Leading travel writer returns to Lismore for festival

A world-renowned travel writer, who proposed to his wife while visiting Lismore in 2010, will return this month to speak at an event celebrating the Immrama travel writing festival.

Michael Shapiro will host a free pre-Immrama event ahead of the festival which takes place between Jun 3 and Jun 16 in Lismore.

The event will take place at Lismore Courthouse Theatre on May 19, and Shapiro will discuss his book, A Sense of Place.

The author of several books, Shapiro also writes for The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, and The Sun.

He was recognised by the Society of American Travel Writers who presented him with a Lowell Thomas award for an investigate piece in the San Francisco Chronicle.

The programme for this year’s Immrama festival was announced last week with travel-writing heavyweights Paul Theroux, Simon Winchester, and Charlie Connelly set to lead the events.

Joining them on their travel tales will be authors Theresa McDonnell, Kieran Heffernan, and Monica Corish, a former Irish Aid worker; best friends and global travellers Liz Davies and Hilary Linstead, who co-wrote Growing Old Outrageously and Donald Brady who will discuss the Watercolour Society of Ireland which was founded in Lismore in 1870.

John Dwyer will also host a workshop on e-publishing, while Rachel Finnegan will host a reading at St Carthage’s Cathedral discussing her publications of the travel correspondence of two 18th century travellers, Dr Richard Pococke and his cousin Jeremiah Milles.

Bringing the festival to a close on Sunday, Jun 16, are two writers originally from Lismore. John O’Keeffe will discuss his book Down the Deerpark Road, Outside Lismore. He will be joined by Rosamund Burton, also from Lismore, who will talk about her book Castle, Follies and Four-Leaf Clovers.

* For full details of the festival schedule and ticket details, log onto www. lismoreimmrama.com