About the event
This event sees Niall O'Gallagher (Gaelic Writer in Residence) in conversation with Scotland's new Makar, Pàdraig MacAoidh/Peter Mackay. This is the first time the post of Makar has been awarded to a Gaelic writer - so Pàdraig and Niall will have lots to talk about!
Dr Pàdraig MacAoidh is also a Senior Lecturer in Literature at the University of St Andrews. Originally from the Isle of Lewis, he is an expert in Scottish and Irish literature from 1800 onwards, and especially in Scottish Gaelic literature.
Tha fàilte air càch!
About the Gaelic Writer in Residence
Niall O’Gallagher is the author of three collections of poetry published by CLÀR and of Fuaimean Gràidh / The Sounds of Love: Selected Poems (Francis Boutle, 2023). A verse-novella, Litrichean Plàighe, and a novella in prose for children are in preparation. An anthology, Bàrdachd a’ Bhaile Mhòir: 15 Glasgow Poems, with Niall’s English and Scots translations, was published by Blue Diode in 2024.
A former winner of a New Writers Award and an Ignite Fellowship from the Scottish Book Trust / Gaelic Books Council, and of the Wigtown Gaelic Poetry Prize, Niall was named Bàrd Baile Ghlaschu in 2019 and awarded the Bardic Crown at the National Mòd in 2023. A translator from Catalan, he is currently translating poems by Josep Carner with the support of the Institut Ramon Llull. Niall was recently appointed Gaelic Writer in Residence at the University of Edinburgh.
Niall will be working within Celtic and Scottish Studies in the University of Edinburgh until 2026 and supporting a number of activities, including workshops and events about writing and literature, both at the University and in the wider community.
