Large crowds enjoy Omagh Literary Festival

FROM award-winning new writers and poets, to performances by top musicians, this year’s Omagh Literary Festival proved to be an absolute success.

Organised by the Omagh Arts Committee, the 22nd event of its kind to-date – and, perhaps, the last for the foreseeable future – was kick-started by author and conservationist, Dara McAnulty.

Audiences were in for a treat, as Dara entered into a fantastic conversation with Irish News nature columnist, Stephen Colton, to enthusiastic crowds, aged from four-to-84, from across Ireland.

Describing the occasion as ‘a special day’, Dara said, “It was so lovely to have a fantastic conversation with Stephen Colton at the Strule Arts Centre. The audience was fabulous.”

Meanwhile, award-winning author, Claire Keegan, kept her audience captivated and engaged as she conversed with short story writer, Wendy Erskine.

Also exuding creativity at the event was poet, Bernie Crawford, who shared her varied life experience with the rapt audience through her poetry.

Finally, the collaboration of music from The Drunken Lullabies, and migrant letters collated and read by Dr Patrick Fitzgerald, worked seamlessly to enthrall the audience, culminating in a standing ovation.

Full of delight, the Omagh Arts Committee, who have organised arts festivals, concerts, events locally over the past 20 years, say they were simply ‘overwhelmed’ by the resounding success of their final literary festival.