Poetry events like this are important because they are bridges between the past and the future.
– Cllr. Jim Buttimer, Deputy Lord Mayor of Cork City
Since my book was published in April it feels like I have been doing a reading every week. None of these readings brought me as much pleasure as reading at Ó Bhéal. I’m not sure why exactly this was, but I do know that I felt more at ease than at other readings, more welcome and more comfortable; there was an appreciative yet clearly smart and critical energy in the crowd; the whole evening from start to finish was relaxed and well-run; this gave me a good confidence boost, which is a wonderful thing at poetry readings.
– Michael McKimm
Ó Bhéal is the focal point for Leeside’s swirling word art these days
and is the birthplace of many an inspiration and a poem.
It is as well organized and tirelessly promoted
as it is welcoming to the out of town visitor
and when I read there in the depths of last winter I felt I was
slotting in to a thriving and serious community of free minds and open spirits.
Long may it run and please fund it.– Dave Lordan
Paul Casey’s Ó Bhéal has become an established event in Cork’s city life and culture; bringing poetry to the people and bringing people and poetry together.
– Adam Wyeth
I did not know what to expect when I went to read at Ó Bhéal in April 2009. Open-mic events can be variable in my experience, depending on sound quality, audience numbers, enthusiasm of the poets etc. But Ó Bhéal ticked all the boxes. A great atmosphere in the Hayloft, packed with faces young and old, male and female, a great MC and superbly organised. I felt at home straightaway. It was memorable night – and long may Ó Bhéal continue.
– James Harpur
There is a special buzz for me about reading in Cork as I originally hail from that county. So, when Paul Casey invited me last year to read at one of the Ó Bhéal weekly gatherings, I was in my element (as the phrase goes). The intimacy of the venue and Paul’s unobtrusive professionalism, turn these readings into memorable occasions for reader and listener. Long may they last.
– John Liddy
I had a great time reading at Ó Bhéal. It’s really well organised but still has a quite relaxed atmosphere. It’s inclusive, allowing both new and not so new poets read together, and it was obvious that it’s a great boon to writers in Cork. Long may it continue.
– Alan Jude Moore
Knowing him (Paul Casey), I know too that whatever projects he undertakes he pursues with vigour and imagination. The reading series he runs in Cork is tremendously popular, especially with young people.
– Derek Mahon
I read at Ó Bhéal in April and was very impressed by the lively atmosphere. The audience is young and enthusiastic, and the event is creating a focus for young writers in Cork. Its format of workshop, followed by reading, provides a heady mix of debate and celebration from which important new writers may emerge.
– Rosemary Canavan
I would like to inform you that I have been a Guest Poet at Ó Bhéal in the past year and have never read before such a warm and responsive audience. The evening is split into sections where all those attending are encouraged, if they wish, to perform and read their own work.
The results are quite stunning and produce an exciting and creative evening of poetry. Ó Bhéal is a very special place and congratulations to all those involved who work so hard in booking guest poets week after week, and give such encouragement to new writing!
– Cliff Wedgbury
Ó Bhéal, with Paul Casey, has provided me and many others writers with a welcome opportunity to read and promote our work in Cork. Ó Bhéal has grown in stature and has established itself as a major event on the literary calendar. We can only hope that it continues to grow and provide a much-needed outlet for the huge number of writers Ireland claims to be proud of.
– Terry McDonagh
In 2008 I had the experience of giving a poetry reading at Ó Bhéal. There was a large and enthusiastic audience, and the reading was followed by an unusually lively open mic. I consider Ó Bhéal to be one of the few outstanding poetry reading programs in the country. Paul Casey has done an excellent job of organising and developing it.
– Knute Skinner
Ó Bhéal is a unique venue for an emerging poet to have one’s work heard by the people of Cork city and county. You always get a warm reception from their very able organizer Paul Casey, and the prospect of meeting with established poets living or working in the area, like Billy Ramsell, Patrick Cotter, Leanne O’Sullivan, Desmond O’Grady and Matthew Sweeney, is also invaluable. The mix of formal and informal opportunities to hear poetry at a venue such as Ó Bhéal cannot be underestimated; especially in these straitened times.
– Barbara Smith
Beatha agus slainte go Ó Bhéal mar cheann de na clubanna is fearr agus is leanunai filiochta sa tir, e eagraithe go maith agus lucht leanuna aireach gnothaithe aige – gura fada buan e.
