Irish Writers' Weekend: Dangerous Debuts

Djamel White, Patrick Freyne and Séamas O'Reilly in conversation with Deb Grant.

Patrick Freyne and Séamas O'Reilly are much loved writers for The Irish Times and The Observer respectively, and their non-fiction titles Let's Do Your Stupid Idea and Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? also received great acclaim for their mix of humour and moving depth. They have both now published debut novels: each exploring darker secrets and tensions, but with wit and gentle love for their characters. Patrick Freyne's Experts in a Dying Field reunites the members of a semi-successful band, many years on from the tragedy that rocked all their lives, and Séamas's Prestige Drama finds Derry's residents thrown into disarray when a Hollywood cast and crew come to town to shoot a Troubles-set film.

For a conversation hosted by DJ and broadcaster Deb Grant, they are joined by Djamel White, whose 2026 Booker Prize longlisted All Them Dogs is one of this year's most exciting novels: a blistering tale of survival and complicated emotions in Dublin gangland.

Part of the British Library Irish Writers' Weekend 2026.

He eventually enrolled in a community training programme for early school leavers which encouraged him to go to university at the age of 21. There, he earned a BA in English and Creative Writing, and an MFA in Creative Writing, both from University College Dublin, where he was mentored by writers such as Declan Hughes, Sarah Moss and Anne Enright. During this time, he worked with Irish non-profit literary organisation Fighting Words, established by Roddy Doyle in 2009, that sparked his belief that one day he could become a writer.

She writes a monthly music column for the Big Issue, specialising in jazz, experimental and left-field music, and presents a daily show on BBC Radio 6 Music spotlighting the best in new underground sounds. A regular host and interviewer at festivals and live events, she is currently working on her first book, an exploration of Ireland's extraordinary pop-cultural ascent.

He is a feature writer with the Irish Times and he has won the Critic of the Year award at the NewsBrands Ireland Journalism Awards three times. His work has also appeared in The Dublin Review and Banshee. His first book of essays, OK, Let's Do Your Stupid Idea, was was longlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize in 2021. Experts in Dying Field was published this year and is his first novel.

He writes weekly columns in The Observer and Irish Examiner, and is Features Editor of the UK’s Only Magazine™️, The Fence. He has also written for the New York Times, The Guardian, The Irish Times, and BBC Radio 4. His memoir Did Ye Hear Mammy Died? topped Ireland’s non-fiction charts for seven weeks and was named Biography of The Year at the 2022 Irish Book Awards. Prestige Drama was published this year and is his first novel.