THE ‘best little fest in the west’ continues today to celebrate the Blind Poetess of Ulster.
Organisers launched the 2026 Frances Browne Literary Festival yesterday (Thursday) with day two recalling her life and legacy.
The festival returned triumphantly this week for its sixth edition.
Its 2026 programme includes more highly funded cultural events as the festival, which punches way above its weight, has grown and diversified.
This year, its offering attracts an increasing numbers of local and visiting festival-goers across the Twin Towns of Ballybofey and Stranorlar.
The festival commemorates the life and legacy of Frances Browne, the 19th-century author known as The Blind Poetess of Ulster.
The Frances Browne Literary Festival 2026 started yesterday.
A spokesperson said: “The best little festival in the west brings together acclaimed writers, musicians, historians, and emerging young talent in a weekend that regulars value as intimate yet outward looking.
“This year’s line-up features an eclectic mix of international and local heritage and literatures, with every literary taste catered for.”
Festival chairperson Celine McGlynn said: “Frances Browne broke boundaries of disability, gender, and geography through the power of her imagination.
“We are thrilled to welcome both traditional acts like the Armagh Rhymers and contemporary voices like Sue Divin and Emilie Conway to celebrate that extraordinary legacy.”
Arló Molyneux, Stranorlar, helped to launch last year’s Frances Browne Literary Festival Programme in The Historical Park, Stranorlar. Photo: Anne McMenamin.
THE 2026 PROGRAMME
The festival launch took place at 3pm yesterday at Kee’s Hotel, featuring the presentation of the 2026 Frances Browne Award.
The opening night at Alexanders of Ballybofey featured book launches by authors Pat Holland, Jennifer Leong, Dubhán Ó Longáin, and Alan Millar with the launch of New Voices From East Donegal, a trilingual anthology (English, Irish, Ulster-Scots) from children at local national schools.
Award-winning author Sue Divin is the 2026 special guest.
Divin will engage with local students at St Columba’s College and Finn Valley College, deliver the keynote address during the poetry awards today (Friday) at Kee’s Hotel and lead a writing workshop on Saturday morning.
Friday sees the launch of the Reimagining Granny’s Wonderful Chair teachers’ resource, honouring Browne’s famous children’s book, alongside school talks on classic authors John Steinbeck and Jane Austen from Douglas Bartlett and Deirdre Hines, respectively.
Creative juices are sure to flow at Saturday’s morning masterclasses at the Stranorlar Parish Centre offering sessions on historical dialect with Angeline King, creative prose with Sue Divin, and writing in Irish with Dubhán Ó Longáin.
Families can also enjoy a free peg-doll workshop with Breda Bradley in Alexanders of Ballybofey at 4pm.
The Frances Browne Festival promotes storytellers.
For the first time ever in Donegal, the legendary Armagh Rhymers, one of Ireland’s most celebrated folk theatre ensembles, will bring their iconic traditional mumming, poetry, and music to the Balor Arts Centre on Saturday night.
Joined by literary collective Sheddas on Tha Page, writers well known for their innovative, thought-provoking and comic observations, the event promises a vibrant evening of rhythm and lore.
An historical walk with Gerard McHugh at 1pm and a lively Pop-Up Gaeltacht at Bonner’s Corner Bar at 3pm form a fitting prelude to Sunday’s headline double-bill at the Balor, 8pm.
A headline double-bill at the Balor Arts Centre, Ballybofey, on Sunday offers As I Lay Dreaming, a new play by Stranorlar playwright Shaun Byrne, followed by visually impaired jazz singer Emilie Conway, who responds in song and spoken word to Frances Browne’s life and work in an unmissable musical soirée.
Tickets for workshops are available from francesbrowneliteraryfestival.com and tickets for evening performances at the Balor Arts Centre are available at The Balor Box Office or online at balorartscentre.com and by calling 0749131840.