Today’s spotlight is Niall O’Gallagher. Niall is the author of three collections of poetry in Gaelic, Beatha Ùr (2013), Suain nan Trì Latha (2016) and Fo Bhlàth (2020) and of Fuaimean Gràidh / The Sounds of Love: Selected Poems (2023). In 2023 he was awarded the Bardic Crown at the National Mod. He lives on the Ayrshire coast with his wife and their two children.
Niall told us “I’ve been to Islay once before, years ago, where I got the chance to read from my translations of Gaelic poetry. The island is beautiful and I’m delighted to have been invited back. I’m looking forward to speaking Gaelic with people in Islay. I speak Irish too and the Islay dialect seems to me to be like a bridge, or even a stepping-stone between the two.”
When asked about his book, Niall told us “Fuaimean Gràidh / The Sounds of Love brings together poems from my first three collections with English translations for the first time. Many of them are love poems of different kinds and most of them rhyme. I’m interested in bringing together forms from Classical Gaelic poetry with European structures like the sonnet. I’ve also written a lot about the city of Glasgow. The translations are by other poets, mostly Peter Mackay and Deborah Moffatt.”
And as for other events? “I’ve just finished reading Andrew O’Hagan’s novel Caledonian Road so I hope my boat gets in on time to go to the event!” We’ll see you there, Niall!
You can find out more about Niall at his website.
Niall’s latest book is The Sounds of Love / Fuaimean Gràidh.
Niall will be in conversation with Taylor Strickland at a special Gaelic event on Saturday afternoon at the Gaelic College, which will be chaired by Iseabail Mactaggart.