cuala Press Project, along with TRIARC Visiting Research Fellow Billy Shortall, who will speak on how Cuala Press prints aimed to cultivate a positive image of Ireland. Trinity professor of English Tom Walker will speak on W.B. Yeats and the visual and applied arts. Boston College's Burns Librarian Christian Dupont will provide an overview of the Boston College exhibition and discuss Lily Yeats's embroidered Stations of the Cross displayed at the 1932 Eucharistic Congress. Laura Shanahan, Head of Research Collections at the Library of Trinity College Dublin, will moderate the discussion among panellists and the audience.

Image sourced from TCD Digital Collections - Elizabeth Corbet Yeats : Cuala Press Prints - IE TCD MS 11574/18

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recprded February 5th, 2025.

In this conversation, Prof Patrick Geoghegan (Director of the Trinity Long Room Hub) and Christian Du Pont (Burns Librarian, Boston College) explore the long-standing and evolving collaborations between Trinity College Dublin and Boston College, with a particular focus on the legacy of Cuala Press and the work of the Yeats sisters.

They discuss how shared collections, archival partnerships, and transatlantic relationships help preserve and reinterpret Ireland’s literary and artistic heritage, shedding light on the cultural significance of Cuala Press publications, book design, craftsmanship, and the broader networks that continue to shape Irish studies today.

A thoughtful exploration of how libraries, archives, and institutions collaborate across borders to keep literary history alive and accessible.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded January 28th, 2026.

A lecture by Dr Catherine Swift (MIC Limerick/ Loyola Institute, TCD) organised by the Loyola Institute, Trinity College Dublin.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded January 13th, 2026.

Are the recent deadly attacks lawful under international and US domestic law?  If they are NOT lawful orders, can US military personnel refuse to follow them? Who makes that decision? The speaker is a retired US Marine Corps lawyer who went on to teach The Law of Armed Conflict at the University of Washington in Seattle for twenty years.

Speaker: Rick Lorenz, Senior Peace Fellow with the Public International Law and Policy Group.

Discussant: Mike Becker, Assistant Professor of International Human Rights Law, Trinity College Dublin

Date: 1pm, Tuesday 13 January 2026

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

Recorded December 10th, 2025.

Each year, December 10th is recognised globally as Human Rights Day. This year's theme, "Human Rights, Our Everyday Essentials", offers a timely opportunity to reflect on the everyday rights that matter most to people with dementia and their care partners, as well as the legal frameworks that seek to safeguard those rights.

Please join us for a special Human Rights Day event—“Unpacking the Essentials: A Conversation about Human Rights and Dementia”—organised by Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health, Kimberley Benjamin.

The event, co-hosted by the Global Brain Health Institute and the Long Room Hub at Trinity College Dublin, will feature an interdisciplinary group of thought-provoking and action-inspiring speakers. It will be an open conversation among persons with lived experience of dementia and human rights lawyers. Our aim is to raise awareness about the connection between human rights and dementia so that the essentials of this community take centre stage.

Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub