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RTÉ News
13-06-2025
- Entertainment
- RTÉ News
What happened on the very first Bloomsday in 1954?
Analysis: Dublin's annual celebration of James Joyce's Ulysses may be a big event now, but its debut outing was rather inauspicious June 16th may not be the first date that springs to mind as a celebrated Irish national day. It isn't a public holiday (yet at least), but marks Bloomsday, the annual celebration of James Joyce's novel, Ulysses. The modernist masterpiece provoked responses as polarising as declarations of literary genius to book confiscations and banning internationally. Now over a century later, how did celebrating the novel on this date begin? And when was the first Bloomsday in Dublin celebrated? Joyce first started writing Ulysses in 1914 while in Trieste, Italy. Ulysses was serialised between 1918 and 1920 in The Little Review, a modernist magazine published in the United States. Sylvia Beach, owner of Shakespeare and Co. bookshop in Paris, published the infamous first edition of Ulysses in 1922, with its iconic yet simple blue cover with white lettering. From RTÉ Archives, Niall Sheridan talks to Sylvia Beach, the woman responsible for publishing Ulysses, for an episode of Self Portrait in 1962 The 'Bloom' in the day's title is Leopold Bloom, the fictional protagonist of Joyce's sprawling novel of Dublin streets and characters, along with Stephen Dedalus, Molly Bloom and a host of others. The novel's setting of June 16th 1904 was used by Joyce to mark his first date with Nora Barnacle, his love and future wife. The first usage of Bloomsday is argued to be found in 1924, when Harriet Shaw Weaver, Joyce's friend and patron, wrote to him to say that a small group had gathered in Dublin to join in honour of the book and its author. References by Ezra Pound as early as 1922 are also cited. In any case, Bloomsday had begun. Word of the annual Joycean celebration was spreading internationally, with events regularly held in America by the mid-20th century. In 1953, writer Padraic Colum, in his capacity as president of the James Joyce Society, was reading extracts of Joyce's work at the Gotham Book Mart in New York City. When a new book on Joyce was being noted for publication on the upcoming Bloomday, one of the perplexed attendees clarified aloud if Colum had in fact meant 'Doomsday'? From RTÉ Radio 1's Sunday Miscellany, Anthony Cronin recalls the very first Bloomsday However, the first 'official' modern Bloomsday in Ireland is recorded as happening in Dublin in 1954, marking the 50th anniversary of the original occasion. It featured poet Patrick Kavanagh, critic Anthony Cronin, editor and artist John Ryan, writer Brian O'Nolan (aka Flann O'Brien), writer and critic A.J. Leventhal, and a family relative, Tom Joyce. As Kavanagh recounted for the RTÉ Guide, the group met "on a pleasant sunny evening" outside "an ordinary little house in Rathgar" and undertook a trek around Dublin. They called at places synonymous with Joyce and Ulysses, including Sandymount Strand, and, later, fuelled by much drink at Ryan's pub, The Bailey, on Duke Street. The reaction to their tour was somewhat underwhelming. "Our expedition on that June day 1954 got scant courtesy from many people who are now deeply involved in Bloomsday", wrote Kavanagh. "Numbers of well know publicists appeared on the scene to have a good laugh at us". From RTÉ Archives, the Broadsheet TV shows marks Bloomsday with a journey through Joyce's Dublin in 1962 A decade later, a bronze plaque was unveiled inside the same house at 41 Brighton Square West, Rathgar, the birthplace of Joyce, with the inscription: Presented by Montclair State College, New Jersey, U.S.A., "Bloomsday", 16 June 1964". The commemoration plaque was led by Dr. Frederic Harold Young, a professor at Montclair, with funds raised by faculty and students of the college. Ryan was part of Dublin's literary coterie of the mid-20th century and was a self-described Joycean in 1950s Dublin. "But by then," he wrote, "all the world was there before me". Ryan was invited to be an honorary secretary of the James Joyce Tower Society upon its founding in 1962. The Martello Tower in Sandycove, setting of the opening of the novel where 'Stately Plump Buck Mulligan' first appears, was situated on land owned by architect Michael Scott, and agreed for the tower to become a Joyce Museum which was officially opened on Bloomsday 1962. Sylvia Beach, Ulysses ' original publisher travelled from Paris for the occasion in Dublin and recounted her early meetings with Joyce in Paris. From RTÉ Archives, Eamon Morrissey draws on personalities created by James Joyce in Ulysses for Joycemen broadcast in 1982 In 1964, a stage play, Bloomsday was produced and designed by John Ryan and directed by Barry Cassin at the Gate Theatre, Dublin. Starring Anna Manahan and Ronnie Walsh, this stage adaptation of Ulysses by Allan McClelland was originally banned from production at the new Dublin Theatre Festival in 1958 due to objections from Archbishop John Charles McQuaid. To mark the centenary of Joyce's birth in 1982, a full-length radio dramatisation of Ulysses was broadcast on RTÉ Radio in real time. Totalling 29 hours and 45 minutes, this is still considered the definitive radio dramatisation of the novel. Other plays, films, and events brought Ulysses to audiences on stage and screen. From RTÉ Archives, RTE News' bluffer's guide to Bloomsday from 1999 Over the years, Bloomsday events have been annual fixtures in Dublin on a national level and at local and regional events around the country. There was a Bloomsday-themed Women's Run in Dublin in 1984, and Bloomsday events in Galway in 2000 celebrating Joyce's wife and love, Nora Barnacle. In 2004, Ulysses took over O'Connell Street for a city-wide Bloomsday centenary breakfast that attracted attendees from around the world. But does Bloomsday help make the book more accessible to readers? Joyce's story of a perambulation around 'Dear Old Dirty Dublin' can put off the average reader as much as it beguiles. The novel is sometimes perceived as the preserve of a certain class, dressed in straw boaters and who breakfast on kidneys and gorgonzola. The Simpsons do Bloomsday Bloomsday seeps into all sorts of popular culture, and not always in a complimentary way. In a 2009 episode of The Simpsons ('In The Name of the Grandfather"), the family travel to Ireland and see a group in Joycean dress reading from the book. Lisa informs them this is a Bloomsday event, which prompts Bart to write a note-to-self: "Next time visit Scotland". Notwithstanding certain perceptions, a day such as Bloomsday which celebrates a true literary masterpiece published over a century ago, and whose presence continues to grow wider around the world each year should be recognised. While Joycean heritage in Dublin (such as 15 Usher's Island) continues to be neglected, the legacy of Ulysses lives on and shows no sign of abating. This Bloomsday, pick up Ulysses in a form accessible to you, in print or in audio, and follow Bloom and company into a journey round Dublin that you will be glad you went on. Straw boater optional.
Yahoo
30-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
"Jane Austen Wrecked My Life" is a rom-com for book lovers plagued by reality's disappointments
With "Jane Austen Wrecked My Life," writer-director Laura Piani delivers a rom-com tailor-made for Austen devotees that centers on a modern-day echo of "Persuasion"'s Anne Elliot, a woman named Agathe (Camille Rutherford), who is loveless and yet resists the charms of her Shakespeare & Company coworker, Félix (Pablo Pauly) — except when she doesn't. Agathe harbors the romantic notion that she is living in the wrong century and struggles to finish a book inspired by a fantasy. In the grip of a serious case of writer's block, her life takes a fortuitous turn when she is accepted at a Jane Austen retreat after Félix secretly submits an application on her behalf. This twist of fate leads to a chance encounter with Oliver (Charlie Anson), Austen's great-great-great-grandnephew, and it's hate at first sight. (How Austen!) Agathe's vomiting on Oliver's shoes is not an auspicious start, nor is calling him 'unbearable, arrogant, and totally stuck up' within earshot. Never mind the moment she accidentally exposes herself to him. Of course, they are perfect for each other, but as situations prompt a détente, Félix arrives to accompany Agathe to the retreat's Ball, widening the path for romantic folly. 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' features many literary references and running gags to charm viewers. Piani spoke with Salon about making the film and her love of Austen. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity. 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' is about getting inspiration. What inspired you to write and direct this very literary story as a film, rather than pen it as a novel? I was a screenwriter for 12 years, so my language is screenwriting, and I have such a huge admiration for writers. Maybe one day I'll write a novel, but I really wanted to do a rom-com. As a viewer, I was missing the arthouse rom-coms from the '90s in England; it seemed like they disappeared. So, it was a desire to write something that I wanted to see as a viewer. It comes from my experience working as a bookseller at Shakespeare and Co., where I have been working for a long time — this place as a theater stage like in 'The Shop Around the Corner,' a place where you have so many people who like to read and who dream of writing. How do you make it with high ideals about literature and love? Agathe kind of stands in her own way, like many an Austen heroine. She is blocked personally (sexually), professionally (writing) and psychologically (she hates being in a car). I