– Dairena Ni Chinneide
Reading at Ó Bhéal was a great experience. The whole evening was incredibly well organised and Paul Casey was very supportive before, during and after the event. The venue was congenial and the audience welcoming. This was my first but I hope not my last reading at Ó Bhéal.
– Anne-Marie Glasheen
As a much travelled poet, I’ve had experiences of reading at venues the world over – for good or for ill. Ó Bhéal has always been for me a very good experience – very sociable but with a deep concern for providing a platform for poetry of quality. I can, therefore, heartily endorse the great work done in Cork by Paul Casey and all the Ó Bhéal team.
– Keith Armstrong
I read at Ó Bhéal in March of 2009 in support of my first poetry collection. It was a pleasure from start to finish. The reading was well attended, the audience enthusiastic. The accommodation provided was lovely, and I was surprised to be handed a reader’s fee at the end of the night! Ó Bhéal is a professionally run gig I’d recommend to any poet. As one of the organisers of Galway’s Over the Edge events, I can further testify that Ó Bhéal is part of a network of readings (the others being Limerick’s White House events, Galway’s North Beach Poetry Nights, and our own series) that both new and established, visiting and Irish poets make use of. We organisers work well together, to the advantage of poets and audience. Ó Bhéal definitely deserves continued support.
– Susan Millar DuMars
Ó Bhéal is an excellent poetry reading; well organised with a large, knowledgeable and very appreciative audience. It was a great pleasure to read my poetry there and I have been singing the praises of Ó Bhéal ever since.
– Martin Daws
Ó Bhéal has much to be proud of. A fine pedigree of writers who’ve appeared, and a committed audience which continues to develop and broaden. Besides providing an engaged audience for established writers, Ó Bhéal is engendering a community of new writers, giving them the kind of support and platform which make a fundamental difference to young writers struggling for recognition and direction.
– Grace Wells
I was a featured poet at Ó Bhéal in February 2008 and it was obvious that Ó Bhéal has become for Cork what The White House readings are for Limerick and Over The Edge and North Beach Poetry Nights are for Galway; it is one of the four pillars of the hugely vibrant oral poetry scene which grew up in Ireland during the last few years of the Celtic Tiger.
– Kevin Higgins
The Ó Bhéal readings ensure that Cork, one of our major cities, has a vibrant and regular open-mic venue, one of the essentials for encouraging creative writing. It also ensures exposure to the work of guest poets from outside Cork, thereby providing an openness to national contemporary influences. It is an absolutely invaluable asset to Cork’s artistic life.
– Eamonn Lynskey
Ó Bhéal is exactly what is needed to keep poetry and short fiction alive and enjoyable as a living spoken tradition and it is the perfect interface between developing writers, well-known writers and the public.
– Niall Herriott
Ó Bhéal can only go from strength to strength with the following it has. It was a delight to have been invited to read, and will be a delight if it happens again.
– Neil McCarthy
Many thanks for the opportunity to contribute to the Ó Bhéal reading series last October, it was a very enjoyable and rewarding experience and I am looking forward to returning with The White House Poets in November this year. I can testify that Ó Bhéal is run professionally and is, along with Over the Edge and the White House Poetry Revival, a venue where visiting poets are always assured of a courteous welcome from an always appreciative audience.
– Dominic Taylor
Thank you for inviting me to read in July, 2009, and for the warm welcome I received. Your venue in The Hayloft, Cork, is intimate and unique, and most conducive to meeting and chatting with audience afterwards. You provide a much-needed, receptive forum for poets and poetry lovers and long may you continue.
– Aidan Murphy
I’ve read twice in Ó Bhéal, before and after my book was published. Without venues like Ó Bhéal, and the tireless work Paul does, emerging poets won’t be able to develop their trade.
– Miceál Kearney
Ó Bhéal is a joyous celebration of poetry. As a focal point for poets across Ireland and particularly those of us in the south-west it is essential. What Ó Bhéal provides is needed now more than ever.
– Joseph Horgan
Paul Casey and the weekly Ó Bhéal readings are a further essential element for keeping poetry alive in these strapped times. They enable established poets to read before an audience genuinely open to all approaches to contemporary poetry but also, most importantly, allow the audience, comprised of poets as well, to hone their craft and confidence. Thus, Ó Bhéal acts as both a seedbed for the future, a testing ground for tomorrow’s generation of Irish poets, and also as a safe harbour for established poets to land their craft and share their trade.
