Nell McCafferty tribute night to be hosted in Dublin’s Mansion house this November

An Evening With Nell, a tribute event honouring the late writer Nell MacCafferty’s legacy, is set to take place in the Round Room of Dublin’s the Mansion House of November 18. It will be hosted by Olivia O’Leary.

The evening will include readings of McCafferty’s work from a collection of friends, fans and peers from across her life, including activists Eamonn McCann, Bernadette McAliskey, Ailbhe Smyth, journalists and writers Una Mullally, Evelyn Conlan, Muire McCallion, Martina Devlin, poet Paula Meehan, filmmakers Lelia Doolan, Margo Harkin and more.

Music will be performed by renowned jazz musician and vocalist Mary Coughlan.

Marie Redmond, McCafferty’s lifelong friend and event organiser said “This is a public celebration of Nell. As well as being an extraordinary talent and activist, in over 50 years of friendship she taught me about being open, honest and forthright and to always speak the truth.

“Nell has the respect of thousands of people in Ireland and beyond, and I wanted to create an opportunity for us to come together to celebrate the uniquely brilliant talent and person that she was and the impact of her work for the women of Ireland. She was honest, fearless and kind, generous, witty and warm and she changed the very fabric of the Ireland of her time.”

McCafferty was a writer, human rights campaigner and committed feminist. Her ground-breaking writings exposed the injustices of Irish society and class and gender discrimination, and she changed the position of Irish women in society, in the workplace and in the home.

She was part of the group of women who travelled from to Belfast in 1971 to buy contraceptives, illegally bringing them back past past the barrier at Connolly Station in what was considered a landmark moment.

Some of her published works include A Woman to Blame, on the Kerry babies case; The Armagh Women, which covered women prisoners and their hunger strikes in Northern Ireland and Peggy Deery: A Derry Family at War.

An Evening with Nell, set to take place on November 18, is a free but ticketed event.