like that she is both stubborn (she won't do what she doesn't want to) and determined (she will do what she wants). She wants things on her terms. But she suffers from impostor syndrome and feels like life could pass her by. How did you conceive of her character? When I started to think about the character, I wanted to write a story about grief — a woman who is blocked and going to face her desire. That would be her journey. And I didn't want to make a rom-com about a woman being saved by a man or by love. I wanted to make a 2025 rom-com where a woman could have a dream other than finding love. So, she would not have impossible romantic expectations. I like it when characters have dreams — not just goals, but something bigger. If she is not able to write anything because she writes one chapter and feels like such an impostor that she stops, or she is not capable of falling in love or engaging with anyone because she fantasizes too much, and reality is always too disappointing, who can she blame? Then I thought about Jane Austen as a comedic way to open the path for so many impossible romantic expectations. She could be feeling that what she writes is not important enough or too light. I heard that rom-coms are a girly, cheesy genre. But it is a very political genre. When you talk about love and romance, you talk about how people live. It can be very deep and entertaining, and that's what Jane Austen did. To answer your question, how did I work on this character? I tried to blend a very modern, contemporary character's journey with elements of Jane Austen's work. 'Persuasion' inspired me the most, and Agathe quotes from the book, saying she feels it is 'too late.' I love that 'Persuasion' was written 300 years ago by a woman who had to address the fact that many women are made to feel that it is 'too late' for them. This is so modern! I built the character inspired by Jane Austen's 'Persuasion,' on Jane Austen's life, and on my own experience as a reader, a writer and a bookseller —and my own grief, because I was grieving at the time I wrote I met the actress who I chose because of her melancholy and weirdness. I love Camille Rutherford because she is not only extremely beautiful, but she doesn't care about being beautiful. She is all about physical comedy and can do all kinds of absurd slapstick. She is not precious, but she is timeless and can play in a Jane Austen book. Together, we created this character who was in my mind and became her interpretation. The more contradictions the character has, the more relatable she is. Agathe has a Jane Austen for every circumstance. Who is your Austen character? What is beautiful about Jane Austen is that you can encounter books and characters all your life and change. I feel closest to Anne Elliot myself, because of the weird mix of humor and her melancholy, which is what I tried to do with the tone of the film. But I am also Elizabeth Bennet from 'Pride and Prejudice,' sometimes. You also feature many other literary references, such as Agathe shelving Julio Cortázar's 'Hopscotch,' consulting the 'I Ching,' namedropping Octavio Paz, and more. What prompted the specific literary references, and what authors inspire you? There is one book that changed my life — it didn't wreck my life — 'The Golden Notebook' by Doris Lessing. I read it at the right age. What is so exciting and beautiful and mysterious are the encounters we have with books. You have books next to your bed or in your living room for so many years, and somehow you choose a book, and it answers so many questions or creates new ones. I am so amazed by these moments and these encounters with books. I remember being a child and being very disappointed with the idea of having only one life to live. Then I learned how to read, and I discovered you could have as many lives as you wanted because you have books. One of the most compelling, exciting experiences I had as a child was reading "The Diary of Selma Lagerlöf." She was a Swedish writer who received the Nobel Prize. She had a disability, and she was sent to the city for [therapy] and became a writer because she had a long train journey. I remember the emotion of being a child and discovering another child's diary about what it means to write. It was mind-blowing. The book I dream to adapt because of the language and story is 'Light Years' by James Salter. Everyone who loves reading has to deal with the huge frustration of not being able to read enough. It's a sickness. Can you talk about developing the comedy in the film? There is wordplay, there are sight gags (spitting llamas), there are pratfalls (in a forest), and embarrassment humor (the multiple nude scenes). Every scene features a kind of punchline — some witty, some somber. I think it is my own taste as a viewer. I became a cinephile because I discovered Billy Wilder and Ernst Lubitsch, and I never got over it. They are the masters. I love physical comedy and slapstick as much as a weird line a character would think and say out loud. I try to mix what I like about life. Comedy is about shame and what we are all trying to hide — all the things that make us poor human creatures — this is the treasure of comedy, being able to laugh about that, but it can be very sad. I love when you feel the core of comedy is a deep sadness, and it is such a catharsis to laugh about it. I looked at actors who were able to physically accommodate that. Camille was funnier and weirder and clumsier — and happier. The Ball sequence is particularly interesting because we get the entire romance without dialogue. Can you discuss the love triangle in general and that scene in particular? The love triangle is timeless. It's been done so often, but it is wonderful to explore. I love this dilemma. I wanted the ball scene to be a tribute to all the books and films we love and that we have in mind when we think about Jane Austen. I also wanted it to be the emotional peak of this love triangle. I like that it is more about the bodies and the way they look at each other, which is so cinematic. Silence brings you back to the beginning of cinema. It was a very low-budget film, so we had constraints on what we could afford, but I wanted it to be magical and fulfilling for the audience, so I wanted the camera to dance with the characters. It's the only time the camera is moving. We didn't have money for big lights. We watched 'Amadeus' and thought, "We will put candles everywhere!" We had no money to buy period costumes. A week before shooting the scene, I realized I would not be able to teach them how to dance, so I called an emergency dance teacher who taught them the choreography in four hours! Do you think, as Oliver does, that Jane Austen is overrated and limited in scope? People who say that didn't read her. It's a posture. I confess I did not like 'Emma' when I had to read it in college. I hate Emma! But 'Clueless' is the best adaptation ever! It's soo good. Emma is the only character who is unbearable to me. But Austen does make a point through that character. I'm not sure she likes her so much either. What Austen easter eggs did you hide in 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' that Austen fans should look for? Two things. When she is inspired after the fantasy in the Chinese restaurant, and she is writing in her room, the desk is full of Jane Austen's books, and the shadow of Austen's face is on the books. And, at the very end, when Agathe imagines the hand of her father touching her shoulder, on her desk is the big book of correspondence between Jane Austen and [her sister] Cassandra. 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' is now playing in theaters nationwide.
San Francisco Chronicle
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Movie Review: Romance and writer's block in bilingual rom-com ‘Jane Austen Wrecked My Life'
Agathe is celibate by choice. The 30-something hero of filmmaker Laura Piani's feature debut 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' played by the luminous Camille Rutherford, hasn't so much been ruined by Austen as she has been made acutely aware of her own limitations in both romance and literature. Neither she nor anyone else is good enough to make any big moves for. So, she sticks to the routine. She works at the legendary Parisian bookstore Shakespeare and Co., and bikes home, where she lives with her sister and young nephew. Sometimes she goes out to dinner. For what it's worth, Agathe also happens to epitomize French girl chic with her Breton stripes, red pout and effortlessly disheveled hair. There should be Instagram accounts devoted to her navy hooded parka. Life isn't bad, it's just not moving forward. And whatever is going to get her out of this self-imposed rut is going to be something special — she's read too many great books to accept anything less. Standards are great and all, but really, of course, it's Agathe who has to get out of her own way. And she does, one night, in a sake-induced daze in which she dreams up the first couple of chapters of a romance. Her best friend Félix (Pablo Pauly) gives her the push she needs and secretly submits the pages to a Jane Austen writers residency, where she's accepted and invited to spend a few weeks. Before she gets on the ferry (a hurdle in and of itself), Félix, a known serial dater and 'breadcrumber,' kisses her. It's the kind of development, a platonic friendship turned complicated, that's enough to properly distract an already reluctant writer with an impostor complex. When she arrives, there's another handsome distraction awaiting her: Oliver (Charlie Anson), a British literature professor and Austen's 'great great great great nephew' who thinks that the 'Pride and Prejudice' author is overrated. Agathe doesn't know he also speaks French until after she's complained about his arrogance to her