– John W. Sexton
As an Australian poet I have given poetry readings in many countries including Portugal, Italy the UK, Ireland and Turkey. The Ó Bhéal reading run by Paul Casey is one I highly recommend because of its full and attentive audience, the time given to the guest poet to read which allows full exploration of their work, and for the Open section, which is of the highest quality. I particularly noted the attendance at this reading of young poets, something to be encouraged. Paul Casey is to be commended for his hard work in organising this event and the associated lively and archived website.
– Dr Robyn Rowland AO
From the 5 Word Challenge which gets everyone writing, to the opportunity for listening to visiting poets (some have one collection behind them, some have fifteen) and the Open Mic segment where everyone gets a chance to stand up and read their new work aloud: it’s no surprise that Ó Bhéal can’t help but engage a dedicated following.
– Alan Garvey
Performing at Ó Bhéal, I was very impressed by the efficiency with which the event was organised and by the large, enthusiastic attendance. The event is edifying, from the improving, critical thrust of the workshop to the opportunity for both spontaneous and practiced poetic creativity. I believe it performs a great service to the cultural life of Cork.
– Máighréad Medbh
I would like to add my recommendation that Ó Bhéal be assisted in their mission to bring poetry to the places others can not reach. I have been a proud participant in their endeavours.
– Gerry Murphy
Ó Bhéal is an important node of communication and debate in the Irish arts- their programme is extensive and creates a platform and unique opportunity for a diverse range of artists to share their work with a diverse audience and also to perform to other poets. As a poet, I have thoroughly enjoyed being associated with their events and found them rewarding for my own work and development.
– Gearóid Mac Lochlainn
Ó Bhéal has a great format, interestingly participatory, democratic, stimulating. O Casey engenders a warmly responsive arena for the visiting writer. I’d return with gusto.
– Frank Golden
Ó Bhéal provides the ordinary and extraordinary punters of Cork the opportunity to listen to the poetry of old pros and new rising stars. Ó Bhéal facilitates minds and hearts to expand on a weekly basis. They must be congratulated and financially supported in this ambitious and life-affirming venture. They are a respected port of call among Ireland’s poetry sailors.
– Mary Mullen
Ó Bhéal has rapidly become one of the most important poetry reading venues in Ireland. It offers regulars the chance to hear some of our finest poets, as well as offering lesser known poets an invaluable opportunity to air their work. Part of its success is the flair and efficiency with which it is organised, and the sense of poetic community it creates. If ever a poetry initiative should be encouraged, this is it!
– Anamaría Crowe Serrano
Reading poetry at Ó Bhéal proved delightful, and a pleasure: an attentive and participatory audience, followed by an outstanding open-mike session afterwards. It was a welcoming and welcome poetry opportunity and I was delighted to return to my home county for this reading. Many thanks to you and Ó Bhéal – long may you flourish.
– Seamus Cashman
I have read at Ó Bhéal and can highly recommend it as a venue for established and aspiring writers.
– Eugene O Connell
Ó Bhéal welcomes all listeners and encourages new readers in a safe atmosphere. Without the efforts made by Paul Casey a fundamental platform to the art of expression would be lost in Cork. Long may they continue to unearth new voices and inspire a new generation of poets, this is what I bore witness to during a wonderful evening there with our hosts.
– Stephen James Smith
I am very glad to express my appreciation of the experience of reading at Ó Bhéal last year. I was impressed with your ability to create a lively milieu, with an interested audience, in an authentic Cork pub setting.
– Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin
I read at Ó Bhéal in July 2009 and discovered the vibrant and colourful Cork poetry scene. Meeting other poets – English and Irish language – was not only enriching but also opened my eyes to a network of poets nationwide. I had previously felt outside of that because I write in Irish but Ó Bhéal provided a genuinely warm welcome and continued support.
– Ailbhe Ní Ghearbhuigh
Ó Bhéal fills a role in Cork not served by either of the two pre-existing literary organisations including ourselves, namely the provision of weekly live readings. The Munster Literature Centre pools its resources for readings into two annual literary festivals. We consider Ó Bhéal to be a complimentary organisation to our own. Ó Bhéal insures that poets who do not fit into the festival criteria or are unable to travel to Cork during those festivals are afforded a reading outlet. Ó Bhéal is non-doctrinaire in its literary programming featuring poets from all schools and persuasions. There is a great mix of out-of-town Irish and foreign poets featured. There is also a good mix of established poets like Derek Mahon and others on the cusp of publishing a first book. The workshops which are provided are an excellent resource for the beginning poet.
