My Weekend: 'I try to get out to literary festivals at music gigs at the weekend'

Tell us a little bit about yourself and your work:

I was born in the Midlands of England, but I have been lucky enough to have lived in Kinsale since 1990. I used to run a bookshop in the town, but now mainly do freelance work teaching workshops in creative writing. My most recent poetry collection was The Cloud Architect published by Doire Press in 2022. My wife, Caroline, is an artist and teaches at Kinsale College of Further Education. My son, Tom, is living in the Netherlands with his wife and two children, Ben and Izzy. Becca, my daughter, is a photographer based here in Kinsale. I still occasionally work in bookshops, Carrigaline Bookshop and Prim’s in Kinsale, and organise readings and literary events as well as mentoring new writers. I’m currently organising an evening of poetry and prose as part of Words by Water, a literary festival in Kinsale.

What is your ideal way to spend a Friday night?

Most of my Friday nights are quiet nights in, but I do try and get out to local literary festivals and music gigs. Prim’s have had some top-class musicians there in recent years and it’s a lovely, intimate venue. There’s so many festivals to choose from in Cork county that it seems there’s always something going on. I particularly like the West Cork Literary Festival in Bantry and the World Book Fest in Cork.

Lie ins or up with the lark.. which is it for you?

I’m definitely a morning person and often wake around 6 or 7am. I usually head out for a morning run before breakfast and quite often run to the Dock beach for a quick swim before running home. I usually pick up a takeaway coffee on the way back.

Does work creep into your weekend at all?

I often work on a Saturday either running a workshop or in Carrigaline Bookshop. As I’m largely freelance, I don’t have a regular structure to my week although Sundays are usually kept free. Even then though it’s often a good time to catch up on emails, lesson plans and my own writing.

If money was no object, where would you head to on a weekend city break? And who would you bring with you?

I’m very fond of a city break and have recently had great times in Cologne, Rome and Valencia. I do enjoy going to Leiden in the Netherlands to visit my son Tom, his wife Molly and the grandkids. I love travelling in Europe with Caroline and there’s so many places I’ve yet to see. I hope to get to Istanbul sometime and Bilbao and Bordeaux are also currently on my radar.

Closer to home, is there some place you like to head to recharge the batteries?

We are very much a beach family and need little excuse to head for any of the wonderful beaches nearby. I grew up a long way from the sea, but I don’t think I could live away from it now. In the summer we might head farther west and favourite beaches would include Barley Cove, Inchydoney and Silver Strand on Sherkin Island.

Do you like to catch up with family/friends at the weekend?

We often see our daughter Becca and her partner, Josh, at the weekend but, if I’m not working, it’s also a chance to have a quiet time. We buy newspapers and often read for a few hours. I do also go running with friends on a Sunday. A few years ago we might do long runs of anything from 15 to 20 miles, but nowadays it’s more like 10 to 12, and we usually manage to set the world to rights as we go.

Do you get to indulge any hobbies? Even as a spectator?

Running would be my main interest outside of poetry and work. I’ve recently been running parkruns regularly and have found them to be a great spur to keep up my fitness. They are less competitive than races and are open to runners of all shapes and sizes. They’re also free and run by teams of dedicated volunteers meaning that there’s always a great community spirit at these events.

Entertain or be entertained? If it’s the latter, do you have a signature dish?

Both are good. Although I cook for Caroline a lot, she tends to do most of the cooking if we have guests. I do enjoy making a curry though so that would probably be my signature dish.

We have so many places to eat out in Cork - where are your go to spots for coffee/lunch/special meal?

If we are out at the beach, we might sometimes call in at The Speckled Door on the Old Head of Kinsale for lunch. The food is always good, it’s reasonably priced and there’s great views and a nice garden if it’s sunny. In Kinsale, I’m looking forward to returning to Saint Francis Provisions soon. We’re also lucky to have plenty of good cafes to choose from, including The Post House and Wild and Tame.

Sunday night comes around too fast.. how do you normally spend it?

Sunday nights are usually quiet nights in. If there’s nothing on TV we might watch something on Netflix. I particularly enjoy Scandinavian crime series but at this stage I think we’ve watched them all! I also find Sunday nights a good time to catch up on a bit of reading. I read a lot of fiction and poetry but am also partial to sports biographies

What time does your alarm clock go off on Monday morning?

I rarely set an alarm clock. In the last ten years, I’ve found that I don’t sleep as well as I used to so I’m always up pretty early. I’ve never been one for having a lie in.

Anything else you are up to right now...

I’m working on some ideas for new poems at the moment. I don’t find the summer very productive for me creatively but as soon as we get into the autumn the ideas begin to flow. I’ve also got some workshops coming up including ones at Kinsale Library and a beginners course at Cork College of Commerce so I am preparing for those.

The ninth annual Words by Water Kinsale Literary Festival returns from October 1–4, 2026, bringing a diverse programme of acclaimed Irish and international writers, journalists, poets and performers to Kinsale.
See w ww.wordsbywater.ie.