John Banville, John Boyne and Neil Jordan Chaired by Claire Armitstead

Three of Ireland’s most distinguished novelists, John Banville, John Boyne and Neil Jordan, come together to discuss their latest books, the common themes in their own and in Irish writing, and the place of Ireland in history and in the modern world.

Banville is author of 17 books and winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize, the Guardian Fiction Award, the Franz Kafka Prize, a Lannan Literary Award for Fiction and the Prince of Asturias Award for Literature. His novel, The Sea, in which an elderly art historian loses his wife to cancer and revisits the seaside villa of his childhood holidays, won the Booker Prize. His latest novel, The Singularities, is a multi-layered novel of nostalgia, life and death, and quantum theory, which returns to the life of one of his most famous characters, Freddie Montgomery, as he is released from prison.

Boyne is author of the 11-million-selling The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, which has been adapted for cinema, theatre, ballet and opera. His new novel is All the Broken Places, a sequel to The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, the devastating story of a woman character from the first novel who must confront the sins of her past and the effects of a lifetime of guiilt. Boyne is author of 13 novels for adults and six for younger readers. He has won three Irish Book awards and many other international literary prizes.

Jordan is a film director, screenwriter and author. His first book, Night in Tunisia, won a Somerset Maugham Award and the Guardian Fiction Prize. He is also a winner of the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature and the Irish PEN Award. His films include as writer and director of The Crying Game, winner of an Oscar for best original screenplay and a BAFTA for best British film. His latest novel is The Ballad of Lord Edward and Citizen Small, a reimagining of a turning point in Irish, American and European history. 

Discussions are chaired by Claire Armitstead, associate editor culture for the Guardian. She presents the weekly Guardian books podcast and is a regular commentator on radio and at live events.

This event is part of the festival’s programme of Irish literature and culture.