Children – a poetry film
February 7, 2023
The poem ‘Children’ was first published in 1990 when it was written for a volume of poems, Thistledown, produced in aid of UNICEF by the
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PAT BORAN
Welcome to the website of Irish poet Pat Boran. Here you’ll find samples of his many books, a growing selection of his poetry films, and much more. For commissions or other work, please use the Contact form.
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Recent Poetry Films
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Jingle Bells, a version
December 23, 2022
Christmas is not an easy time for many, particularly those feeling the absence of loved ones. This version of Jingle Bells is for them.
Out of the Blue – a poetry film
September 15, 2022
Out of the Blue is a poetry film by Irish poet Pat Boran, shot in Baldoyle, Sutton and Howth, Co. Dublin, during Spring/Summer 2022. It
Immigrants Open Shops: A Poetry Film
March 24, 2022
Immigrants Open Shops is a short film about a truth that I missed for many years, until it was pointed out to me by my
The Inverse Wave: A Poetry Film
February 14, 2022
The power of lovers to find each other in the world, and, even in hard times, to make the world bearable for each other, is
Lost and Found: A Poetry Film
December 31, 2021
First published in 2001 in As the Hand, the Glove, Lost and Found is a poem about waste, sustainability and recycling – and about the
A Winter Blessing: A Poetry Film
December 31, 2021
In an era when the word ‘snowflake’ has become an insult, A Winter Blessing considers our attitudes to openness and vulnerability, while the film also
On a Wave of Light: A Poetry Film
September 10, 2021
On a Wave of Light is the result of a ‘Local Live Performance Laois County Council’ commission, for which I’m hugely grateful. Like most of
Building the Ark: A Poetry Film
April 26, 2021
Building the Ark is the latest in my ongoing series of poetry films, inviting a second look at local landmarks and also, in this case,
The Mistake: A Poetry Film
March 22, 2021
A mistake in childhood may prove to be a lens through which the past is more clearly visible. A poetry film by Pat Boran. With
Greek Vase: A Poetry Film
March 22, 2021
Greek Vase looks at a beautiful work of art and sees in it an image of the casual violence of our own time. A poetry
The Statues of Emo Court: A Poetry Film
November 10, 2020
Recorded in the grounds of Emo Court, Co. Laois, Ireland, The Statues of Emo Court celebrates patience, resilience and the turning of the seasons, finding
Short Biog Note
PAT BORAN is one of the best-known Irish poets. His publications to date include more than a dozen books of poetry and prose. The most recent are the illustrated Building the Ark (2022) and The Statues of Emo Court (2021). Among his full-length books are Then Again (2019), A Man is Only As Good: A Pocket Selected Poems (2017), and Waveforms: Bull Island Haiku (2015). This last book inspired the Lyric FM radio documentary of the same name.
As well as poetry Pat Boran writes non-fiction. His humorous memoir The Invisible Prison (2009), about growing up in the Irish midlands, received rave reviews. And his writers’ handbook The Portable Creative Writing Workshop is still in print after almost 20 years. (Most of his books are available from Dedalus Press.) His books have been published in Italian, Hungarian, Macedonian, Greek, French & Portuguese.
Pat Boran received the Patrick Kavanagh Award and the O’Shaughnessy Poetry Award in the United States. Since presenting The Poetry Programme and The Enchanted Way on RTÉ Radio, he has edited more than 100 poetry books and anthologies. The Word Ark: A Pocket Book of Animal Poems (2020) appeared in the first Covid-19 lockdown and he followed it with Local Wonders: Poems of our Immediate Surrounds (2021).
A member of Aosdána, Ireland’s affiliation of creative artists, in recent years he has been making short poetry films, often with his own music. These have been selected for festivals and won prizes in more than ten countries. You can find a selection on this website as well as on YouTube).