sister within his earshot. It's a classic kind of setup, not exactly Mr. Darcy, but not not that either. Shared lodgings, even at a rather large, idyllic English estate, only ratchet up the will-they-won't-they tension as they see each other everywhere: walks in the woods, breakfast, after-dinner readings. And it's not without its slightly more cliche hijinks, like Agathe stripping down to nothing and opening a door to what she believes is the bathroom. It's not. Piani has constructed a rare gem in 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' which manages to be literary without being pretentious. Its title is cheekily hyperbolic but has some truth to it as well. Modern romances for Austen disciples are bound to disappoint but, in this environment, they can justify having a costumed ball. The event is a swoony, romantic affair where we get to see the love triangle play out in all its glorious awkwardness. But while 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' certainly qualifies as a romantic comedy, the question of whom she ends up with is kind of beside the point. Don't worry, choices are made, but the way it plays out is both unexpected and gratifying — a clear-eyed portrait of why Agathe's singledom is not the problem. There's even a Frederick Wiseman cameo involved. Ultimately, this is a movie about a woman taking a bet on herself for perhaps the first time ever. Her actualization is not going to come through a boyfriend, a job or a makeover, but by sitting down and finally putting pen to paper. It may not be a strict adaptation, but it has Jane Austen's soul. 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' a Sony Pictures Classics release in theaters Friday, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for 'some sexual content, nudity, language.' Running time: 94 minutes. Three stars out of four.
Winnipeg Free Press
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Movie Review: Romance and writer's block in bilingual rom-com ‘Jane Austen Wrecked My Life'
Agathe is celibate by choice. The 30-something hero of filmmaker Laura Piani's feature debut 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' played by the luminous Camille Rutherford, hasn't so much been ruined by Austen as she has been made acutely aware of her own limitations in both romance and literature. Neither she nor anyone else is good enough to make any big moves for. So, she sticks to the routine. She works at the legendary Parisian bookstore Shakespeare and Co., and bikes home, where she lives with her sister and young nephew. Sometimes she goes out to dinner. For what it's worth, Agathe also happens to epitomize French girl chic with her Breton stripes, red pout and effortlessly disheveled hair. There should be Instagram accounts devoted to her navy hooded parka. Life isn't bad, it's just not moving forward. And whatever is going to get her out of this self-imposed rut is going to be something special — she's read too many great books to accept anything less. Standards are great and all, but really, of course, it's Agathe who has to get out of her own way. And she does, one night, in a sake-induced daze in which she dreams up the first couple of chapters of a romance. Her best friend Félix (Pablo Pauly) gives her the push she needs and secretly submits the pages to a Jane Austen writers residency, where she's accepted and invited to spend a few weeks. Before she gets on the ferry (a hurdle in and of itself), Félix, a known serial dater and 'breadcrumber,' kisses her. It's the kind of development, a platonic friendship turned complicated, that's enough to properly distract an already reluctant writer with an impostor complex. When she arrives, there's another handsome distraction awaiting her: Oliver (Charlie Anson), a British literature professor and Austen's 'great great great great nephew' who thinks that the 'Pride and Prejudice' author is overrated. Agathe doesn't know he also speaks French until after she's complained about his arrogance to her sister within his earshot. It's a classic kind of setup, not exactly Mr. Darcy, but not not that either. Shared lodgings, even at a rather large, idyllic English estate, only ratchet up the will-they-won't-they tension as they see each other everywhere: walks in the woods, breakfast, after-dinner readings. And it's not without its slightly more cliche hijinks, like Agathe stripping down to nothing and opening a door to what she believes is the bathroom. It's not. Piani has constructed a rare gem in 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' which manages to be literary without being pretentious. Its title is cheekily hyperbolic but has some truth to it as well. Modern romances for Austen disciples are bound to disappoint but, in this environment, they can justify having a costumed ball. The event is a swoony, romantic affair where we get to see the love triangle play out in all its glorious awkwardness. But while 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' certainly qualifies as a romantic comedy, the question of whom she ends up with is kind of beside the point. Don't worry, choices are made, but the way it plays out is both unexpected and gratifying — a clear-eyed portrait of why Agathe's singledom is not the problem. There's even a Frederick Wiseman cameo involved. Ultimately, this is a movie about a woman taking a bet on herself for perhaps the first time ever. Her actualization is not going to come through a boyfriend, a job or a makeover, but by sitting down and finally putting pen to paper. It may not be a strict adaptation, but it has Jane Austen's soul. 