Ó Bhéal’s activities also help to grow the literary audience in Cork which then becomes available for other literary events and festivals. I find the atmosphere of Ó Bhéal always wecoming and the events are well organised, well presented and also well supported by an excellent website with podcasts.
We are so impressed with Ó Bhéal and believe their activities are so crucial that we gave them a grant of 1,000 euro this year. With cutbacks next year we do not anticipate being able to repeat this gesture in the immediate future.
Ó Bhéal ‘s continued existence would be essential to provide a Cork venue for any literature touring scheme. As the literary consultant on the Touring Experiment, I know how rare something as Ó Bhéal actually is.
– Patrick Cotter
Director
The Munster Literature Centre
Cork
I have read at the Ó Bhéal readings in Cork and found them to be energetic, teeming gatherings of the poetic heartland in Munster. The particular structure of an Ó Bhéal reading — a themed open competition on the night, followed by an invited reader (a published poet) and a completely inclusive open-mike — is one of the most consistently successful, unconscious poetry workshops I’ve ever seen in operation. The process-based structure of the evening, where poetry and the impulses of poetry, flow back and forth between reader and audience, is something that has to be experienced to truly understand. Its success has to be due to an unwavering, light but disciplined, touch of the Director and MC, Paul Casey. An Ó Bhéal evening is workshop, reading, propaganda, seminar, inclusive encounter, all rolled into one. Each Monday it performs the function of a living, working, ever-changing anthology of Southern poetries.
– Thomas McCarthy
I was delighted to have been given an opportunity to read at Ó Bhéal in Cork last year. This weekly poetry reading and ‘open mike’ is the only such event to take place on a regular basis in Cork city, and in the course of its lifetime to date, it has brought a very wide range of interesting writers to the attention of the Cork public. Ó Bhéal fulfils a vital role by bringing poetry to the heart of the city on a weekly basis. It provides encouragement to both established and developing writers in the practice of the craft. It is very well managed, everyone is treated with courtesy and respect, and the atmosphere is very positive. Ó Bhéal provides a life-line for poetry, and for culture more generally, in Cork.
– Mary Noonan
I feel Ó Bhéal is an excellent venture, bringing such a range of poets to Cork, and very necessary. Ireland’s second city needs poetry.
– Matthew Sweeney
Thanks for your hospitality. I had a great time in Ireland, the people were very kind to me. So I hope to come back some time. It was a nice stay in Cork. Success with your poetry and the poetry evenings. Thanks again!
– Rense Sinkgraven
The Ó Bhéal reading is one of my favorites in Ireland, with an enthusiastic audience and hosts dedicated to helping make Cork one of the most congenial places to be a writer I’ve seen.
– Quincy Lehr
Ó Bhéal is an oasis. If it dries up … perish the thought!
– Gabriel Rosenstock
I had the great pleasure of reading and giving a writing workshop at Ó Bhéal in April 2010. I was very impressed by the professional and courteous manner with which both events were organised and found the audience for both the reading and the workshop appreciative and responsive. There is clearly a huge appetite for, and engagement with, literary culture in Cork, and Ó Bhéal is leading the pack in developing audiences for literature and promoting the craft of writing.
– Nessa O’Mahony
I found the Ó Bhéal series excellent in every respect. Paul Casey did a tremendous job of organizing and publicizing the event. I read to an enthusiastic, responsive full-house at the “Long Valley”, a perfect venue. An acquaintance of mine from Cork City, a software editor from McAfee, had never attended a poetry reading. He thoroughly enjoyed himself and said he would most likely attend other readings in the future. I am always pleased when people from the community at large who are necessarily poetry fans attend readings. This kind of outreach helps us poets spread the word of poetry and is good for the general cultural health of the city.
As a visiting Irish-American poet I was impressed with the warm welcome I received and the accommodations the series arranged for me in Cork City.
– Carlos Reyes
Is sampla é Ó bhéal den saghas fóram filíochta gur chóir a bheith forleathan in Éireann ach atá, i ndáiríre, tearc go leor. Tá an t-atmasféar neamhfhoirméalta, uileghabhálach meáite le meas doimhin agus bá leis an fhilíocht á léamh. Gur fada buan é!
Ó bhéal is an example of the type of poetry forum which should exist in many locations in Ireland but which is sadly rare. The informal, inclusive atmosphere is offset by a deep respect for and engagement with the poetry being read. Long may it last!
