Discworld comes to Ennistymon

THE Falls Hotel in Ennistymon is to hold the first Irish Discworld Convention next month. This is a huge coup for Ireland and will see the author, Terry Pratchett travel to Clare for the first time.

Idolised by fans across the world, Terry Pratchett’s Discworld novels have reached cult status and every second year, a convention is held in the UK to honour Pratchett and his most intriguing and hilarious characters.
Two of the Clare organisers, who describe themselves as crazy fans of both the author and his works, were given an opportunity in 2007 to be a part of one of the film adaptations of Terry Pratchett’s books, The Colour of Magic. While in the UK, Nicola Murphy and her sister, Mary Ellen, from Tulla became extras in the film and not only got to mingle with the stars of the production but got to meet the man of the hour, Sir Terry Pratchett himself.
Following on from their experience, they went to the British Discworld Convention in 2008 and amazed by what they saw, they set a plan in motion to bring Discworld to life in Ireland and what better place to hold it than in their native Clare.
Nicola, Mary Ellen and their brother’s fiancée, Sheila O’Sullivan, agreed that it could be done and with an informal email to Terry Pratchett’s personal assistant, they got the positive reaction they hoped for – the author would come to Ireland.
The guest of honour has written a series of over 35 Discworld books, selling more than 55 million books worldwide. He has also won numerous awards, including the Carnegie Medal for his Discworld novel The Amazing Maurice and his Educated Rodents. He has been awarded honorary doctorates from seven universities, including Trinity College Dublin. His next book, Unseen Academicals, is due out this month, shortly before the convention. Almost all of his books have been adapted for the stage and several of them have also been adapted for BBC radio and television.
The Clare trio have created a distinctly Irish convention by adding aspects of Irish culture to the format, which is loosely based on the UK convention. The convention itself will take place over the course of four days, running from Friday, November 6 to Monday, November 9 at The Falls Hotel.
Nicola explained that 800 people went to the most recent UK convention and acknowledged that there are so many activities and meet-ups organised in the UK that it was about time that something similar was organised in Ireland, such is the demand.
“You wouldn’t believe how popular it is. It has really taken off,” she said.
Mary Ellen added, “Numbers for the Irish convention have gone up to 250 this week. We have 60 people coming from Manchester. We’ve looked at the registrations and there’s people coming from Singapore, Budapest, Boston, Croatia and even Canada. And we have loads of day memberships coming in.”
There will be a host of activities run over the course of the weekend, including games, talks, interviews and each night there will be a major event.
Friday’s big event is a large céilí, which will be followed by a masquerade on Saturday. Mary Ellen explains that the masquerade will give those participating two minutes to act out a character or potential character from Discworld. These events will all lead up to the main event on Sunday, which will include an interview with Sir Terry Pratchett. The convention will also hold the Oswald Awards on Sunday, which will essentially comprise of a meal in the style and format of the Oscars but with a uniquely Pratchett twist. Those attending can wear a costume based on a Discworld character or they can wear formal attire. The awards will then be presented for best costume, best masquerade, and so on, and will be followed by a live band.
Other guests to attend the convention include Colin Smythe, Terry Pratchett’s agent and the publisher of a number of books dealing with Irish folklore; Jack Cohen, co-author of the Science of Discworld books and Bernard Pearson, also known as The Cunning Artificer, the man behind the models of Discworld characters and sets. The event has also attracted Diane Duane and Peter Morwood, renowned fantasy and science-fiction authors, who are long-time Discworld fans. And appearing by the power of the Internet technology will be the man responsible for adapting many of the Discworld books for the stage, Stephen Briggs.
Rob Wilkins, Terry Pratchett’s personal assistant, will also give a talk on what it’s like to work with Terry after being a fan for so long. There will be crafts, face painting and Discworld games, including Discworld Twister.
Nicola explained that Terry is extremely excited about coming to Clare and especially to see Biddy Early’s cottage, as one of his characters, Granny Weatherwax, is loosely based on Biddy.
It is hoped that the event will run biennially and the girls are also open to others, who would like to take on the project, giving it a go.
More information about the event and how to become a member and get involved is available on-line at http://idwcon.org.