Mike Byrne & Anni Wilton-Jones
read
First World War poetry
7.30 pm
Sunday 11th November 2018
Percy French Hotel
Strokestown
Co. Roscommon
Admission: Free
We Will Remember Them
A performance of a selection of poems by
First World War poets
Read by Mayo-based poets
Anni Wilton-Jones and Mike Byrne
Includes poems by:
John McCrae Frances Ledwidge
11 November, 2018, marks the centenary of the end of the First World War (also known as the Great War). War is a very terrible thing and no-one knows that better than those who fought. Their sacrifice – of all those years spent in fighting, of their health and well-being, of their lives – deserves to be remembered.
There are so many lines of war: lines of soldiers, of trenches, of wounded, of dead, of coffins, of gravestones; lines on memorials; lines in poetry.
To remember the very many Irish men and women who fought or served in other ways, particularly those who lost their lives, poets Mike Byrne and Anni Wilton-Jones have put together a memorial event, entitled We Will Remember Them. It consists of poems of the First World War, along with some interesting biographical details about each featured poet.
The selection of poems by more than thirty poets includes both well-known and less-familiar works. In particular, it features poems written by Irish men and women, such as Francis Ledwidge, Katherine Tynan, and Tom Kettle. Mike and Anni also read one or two relevant poems of their own. Some sample poems from the performance are included in this leaflet.
The full event lasts for around 1 hr 20 mins
Sunday 11th November, 2018, 7.30pm
Percy French Hotel, Strokestown.
Admission Free
Biographies of the performers
Mike Byrne ran Stonebridge Publications, publishing poetry and short stories in Ireland and Wales. He was a member of Salem, a group of five performing poets, which read in Ireland, the UK and the USA. He has published a full collection of poetry, Storm of Words, a chapbook, Tidings, and numerous journalistic articles.
Anni Wilton-Jones was on the Writers in Wales list and was a member of Salem, a group of five performing poets, which read in Ireland, the UK and the USA. She now reads with the Hermit Collective and presents an Arts programme on Claremorris Community Radio. She has published two full collections of poetry, Bridges and Winter Whiting, several chapbooks and a number of journalistic articles.