Uisce. Water and imagination. – An evening of music and poetry by Ri Rua, John Hurley and Máire Ní Mhaolalaidh
Music by Ri Rua and poetry in English and Irish by John Hurley and Mary Ellen Saha, loosely lapping around the theme of water.
“I seasonally adjust, slipping through the gap between this and the otherworld, where I wear a white mantle and I rush and slide” Nuala NiChonchuir, The White Mantle
Doors: 3.30pm; Starts: 4pm
Tickets: £12/£10
John Hurley
Leader of the ICC’s poetry group, John is a much loved member of the Irish Cultural Centre community and regularly attends many community events at the centre including sharing reading his own writing and treating audiences to renditions of his favourite songs at the weekly trad sessions.
Ali Monaghan
Ali is a former classical violinist turned fiddle player, from New York City. She’s been taking lessons with resident fiddler Michael Sweeney at the ICC since 2017, and regularly attends the Friday trad sessions.
David Kelly
David is a guitarist, singer and bodhran player. His addiction to session music led to Irish guitar backing and Bodhrán lessons at the ICC in 2018, becoming a bodhran tutor in 2025, and playing regularly in sessions and bands. He came for the jigs and stayed for Mick O’Connor style dad jokes.
Lydia Whitehouse
Lydia is a fiddle player from London, where she is also studying Music at university. Starting the violin over ten years ago, she pursued trad music alongside her classical teaching, learning through attending sessions and regularly practicing trad music with her uncle, another musician. She first came to the ICC in 2021 to take part in their Friday evening sessions.
Vince Walsh
Brought up in West London with family from Dublin and surrounded by Irish music. Came to the ICC Friday sessions to check them out in 2023 having been in Ireland for the previous 6 years and playing in sessions there.
Máire Ní Mhaolalaidh
Máire Ní Mhaolalaidh is an Irish mythologist, meditation teacher, and scéalaí—storyteller.
A Gaeilgeoir who retells Irish goddess myths to live by.
Her bilingual tales and filíocht—poetry are lit with Gaeilge glimmers and ADHDraíocht (magic).
Ní Mhaolalaidh is decolonising her mind with every focal—word she writes and recently reclaimed her Gael name (previously Mary Ellen Saha).
At the ICC she hosts the monthly What The Focal night, quarterly Celtic Wheel Talesevents ( Samhain, Bealtaine, Winter Solstice, Imbolc) and runs the 6-week Mnátra Meditation course).
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