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' a Sony Pictures Classics release in theaters Friday, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for 'some sexual content, nudity, language.' Running time: 94 minutes. Three stars out of four.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Movie Review: Romance and writer's block in bilingual rom-com ‘Jane Austen Wrecked My Life'
Agathe is celibate by choice. The 30-something hero of filmmaker Laura Piani's feature debut 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' played by the luminous Camille Rutherford, hasn't so much been ruined by Austen as she has been made acutely aware of her own limitations in both romance and literature. Neither she nor anyone else is good enough to make any big moves for. So, she sticks to the routine. She works at the legendary Parisian bookstore Shakespeare and Co., and bikes home, where she lives with her sister and young nephew. Sometimes she goes out to dinner. For what it's worth, Agathe also happens to epitomize French girl chic with her Breton stripes, red pout and effortlessly disheveled hair. There should be Instagram accounts devoted to her navy hooded parka. Life isn't bad, it's just not moving forward. And whatever is going to get her out of this self-imposed rut is going to be something special — she's read too many great books to accept anything less. Standards are great and all, but really, of course, it's Agathe who has to get out of her own way. And she does, one night, in a sake-induced daze in which she dreams up the first couple of chapters of a romance. Her best friend Félix (Pablo Pauly) gives her the push she needs and secretly submits the pages to a Jane Austen writers residency, where she's accepted and invited to spend a few weeks. Before she gets on the ferry (a hurdle in and of itself), Félix, a known serial dater and 'breadcrumber,' kisses her. It's the kind of development, a platonic friendship turned complicated, that's enough to properly distract an already reluctant writer with an impostor complex. When she arrives, there's another handsome distraction awaiting her: Oliver (Charlie Anson), a British literature professor and Austen's 'great great great great nephew' who thinks that the 'Pride and Prejudice' author is overrated. Agathe doesn't know he also speaks French until after she's complained about his arrogance to her sister within his earshot. It's a classic kind of setup, not exactly Mr. Darcy, but not not that either. Shared lodgings, even at a rather large, idyllic English estate, only ratchet up the will-they-won't-they tension as they see each other everywhere: walks in the woods, breakfast, after-dinner readings. And it's not without its slightly more cliche hijinks, like Agathe stripping down to nothing and opening a door to what she believes is the bathroom. It's not. Piani has constructed a rare gem in 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' which manages to be literary without being pretentious. Its title is cheekily hyperbolic but has some truth to it as well. Modern romances for Austen disciples are bound to disappoint but, in this environment, they can justify having a costumed ball. The event is a swoony, romantic affair where we get to see the love triangle play out in all its glorious awkwardness. But while 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life' certainly qualifies as a romantic comedy, the question of whom she ends up with is kind of beside the point. Don't worry, choices are made, but the way it plays out is both unexpected and gratifying — a clear-eyed portrait of why Agathe's singledom is not the problem. There's even a Frederick Wiseman cameo involved. Ultimately, this is a movie about a woman taking a bet on herself for perhaps the first time ever. Her actualization is not going to come through a boyfriend, a job or a makeover, but by sitting down and finally putting pen to paper. It may not be a strict adaptation, but it has Jane Austen's soul. 'Jane Austen Wrecked My Life,' a Sony Pictures Classics release in theaters Friday, is rated R by the Motion Picture Association for 'some sexual content, nudity, language.' Running time: 94 minutes. Three stars out of four.