– Simon Ó Faoláin
I was the guest poet at Ó Bhéal’s weekly reading on the 14th June 2010. It was a lively and well attended event and I was very pleased to meet the Cork writers. Paul Casey looked after my accommodation and expenses and was a most courteous host.
– Maureen Gallagher
Thank you so much for facilitating a reading of my first full collection Inhaling the Light which I pre-launched at Ó Bhéal earlier this year. Without places like Ó Bhéal, who by the way offer a teriffic venue for poetry, where would poets be given a voice? Best wishes for your continued success.
– Marian O’Rourke
Ó Bhéal: warm, inviting venue. Paul: terrific host. Audience: engaged and friendly. Atmosphere: electric. Altogether, a rare convergence – keep it up!
– Camille Martin
I was impressed & delighted by the multi-lingual, engaged & engaging audience at my reading as part of the Ó Bhéal series earlier this year. The whole event was well-managed with efficiency & good humour by Paul Casey.
– Maurice Scully
I cherish the memory of my visit to Ó Bhéal. You have found a formula which works: Competition first, followed by Guest Poet and then open mic. On the night I was with you we had a good quality house, some from quite a distance. I like the harder edge your system gives to the evening; your audience is much more involved in the three-layered session.
It was a pleasure also to get feedback from people afterwards – some offering views on my work; others seeking an opinion on theirs. Long may you continue with this relevant work.
– Tommy Frank O’Connor
Ó Bhéal provides a vital platform for poets, both well established and less well known, to present their work to a live audience. It also gives people an opportunity to hear poets deliver their own work. It is always a lively and very well organised event and a very important element in the poetic fabric of the country. It’s continued support is very important.
– Gerard Hanberry
Ó Bhéal is a well organised reading series in Cork. The audience is lively and particpatory. Poets and readers fill the seats. One of the most enjoyable reading series I have been to. Simply put, it’s a must on the Irish poetry-reading cicruit.
– Paul Perry
Ó Bhéal is a unique organisation for poetry, firstly in its intensity in offering 50 professional poetry readings a year, and secondly in its practical encouragement of the composition and reading of new poetry, an integral part of every event. It is therefore a serious training ground for the poets, who write in English, Irish and other languages. Being outwith any educational body, is it a serious example of self-organised quality culture, which involves immigrants, academics, and every other sort of person, old and young, in a city with a literary reputation to keep.
– Meg Bateman
My first poetry collection was published in 2009 and it was wonderful to get a reading of my work at one of Ó Bhéal’s weekly events in Cork. Ó Bhéal provides a great platform for new and established writers alike. The venue is open and welcoming in the heart of Cork City and is obviously much appreciated and supported by those who come to listen and to participate. Thanks Ó Bhéal.
– Patricia Byrne
Just a quick thanks again for inviting me down to Ó Bhéal. I had a great time and your audience was very receptive and attentive. Hope to see you again soon. Cork is very lucky to have you.
– Kate Dempsey
Ó Bhéal is an intimate, warm venue for reading poems, in the heart of Cork City. It recalls those venues where poets of my own generation started presenting their work in the late Sixties. Upstairs, above a pub is always a good place to read poems. Its eclectic mix of poetry draws people in from various backgrounds, giving it a broad reach. It has the feel of a place where poetry belongs, with an attentive audience. I read there during the year, was treated with great courtesy, and wish Ó Bhéal (a great name) continuation and endurance.
– Liam Ó Muirthile
I wish you every success with your endeavour. It is very important to have nights like these.
– Seosamh O Guairim
Ó Bhéal plays an important role in the cultural life of Cork and is unique in terms of empathy, interaction and involvement between visiting poet and audience. The weekly readings attract an ever-growing number of poetry lovers and are always special events. I found it to be a deeply rewarding experience to read there.
– Enda Coyle-Greene
Having a debut collection published is an important landmark for any poet who has grafted their work over many years. With the book in hand, launch over, I’ve often heard writers say something like, so ‘what’s next?’. The Ó Bhéal readings series in Cork city is so important, in that it gives even those ‘unknowns’ with their first book out, a chance to headline at the venue. With my debut collection published by Salmon in June 2010, I was delighted to perform at Ó Bhéal to a very appreciative audience. Is is one of just two regular weekly venues for poetry in Munster (other being The White House, Limerick). Also, as well as coming to hear a published (in book form) poet, audience members have the opportunity to take part in the Open Mic. This venue and series must continue long into the future.
– Noel King
