Cork book clubs review stories in new TV show

THE Camán Book Club in rural North Cork is made up of six members - Máire, Phil, Mai, Kathleen, Pauline and Colette.

Their regular reads are mainly made up of fiction titles from Irish and UK authors - but the odd Mills & Boon does sneak in between meetings!

As they all live scattered across a large rural area, their meetings tend to be an opportunity to catch up on local and regional news, issues of the day.

Phil, the group’s resident fashionista, also gives advice on colour, styles and accessories to the rest of the group.

The ladies are one of several books club from across the land who are involved in a new arts series called Page Turners, which starts on RTÉ1 on Thursday at 10.15pm.

The clubs read a number of titles that sat outside of their normal tastes. From sports biographies to history, new Irish writers to old Irish favourites. They then share their (often heated and split) opinions over the course of the show.

Also involved in the series are the four members of Mallow’s Castle Grove Book Club.

The neighbours and best friends are great story- tellers and big Daniel O’Donnell fans. Their monthly meetings usually rotate between members houses, but for the series Annabel Roberts is host.

Their meetings are well known in the area for their incredible food spreads, as the women catch up about family and local news over wine, tea and nibbles.

Joining Annabel for the series are HR assistant Colette, retired school principal Maire and long-time friend Liz Hurley.

In the first episode, the clubs discuss Maeve Binchy classic Circle Of Friends, give their take on Irish history through Sean O’Driscoll’s Heiress, Rebel, Vigilante, Bomber; The Extraordinary Life of Rose Dugdale, reflect on their own relationships via Marian Keyes The Break, while discussing the impact of life in the public eye through Shane Carthy’s Dark Blue and Cork author Louise O’Neill’s IDOL.

Billed as a review show with a difference, the club members will discuss both modern classics and current book club favourites.

Expect lots of laughter and even some tears as we are invited into homes, cafes and pubs across the country to get an intimate glimpse into life in Ireland today.

Links to local libraries across the country will be available through the series website so that all viewers can access the books featured in the series.

The other book clubs include a group from Donegal town, an all-male group from Dublin, and an LGBT group recently formed through mutual friends, some of whom met as members of the Dublin Gay Men’s Choir.