Dublin is a city in flux. Writers Estelle Birdy, Kevin Curran, Stephen James Smith and Réré Ukponu will be in conversation with fellow writer Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan about how their writing reflects and explores our changing city. Touching on issues from homelessness, mental health, class and racism to family and the power of community, their writing vividly and authentically captures Dublin today. With a performance by Stephen James Smith of his powerful poem Dublin You Are, part ode to the city, part wake-up call.

Estelle Birdy is a writer, book critic and yoga teacher who has lived at the edge of The Liberties in Dublin since her late teens. Born in London, she grew up in the most beautiful county of Louth but is still happy enough to have (almost) raised four young Dubs. Her debut novel Ravelling, set chiefly in and around The Liberties, focuses on five teenagers in their Leaving Cert year, their families, community and their city – Dublin. Ravelling was part of the Arts Council’s Read Mór promotion for Culture Night 2024. Estelle is an Arts Council Peer Panellist and is a member of the Irish Book Awards Academy. In her spare time she works for the union.

Kevin Curran’s third novel, Youth, was published to critical acclaim by The Lilliput Press in 2023. It was an Irish Times, Sunday Independent & RTE Culture Best Book of 2023. It was also a Colm Toibin’s Laureate for Fiction’s Book Club choice for 2024. The paperback edition was published February 2025. He has published two other novels, Beatsploitation (2013) and Citizens (2016). As well as writing non-fiction for the Guardian and the Observer, he has also published short stories, most notably in The Stinging Fly 20 year anthology. For over fifteen years he has been teaching in his hometown in Balbriggan, Co Dublin.

Stephen James Smith, born in Dublin, is an Irish poet, writer, performer, playwright, and educator. His short poetry films have captivated millions, earning them the opportunity to perform alongside notable names like Eddie Vedder (Pearl Jam), Patti Smith, Shane MacGowan, Bono (U2), Imelda May, and Glen Hansard. With close to 1,000 gigs worldwide over the past 20 years in locations from Ballydehob to Bangkok, and significant performances at venues like Glastonbury, the Radio City Music Hall, New York, the Nuyorican Poetry Café, the Centre Culturel Irlandais (Paris), and the Barbican and Palladium (London). Stephen has demonstrated a commanding presence on the stage. As a recording artist, Stephen’s work has been lauded both nationally and internationally, leading to Stephen being dubbed “Dublin’s unofficial poet laureate.” His creations have been extensively published, translated into eight languages, and have received numerous awards and nominations. Stephen also makes regular contributions to Irish TV and radio cultural programmes. Acknowledging that success is a blend of luck, hard work, and subjectivity, Stephen invites you to form your own opinions about their work.

Réré Ukponu is a 25-year-old Irish/Nigerian writer from Dublin. She has been published in the Irish Times, Metro Eireann, The Stinging Fly, Internazionale Magazine and shortlisted for the Gregory O’Donoghue International Poetry Competition and the HG Wells Fiction Short Story Competition. She is currently studying Medicine at University College Cork, where she is a Quercus Creative and Performing Arts Scholar. She got her love of words from her grandfather, who is the best storyteller she knows.

Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan is an Indian-Irish writer, performer, and cultural consultant from India. Her work has been published by Dedalus Press, Little Island, Banshee, Stinging Fly, Poetry Ireland, and others. She was a Science Gallery Dublin Rapid Residency artist in 2021, was the Writer in Residence for the Institute of Physics in 2023, and was a 2024 Goethe-Institut Studio Quantum Artist in Residence. She is currently under commission with Skein Press.